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Lower School

At The Bridges Academy, our Lower School program is designed to nurture confident, curious, and capable learners. Grounded in New York State and national standards—and intentionally crafted to exceed them—our curriculum blends foundational

skills with hands-on exploration across literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, world languages, STEAM, and the arts. With small class sizes, thoughtful instruction, and a whole-child philosophy, students build the academic fluency, character, and

creativity needed to thrive. From Kindergarten through Fourth Grade, we guide children in developing essential skills, discovering their strengths, and cultivating the joy of learning that will carry them forward throughout their educational journey.

The Foundation for a Lifetime of Learning

Kindergarten

English Language Arts

  • The competencies that Kindergarten students are developing as they learn to read include the ability to:

    • Distinguish between print and pictures

    • Recognize the difference between letters and words

    • Follow left to right and top to bottom direction when reading

    • Locate parts of a book

    • Recognize and identify letters of the alphabet

    • Distinguish the difference between vowels and consonants

    • Use beginning and ending consonants as well as vowel sounds to identify words

    • Recognize the different sounds that make up a word

    • Point to the words in a text or on a chart when read aloud, matching spoken word

    • to print

    • Recognize singular and plural frequency used words

    • Recognize own name and the names of friends and family in print

    • Recognize letter/sound correspondence (phonetic awareness)

    • Recognize that words consist of a combination of sounds (phonetic awareness)

    • Identify rhyming words

    • Monitor own reading by applying strategies such as sounding out letters, using

    • context, grammar, picture clues and rereading to determine meaning

    • Read grade level text with expression and fluency

  • Students will write on a daily basis across all content areas and standards.  The competencies that Kindergarten students are developing as they learn to write include 

    the ability to:

    • Create a drawing, picture, sign, or other graphic to represent a word or a concept

    • Label illustrations with appropriate sounds

    • Follow left to right and top to bottom direction when writing

    • Use spacing between letters and words when writing on a line

    • Write recognizable upper and lowercase letters in manuscript

    • Capitalize proper names and the letter”I”

    • Write letters of own first and last name

    • Spell high frequency words correctly

    • Use classroom resources (word walls, picture dictionaries, teachers, peers) to support the writing process

    • Give and seek constructive feedback in order to improve writing

    • Use computer software to support the development of early writing skills

  • Students will listen on a daily basis:

    • Listen respectively and responsively

    • Attend to a listening activity for a specific period of time

    • Respond with expression appropriate to what is heard

  • Students will speak on a daily basis:

    • Respond respectively

    • Use age appropriate vocabulary

    • Take turns speaking in a group

    • Correct the pronunciation of words by using classroom resources, such as teachers, peers, audio and video tapes and classroom software

    • Speak in complete sentences when required

    • Stay on topic

    • Speak audibly

    • Speak with expression appropriate to the occasion

Mathematics

This curriculum provides students with a solid foundation in math and provides opportunities for students to apply their problem solving skills, critical thinking skills and writing skills.

    1. Mathematical Reasoning

    2. Number and Numeration

    3. Operations

    4. Measurement

    5. Patterns/Functions

    • Numbers 0 to 5

    • Compare Numbers 0 to 5

    • Numbers 6 to 10

    • Compare Numbers 0 to 10

    • Classify and Count Data

    • Understand Addition

    • Understand Subtraction

    • Count Numbers to 20

    • Compose and Decompose Numbers 11 to 19

    • Count Numbers to 100

    • Identify and Describe Shapes

    • Analyze, Compare, and Create Shapes

    • Describe and Compare Measurable Attributes

Science

    • How can living and nonliving things be classified?

    • Do living and nonliving things share the same environment?

    • Do plants and animals have common characteristics?

    • What do animals and plants need?

    • How do living things affect where they live?

    • How do animals move?

    • What are animal shelters?

    • What do animals need?

    • How do we care for pets?

    • How are adult and baby animals similar? 

    • How are adult and baby animals different?

    • How do animals care for their babies?

