WHAT YOUR CHILD WILL LEARN
Our Curriculum
Built on 26+ years of teaching experience — not state testing benchmarks. We focus on the core skills students truly need at each grade level, taught in a warm and joyful environment.
📖 Reading & ELA
Real novels. Rich discussions. A genuine love of reading — built to last a lifetime.
🔢 Math
Understanding the “why” behind every concept — not just memorizing steps.
✏️ Writing
From personal narratives to research essays — students become confident writers.
🌟 1st Grade ELA & Math
4 classes per week · 50 min. each · IXL-aligned curriculum
📖 Phonics & Reading Foundations
- Consonants, vowels, rhyming, and syllables
- Short and long vowel sounds and patterns
- Consonant blends, digraphs, and silent e
- R-controlled vowels and vowel teams
- High-frequency and sight words
- Decodable texts across all vowel patterns
📚 Reading Comprehension
- Main idea and supporting details
- Story elements: setting, character, and plot
- Sequence of events and problem/solution
- Making inferences and predictions
- Author’s purpose and point of view
- Literary and informational texts
✏️ Grammar & Vocabulary
- Sentences: statements, questions, exclamations, commands
- Nouns (common, proper, plural, possessive)
- Pronouns and verbs; subject-verb agreement
- Synonyms, antonyms, and multiple-meaning words
- Prefixes, suffixes, and context clues
- ABC order and reference skills
🔢 Math — Number Sense & Operations
- Counting to 120; skip-counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s
- Comparing and ordering numbers
- Addition facts and strategies up to 20
- Subtraction facts and strategies up to 20
- Fact families and mixed operations
- Addition and subtraction word problems
📏 Math — Place Value & Measurement
- Tens and ones; place value understanding
- Comparing two-digit numbers
- Adding and subtracting tens
- Measuring length with non-standard units
- Telling time to the hour and half-hour
- Identifying and sorting shapes
📝 Writing Skills
- Writing complete sentences with capital letters and punctuation
- Narrative writing: beginning, middle, and end
- Informational writing: facts about a topic
- Opinion writing: stating a preference with a reason
- Spelling patterns aligned to phonics instruction
- Building stamina and confidence as a writer
1st grade is where the love of learning takes root. Our focus is on building confident, joyful readers and mathematicians — children who feel capable and excited to grow. Every lesson is designed to be engaging, encouraging, and age-appropriate.
🌱 2nd Grade — ELA & Math
4 classes per week · 50 min. each · Full ELA & Math Curriculum
📖 Reading
- Fiction: characters, setting, main idea, key details
- Predictions, inferences, problem & solution
- Sequencing, themes, point of view, cause & effect
- Non-Fiction: main idea, key details, charts & graphs
🔢 Math
- Place value, add & subtract up to five digits
- Round and compare numbers
- Time to the minute, measurement
- Bar graphs, picture graphs, line plots
- Basic 2D & 3D shapes, perimeter, area
- Multiplication concepts & facts, division concepts
- Fractions of a group and a whole
✏️ Grammar
- Nouns (singular, plural, proper)
- Verbs (action, helping, linking, tenses)
- Adjectives, adverbs, prepositions
- Commas, capitalization, punctuation
- Conjunctions, sentence types
📝 Writing
- Personal Narrative & Journaling
- Opinion writing
- Informational writing
- Creative Fiction & Poetry
- Sentence structure: subject, predicate, details
Workbooks: IXL Ultimate Math Workbook, Lucky Little Learners Phonics
Novels: Felix Powell, Boy Dog (Erin Entrada Kelly), Stink and the Incredible Jawbreaker (Megan McDonald), Miss Daisy is Crazy (Dan Gutman)
“Each class begins with a 10-minute academic warm-up and community-building activity. Our classroom is kind, caring, supportive, and just a little bit crazy — students learn best when they feel comfortable and safe!”
