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Saint John the Evangelist School
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| Head Of School: | Sister Mary Kelly, SSND |
| School Information: |
260 Harrison Street
Leonia, NJ 07605
Phone: (201)944-4361
Fax: (201)944-2195
E-mail: schooloffice@stjohnleonia.org.
Website: www.stjohnleonia.org
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| School Details: |
Level Of School: PK4-8
School Type: Religious School
Enrollment Size: 165
First Accredited Date: 10/24/1997
Last Accredited Date: 5/1/2008
The current homepage was last updated: 8/31/2010 8:36:00 AM
District: Archdiocese of Newark
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Kindergarten
At the beginning of the school year the children are supported with hands on activities to foster independence and self-esteem.
As a parochial school, our curriculum incorporates religion in our daily activities. We strive to follow the teachings of Christ as we interact with each other.
As the year progresses, children work on Language Arts, which incorporates Reading Readiness and Phonics. Our program is literature based and we work with familiar stories and discuss them in order to reinforce comprehension.
The Math program introduces problem solving, number sense and numeration. Students begin learning about time and money.
Social Studies is a hands on experience as children learn about the world around them and how it functions.
Science activity involves taking care of class animals, learning what they need to live and how they depend on us. Students learn about the weather. During the Spring they watch how plants grow and watch the change of caterpillars into butterflies. Children also learn about their bodies and their senses.
Primary- Grades 1-3
The scope and sequence of our religion program is divided into three parts: doctrine, scripture and liturgical seasons, treated as separate strands, they are then interwoven in a unified whole. Grade One becomes familiar with God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Mary as Jesus’ mother, the concept of Church and the importance of living our faith are also taught. These same concepts are further developed throughout the primary grades using a spiral approach. The second grade curriculum includes a special emphasis on the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Eucharist as well as the structure and significance of the Mass. This balanced approach ensures that the children will come to know, love and live the rich heritage of our Catholic faith.
Our Literature based Language Arts curriculum has a strong phonetic base. First graders begin to expand their communication ability through writing, reading and oral presentations. The primary program exposes the children to literature and immerses them in activities to develop Language, including letter and word recognition, phonetic analysis, decoding, dictionary usage and spelling skills. It later grades, these skills are further developed along with critical thinking skills through comprehension, predicting outcomes, drawing conclusions, cause and effect, comparing and contrasting, using context clues, searching for main ideas and details, and sequencing. Cursive writing is introduced during the second semester of grade two and further reinforced in grade three.
Our Math program is twofold:
1) training our children to become skillful thinkers through a cohesive problem-solving approach that integrates strategies and applications.
2) teaching them computational skills to assist them in acquiring good Math sense. In grade one the children learn to use numbers to count, add, subtract, tell time, calculate money and distinguish between parts and whole. These skills are further developed in grades two and three, along with the idea of regrouping and multiplying and dividing which is introduced in grade three. The use of manipulatives, games and computer software reinforces all concepts and provides hands-on learning opportunities.
The Social Studies curriculum stresses the world around us, with a focus on map, globe and other geography skills. Students are introduced to their immediate surroundings and expand on this notion to understand their country and world communities. Oral and written questioning, class discussions, assigned projects, and the use of globes and various types of maps achieve this. Students acquire the necessary skills to identify features, landforms, symbols and boundaries. The curriculum allows students to build on prior knowledge to better understand the diversity of communities, land and people of the world.
The primary Science curriculum is organized into four spiraling units, with each year building and expanding upon the previous year’s information. These are Life Science, which includes plants, animals and ecology, Physical Science, which includes matter and energy, and Earth Science which includes the earth, weather and space. Study of the Human Body is also a unit at each grade level. Each unit is developed continuously throughout the program by hands on activities and group experiments done in the classroom or the science room.
Students develop thinking skills through gathering and recalling information, understanding and interpreting data, applying, analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating the information in the four units.