    • What is the life cycle of plants?

    • What do plants need?

    • What are the main parts of plants?

    • What do seeds grow into?

    • What can you see in the day and night sky?

    • How does the sun move?

    • What do we get from the sun?

    • What is weather and give examples?

    • How can we use rock, soil, and water?

    • What is recycling?

    • What are planets?

    • What planets are in our solar system?

    • What can you tell about an object's position?

    • What makes objects move?

    • What are some ways objects move?

    • How do moving objects affect each other? 

    • Technology is mindfully used in many levels of our academic and extracurricular programs at Bridges. Our STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) program begins in nursery. Technology is introduced in Pre-K and used as a tool to identify and solve problems, present and share ideas, and document and reflect on work. It gives physical projects a voice and allows a student's work to come alive. Technology is also used to build digital portfolios of student growth that can easily be shared with parents. At Bridges, technology rarely stands alone. It is often blended with a hands-on, collaborative project that incorporates the design thinking process.

    • Our program is based on the standards created by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education.) These standards are designed to empower student voice and ensure that learning is a student-driven process.

    • In the STEAM Lab, students engage in collaborative projects that are frequently interdisciplinary. These STEAM lessons are carefully designed to connect with or enhance the classroom curriculum. 

    • The spiraling curriculum aims to develop students’ technology and design skills in areas such as coding, keyboarding, robotics, circuit building, cardboard construction and the design thinking process. These skills serve as the foundation for ongoing work throughout Bridges. Woven throughout the STEAM program is ongoing learning about digital citizenship and the responsible use of technology both in the classroom and at home. This becomes increasingly important as students get older and transition to their own devices. 

Social Studies

    • Myself and others

    • My family and other families

    • My school and school community

    • My neighborhood and school

    • Basic human needs and wants

    • People helping one another to meet their needs and wants

    • Symbols of citizenship

    • Learning and working together 

    • Recognizes themselves including gender, ethnicity, talents and abilities

    • Show how families are alike and different

    • Celebrate national holidays and traditions

    • Learn about the holidays and celebrations of our nation

    • Learn about the past from people and celebrations through compare and contrast

    • Recognize maps of their neighborhoods, New York State and the United States

    • Distinguish between land and water masses on maps and globes

    • Find their school and neighborhood on maps of the area

    • Learn and examine maps and globes

    • Distinguish between parts of a map using a legend 

    • Learn about our home and neighborhood

    • Learn about safe neighborhoods

    • Learn rules and laws that govern our country

    • Learn about our country and state

    • Learn about important symbols 

    • Learn about important American heroes

    • Recognize the flag of the United States

    • Participate in classroom activities by jointly developing and following rule

    • What is a good citizen?

    • Learn about great leaders

    • How  do we work together?

    • Why do people work?

    • Jobs at school and in our community 

    • Compare jobs now and long ago

    • Make and interpret timelines 

    • Measure time 

    • Distinguish between weeks, months, days, and years

    • Understand long lengths of time → year, decade, generation, century

    • How weather and seasons affect our year 

World Languages

    • Numbers: number recognition, sequencing, grouping, more or less, addition and subtraction.

    • Calendar: sequencing days of the week, counting the days of the month, charting weather patterns, graphing birthdays, patterning and sequencing activities.

    • Colors and Shapes: classification of objects according to color/shape and blending colors.

    • Foods: classification of foods, nutrition, food groups, restaurant simulations.

    • School: classroom objects, classroom commands: raise your hand; open the door, form a line.  

    • Animals: grouping by attributes such as size, habitat, colors and sounds.

    • Songs, chants, games, skits and artistic expression via related topics.

