Academics

Lower School

The success of our Lower School centers on building a strong foundation for each child’s educational journey. Our dedicated teachers foster a love of learning through engaging, developmentally appropriate instruction in a supportive and nurturing environment. Small class sizes and flexible instructional groupings in literacy and math allow us to meet students where they are and help them grow with confidence.

What truly sets our program apart is the depth and breadth of enrichment experiences woven into each week. Students benefit from dedicated instruction in art, tinkering, technology, library, music, world languages, physical education, and social-emotional learning (SEL). These rich opportunities spark curiosity, build skills beyond the core curriculum, and are often unmatched in other elementary school settings.

Technology is thoughtfully integrated throughout the curriculum to promote problem-solving, critical thinking, and collaboration—preparing students not just for the next grade, but for a lifetime of learning.

List of 6 items.

Reading

Reading instruction is a comprehensive literacy approach with a focus on phonemic awareness, phonics/morphology, sight words, fluency, and comprehension. Learning happens through whole-group mini-lessons, small guided reading groups, literacy centers, read-alouds, and novel studies. Students are exposed to all genres of literature to develop fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.
Phonics/Word Study

In Kindergarten through second grade, a systematic, explicit, multisensory approach is used to teach phonological awareness (auditory), letter sounds, digraphs, blends, vowel patterns, spelling patterns, and sight words (red words). In grades 3-5, students engage in a structured morphology instruction through a three-part drill focused on prefixes, suffixes, and base words. The goal is to help students break down complex vocabulary containing these word parts to uncover meaning and deepen word understanding.
Writing/Grammar

Instruction follows the writing process and allows students the opportunity to develop and refine strategies for content area writing. Explicit instruction is offered in opinion, expository, narrative, and persuasive/argumentative writing, providing rich opportunities for practice. Students' writing is assessed to develop the use of self-monitoring strategies, with attention to handwriting, grammar/writing conventions, and developmentally appropriate spelling.
Math

The Lower School math program develops students’ abilities to become creative and critical thinkers while promoting the understanding and enjoyment of mathematics through the development of problem solving strategies, reasoning skills, and computational skills. Instruction centers around the four domains of math: place value and number sense, algebraic thinking, measurement and data, and geometry. Frequent activities with visual models and manipulatives help concrete thinkers begin to develop abstract reasoning abilities. Teachers encourage students to take responsibility for their own mathematics learning and to communicate mathematically using the proper vocabulary. Activities and lessons are developed to promote mathematical application to real-world problems.
Social Studies

Our social studies curriculum incorporates all aspects of history, civics, economics, geography, as well as the importance of sustainability and philanthropy. Teachers integrate project learning and literature into the curriculum to create continuity and authenticity to the real world. All grade levels incorporate service learning into their curriculum where students can have an active opportunity to experience the direct impact of philanthropy and volunteerism at an early age.
Science

The New School’s Lower School science program encourages students by building confidence with hands-on experiences and opportunities within the areas of earth, life, physical, and space sciences. There are a variety of imaginative projects, targeted to students’ growth in both methodology and information, which creates an exciting atmosphere around science. They learn the scientific method and have numerous chances to apply and refine their ability to use it. Teaching methods reflect the scientific endeavor, helping students develop their own questions and answers in a creative, yet logical way.