Intermediate-Grades 4 and 5
In Religion the elements of Catholic belief- Doctrine, Scripture and Liturgical Seasons are covered. Students are encouraged to grow in their knowledge and love of God's word. We begin with the idea that what we believe, how we worship, how we live and how we pray will make a difference in our lives. The Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes are presented as our guides to live by and stories of the lives of saints and martyrs present examples of living out one’s faith. We attend First Friday Mass each month and begin each day with prayer and scripture to reinforce the importance of faith in our daily lives.
Language Arts, an integration of English, Reading and Spelling are an essential part of our curriculum. At this level an increase and understanding of new vocabulary is encouraged, and reading comprehension is stressed. Having students organize and sequence events in both reading and writing stimulates thinking skills. Grammar mechanics and correct usage is an essential part of our program. Students are encouraged to read various literary genre and books reports, both oral and written are presented throughout the year.
The Math program introduces, reviews and extends skills in the following areas: place value, whole number operations, estimating, fractions, decimals, probability, statistics, geometry, measurement, money and time. Word problems are solved through the use of mental Math, critical thinking and reasoning skills. Learning is stimulated through the use of manipulatives, calculators and cooperative learning activities.
At the fourth and fifth grade level students study the state of New Jersey and the geography of the United States, its regions and capitals. Current events are brought into the classroom for discussion through Time magazine and newspaper articles. The cultures of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres are explored with some exposure to ancient civilizations. Students work on projects, such as dioramas to enhance understanding of areas being studied. They also give oral presentations and engage in role-playing to act out events.
The Science curriculum includes Life Science, Physical Science, Earth Science and the Human Body. The material is presented in such a manner that from one year to the next the topics are studied with greater depth. Some simple experiments take place in the classroom. Students are encouraged to observe, classify and make predictions in order to reinforce the learning process. Students also participate in the school Science Fair. The projects are done cooperatively, in school.
Junior-High—Grades 6,7,8
Using the recently published Faith First Series from Resources for Christian Living, attention is given to these basic areas: Doctrine, Scripture and Liturgical seasons as it does in other grades. The spiral nature of the major content in all grades insures that the students become acquainted with their rich heritage of faith. In grade six, emphasis is given to the Old Testament, and the Sacraments; grade seven explores the Creed; and grade eight views Sacraments, Scripture and Liturgy in the light of Morality. All levels of the Religion program are enhanced by the use of CD’s and Video clips that support the various topics being taught. Students take an active role in liturgy, singing and praying together as well as filling specific roles as lectors and servers during our First Friday Mass.
Literature plays a vital role in the Language Arts program. Creative writing skills are encouraged through the use of character analysis of books and movies assigned during each marking period. Outside reading is encouraged through a summer reading list and book reports each marking period. Public speaking is developed through oral presentations for both book reports and Social Studies research papers. Vocabulary building is emphasized and critical thinking is fostered when examining literature. Grammar skills are taught formerly and reinforced in paragraph writing at each level.
The Math program focuses on a variety of mathematical concepts with an emphasis on specific skills at each level. Grade six places emphasis on fractions, decimals, problems involving two or more operations, probability,geometry, and statistics.
Grades 7 and 8 review and extend all operational skills including proportion, percentage, bank interest, checking statements and pre-algebra.
In grade eight technology is used to reinforce the development of Algebra 1 skills through the use of instructive CD ROMs.
Social Studies in grade six emphasizes world cultures, with an introduction to ancient civilizations and continues with the study of Europe during the Middle Ages. There is an examination of the Americas and the effect of European exploration on it. Grades seven and eight study US History. Critical thinking, cooperative learning, presentation and public speaking skills are enhanced through projects on the UN, Mock Trials and reading and discussion of current events.Organizational skills are developed through formal research papers each marking period. Students incorporate technology by giving Power Point presentations of their research.
Students are instructed in Earth and Life Science with initial concentration of the scientific method.Units on geology, weather and astronomy are covered in Earth Science. Life Science covers plants, animals and the human body. Students are given a lab period weekly for hands on experiments with a partner. Each student is then responsible for an individual lab report. Students ability to organize, work cooperatively, observe and report are further encouraged through group projects prepared for the Science Fair held in the spring.
Assignments
We believe assignments are a necessary adjunct to the learning process. Assignments are given at every level from K to 8. Quantity and content are developmentally appropriate to age and grade.
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