Instructional Organization
Elementary grade classes at the Morris School are organized in accordance with a philosophy which recognizes the student as the focal point in the learning process. Primary objectives are to help the child establish and retain identity as an individual within the classroom environment and progress at his/her own rate.
Our Kindergarten through Grade Five classes are self-contained and heterogeneously grouped. Grouping in Reading in the primary grades takes place within each homeroom.
All classroom and special teachers hold a minimum of a bachelor's degree and most hold master's degrees. All are certified by the Massachusetts State Board of Education.
General
The Kindergarten experience is a very important step in the life of your child. An initial objective in Kindergarten is to ease the transition of five-year-old youngsters from home to school life. Socially, your child is provided with opportunities for interaction in both large and small groups. The specialists in Art, Music, Gym, Library, and Computer further enhance the kindergarten program. Throughout the school year the children participate in a variety of readiness activities in Reading, Writing, and Mathematics to prepare them for successful experiences in Grade 1 and beyond.
A primary goal of the instructional program in grades one to five is the teaching of basic skills, particularly where reading, language arts, and mathematics are concerned. However, an equally important aim is to teach the learning processes as well as content, so that children can become more effective problem solvers and independent thinkers. Science and social studies are particularly effective vehicles for developing these capabilities. In the interest of the child's total development, experiences are provided to promote physical maturation and foster creative expression. Toward these ends, specialists in art, music, and physical education teach all classes on a regular basis to supplement those activities presented by the classroom teacher. Handwriting is taught by all classroom teachers.
Reading
Reading instruction in the primary grades is heavily grounded in a phonetic approach; several of our teachers also incorporate the philosophy of whole language in their teaching of reading and language arts. A variety of approaches are used to teach reading throughout the elementary grades. From a "big book" program in Kindergarten through various basal readers and trade books, children learn letter sounds, word skills, and comprehension. Children with emerging reading skills become exposed to literature in Grade 1 and students in Grades 2-5 read a number of novels throughout the year as a basic component of their reading program. Children in Grades 3-5 are expected to do periodic book reports and independent reading is stressed at all levels.
Title 1 Reading/Language Arts Program
We offer a Title I Reading Program to supplement our regular Reading program in Grades 1-3. This program gives additional reading instruction to children who may have had a difficult time learning to read fluently or who may benefit from additional face-to-face instruction in reading. We use Reading Assistants within the regular classroom and children are selected by ranking all children based on scores on Reading tests, teacher recommendations, and history of reading difficulty. In Grades 4-5, Title 1 students work on skills used in the writing process. Students are selected using similar criteria as above but use a writing sample given at the end of Grade 3 as well as results of the MCAS tests when available to determine eligibility and specific needs.
Vocabulary
In Grades 2-5 we teach a separate Vocabulary program, Wordly Wise and Vocabulary Connections. This program exposes children to a graded list of vocabulary words. We strive to foster an enjoyment of words and language that will continue well past Grade 5. This program supplements vocabulary instruction that may come from reading books or be specific to a science, social studies, or math lesson.
Writing/Spelling
The Lenox writing program emphasizes the process of writing from Grade 1 on. Children are actively engaged in pre-writing, first drafts, feedback, re-writing, teacher conferences, and ultimately final drafts. Children write from experience, practicing different forms of communication from journal writing, stories, friendly letters, business letters, and poetry to report writing, and a given topic may take from one to four weeks to be completely developed by a child.
It is not at all uncommon for children to use “invented spelling” in the early grades; this allows children to be writers before they have developed the formal conventions of spelling. Our formal spelling program starts in Grade 1 using a program developed by our first grade teachers. This program emphasizes the words and word forms most commonly used in children's writing. Grades 2-5 use the McDougal-Littell Spelling series. Spelling is also emphasized throughout the rewriting and conference processes in the writing program.
Mathematics
Our goal in Mathematics is to produce mathematically-powerful thinkers and problem-solvers who are confident and feel comfortable using math in their daily lives. From Kindergarten to Grade 2 we use the manipulative-based Math Land program. The goals of the program are to involve students in projects and investigations that link concepts and ideas from several areas of mathematics including Number Relations, Data Analysis, Patterns and Functions, Measurement, Geometry, Logic and Algebra, and Probability and Statistics. Computational skills are applied throughout the projects and are maintained with daily oral and written practice and regular homework assignments. In Grades 3-5 we use the Scott Foresman Addison Wesley Mathematics program along with Investigations. Our programs are consistent with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Standards that were first issued in 1990 (subsequently revised) and the Massachusetts Mathematics Curriculum Frameworks in the 2000 revision.
Social Studies/Science
Instruction in both social studies and science attempts to achieve a balance between factual information and conceptual understanding. Children are expected to participate in "hands-on" projects as well as to use text materials in their exploration of the expanding world. Both areas are currently under review to assess the curriculum fit with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks in History and Social Science and Science and Technology.
