School Programs :: First Grade
The first grade curriculum at Lafayette Elementary School continues to integrate reading, writing, science, mathematics, social studies, the arts and music through thematic studies. LES' structured freedom allows students to work at their own pace and nurture individual strengths and areas for continued growth by tapping into the passions and interests of our students. Learning activities are designed to build independence, confidence, while applying concepts to everyday situations. Fluency in reading and math is a goal for all students. Through the structured freedom of gathering resources and asking questions, students invest in their education and begin the lifelong process of learning how to learn. In addition to academic pursuits, students continue Lafayette Elementary School's "Character Matters" curriculum in order to strengthen healthy social and emotional development by emphasizing appropriate ways to function in a classroom community, as well as within the whole school community.
An overview of subject matter is described below. Please note these recaps are not all inclusive and all Lafayette Elementary School curriculum adheres to the BVSD's curriculum standards and goals for 1st grade.
Social Studies: Units for first grade include Mexico (Mayans & Aztecs), World Religions, Egypt and Japan. Within these units, students are asked to compare families, and cultures, past and present. Students are encouraged to place events in chronological order, read, construct, and interpret simple maps and globes. In addition, the notion of government, citizens and the elements of culture are reviewed. As part of these units, students journey to the Arvada Center for the Arts, experience a visit from the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and see the Museo de los Americas.
Science: First graders balance their time between earth science (Pebbles, Sand and Silt and Volcanoes/Geysers), basic physics (Balance and Motion) and biology (Classification of Animals and Plants) Underlying these studies, students learn the basics of scientific investigation such as describing basic properties and comparing and contrasting.
Reading/Writing: Students are exposed to diverse genres including poetry, humorous texts, fairy/folktales and informational texts, while working on basic comprehension skills. Instructors emphasize reading strategies to increase students' fluency and accuracy including basic sight word vocabulary, sentence structure, context clues and decoding strategies. In writing, first graders generate topics for writing and organize their ideas to support the topic. Skills include basic punctuation, correct spelling of high-frequency words and building extended sentences.
Math: While the first part of the year stresses basic number sense, first graders quickly extend these concepts to learn about money, time, addition, subtraction and measurement. In addition, first graders learn basic geometry, word problems and strengthening measuring skills.
Character Traits: Lafayette Elementary School "Character Trait" curriculum reviews positive traits through class discussion, action, integration with curriculum and recognition. The whole school learns about the following attributes. Responsibility (Sept.), Cooperation (Oct.), Generosity (Nov.), Respect (Dec.), Nonviolence (Jan.), Kindness (Feb.), Perseverance (March), Honesty (Apr.), Appreciation (May). Through a multi-year grant, Lafayette Elementary School has a counselor who provides class and small group instruction on conflict resolution and mediation.