Language Arts in Lower School
The Shipley Lower School language arts program emphasizes expressive, receptive, and written language concepts and skills across the curriculum. Our goal is for children to develop the confidence to express and explore their ideas through oral and written language while critically analyzing and integrating through readings and discussion the perspectives and ideas of others. Public speaking is a critical component of classroom life as children actively participate in daily meetings and discussions: debating ideas, responding to stories, and negotiating the community norms and expectations. Opportunities for public speaking are woven into the curriculum through oral presentations, performances, and the sharing of work, as well as into the cultural life of the school through assemblies and leadership opportunities. At Shipley, we see public speaking as integral to children’s ownership over learning and an important characteristic of their membership within the school community.
The Pre-K language arts curriculum is designed to nurture children’s love of literacy and storytelling, while developing an understanding of alphabetic principals and print concepts. Combining a whole language and skills based approach, the Pre-K classroom constitutes a language rich environment enhanced through the use of the Blueprint for Literacy program, built around 130 award-winning children’s book and developed by the Children’s Literacy Initiative. In Pre-K, writing is experimental, sound-based, and incorporated into children’s play, social studies activities, and the daily routines of classroom life.
The language arts curriculum in Kindergarten through second grade focuses on developing and strengthening foundational literacy concepts and skills, as children enter into the world of readers and writers. We implement the Wilson Fundations program, a research-based phonological/phonemic awareness, phonics and spelling program that promotes critical thinking, speaking and listening skills as well as develops children’s vocabulary. Children also participate in guided reading groups that combine whole language, balanced literacy, and skill-based instruction. Consistent with Shipley’s educational philosophy, these groups are ability-based but incorporate flexible grouping to account for the individual progression of each child as she or he learns to read. Along with guided reading, time is set aside for reading books aloud to the whole class, as well as for children to explore books independently and with their friends. Beginning in second grade independent reading is introduced as a daily routine in the classroom. Process writing, introduced in Kindergarten, takes children through the stages of planning, writing, editing, and publishing their written work. Research and expository writing is introduced in second grade. In conjunction with the Fundations program, first grade students begin the transition from sound spelling to more conventional spelling as they focus each week on mastering particular phonics patterns, while cursive handwriting practice begins in second grade.
The Pre-K language arts curriculum is designed to nurture children’s love of literacy and storytelling, while developing an understanding of alphabetic principals and print concepts. Combining a whole language and skills based approach, the Pre-K classroom constitutes a language rich environment enhanced through the use of the Blueprint for Literacy program, built around 130 award-winning children’s book and developed by the Children’s Literacy Initiative. In Pre-K, writing is experimental, sound-based, and incorporated into children’s play, social studies activities, and the daily routines of classroom life.
The language arts curriculum in Kindergarten through second grade focuses on developing and strengthening foundational literacy concepts and skills, as children enter into the world of readers and writers. We implement the Wilson Fundations program, a research-based phonological/phonemic awareness, phonics and spelling program that promotes critical thinking, speaking and listening skills as well as develops children’s vocabulary. Children also participate in guided reading groups that combine whole language, balanced literacy, and skill-based instruction. Consistent with Shipley’s educational philosophy, these groups are ability-based but incorporate flexible grouping to account for the individual progression of each child as she or he learns to read. Along with guided reading, time is set aside for reading books aloud to the whole class, as well as for children to explore books independently and with their friends. Beginning in second grade independent reading is introduced as a daily routine in the classroom. Process writing, introduced in Kindergarten, takes children through the stages of planning, writing, editing, and publishing their written work. Research and expository writing is introduced in second grade. In conjunction with the Fundations program, first grade students begin the transition from sound spelling to more conventional spelling as they focus each week on mastering particular phonics patterns, while cursive handwriting practice begins in second grade.
In third through fifth grade, the language arts curriculum is built around literary genres including realistic fiction, poetry, biography, fantasy, and mystery, as well as non-fiction content-focused texts associated with social studies and science curriculum. Literature response journals are introduced as vehicles for children to demonstrate literal, inferential, and evaluative levels of comprehension. Regular book discussions, written responses, artistic interpretations, and drama, offer diverse opportunities for children to deepen and demonstrate their comprehension skills as well as nurture an appreciation of literature and reading. In fourth grade historical fiction relating to their yearlong study of early American history takes center stage. While in fifth grade the focus shifts to early adolescent fiction, exploring ethical and moral dilemmas. In both grades, specific skills covered include recalling details and main ideas, sequencing, summarizing, drawing conclusions, making inferences, determining cause and effect, and identifying themes.
In third through fifth grade, children continue to explore creative and expository writing using the process writing approach as they experiment with different forms of writing, such as narrative, informational and expository, report and procedural, descriptive, and persuasive. Conventional spelling, language use, and grammar skills are taught within the context of reading and writing. In fifth grade, children consolidate the reading and writing skills necessary for success in middle school.
The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.
