Grouping of Students
Our grouping of students is flexible. Within the class groups
which are detailed below, children are grouped according to reading, math,
other abilities, personal interests, and sometimes according to age.
Placement will also depend on the development of fine motor skills, task
commitment, social and emotional development, and interest in more
abstract tasks.
Early Childhood
Level: Ages 3 to 4
The Early Childhood curriculum seeks to challenge children
intellectually; there is no pressure to push into the academic areas.
Teachers are sensitive to the individual development of young gifted
children and know appropriate learning experiences for them. The
goal of this program is to maximize the social, emotional, physical, and
intellectual development of the children. Children are encouraged to
be active, independent, and creative learners while also learning to be
responsible and cooperative.
Primary Level: Ages 4
to 8
Primary children are flexibly grouped according to reading and math
skills, social and emotional maturity, and intellectual interests.
Many of the activities are individualized and arranged in learning
centers. Reading is introduced in a personal, organic method so that
the important aspects of each child's life are part of her first reading
vocabulary. Just as children select their first oral vocabulary, in
our reading program they select their first reading vocabulary. A
young child selects single words and short sentences while older primary
students write and edit their own stories. As a way of sharing
creative endeavors, children are encouraged to read their stories to other
classes.
Math is a combination of hands-on manipulative,
teacher-led activities, and Kumon. Kumon Math is an individualized,
self-paced, learning approach to math that emphasizes repetition, speed,
and accuracy. Developed over 35 years ago in Japan by Toru Kumon to
help his son, Kumon helps students internalize basic math skills, extend
concentration, and develop task commitment.
Kumon is extremely sequential, thorough, and
systematic. Students are given a diagnostic test to determine their
level of mastery. Mastery means the ability to complete a set of
problems accurately within a specified time frame. If there are
mistakes, the student corrects them. Worksheets are complete when
the student scores 100%. Students master a concept before they move
on to another concept.
Intermediate Level:
Ages 8 to 14
Students in the Intermediate Level are divided into Intermediate I,
Intermediate II and Older Intermediates. Intermediate I & II are
self-contained classes which act as a transition from the Primary Level to
the Older Intermediate level.
The Older Intermediate class, which is departmentalized, consists of a
wide variety of language arts, science, math, PE, computer, Spanish,
music, band, drama, art, and social studies classes. All students at this
level take Kumon and are involved in independent research projects.
Guide to Class Names
University School's class designations do not conform to those
traditionally found at other schools. Our students are generally
significantly more advanced in their academic level than their peers of
the same age. We have the flexibility to have students of a variety
of ages in the same class and have purposefully chosen class names that
are "outside the box" to reflect our philosophy and program.
To help you make a connection with traditional
grade levels, the following list will give you a general idea of the
equivalent grade that each of our classes represents based on students'
ages:
Early Childhood - Preschool (generally 3 and
4 year olds)
Early Primary - PreK (generally 4 and 5 year olds)
Primary 1 - Kindergarten
Primary 2 - 1st Grade
Primary 3 - 2nd Grade
Intermediate 1 - 3rd Grade
Intermediate 2 - 4th Grade
Older Intermediate 5 - 5th Grade
Older Intermediate 6 - 6th Grade
Older Intermediate 7 - 7th Grade
Older Intermediate 8 - 8th Grade
