Fours

LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

The Country Day School language arts program encourages and broadens each child’s interest in written and spoken language.  The curriculum develops a love of language and literature and provides reading readiness skills in a developmentally appropriate manner.  Children are introduced to letter names, letter shapes and letter/sound relationships through the Letterland characters, a child-friendly phonics system.  Reading and language opportunities include a wide variety of multi-sensory activities and are integrated into all curricular areas throughout the day.  

Language activities for the four-year-olds include:

• Oral expression including vocabulary and sentence structure
• Identifying and generating rhymes
• Understanding the association between letter sound and letter symbol
• Story comprehension
• Identifying and naming most upper and lower case letters
• Understanding of beginning sounds and syllabication

MATHEMATICS

The goal of the CDS mathematics program is to develop in the children understanding and insight of the patterns of mathematics through the use of concrete materials and real-life experiences.  The program works to help young children see relationships and interconnections in mathematics and enable them to deal flexibility with mathematical ideas and concepts.

Mathematical activities for the four-year-olds include:

• Rote counting and counting objects
• Arranging groups of objects in one to one correspondence
• Identifying numerals and counting to 20
• Recognizing and naming shapes
• Sorting objects by attributes
• Recognizing, creating, and extending patterns

SOCIAL STUDIES

Children at Country Day School begin developing their social skills the minute they walk through the doors.  Social studies and social skills are woven through every aspect of the curriculum as children in every program learn how to develop and sustain friendships, resolve conflicts, take pride in their accomplishments and work together to achieve success in a school environment.  As they progress through the curriculum, CDS students also discover and explore the concepts of self, family, school, neighborhood, community, town, city and country.

Areas of emphasis in social studies for the four-year-olds include:

• Increasing self-confidence and pride in accomplishments
• Forming and maintaining friendships
• Expressing and managing emotions
• Exploring families and differences/similarities between them
• Investigating our school and its community

SCIENCE

Throughout the school year CDS children use their five senses to explore scientific themes and ideas.  Every science lesson incorporates hands-on activities to teach concepts related to each child’s interests and experiences.  Studies of life science, environmental science, and physical science are included.  Country Day School is very fortunate to have four beautiful acres of grounds on which to learn about science.  Areas such as the ten playgrounds and butterfly garden are perfect spots for everyday scientific exploration and discovery. 

The science program at CDS focuses on the following school-wide units with different age-appropriate activities at each level from the twos through kindergarten.

September-      Color and Light
October           Measurement and Mapping
November        Neighborhood Habitats- Trees
December        Sound, Taste, and Scent
January            Properties of Matter
February          Movement and Machines
March              Movement and Machines continued
                      Neighborhood Habitats- What is Alive
April                Neighborhood Habitats- Plants and the Environment
May                 Neighborhood Habitats- Plants and Animals

This curriculum is taught in the classroom daily and in the science room with the science enrichment teacher once a week. 

ART

The Country Day School art curriculum gives the children opportunities to explore materials and media through process-oriented activities.  In addition to art projects created in each classroom, CDS students (from the 3-year-old level to Kindergarten) learn various techniques and study the work of master artists in enrichment classes with the art teacher.

Areas of emphasis in art for our four-year-olds include:

• Value and line
• Three dimensional shapes and their attributes
• Use of space and balance in creating sculpture
• Learning about and emulating the works of master artists

MUSIC

The music programs at Country Day School focus on developing a love of music in the students.  To accomplish this, each day the children sing, play musical games and fingerplays, listen to various genres of music, play instruments, and move to music.  These creative explorations are done both in the classrooms and in music enrichment classes with our music specialist.  

The four-year-old classes participate in music activities which include:

• Recognizing pitch (high/low)
• Using our four voices (talk, whisper, sing, shout)
• Keeping a beat (rhythm)
• Determining intensity (loud/soft, getting louder/softer)

MOVEMENT

The development of a positive self-image and the enjoyment of physical activities are important aspects of the CDS curriculum.  Beginning at the two-year-old level, children participate in movement enrichment classes.  Gross motor skills are practiced and refined through exciting games and activities.  In the classroom, children cultivate their fine motor skills with developmental tools like resistant clay and over-sized tweezers. The older students also enjoy handwriting activities that prepare them for success in their next school experience.

Fine and gross motor activities for four-year-olds offer opportunities to: 

• Develop balance standing on one foot
• Throw, kick and catch playground balls both underhand and overhand
• Run with a coordinated gait
• Use a tripod pencil grip to write and draw
• Move through simple obstacle courses
• Trace and cut shapes