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The Lower School fitness program offers students in grades pre-kindergarten through four the opportunity to experience physical education in a structured and supportive atmosphere. The classes participate in a wide variety of activities designed to encourage the development of fundamental motor skills, manipulative skills and movement experience. The students focus on basic ball handling skills, the value of being physically fit and the ability to display appropriate behaviors during class and sports situations. Classes are held both outside on our beautiful fields (when weather permits), as well as in our Lower School multi-purpose room, complete with gym floor, high ceiling and climbing wall. All Lower School classes have fitness class three times per week.

In the Indian Mountain School pre-kindergarten class, 4-year-old children join together to learn, work, and play. Problem-solving skills develop through play, as classmates learn to share and take turns. They make new friends–not only among their peers but also with older children in the school, ranging from kindergarten playmates to third-grade “Reading Buddies” and fourth grade friends too. Pre-kindergarteners grow in habits of mind required for independent learning: the readiness to try new activities and the patience to follow a project through to completion. The children develop phonemic awareness skills, learning to identify letters and sounds as they study topics related to the alphabet. (“Aa” is for apples, so we might make apple pies; “Dd” is for dogs, so we create our own stuffed, sock dogs.) All of the stories we read–fiction and non-fiction alike–are the subject of lively discussion, developing the children’s listening and comprehension skills. Block building, drawing, painting, modeling with clay, and manipulating toys provide enjoyable ways for class members to improve their fine-motor skills. In mathematics, we build number and counting skills and learn about sorting and patterns. The children measure objects and compare their sizes, graph the weather, and learn about place value in numbers as we keep track of the number of days we are at school with our “straw box.” We study topics in science and social studies and we participate in the Lower School’s year-long study theme, such as Native American or Maritime studies. Consistent throughout pre-k, the goal is to nurture each child’s desire to learn, teach them the routines and responsibilities of the beginning school world, and foster their ability to put new skills and knowledge into action.

The Lower School fitness program offers students in grades pre-kindergarten through four the opportunity to experience physical education in a structured and supportive atmosphere. The classes participate in a wide variety of activities designed to encourage the development of fundamental motor skills, manipulative skills and movement experience. The students focus on basic ball handling skills, the value of being physically fit and the ability to display appropriate behaviors during class and sports situations. Classes are held both outside on our beautiful fields (when weather permits), as well as in our Lower School multi-purpose room, complete with gym floor, high ceiling and climbing wall. All Lower School classes have fitness class three times per week.

The Lower School fitness program offers students in grades pre-kindergarten through four the opportunity to experience physical education in a structured and supportive atmosphere. The classes participate in a wide variety of activities designed to encourage the development of fundamental motor skills, manipulative skills and movement experience. The students focus on basic ball handling skills, the value of being physically fit and the ability to display appropriate behaviors during class and sports situations. Classes are held both outside on our beautiful fields (when weather permits), as well as in our Lower School multi-purpose room, complete with gym floor, high ceiling and climbing wall. All Lower School classes have fitness class three times per week.

The Lower School fitness program offers students in grades pre-kindergarten through four the opportunity to experience physical education in a structured and supportive atmosphere. The classes participate in a wide variety of activities designed to encourage the development of fundamental motor skills, manipulative skills and movement experience. The students focus on basic ball handling skills, the value of being physically fit and the ability to display appropriate behaviors during class and sports situations. Classes are held both outside on our beautiful fields (when weather permits), as well as in our Lower School multi-purpose room, complete with gym floor, high ceiling and climbing wall. All Lower School classes have fitness class three times per week.

The Lower School fitness program offers students in grades pre-kindergarten through four the opportunity to experience physical education in a structured and supportive atmosphere. The classes participate in a wide variety of activities designed to encourage the development of fundamental motor skills, manipulative skills and movement experience. The students focus on basic ball handling skills, the value of being physically fit and the ability to display appropriate behaviors during class and sports situations. Classes are held both outside on our beautiful fields (when weather permits), as well as in our Lower School multi-purpose room, complete with gym floor, high ceiling and climbing wall. All Lower School classes have fitness class three times per week.

