All-Star Academics
Holistic, Individualized Curriculum
Objective
Here at All-Star Academy we focus on developing each child's mind, body, character, and spirit with holistic or "whole child" education in a small classroom setting. All of our curriculum is research-based, data-driven and rooted in adaptability to be able to develop and inspire each student to their fullest potential in light of differences or exceptionalities. Each child's report card provides observation into your child's academic skills and social-emotional development.
1st/2nd Grade Classroom May 2021
Lower Elementary Curriculum
Language Arts - Wonders Literacy Curriculum
Wonders is designed to foster a love of reading in all children.
Wonders offers us the ability to adapt instruction as students grow. The curriculum aligns with our focus on teaching the whole child—and every child—to prepare students to be lifelong learners and critical thinkers. Combining the work of literacy experts with research on social emotional learning, Wonders helps us strengthen skills, bolster learning, and encourage independence in our classrooms, every day.
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Mathematics - Mindful Math Curriculum
Mindful Math focuses on hands-on, engaging lessons. It encourages different ways of thinking and representing math concepts, including many opportunities and options for differentiation. Lessons encourage students to show their understanding in different ways and practice math concepts with or without supports. Mindful math lessons provide different levels of difficulty. Activities, games, and centers can be done in small groups to provide more support, independently for our more advanced learners, or in partners. Mindful math helps strengthen mathematical skills, encourage curiosity, and foster critical thinking skills.
Social Studies - Tribal Sovereignty • World Cultural Traditions
We teach Tribal sovereignty lessons that develop an understanding of Native American spiritual values through stories. Through these stories students also learn about the plants, animals, and geography of Washington State. Next, to expand our students worldly understanding, we choose a country to learn about each month. We learn about and celebrate important holidays; such as "Holi - Celebration of Colors" for the Indian tradition. We also teach about a culture's music, food, and key historical events.
Lower Elementary Report Card
Science - Little Science Thinkers
Like math, science is focused on finding patterns. However, the patterns are explored in the natural world. Some units are listed below. In all, we focus on hands on, engaging lessons that spark curiosity. Our lessons include adaptable independent work, partner projects, and group work.
Unit 1: Light and Sound
Unit 2: Space
Unit 3: Earth’s Surface
Unit 4: Survival of Living Things
Unit 5: Weather
Upper Elementary Curriculum
Humanities -
Our Upper Elementary Humanities program builds on the natural connection between Social Studies and Language Arts. This interdisciplinary approach benefits students because the more connections they make with academic content, the more they retain.
Our classes are organized around essential questions, encouraging students to discover their own answers and truly make the learning their own. While the three subjects are integrated, each has its own class time to ensure a balanced approach.
Writing -
Writing Essential Questions:
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How can I best harness words to express my thoughts?
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How do the steps of the writing process strengthen my work?
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How does feedback best improve writing?
Writing Overview:
Everyone has stories to tell and thoughts to share. Our Upper Elementary writing program focuses on using writing conventions and structure to develop and polish ideas.
During 5th and 6th grade, students establish the writing patterns they will use throughout their academic career. Accordingly, we focus on the writing process with multiple drafts and varied feedback so they internalize the importance of revision and editing. This sets them up for success in expressing their thoughts and interpretations. Students are energized and enthused as they see their writing improve over time and discover the beauty and power of their authentic voices.
Literature -
Literature Essential Questions:
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Why read this?
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How do authors harness words to express meaning?
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What makes a “good read”?
Literature Overview:
The overall goal is to instill a love of reading. Students choose books to read independently and also engage in book groups during class where students read, discuss, and analyze literature together, using their peers to help promote their understanding of the text. To demonstrate their reading experience, students have a wide choice of reading projects such as writing a song inspired by the book, rewriting a chapter from a different character’s point-of-view, designing character posters complete with graphics and quotes, or creating a board game based on their book. This allows students to interact with the text on levels besides analytical writing, and helps develop student intelligence and ability in varied arenas.