Physical Education

    • Skipping             

    • Galloping

    • Hopping

    • Jumping

    • Jogging

    • Chasing, fleeing, dodging

    • Boundary awareness

    • Personal space awareness

    • Moving through space safely

    • Moving in different directions, ranges, pathways

    • Throwing and Catching

    • Striking- Hitting and kicking

    • Volleying

    • Dribbling

    • Rolling

    • Sliding

    • Understand different components of fitness

    • Cardiovascular endurance

    • Muscle strength and endurance

    • Flexibility

    • Perform and identify different fitness activities

    • Understanding the importance of and recognizing an elevated heart rate during physical activity

    • Soccer

    • Basketball

    • Jump Rope

    • Volleyball

    • Scooter Play

    • Parachute Play

    • Bowling

    • Cooperative games and team building

The Arts

    • Drawing animals, people, landscapes, still life and master artist works.

    • How to use chalk and oil pastels, watercolor paints, markers, colored pencils, acrylic paint

    • Learning color wheel: primary, secondary, and complementary colors

    • Elements of Art: line, shape, color

    • How to choose a medium for a project

    • Using clay to make animals

    • Building art appreciation by viewing artworks by famous artists and recreating an artwork

    • Preparing artwork to be displayed in the three yearly art shows

    • Creating a collaborative project with the class for our Art Auction

    • Singing individually and as a group

    • Demonstrating expressive qualities of music such as dynamics and tempo through singing and playing instruments

    • Steady beat through movements and singing

    • Exposure to historical figures in music and their cultural significance

    • Introduction to reading lines and spaces in the treble clef

    • Exposure to multicultural music

    • Vocal pedagogy and use of Solfege

    • A variety of Orff instruments focusing on proper technique and reading

    • Instrument taxonomy

Kindergarten-Boy-Playing
Academic-Foundation

Small classes. Big discoveries.

First Grade

Girl-Breakers-Sweatshirt

English Language Arts

  • Students will read a minimum of 25 books or the equivalent per year across all content areas and standards.  The competencies that Kindergarten students are developing as they learn to read include the ability to:

    • Alphabetize high frequency words according to the first letter

    • Distinguish the difference between vowels and consonants

    • Use beginning and ending consonants, as well as, vowel sounds to identify words

    • Recognize the different sounds that make up a word

    • Match spoken word to print

    • Understand singular and plural forms of words

    • Recognize letter and sound correspondence (phonetic awareness)

    • Identify rhyming words

    • Monitor own reading; apply strategies such as sounding out letters

    • Determine meaning using context, grammar and picture clues

    • Read Aloud with expression and fluency

  • Students will write on a daily basis across all content areas and standards. The competencies that first grade students are developing include the ability to:

    • Use spacing between letters and words when writing on a line

    • Write recognizable upper and lowercase letters in a writing piece

    • Capitalize proper names 

    • Spell high frequency words properly

    • Use classroom resources (work walls, picture dictionaries, peers) to support the writing process

    • Give and seek constructive feedback in order to improve writing 

    • Writing Workshop to develop creative writing skills

    • Listen and respond respectfully

    • Attend to a listening activity for a specified period of time

    • Respond with expression appropriate to what is heard

  • Students will speak on a daily basis and have the ability to:

    • speak for different purposes

    • develop social speaking skills

    • use age appropriate vocabulary

    • speak in grammatically correct sentences with expression

    • establish eye contact with audience

    • Will be provided the opportunity to speak in front of large groups to develop public speaking skills

Mathematics

  • Understanding Addition and Subtraction 

    Represent and solve problems within 20

    Fluently Add and Subtract within 10, Addition Facts to 20: Use strategies 

    • Develop fluency and explore strategies within 20

    • Subtraction Facts to 20: Use Strategies

    Use various strategies

    • Work with addition and subtraction equations

    Missing number, true or false

    • Represent and Interpret Data

    • Tally charts and picture graphs

    • Extend the Counting Sequence

    Counting to 120

    • Understand Place Value, Compare Two-Digit Numbers

    Two digit numbers, properties of operations

    Measure Lengths

    • Comparing two 

    Time and Money

    • Hour and minute hands on on a clock

    Reasons with Shapes and Their Attributes

    Different manipulatives to make shapes, edges, vertices and faces

    Fractions

Science

    • How do we use energy?

