In Group II, we capitalize on and seek to develop the skills learned in Group I in an atmosphere that celebrates risk-taking, confidence-building, and the joy of learning. Teachers use a variety of multisensory strategies in whole groups, small groups, and individual instruction to accommodate students’ diverse learning styles. Building upon Group I's theme, My Place in the World, Group II students continue to grow as global citizens. Our studies encourage the girls to consider multiple perspectives and teach them to empathize with others; this is a key component to our core work in character education.
Literacy
Critical to the Group II year is the continued focus on reading fluency and comprehension. Our girls begin to apply these skills with greater independence during their Group II year which positions them well for the increased rigor of the Group III curriculum. The reading program consists of a study of books from a variety of genres at each student’s differentiated reading level. Comprehension skills taught include story structure, main idea and details, inferencing, predicting, and questioning. Explicit phonics instruction is delivered through word study of specific rules and patterns. Additionally, sight words are practiced and applied to daily writing and dictation.
Writing is explored as a process that involves idea generation and development through the use of descriptive language, strong verbs, story structure, a strong beginning, and meaningful ending. Pieces of writing are developed and completed through teacher directed lessons and the revision and editing process. Units include constructing personal narratives, exploring the research process and writing nonfiction texts, and creating original poems. Crafting complete sentences and developing thoughts into concise paragraphs are goals of the writing program. Students learn cursive handwriting throughout the year.
Math
Our math program follows the Singapore Math curriculum, which focuses on conceptualization and mastery of topics covered as well as problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. The use of manipulatives and visual representations aid students in their understanding of mathematical concepts. Topics include the study of numbers to 1000, place value, operations, problem-solving strategies, complex word problems, the model-drawing method of solving word problems, mental math strategies, time, money, geometry, measurement, graphs, and fractions.
Social Studies
The Group II girls study world famous buildings with a lens to learn more about cultures and countries around the world. We study buildings based on cultural or historical significance, architectural interest, location, or any unique or significant characteristic. Experiences include field trips, hands-on building activities and projects, writing, and public speaking, concluding with our culminating event, a Famous Buildings Expo.