List of 4 items.

• Teacher/Student Ratio in Classrooms

  Kindergarten classrooms each have lead teachers with full day associate teachers. In grades one through four, associate teachers are assigned as needed, according to class size and the developmental needs of the students in those grades. This approach allows for greater flexibility in small group work as well as for simultaneous individual and group instruction. This model gives Friends a low student-teacher ratio, ensuring attention to each child.

• Interdisciplinary Themes

  Much of the lower school curriculum is integrated around themes, and teachers work in teams to coordinate projects across disciplines. For example, a first grader studying ants as part of an insect unit in the homebase classroom might also make a papier maché ant in art class and do internet research on ants with the support of the library media specialist.

• “Specials” Classes

  Classes beyond the core subjects are known at lower school as “specials.” From kindergarten through fifth grade, every student has classes each week in art, music, physical education, science, Spanish, and technology. Students work with technology includes digital and information literacy, research, and coding. Librarians also work with home base teachers and specialists to integrate skills learned in multiple content areas.

• Fifth Grade

  Fifth graders continue to have a homebase and integrated curriculum, but in this last year of lower school, they have additional responsibilities and privileges, including participation in the fifth grade musical theater production. Fifth graders are grouped in both home base and color groups, which allows for increased interactions with their peers over the course of the day. Other distinctive features of fifth grade include an overnight community building trip that provides an experience away from home and campus.