📗 3rd Grade — ELA & Math
4 classes per week · 50 min. each · Full ELA & Math Curriculum
📖 Reading
- Fiction: characters, setting, main idea, key details & events
- Predictions, inferences, problem & solution, sequencing
- Themes, point of view, cause & effect
- Non-Fiction: main idea, key details, reading graphs, charts & pictures
🔢 Math
- Place value to 100,000; add & subtract up to five digits
- Round & compare numbers; time to the minute
- Volume, mass, bar graphs, picture graphs, line plots
- Basic 2D & 3D shapes, triangles, quadrilaterals, angles
- Perimeter & area; fractions (equivalent, comparing)
- Multiplication concepts & facts to 100; division concepts & facts
✏️ Grammar — Sadlier Oxford
- Nouns: singular, plural, proper
- Verbs: action, helping, linking, tenses, agreement
- Adjectives, adverbs, prepositions
- Commas, titles, abbreviations, dialogue
- Conjunctions, capitalization, punctuation
📝 Writing
- Personal Narrative & Journaling
- Opinion writing
- Informational writing
- Mystery, Fiction, Poetry
- Sentence writing: subject, predicate, details, avoiding run-ons
Workbooks: IXL Ultimate Math Workbook, Sadlier Oxford Grammar Workshop — Green Level
Novels: Third Grade Angels (Jerry Spinelli), Otter (Katherine Applegate), Dogtown (Katherine Applegate & Gennifer Choldenko), The Lost Library (Wendy Mass & Rebecca Stead), The One and Only Ivan (Katherine Applegate)
“Class structure follows the proven ‘I do, We do, You do’ approach. Classes begin with walk-up music, a greeting, news, review, or a game — then move into direct instruction with games, group practice, and student interaction throughout.”
📘 4th Grade — ELA & Math
4 classes per week · 50 min. each · Full ELA & Math Curriculum
📖 Reading
- Fiction & nonfiction comprehension
- Characters, main idea, sequencing
- Inferences, cause & effect, themes
- Author’s purpose, text structure, literary devices
🔢 Math
- Place value, multiplication, division
- Fractions & decimals
- Geometry, graphing, measurement
- Multi-step word problems
✏️ Grammar
- Nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions
- Conjunctions, capitalization, punctuation
- Sentence types and structures
📝 Writing
- Multi-paragraph narrative, opinion, informational
- Poetry and creative fiction
- Organization, adding details, conclusions, supporting arguments
Workbooks: IXL Ultimate Math Workbook, Sadlier Oxford Grammar Workshop — Orange Level, 108 Greek and Latin Roots (YSA), Grammar Madness (YSA), Full Circle Math (YSA)
Novels: Medusa, Myth of Monsters (Katherine Marsh), The Land of Roar (Jenny McLachlan), The Witches (Roald Dahl), The War that Saved My Life (Kimberly Brubaker Bradley), The Picasso Curse (Dan Gutman)
“Progress reports provided twice per semester. Monthly classroom newsletter keeps families informed. Each class begins with a 10-minute warm-up and community-building activity — relationships are always first.”
📙 5th Grade — ELA & Math
4 classes per week · 50 min. each · Full ELA & Math Curriculum
📖 Reading
- Characters, setting, main idea, predictions, inferences
- Problem & solution, theme, author’s purpose & perspective
- Text structure, literary devices, cause & effect
🔢 Math — IXL Ultimate Math Workbook (5th Grade)
- Place value to 1,000,000,000; round & compare numbers
- Add & subtract including decimals; word problems
- Measurement: customary & metric, conversions
- Graphing: bar, picture, line plots, stem & leaf
- Geometry: 2D & 3D shapes, triangles, quadrilaterals, angles, perimeter, area, volume
- Fractions: all operations, simplify, compare unlike denominators
- Decimals: place value, fractions to decimals, conversion
- Multi-digit multiplication & division
- Prime & composite; LCM, GCF, Powers of 10
- Variable expressions; coordinate plane geometry; statistics
✏️ Grammar & Vocabulary — Sadlier Oxford (Blue Edition)
- Nouns: singular, plural, common, possessive, proper
- Verbs: action, helping, linking, tenses, agreement
- Adjectives, adverbs, prepositions
- Commas, titles, abbreviations, dialogue
- Conjunctions & subordinating conjunctions
- Suffixes, prefixes, synonyms, antonyms, context clues
Writing: Personal Narrative & Journaling, Opinion, Informational, Mystery & Fiction, Poetry, Compare & Contrast, Book Trailer, Research Project
Workbooks: IXL Ultimate Math Workbook, Sadlier Oxford Grammar Workshop — Blue Level
Novels: The Second Life of Snap (Erin Entrada Kelly), Holes (Louis Sachar), The Genius Files (Dan Gutman), The Lightning Thief (Rick Riordan), The Bletchley Riddle (Ruta Sepetys & Steve Sheinkin)
“My goal is to make learning as happy and stress-free as possible! My classroom is fast-paced and interactive — kind, caring, supportive, productive, silly, and just a little bit crazy. Students can only learn when they feel comfortable and safe. I provide that environment, then watch as their learning soars!”