    • What gives off heat?

    • What is light?

    • What is sound?

    • What are some groups of living things?

    • What are some parts of plants?

    • How do plants grow?

    • How do some animals grow?

    • How are living things like their parents?

    • How are groups of living things different?

    • What is the sun?

    • What causes day and night?

    • What are the four seasons?

    • What questions do scientists ask?

    • What skills do scientists use?

    • How do scientists use tools?

    • How do scientists find answers?

    • How do scientists share data?

    • What is technology?

    • What are objects made of?

    • What is the design process?

    • Technology is mindfully used in many levels of our academic and extracurricular programs at Bridges. Our STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) program begins in nursery. Technology is introduced in Pre-K and used as a tool to identify and solve problems, present and share ideas, and document and reflect on work. It gives physical projects a voice and allows a student's work to come alive. Technology is also used to build digital portfolios of student growth that can easily be shared with parents. At Bridges, technology rarely stands alone. It is often blended with a hands-on, collaborative project that incorporates the design thinking process.

    • Our program is based on the standards created by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education.) These standards are designed to empower student voice and ensure that learning is a student-driven process.

    • In the STEAM Lab, students engage in collaborative projects that are frequently interdisciplinary. These STEAM lessons are carefully designed to connect with or enhance the classroom curriculum. 

    • The spiraling curriculum aims to develop students’ technology and design skills in areas such as coding, keyboarding, robotics, circuit building, cardboard construction and the design thinking process. These skills serve as the foundation for ongoing work throughout Bridges. Woven throughout the STEAM program is ongoing learning about digital citizenship and the responsible use of technology both in the classroom and at home. This becomes increasingly important as students get older and transition to their own devices. 

Social Studies

    • Acting as a good citizen

    • Rights and responsibilities

    • Following rules and laws

    • My leaders

    • My government

    • Making choices in Government

    • Our community

    • Finding places

    • Maps and models

    • Continents and Oceans

    • My state

    • We are Americans

    • American symbols

    • American documents

    • American songs

    • Our national holidays

    • Measuring time

    • Schools and communities past and present 

    • Changes in technology and transportation

    • What is culture?

    • Customs, traditions and celebrations

    • Shared culture

    • Immigrants

    • Stories in our culture

    • Needs, wants, and choices

    • Good and services

    • Producers and consumers

    • We spend, budget and save

    • Specialized work

World Languages

    • Numbers: number recognition, sequencing, grouping, more or less, addition and subtraction.

    • Calendar: sequencing days of the week, counting the days of the month, charting weather patterns, graphing birthdays, patterning and sequencing activities.

    • Colors and Shapes: classification of objects according to color/shape and blending colors.

    • Foods: classification of foods, nutrition, food groups, restaurant simulations.

    • School: classroom objects, classroom commands: raise your hand; open the door, form a line.  

    • Animals: grouping by attributes such as size, habitat, colors and sounds.

    • Songs, chants, games, skits and artistic expression via related topics.

Physical Education

    • Skipping             

    • Galloping

    • Hopping

    • Jumping

    • Jogging

    • Chasing, fleeing, dodging

    • Boundary awareness

    • Personal space awareness

    • Moving through space safely

    • Moving in different directions, ranges, pathways

    • Throwing and Catching

    • Striking- Hitting and kicking

    • Volleying

    • Dribbling

    • Rolling

    • Sliding

    • Understand different components of fitness

    • Cardiovascular endurance

    • Muscle strength and endurance

    • Flexibility

    • Perform and identify different fitness activities

    • Understanding the importance of and recognizing an elevated heart rate during physical activity

    • Soccer

    • Basketball

    • Jump Rope

    • Volleyball

    • Scooter Play

    • Parachute Play

    • Bowling

    • Cooperative games and team building

The Arts

    • Drawing animals, people, landscapes, still life and master artist works.

