THE VILLAGE HOUSTON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CURRICULUM

The Village School Approach

Students engage in hands-on learning prompted by their own curiosity and interests. Therefore, we develop our curriculum around inquiry-based, conceptual learning. This allows collaboration and engagement to naturally flow throughout the educational day.  Lessons, assignments, and assessments are designed for and adjusted to each child’s level and needs.

Elementary Curriculum

From Kindergarten to 4th grade, your child establishes a firm foundation in reading, phonics, word study, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies. In addition to these core subjects, instruction in art, music, innovation, technology, foreign languages, and physical education enhance your child’s learning experience.

Each child is individually supported in Village’s learning community with relationships and resources that foster confidence, problem solving, creativity, and a love of learning.

The following teaching areas are important components of our elementary school curriculum.

English Language Arts

Phonics training begins in kindergarten and expands during each academic year, with an emphasis on building vocabulary, reading comprehension, analysis, and other higher-order thinking skills. In upper Elementary School, teachers emphasize reading comprehension and literary analysis using poetry, short stories, fiction, and nonfiction.

Teachers encourage your child to practice their reading skills across the academic disciplines. They reinforce your child’s learning in our science and social studies classrooms, where students make connections and analyze, deduce, evaluate, and formulate opinions. Teachers emphasize the reading–writing connection through overlapping themes in reading tasks and writing assignments, which give students the opportunity to practice writing in different ways.

Our learners engage with writing through the workshop method, in which they're encouraged to write and think for themselves. Students learn the mechanics of writing—word study, grammar, handwriting, and organization—as an integral part of both verbal and written communications. After being exposed to various writing styles through literary connections and classroom workshops, Village students take written pieces from draft to publication.

Mathematics

Our mathematics instruction is focused on concept-based mathematics, aimed to build math literacy through exploration and discovery rather than rote steps to find solutions. Students are supported through the problem-solving process through the embrace of struggle, and differentiated challenges to support all learners. Critical thinking and a growth mindset are an integral part of the process.

Science and Social Studies

Science and social studies are taught through units of inquiry which connect directly with the students and the world around them.  Learning takes place through guided inquiry, in which the teacher supports students to construct knowledge by active listening, questioning, and exploring a topic or problem.  Through asking questions, researching, writing, presenting, and utilizing the design-build process, students are able to ask and answer real world problems.

Students engage in a variety of experiences throughout the inquiry process, including experimentation, exploration of historical figures and events, projects, and presentations, all aimed at helping students understand themselves and others in the real world.

Spanish and French

Our formal instruction provides students with the tools necessary to understand and converse in a second language.

Art Appreciation

We teach art appreciation alongside practical skills, such as lettering, poster making, balance, and design. Teachers encourage students to examine their surroundings and notice differences. Students also learn shading, drawing, and perspective.

Performing Arts

Younger elementary students receive instruction in drama, percussion instruments, and vocal music, developing an understanding of rhythm, tempo, voice, and other foundational skills for performing arts.  Older elementary students pursue further interests through learning the recorder and ukulele, as well as rotating through courses including band, orchestra, choir, drama, and dance.

Innovation

Elementary students advance their design-thinking skills in Innovation class.  With curriculum designed to address the U.N. Global Goals, students participate in hands-on learning as they create, design, and publish solutions to real world problems.

Physical Education

Physical education through daily exercise, friendly competition, and student camaraderie are all important parts of our Village learners’ overall growth.  Students are educated and evaluated on skill development through thoughtful activities and fun games. They complete each sports unit with an exciting school-wide tournament that encourages healthy competition.