School Programs :: Kindergarten
The kindergarten curriculum at Lafayette elementary School integrates reading, writing, science, mathematics, social studies, the arts and music. The goal is to help a child feel comfortable, confident and excited in their school experience. Academically, the emphasis is on beginning at each child's present developmental level and continuing from that point to develop skills that will carry the child forward in his/her academic growth. During half-day kindergarten classes, children participate in a variety of classroom activities as a whole group, in small groups and individually. In addition, students spend two periods a week in music, PE, one period in art, and one period a week developing and extending library skills. Through Lafayette Elementary School's "Character Matters" curriculum, kindergarten instruction also provides for social and emotional development by emphasizing appropriate ways to function in a classroom community, as well as within the whole school community.
Sample Unit - Africa: Our Africa unit integrates literacy, math, social studies and writing. During the unit, kindergarteners listen to and read stories about Africa, create maps of Africa, work on basic mathematical concepts such as counting and pattern recognition by using African beads and by printing African-themed fabric. Children participate in an in-school field trip from the Museum of Nature and Science.
Social Studies: Kindergarteners enthusiasm and curiosity provide teaching teams with a wonderful opportunity to introduce global concepts such as community, various holidays, living things, and continents (Africa and Antarctica). Basic map skills, questioning and the notion of history are important ideas which we discuss in kindergarten.
Science: Kindergarten scientists learn about all sorts of concepts such as germs, trees, fabric, nutrition, wood, paper, weather, the five senses and animals and plants. Underlying this variety of topics are basic themes of building investigation skills and beginning to understand living organisms and matter.
Writing: Writing at LES progresses throughout the year from generating ideas (Sept/Oct), to organization (Nov/Dec), to sentence fluency (Jan/Feb) to conventions (March/April) and finally to revisions (May). Within those topics, skills such as using pictures, creating letters, words, sentences are practiced. Students also review intended audience, sentence structure, various writing forms and high frequency words.
Reading: Kindergarteners come to LES with a wide range of reading skills. The Lafayette Elementary School teaching team individually evaluates students' reading skills. Students are exposed to a variety of genres including folk tales, traditional fairy tales, poetry and informational text. Basics such as letter/sound recognition, rhyming, syllables, final sounds, vowel sounds, relationship between words and pictures are taught. In addition, kindergarteners are taught reading strategies, high frequency words, decoding and participate in text discussion. ALL kindergarteners find reading at LES fun and engaging.
Math: Kindergarten introduces students to basic concepts such as patterns, number sense, measurement, geometry, counting and number systems as well as time in order to provide a basic math foundation. Recognizing numbers, counting in ones and tens, reading temperatures, recognizing relationships (i.e. greater than/less than), telling time, basic addition and subtraction are just some of the skills that kindergarteners work on. The goal of kindergarten math is to ensure students enjoy and are very comfortable with their math 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.
Basic Information: Kindergarten is a fun and exciting school experience! Below is some basic information that you may find helpful. Please do not hesitate to attend an open enrollment information session to learn more. In addition, LES hosts kindergarten orientation evenings for families with incoming kindergarteners. Please feel free to contact the school if you have any questions or concerns.
Snack: Kindergartners are provided with a healthy snack everyday. We work hard to make sure snacks accommodate food allergies.
Bus Service: For kindergarteners who live in areas with bus service, morning kindergarteners may take the bus to school while afternoon kindergarteners can take the bus home. Buses are dedicated elementary school buses and do not transport older student with elementary-aged students.
Volunteers: We LOVE volunteers! There are many ways to help out. From in-class assistance, to take home projects, to helping with special events, volunteering is a wonderful way to help and get to know the LES community. Teachers will provide volunteer sign-up sheets on "Meet the Teacher Nights".
Communication: All BVSD students have Friday Folders provided by the school. These folders go home each week with the student and have information for parents as well as their child's work and homework. In addition, parents and guardians are encouraged to sign up for the LES email.
After School Activities: There are opportunities for Kindergarteners to participate in a variety of after school activities.
Information Sessions: The spring before a child enters kindergarten, LES holds kindergarten orientation. This allows families to meet teachers, ask questions, and begin familiarizing the child with the school. In addition, the PTO hosts informal play dates for incoming kindergarteners and their parents/caretakers during the summer.