    • How to use chalk and oil pastels, watercolor paints, markers, colored pencils, acrylic paint

    • Learning color wheel: primary, secondary, and complementary colors

    • Elements of Art: line, shape, color

    • How to choose a medium for a project

    • Using clay to make animals

    • Building art appreciation by viewing artworks by famous artists and recreating an artwork

    • Preparing artwork to be displayed in the three yearly art shows

    • Creating a collaborative project with the class for our Art Auction

    • Singing individually and as a group

    • Demonstrating expressive qualities of music such as dynamics and tempo through singing and playing instruments

    • Steady beat through movements and singing

    • Exposure to historical figures in music and their cultural significance

    • Introduction to reading lines and spaces in the treble clef

    • Exposure to multicultural music

    • Vocal pedagogy and use of Solfege

    • A variety of Orff instruments focusing on proper technique and reading

    • Instrument taxonomy

Girl-Indoor-Slide.

Big thinking starts with little learners.

boy-going-into-school

Second Grade

English Language Arts

Students must widely read from a variety of texts that are increasingly challenging to develop strong literacy skills for their future success.   To ensure future success, students must possess effective reading, writing, listening and speaking skills.  

  • Students will read a minimum of 25 books across all content areas.   The competencies that students are developing as they learn to read include the ability to:

    • Read grade level text with purpose and understanding

    • Know and apply grade level phonics and word analysis skills to decode words

    • Read with sufficient accuracy and at an appropriate rate

    • Read with attention to expression using punctuation for fluency and to support comprehension.

    • Determine the meaning of unfamiliar words by using context clues, dictionaries, and other resources 

    • Use self-monitoring strategies, such as rereading and cross-checking

    • Recognize and have knowledge of a variety of genres 

    • Recognize author, illustrator and title

    • Recognize author’s purpose (persuade, inform, entertain)

    • Engage in independent silent reading

  • The competencies that students demonstrate as they learn to write include the ability to:

    • Begin to develop a voice in writing

    • Develop writing expression skills

      • using descriptive vocabulary

      • using details for support 

      • logical sequence using a beginning/middle/end  

      • having a clear purpose

    • Develop writing mechanic skills 

      • using correct grammar 

      • using correct and a variety of punctuation

      • using correct spelling of high frequency words 

      • using correct sentence structure and showing variety 

      • with attention to penmanship and proper letter formation

    • Use classroom resources (word wall, print rich environments) to support writing process

    • Use revision strategies to develop writing, including conferring with teachers, and peers

    • Learn the writing process (pre-writing, drafting, revising, publishing)

    • Able to write with stamina

    • Students will listen on a daily basis and have the ability to:

    • listen respectfully and responsively

    • avoid interrupting

    • respond appropriately to what is heard

  • Students will speak on a daily basis and have the ability to:

    • Speak for different purposes

    • Develop social speaking skills

    • Use age appropriate vocabulary

    • Speak in grammatically correct sentences with expression

    • Establish eye contact with audience

Mathematics

The math program provides students with a solid foundation in math and provides opportunities for students to apply their problem solving skills, critical thinking skills, and writing skills. The competencies that students are developing as they learn mathematics include the skills for:

    • Recognizing similarities and differences

    • Sorting and classifying by size, shape and color

    • Recognizing patterns

    • Developing the ability to sequence

    • Understanding place value to 1000

    • Grouping and determining place value

    • Differentiating between whole and parts

    • Measuring objects with standard and non-standard units of measure

    • Understanding minutes, hours and telling time

    • Comparing length, height, weight and capacity

    • Representing and interpreting data

    • Identifying patterns and relationships between numbers

    • Recognizing arrays and equal groups

    • Identifying two dimensional and three dimensional shapes

    • Recognizing fact families

Science

Students will understand and apply scientific concepts pertaining to the world around them. The competencies that students are developing as they learn science include using a variety of skills for:   