Mathematics -
Along with work in the text, students are involved in cooperative problem-solving activities, use of manipulatives, games and puzzles. Homework is for exploration and enrichment or for the purpose of completing work begun in class. We emphasize strategies for using math skills to solve problems. Math level is determined by student ability rather than by grade.
Students are encouraged to ask questions of each other’s work and not only learn from the teacher, but also from each other. They share and work as a community of mathematicians to build on their knowledge and understanding of mathematics.
Featured Topics:
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Operations and whole numbers
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Operations with decimals and fractions
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Place value
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Non-metric and metric
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Geometry
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Economics
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Ratio and proportions
Arts and Crafts -
All-Star’s fifth and sixth grade art program introduces basic drawing, design, and three-dimensional craft skills. Students draw from life, memory, and imagination in a wide variety of dry and wet media while learning the basics of composition and perspective. Craft and sculpture projects introduce media such as weaving, papier mâché, and clay to build the foundations of three-dimensional expression.
5th/6th Grade Student Master Transcript
Social Studies -
Social Studies Essential Questions:
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How do geography and climate affect human societies?
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How does the past influence the present?
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What do various civilizations share, and what is unique?
Social Studies Overview
Upper elementary Social Studies curriculum alternates by year. One year begins with Early Man and moves through the Hellenistic Period; the next year focuses on American History from Pre-Colonial America to 1900. Rather than learning dates and events as ends within themselves, we cover dates and events to set up background knowledge so that students can engage in historical inquiry, using facts and documents to answer historical questions. It is more meaningful and interesting for students to develop their own answer about how Abraham Lincoln viewed African-Americans based on primary source documents than to learn what a history book says about his views. Much of our Social Studies work is based on the the Reading Like a Historian approach from Stanford University’s Education School.
Science -
In intermediate science we focus on the earth sciences, studying topics such as soil science, rocks and minerals, plate tectonics, weather, and astronomy. We learn about these topics through inquiry-based hands-on activities. We follow each activity with discussions and writing assignments that help the students to cement their learning and assign appropriate scientific terminology to the concepts that they explored during the activities. The students regularly practice identifying relevant scientific evidence and using that evidence to draw conclusions. We use the forest on campus to augment the curriculum and give the students a chance to design and carry out ecological research.
Drama -
Throughout the year, the fifth and sixth graders explore the world, inside and out. We take monthly field trips to extraordinary places – museums, galleries, parks, and scenic and historical wonders. Each exploration is accompanied by reflections, both shared and individual – through poetry and prose, and the use of drama improv and games to comprehend the environment in which we live.
Optional Specialist Classes
Cognitive Ability Advancement Training Your child will first take the Woodcock Johnson Test of Cognitive Abilities administered by an outside, Licensed Clinician to gain a baseline of cognitive ability performance in general intellectual ability, broad and narrow cognitive abilities, academic domain-specific aptitudes, and related aspects of cognitive functioning. The test results include your child's predicted achievement and intellectual ability scores. Based upon your child's individual cognitive ability scores, they will be guided to perform fun "games" on the trampoline that will advance their cognitive development in the areas they need it most and, accordingly, raise their intellectual abilities and predicted achievement as evidenced by a follow-up test.
Cognitive Ability Advancement Training
Bible Studies -
Books we utilize:
Mindfulness Meditation -
Mindfulness meditation, at its simplest, is paying attention to what is happening in the present moment. It may be what you’re feeling, hearing, or anything else you notice. There’s no special place of calm you have to reach and it’s not about clearing your mind, it’s just an honest and kind look at what you’re experiencing in this moment. When we teach mindfulness to kids, we equip them with tools to build self-esteem, manage stress, and skillfully approach challenges.
Children are uniquely suited to benefit from mindfulness practice. Habits formed early in life will inform behaviors in adulthood, and with mindfulness, we have the opportunity to give our children the habit of being peaceful, kind and accepting.