📕 6th Grade ELA & Math
4 classes per week · 50 min. each · ELA (2 days) · Math (2 days) · IXL-aligned
📖 ELA — Reading, Writing & Grammar
📖 Reading Skills
- Themes and universal subjects
- Literary devices and figurative language
- Close reading skills
- Characters, literary elements, and story structure
- Exploration of diverse cultures, backgrounds & time periods
📝 Writing Skills
- Literary analysis
- Personal narrative
- Brainstorm, outline, and collect evidence
- Essay revision techniques
- Writing as a powerful tool for expression
✏️ Grammar Skills
- Commonly confused words
- Proper punctuation
- Sentence types
- Capitalization rules
- Vocabulary in context
🎯 Class Structure
- Each session opens with a community-building activity
- Direct instruction + interactive practice
- Student discussion and collaboration
- Projects, essays, and vocabulary games
- Flexible for all learners — enrichment available
🔢 Math — IXL-Aligned Curriculum
🔢 Number Sense & Operations
- Whole number operations and word problems
- Exponents and powers of ten
- Order of operations
- Prime factorization, GCF & LCM
- Decimal operations (add, subtract, multiply, divide)
- Fraction operations including mixed numbers
➕ Integers & Rational Numbers
- Understanding integers and absolute value
- Comparing and ordering integers
- Add, subtract, multiply & divide integers
- Rational numbers on the number line
- Classifying and comparing rational numbers
📊 Ratios, Rates & Percents
- Writing and identifying equivalent ratios
- Unit rates and rate word problems
- Proportional relationships and scale drawings
- Converting between percents, fractions & decimals
- Tax, tip, discount, and simple interest
📜 Algebra & Expressions
- Writing and evaluating variable expressions
- Equivalent expressions and distributive property
- Combining like terms
- Solving one-step equations
- One-variable inequalities and graphing solutions
📏 Geometry
- Lines, angles, and angle relationships
- Classifying polygons, triangles & quadrilaterals
- Perimeter and area (rectangles, triangles, parallelograms, trapezoids)
- Nets and surface area of 3D figures
- Coordinate plane — all four quadrants
📏 Measurement & Data
- Customary and metric unit conversions
- Converting between Celsius and Fahrenheit
- Consumer math: unit prices, sale prices, coupons
- Identifying independent and dependent variables
- Real-world problem solving across all domains
Workbooks: IXL Ultimate Math Workbook, Sadlier Oxford Grammar Workshop — Violet Level, McGraw Hill Vocabulary Grades 6–8, 3rd Edition (Gary Robert Muschla)
Novels: Writing Grows on Trees (Randi Whitney), Framed! (James Ponti), Survivor Diaries: Avalanche! (Terry Lynn Johnson), Fever 1793 (Laurie Halse Anderson), Belly Up (Stuart Gibbs)
“My goal is for every learner to see reading as an adventure and writing as a powerful tool for expression. With over 31 years of teaching experience, I create a welcoming classroom where students feel confident to take risks, share ideas, and grow their skills.”
📗 7th–8th Grade ELA
3 classes per week · 50 min. each · ELA (Reading, Writing, Grammar) · Socratic Seminar included
Students experience books as mirrors — seeing themselves and making connections to their own lives — and as windows into the lives of others, learning about diverse cultures, backgrounds, and time periods. Students build a reading skill toolbox and writing revision toolbox that will benefit them for upcoming school years and beyond.
✍️ Writing Skills
- Literary analysis essay
- Personal narrative
- Persuasive OpEd
- Research essay
- Brainstorm, outline, and collect evidence
- Multiple essay revision strategies
- MLA format
📖 Reading Skills
- Close reading skills
- Themes and universal subjects
- Literary devices, figurative language, and poetic devices
- Characters, literary elements, and story structure
- Exposure to diverse range of texts
- Socratic Seminar participation
✏️ Grammar Skills
- Commonly confused words
- Proper punctuation
- Sentence types
- Capitalization rules
- New vocabulary throughout the year
🎯 Assessments & Projects
- Multi-draft essays
- Creative projects
- Socratic Seminar
- One written progress report per semester (additional as needed)
Workbooks: Sadlier Oxford Grammar Workshop — Gold Edition, McGraw Hill Vocabulary Grades 6–8, 3rd Edition (Gary Robert Muschla)
Novels: Writing Grows on Trees (Randi Whitney), City Spies (James Ponti), Stone Fox (John Reynolds Gardiner), Words of Fire (Jennifer Nielsen), Ape Escape (Stuart Gibbs)
“I am a calming but energetic and happy teacher. I strive to foster confidence in each child that I work with. I want students to see themselves as writers and readers — because I believe ALL children can learn.”
Ms. Swan, B.S. English & M.A.T. Secondary English · 2024 Teacher of the Year
QUESTIONS ABOUT CURRICULUM?
We’d Love to Tell You More
Every child is different — Kim is happy to talk through which pod is the right fit for your learner. Schedule a free 10-minute “Get to Know You” meeting!