    • Identifying similarities and differences between living and non-living things

    • Identifying, comparing, and contrasting animals and plants

    • Understanding how living things live together and adapt to their environment

    • Understanding life cycles of living things

    • Understanding the earth is made up of land and water

    • Understanding its place in the universe

    • Understanding the earth and its moon’s cycles

    • Understanding the necessity and protection of earth’s natural resources

    • Understanding earth’s changes due to natural causes and human behavior

    • Understanding earth’s weather and seasons

    • Determining what is matter and how it changes

    • Observing and describing specific properties of objects

    • Understanding of light, heat and sound and its sources

    • Understanding forces, magnets and electricity

Social Studies

Students learn about the people and world around us using a social and geographic look. The competencies that students are developing as they learn social studies include using a variety of skills and strategies for the ability to understand:  

    • Rural, urban and suburban communities and their differences

    • How communities change

    • Getting along and working together in a community

    • People, traditions, practices and ideas that make up different communities

    • History of the United States; pilgrims, Native Americans  

    • How our country developed over time; comparing our country’s past and present

    • Locations of different places; communities, states, countries

    • The components of a map and different types of maps

    • Directionality; north, south, east and west

    • How communities provide goods and services to meet the needs and wants of people

    • How producers and consumers play a role

    • The role of taxation and the ways taxes serve the community

    • The economic relationship between different countries

    • Our country’s government; community, state and national

    • Problem solving, decision making and conflict resolution in the community, nation, world and classroom

    • Being a good citizen of the school and community

    • How our government is different than many other countries in the world

World Languages

    • Numbers: number recognition, sequencing, grouping, more or less, addition and subtraction.

    • Calendar: sequencing days of the week, counting the days of the month, charting weather patterns, graphing birthdays, patterning and sequencing activities.

    • Colors and Shapes: classification of objects according to color/shape and blending colors.

    • Foods: classification of foods, nutrition, food groups, restaurant simulations.

    • School: classroom objects, classroom commands: raise your hand; open the door, form a line.  

    • Animals: grouping by attributes such as size, habitat, colors and sounds.

    • Songs, chants, games, skits and artistic expression via related topics.

Physical Education

    • Skipping             

    • Galloping

    • Hopping

    • Jumping

    • Jogging

    • Chasing, fleeing, dodging

    • Boundary awareness

    • Personal space awareness

    • Moving through space safely

    • Moving in different directions, ranges, pathways

    • Throwing and Catching

    • Striking- Hitting and kicking

    • Volleying

    • Dribbling

    • Rolling

    • Sliding

    • Understand different components of fitness

    • Cardiovascular endurance

    • Muscle strength and endurance

    • Flexibility

    • Perform and identify different fitness activities

    • Understanding the importance of and recognizing an elevated heart rate during physical activity

    • Soccer

    • Basketball

    • Jump Rope

    • Volleyball

    • Scooter Play

    • Parachute Play

    • Bowling

    • Cooperative games and team building

The Arts

    • Drawing animals, people, landscapes, still life and master artist works.

    • How to use chalk and oil pastels, watercolor paints, markers, colored pencils, acrylic paint

    • Learning color wheel: primary, secondary, and complementary colors

    • Elements of Art: line, shape, color

    • How to choose a medium for a project

    • Using clay to make animals

    • Building art appreciation by viewing artworks by famous artists and recreating an artwork

    • Preparing artwork to be displayed in the three yearly art shows

    • Creating a collaborative project with the class for our Art Auction

    • Singing individually and as a group

    • Demonstrating expressive qualities of music such as dynamics and tempo through singing and playing instruments

    • Steady beat through movements and singing

    • Exposure to historical figures in music and their cultural significance

    • Introduction to reading lines and spaces in the treble clef

    • Exposure to multicultural music

    • Vocal pedagogy and use of Solfege

    • A variety of Orff instruments focusing on proper technique and reading

    • Instrument taxonomy

Third Grade

Girls-Going-to-Class.jpg

English Language Arts

  • The competencies that third grade students are developing as they learn to read fluently include the ability to:

    ​

    • Identify purpose for reading

    • Use letter-sound correspondence, knowledge of grammar, and overall context clues to determine meaning