The social studies program leads from a study of Myself and Others, Customs Around the World, national celebrations, and who Americans are and where they came from in the primary grades, to Native Americans, Shakers, New England and Massachusetts history in Grade 3, United States geography, Canada, and Mexico in Grade 4, to United States History (pre-Columbian civilizations of the New World, European exploration, colonization, and settlement, political, intellectual, and economic growth of the colonies, the Revolution and formation of a federal government under the Constitution, to the growth of the United States to 1820) in Grade 5. Throughout the grades, an emphasis is placed on discussing men and women who have been key figures in United States history.
The science program tries to build conceptual skills through a balanced curriculum with units taught from three major areas - biological, physical, and earth & space science. Emphasis is placed on hands-on discovery. We do units on the Five Senses, Health/Nutrition, Plants, Weather and Seasons, Metamorphosis, Bees, Balls and Ramps, Magnetism, Sound, Dinosaurs, Solutions, Energy, the Human Body, the Solar System, Ecology, Changes of State, Insects, Trees, Birds, Whales, Pond Life, Endangered Animals, Geology, Electric Currents, and Micro Gardening in various grades. Individual teachers may add other units of study to supplement this list.
Health Education
Health education takes place in all grades from PreK through Grade 5 and is incorporated into the curriculum in a variety of ways, depending on grade level. Some units are taught using The Great Body Shop curriculum; others are presented by the classroom teacher, guest speakers, or consultants who come to school to speak with our children at assembly programs or in individual classrooms. Major topics addressed in the health education curriculum include: Health & Disease, Substance Use, Misuse, and Abuse, Emotional/Mental Health/Affective Education, Safety and First Aid, Personal Safety - Child/Sexual Abuse, Physical Growth & Development, Environmental Health, Consumer Health, Community Health, and Healthful Lifestyles. Our health education program changes as new knowledge and theory concerning health and well-being evolves, and in accordance with state law.
Foreign Language
The Morris School offers basic foreign language instruction in Spanish to students in Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 4 and French to students in Grades 3 and 5 (2005-06 school year). It is the intent of the school to teach one language for three years (Spanish – Grades K-2) and the other for three years (French – Grades 3-5). This program is still being phased in at this time.
Art
Each class has art instruction once a week under the direction of the art teacher. The art program provides an exposure to a variety of art media. Students are expected to explore various art forms applying their own level of creativity and imagination to each project or task. The emphasis is on the process of their involvement with various art media. The classroom teachers and the art teacher often integrate art projects into the regular instructional program. We hold an Art Show in the spring with each student’s artwork on display throughout the Morris School.
Music/Instrumental Music
Singing, rhythm, theory, and music appreciation are taught once a week to each class by the music teacher. Our approach to music instruction is largely choral; we do, however, make use of many of the Orff instruments - exposing children to areas of speech, movement, song rhythms, and the actual playing of percussion instruments. The classroom teachers and the music teacher often integrate music with the regular instructional program.
Our students are introduced to recorders in the fourth grade. Grade five pupils have an opportunity to take free group lessons on the instrument of their choice (which they own or rent). These lessons are given at designated times throughout the school day. An elementary school band forms each year as part of the program and performs at the Grade 5 graduation in June.
Physical Education
The children in Grades K-5 have physical education twice a week. These classes are taught by our physical education teacher(s). The program offers each child a chance to learn fundamental fitness concepts, to participate in physical activities, and to improve cardiovascular endurance; to learn social skills in cooperative and competitive settings; to develop an enjoyment of participation in sport, fitness, cooperative, and recreational activities; and to develop basic sport and recreational skills. The program is designed for children to develop strength, endurance, speed, coordination, flexibility, poise, balance, and a good sense of equilibrium.
Library
The Morris School is fortunate to have both a wonderful, completely automated library and a complementary relationship with the Lenox Library on Main Street. The children's librarian from the Lenox Library visits the Morris Library and works with our Library Assistant. Classes visit the library weekly to select books, hear stories, and receive instruction in proper use of the library and reference materials. Children also use the library for independent research.
Computer Instruction
Instruction in educational technology is given to children from Kindergarten on. Morris School offers students a small Technology Lab with each classroom containing one or more networked computers. The goal of the technology program is two-fold: first and foremost, to enhance and support the classroom curriculum via educational technology, and second, to provide students with instruction in the use of educational technology so that they may progress toward independent use.
An integral part of the technology program is the ethical and appropriate use of the computer in school, at home, and in interaction with others. Parents are urged to monitor their children's use of the computer at home, to install devices that ensure their children's safety and shield them from material which may be harmful to themselves or others.
Home Tutoring
Parents who expect their child will be absent for an extended time due to illness
or an accident should contact the elementary principal about home tutoring.