The Lower School fitness program offers students in grades pre-kindergarten through four the opportunity to experience physical education in a structured and supportive atmosphere. The classes participate in a wide variety of activities designed to encourage the development of fundamental motor skills, manipulative skills and movement experience. The students focus on basic ball handling skills, the value of being physically fit and the ability to display appropriate behaviors during class and sports situations. Classes are held both outside on our beautiful fields (when weather permits), as well as in our Lower School multi-purpose room, complete with gym floor, high ceiling and climbing wall. All Lower School classes have fitness class three times per week.

Fourth grade is a time of dramatic growth. During this pivotal year, students take on increased responsibility as leaders of the lower school. They enjoy acting as role models for the rest of the student body. They lead by example, showing how best to act in the hallways and on the playground, as well as leading the Pledge of Allegiance at Morning Circle. They are responsible for the daily raising and lowering of the flag, as well as our school’s classroom recycling program. Additionally, fourth graders take on more independent work in the classroom than they did in the lower grades, achieving in both individual and group endeavors. This greater role that fourth graders play within the lower school community assists them in transitioning to the more significant level of personal and community responsibilities they will have when they move on to middle school.

Our math curriculum is a skill-based program from Houghton Mifflin in which we concentrate on the mastery of basic computational skills. These include advanced addition and subtraction, multiplication and two-digit long division. We use games and manipulative materials to reinforce and expand upon concepts such as place value, money, fractions, decimals and situational problem solving. Fourth graders are also introduced to basic algebra.

In reading, we explore several different genres, including historical fiction, biography, mystery and fantasy. In small, reading groups, we concentrate on oral reading with good voicing and expression, comprehension, character and plot development. At least one of the chapter books that the students read relates to the current All-School Theme. We also foster and develop confident presentation skills, such as speaking with expression and fluency, by reading aloud in both small groups and for the entire student body at morning Circle. Students also work on Spelling and the study of vocabulary is enhanced through the use of Wordly Wise.

In 4th grade we utilize the Collins Writing Program, which helps students to improve their writing fluency, organizational and editing skills. This program strives to help students become better writers through the use of five types of writing. The students will be given times to be “totally creative” (Type One,) times when they will move through a process of creative and critical thought (Types Two through Four,) and finally a time when the use of critical thinking and style is paramount (Type Five.) The progression of this program helps to remove obstacles that many people face when writing, such as fear of evaluation and fear of failure. We will use this program across all content areas.

In social studies, the fourth grade focuses on four different units. We begin the year with the study of Map Skills, which leads to our second unit, Landforms. This unit culminates in a project that is shared with the school. Our third unit concentrates on United States History with a focus on Westward Expansion, including the Oregon Trail, Pioneer Life and Lewis and Clark. Our final unit, which we explore throughout the year, includes various aspects of our yearly Lower School Study Theme. In past years we have explored themes such as, the Circus, Medieval Times, China, Maritime studies, Native American studies and Space. When working on projects, students learn to use many research tools including books in the library and the Internet.

The kindergarten year at IMS is a year of great academic and social development. Building upon the skills developed in pre-K, kindergarteners continue to learn the patience, problem solving, and listening skills needed to succeed in school through play, guided activities, and direct instruction.

Kindergarten is a year of increasing reading readiness. Students are read aloud to everyday to build listening and comprehension skills. In addition, students are taught foundation language skills such as phonemic awareness, which is an essential part of learning how to read. Students are taught to recognize each letter of the alphabet in correlation with its sound, to know the difference between vowels and consonants, and begin to read short (CVC) consonant-vowel-consonant words (ie. dog). Kindergarten also focuses on the recognition of high-frequency sight words.

Along with reading comes writing. For kindergarten, this includes learning proper letter formation in both upper and lowercase print. At the beginning of the year, a student may dictate a sentence to the teacher and illustrate it. By the end of the school year, however, students will be able to complete entries in a journal of his/her own.

Mathematics focuses on sorting, patterning and comparing data. Students will also learn number representation and formation and begin to learn the basic operations of addition, subtraction, time, money, and fractions.

In science and social studies, the focus in kindergarten is on the world that surrounds us. Discussion and activities related to home, families, holidays, and traditions are central to the curriculum. In addition, kindergarten takes part in the Lower School’s year-long study theme, such as Native American Studies or Outer Space. Throughout kindergarten, the goal is to encourage each student’s interests and abilities, teach basic academic skills, and to foster respect and love for both learning and the school community.