    • Use decoding strategies, such as sounding out words, comparing similar words, breaking words into smaller words, and looking for word parts

    • Use self-monitoring strategies, such as re-reading and cross checking

    • Apply corrective strategies, using classroom resources such as teachers, peers, and reference tools

    • Recognize the difference between phrases and sentences

    • Read with attention to sentence structure and punctuation, such as periods, question marks, and commas to assist in comprehension

    • Engage in independent, silent reading

    • Locate the name of the author, illustrator, title page, table of contents, index, and chapter headings

    • Recognize and discriminate among a variety of informational texts

    • Determine the meaning of unfamiliar words by using context clues, dictionaries, and other classroom resources

    • Read aloud at an appropriate rate

    • Read with increasing fluency and confidence from a variety of texts

    • Maintain a personal reading list to reflect goals and accomplishments

    • Use technology to support reading

  • Students will write on a daily basis across all content areas and standards. The competencies that third grade students demonstrate as they learn to write include the ability to:

    ​​

    • Begin to develop a voice in writing

    • Spell frequently used words correctly

    • Use basic punctuation correctly, such as commas, periods, exclamation points, and question marks

    • Use correct verb tense

    • Use varied vocabulary and sentence structure

    • Write sentences in logical order and create paragraphs to develop ideas

    • Use an organizational format that reflects a beginning, middle and end

    • Develop an idea within a brief text

    • Learn and use the writing process (pre-writing, drafting, revising, proofreading)

    • Use revision strategies to develop writing, including conferring with teachers and peers

    • Determine the audience before writing

    • Use legible print and/or cursive

    • Use word processing

  • Students will further develop listening on a daily basis.

    ​

    • Listen respectfully and responsively

    • Attend to a listening activity for a specified period of time

    • Avoid interrupting

    • Respond appropriately to what is heard

    • Respond respectfully

    • Use age-appropriate vocabulary

    • Initiate communication with peers and familiar adults

    • Speak in grammatically correct sentences

    • Establish eye contact to engage the audience

    • Speak loudly enough to be heard by the audience

Mathematics

Third grade mathematics curriculum continues on a daily basis to teach the basics of mathematics. 

    • Exploring numbers

    • Operations of addition and subtraction

    • Properties of addition and multiplication

    • Multiplication and division

    • Fractions

    • Decimals

    • Estimation

    • Time

    • Money

    • Value and measurement

    • Geometry

    • Problem solving and reasoning skills

    ​

    Other concepts emphasized include:

    ​

    • Graphs

    • Discovering patterns

    • Understanding the value of and counting coins

    • Communicating mathematical thinking in written and oral forms

    • Making connections among mathematical ideas, real-life experiences and math proficiency

Science

    • How Animals Grow and Change

    • Living Things and Their Environment

    • Water

    • Weather

    • Rocks and Soil

    • Natural Resources

    • Patterns in the Sky

    • The Solar System

STEAM

    • Technology is mindfully used in many levels of our academic and extracurricular programs at Bridges. Our STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) program begins in nursery. Technology is introduced in Pre-K and used as a tool to identify and solve problems, present and share ideas, and document and reflect on work. It gives physical projects a voice and allows a student's work to come alive. Technology is also used to build digital portfolios of student growth that can easily be shared with parents. At Bridges, technology rarely stands alone. It is often blended with a hands-on, collaborative project that incorporates the design thinking process.

    • Our program is based on the standards created by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education.) These standards are designed to empower student voice and ensure that learning is a student-driven process.

    • In the STEAM Lab, students engage in collaborative projects that are frequently interdisciplinary. These STEAM lessons are carefully designed to connect with or enhance the classroom curriculum. 

    • The spiraling curriculum aims to develop students’ technology and design skills in areas such as coding, keyboarding, robotics, circuit building, cardboard construction and the design thinking process. These skills serve as the foundation for ongoing work throughout Bridges. Woven throughout the STEAM program is ongoing learning about digital citizenship and the responsible use of technology both in the classroom and at home. This becomes increasingly important as students get older and transition to their own devices. 

