Curriculum



	Religious Studies Beginning with an appreciation of God as Creator, our students become familiar with the Bible, simple prayers, and a variety of Church celebrations throughout the liturgical year. Second graders prepare for the sacraments of Reconciliation and First Communion as they learn about the saints and the structure of the Mass. The Church is presented as a prayerful, caring, and ministering community of faith in the third grade.
Our program moves from a study of the Commandments in the fourth grade to an appreciation of the sacramental life of the Church to an analysis of the Bible as the Word of God in the sixth grade. In the middle school, our concerns shift from a review of the Biblical life of Jesus Christ and preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation to include time for self-reflection. The thrust of the Diocesan family life curriculum during the middle school years concentrates on the relevant issues of personal growth, respect for life, Christian sexuality, social living, and family relationships. The history of the Catholic Church is an integral component of the first through eighth grade Social Studies curriculum.
All students receive religious instruction every day for a minimum of 150 minutes per week with the addition of a monthly liturgy at 8:30am planned by each grade level and weekly Scripture study. Paraliturgical events such as the blessing of throats, the distribution of ashes, the lighting of classroom Advent wreaths, and the Stations of the Cross are also scheduled along with opportunities for the reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Early Childhood The primary objective of our Pre-Kindergarten program is to provide meaningful experiences for the children that encourage them to develop positive feelings about themselves and their relationship with God and the community around them. We accomplish this goal by structuring a curricular program that stimulates the awareness and curiosity of each child while challenging him/her to recall, apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate their growing knowledge base.		The Kindergarten program is based upon a child-centered developmental approach which combines self-discovery with planned academic activities to enhance the daily education of your child. By providing the learner with optimal chances for success, our staff encourages the psychological and emotional growth of each child in a supportive environment.
Primary (1-3) Our students learn to work together in first grade in solving Mathematics problems dealing with addition and subtraction, place values, time and money. The notion of fractions, measurements, graphing, and basic multiplication are introduced and further reinforced in the second and third grades. Along with building their listening and speaking vocabularies, as skills develop in left-right progression, letter-sound correspondence, and letter formation, the children focus on reading and comprehension as well as a the formal writing process. As part of the Integrated Language Arts curriculum, second and third grade students acquire further skills such as punctuation, the parts of speech, and phonics/spelling rules through a study of literary works. Cursive writing takes precedence during the second semester of the third grade.
	In Science, students study plants and animals, the weather, the five human senses, and a study of oceans and the rain forests. Third grade students delve further into energy and matter, ecology, and space science. Although Pre/Kindergartners develop an appreciation of self and others as well as a working knowledge of the use/function of maps and calendars, first graders explore the family as a basic unit of society through a study of the origins of traditions and customs as well as rules and laws governing families. The Social Studies program in the second and third grade turns to an appreciation of the native American and colonial lifestyles, levels of government, multiculturalism and individual family trees, and our citizenship in the world. Geographic skills using maps and the globe continue to be developed as third grader examine the elements and types of local and global communities such as neighborhoods, towns, and cities.
Intermediate (4-6) In the study of Mathematics our students progress from a two-digit multiplication, averaging, and the addition/subtraction of fractions to more abstract and complex problem-solving involving decimal equivalents and basic geometry using calculators and other manipulatives. Our Language Arts curriculum in the fourth grade concentrates on vocabulary and phonics, silent and oral reading comprehension, plus critical-thinking verbal and written skills. Fifth graders explore various literary genre each month with a required book report or other research project in addition to classwork involving language usage and grammar. The sixth grade curriculum reinforces these skills with a greater emphasis on creative writing.
Throughout the intermediate years, our Science program delves further into general/physical and life sciences using demonstrations, experimentation, and student projects as a complement to the text. Fourth graders expand their world to the history, government, and topology of the state of New Jersey along with various regions of the United States. While the culture, religion, history, geography, and economic systems of Canada, Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean is the focus of fifth grade social studies, sixth grade students investigate all aspects of selected ancient cultures.
Middle School (7-8) The English/Literature curriculum focuses upon the five-step peer-review writing process, the application of abstract verbal reasoning skills, sentence structure, and context-based vocabulary. Students are encouraged to express themselves through the writing and reading of poetry, essays, and short novels as well as through the staging of classical and modern dramas. While basic functions continue to be reviewed, the emphasis of the Mathematics program is a full year course in high school Algebra.
The fundamental principles of biology, chemistry, physics, and earth science are the areas of concern of our junior high Science curriculum. Junior high students examine the historical, political, socio-economic, cultural, and aesthetic dimensions of the United States including the development of America from the 15th century to the end of the Reconstruction period (7th grade) through the twentieth century (8th grade). Discussion of current events, particularly foreign and domestic policy, is an integral component of the social studies curriculum. Junior high students are expected to receive a passing grade in both mid-year and final examinations in each subject area.