• Recognizes Jesus in the form of bread and wine, which comes to us through the Eucharist and that God, our creator, sends Jesus and the Holy Spirit to help and guide us
• Recognizes that God’s word is experienced through the Bible, and that Mary is the mother of Jesus
• Reflects on the lives of the Saints
• Participates more fully in worship through school and parish liturgies and sacraments
• Calls on God through Prayer
• Learns the parts of the Mass and various devotions, and celebrations
• Continues to develop a personal responsibility, makes choices, follows rules, and learns to live the message of Jesus through service and kindness to others
• Learns formal and informal prayer and liturgical responses
• Prepares for the sacrament of First Eucharist
• Family Life Program

READING

• Develops word analysis, fluency and vocabulary, sight word vocabulary, phonetics, and phonemes
• Participates in a phonics-based reading series
• Reads picture-books, reading series, and beginning to higher level chapter books
• Defines and identifies synonyms, antonyms, compound words, contractions, possessives
• Alphabetizes word lists
• Identifies parts of speech such as verbs, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs

WRITING

• Prints letters and words accurately
• Writes a proper sentence using a subject and predicate
• Composes and prints a five sentence paragraph that includes a topic sentence, three supporting sentences, and a concluding sentence
• Follows a concise writing pattern using beginning, middle, and ending statements
• Uses proper writing mechanics by indenting, capitalizing, using end marks, and proper punctuations
• Edits, revises, rewrites, and publishes written work
• Composes friendly letters
• Writes fictional stories
  
• Produces creative journal writing
• Writes to picture prompts
• Is guided by the teacher to produce a written report utilizing all of these concepts
• Composes beginning reports, poetry, friendly letters and creative writings

• Reviews prior concepts
• Develops number recognition
• Understands number relationships
• Develops understanding of place value
• Practices number estimation and computation
• Solves problems using addition and subtraction
• Learns to add and subtract money
• Recognizes money
• Learns about time, time order, and time interval calculations
• Solves problems by interpreting word problems
• Measures in inches, feet, and yards
• Graphs, interprets, and records data
• Interprets patterns
• Computes two-digit and three-digit addition with regrouping
• Computes two-digit and three-digit subtraction with regrouping
• Introduced to grouping and multiplication

PHYSICAL SCIENCE

• Understands the uses of magnets, magnetism, and magnetic force.
• Recognizes the forces and effects of gravity.
• Investigates how tools and machines are used to apply forces to make things move.
• Learns that sound is made by vibrating objects and can be described by its pitch and volume.

LIFE SCIENCES

• Understands the inter-relationship of our body
• Develops healthy habits
• Understands good nutrition
• Learns the importance of our gift of life
  
• Investigates the sequential stages of life cycles through the study of different animals
• Discovers through light, gravity, touch, or environmental stress can affect the germination, growth and development of plants
• Learns how flowers and fruits are associated with plant reproduction

EARTH SCIENCES

• Discover the physical properties of rocks, minerals, and the effects of weathering
• Recognize soil is composed of various materials to support plant life
• Explore Earth’s past history through the study of fossils
• Knows how rock, water, plant and soil provide many resources

INVESTIGATION AND EXPERIMENTATION

• Make predictions based on observed patterns
• Measure length, weight temperature, and liquid volume with appropriate tools and express those measurements in standard metric system units
• Compare and sort common objects according to two or more physical attributes
• Write or draw descriptions of observations
• Construct bar graphs to represent data
• Use magnifiers or microscopes
• Follow oral instructions for scientific investigation

•  Demonstrates map skills using map keys,legends, and the compass rose
• Locates neighborhoods on maps and charts
• Learns about countries, states, continents, and oceans
• Understands the purpose of basic laws and citizenship
• Learns about holidays celebrated in the United States and other countries
• Explores family history and ancestors
• Learns and describes contributions of famous people, heroes and heroines
• Understands the importance of individual action and character
• Explains how people from our past and present make a difference in the lives of others
• Learns about African-Americans and their contributions

• Becomes familiar with hands-on computer experiences with games
• Demonstrates proper care of computer equipment
• Uses software applications appropriate to subject matter
• Becomes familiar with the keyboard
• Uses technical and directional keys and terms included in our computer system

•  Participates in motor skill activities to increase coordination through warm-up, running, hopping, jumping, and rhythmic movement without music
• Participates in activities that enhance balance,endurance, strength and agility, and ball handling skills.
• Uses apparatus and jump ropes
• Participates in games with groups or a partner
• Develops fundamental skills in individual and team sports
  
• Participates in games and activities to enhance self- image, practice self-discipline, self-control in relation to others
• Develops appropriate play etiquette for winning and losing through activities, which promote physical fitness
• Develops an understanding for physical health and nutrition

ART

• Develops visual and tactile perception by using and  mixing colors to a variety of tints and shades
• Develops creative expression by making mosaics and collages
• Draws basic shapes and compositions of self, family, groups, and scenery
• Uses a variety of mediums such as chalk, oil pastels, watercolor, tempera, fabrics and yarn
• Studies our visual art heritage and develops art appreciation
• Learns about styles of art and famous artists
• Learn to recognize the importance of artistic expression in our culture
  

MUSIC

• Recognizes tone, tempo, and dynamic aspects of music
• Identifies meter, major scale with 8 tones, melody by step, skip and repeated tones
• Develops creative expression through singing songs, hymns with accurate pitch, tempo, dynamics, and phrasing
• Participates in group assembly singing and performances
• Practices attentive listening skills
• Experiences multicultural, ethnic, and liturgical music
• Listens to and appreciates live and recorded music including classical and modern

• Natural History Museum           
• San Diego Zoo

Parents are encouraged to participate in daily reading. A variety of picture books and children’s Storybooks are readily available at your local library.  Daily reading to our first grader is highly recommended

BOOK LISTS:

The Brand New Kid   CouricI

Did It, I’m Sorry    Buechner

Magic Tree House Collection    Osborne

Junie B. Jones    Park

Geronimo Stilton