Social Studies

    • Third grade social studies covers communication, conservation, communities, agriculture, geography and the discovery of America, as well as colonization and slavery.

    • This positive approach to history encourages students to love and respect their country. The heroes and heroines to whom they are introduced provide role models representing ideals and aspirations for which students can strive.

    • Other topics include community types, geography, government, what communities share, cultures, special people profiles, and map and geography skills.

    • Explore various artworks from other cultures and countries

World Languages

    • Numbers: number recognition, sequencing, grouping, more or less, addition and subtraction.

    • Calendar: sequencing days of the week, counting the days of the month, charting weather patterns, graphing birthdays, patterning and sequencing activities.

    • Colors and Shapes: classification of objects according to color/shape and blending colors.

    • Foods: classification of foods, nutrition, food groups, restaurant simulations.

    • School: classroom objects, classroom commands: raise your hand; open the door, form a line.  

    • Animals: grouping by attributes such as size, habitat, colors and sounds.

Physical Education

    • Chasing, fleeing, dodging

    • Speed, agility

    • Defending space

    • Understanding the roles of offense and defense

    • Combination movement

    • Locomotor + non-locomotor+manipulative

    • Throwing and Catching (advanced)

    • Striking - with and without objects

    • Passing

    • Shooting

    • Rolling (advanced)

    • Volleying individually and with partners

    • Fitness testing begins

    • Recognizing and understanding different fitness components and how they relate to health and wellness

    • Cardiovascular endurance

    • Muscular strength and endurance

    • Flexibility

    • Body composition

    • Balancing physical activity with nutrition

    • Identifying the various food groups

    • Placing appropriate foods within those food groups

    • Working together

    • Problem solving skills

    • Communication skills

    • Good Sportsmanship

    • Soccer

    • Football

    • Team Handball

    • Basketball

    • Jump Rope

    • Scooter Hockey

    • Volleyball

    • Bowling

    • Lacrosse

    • Kickball

    • Wiffle-ball

The Arts

    • Drawing animals, people, landscapes, still life and master artist works.

    • How to use chalk and oil pastels, watercolor paints, markers, colored pencils, acrylic paint

    • Learning color wheel: primary, secondary, and complementary colors

    • Elements of Art: line, shape, color

    • How to choose a medium for a project

    • Using clay to make animals

    • Building art appreciation by viewing artworks by famous artists and recreating an artwork

    • Preparing artwork to be displayed in the three yearly art shows

    • Creating a collaborative project with the class for our Art Auction

    • Singing individually and as a group

    • Demonstrating expressive qualities of music such as dynamics and tempo through singing and playing instruments

    • Steady beat through movements and singing

    • Exposure to historical figures in music and their cultural significance

    • Introduction to reading lines and spaces in the treble clef

    • Exposure to multicultural music

    • Vocal pedagogy and use of Solfege

    • A variety of Orff instruments focusing on proper technique and reading

    • Instrument taxonomy

  • The students will focus on:

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    • Fluency in reading lines and spaces on a staff in the treble clef

    • Demonstrating expressive qualities of music such as dynamics and tempo through playing instruments

    • Perform on an instrument individually or as a group

  • Students in Kindergarten through third grade have the opportunity to participate in an age appropriate theatrical performance.  This after school program follows the same model as our Middle School Drama Club but with truncated rehearsal times.  Students learn the ins-and-outs of performing a musical on stage including but not limited to:

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    • Character dialogue

    • Staging and Blocking

    • Choreography

    • Memorizing songs and lines

    • Working collaboratively with others to complete a show

Learn More

Leadership & Governance

Learn more about our Head of School Stephen Edward Rubenacker.

Why Choose a Private School

Why Choosing a Private School might be right for your family.

Admissions & Tours

Learn more about our admissions process and schedule a tour.

Bridge's Media Page

Explore our media page where you can watch school events, plays, and days of learning.

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