English Language Arts KG

2 Semester: 36 Units
Required Course Materials

In Kindergarten, students begin to create a strong foundation for reading, writing and communication. They do this with the help of an on-site mentor and an on-line VLA Teacher.

Reading

One of the most basic components of reading is the skill of good listening. The auditory element of this virtual curriculum is quite strong, and young children will grow to love the colorful voices that direct the entire course. Students will hang on every word, and learning to listen will be great fun.

As children learn to sit quietly and listen, they will experience the important element of phonemic awareness, the ability to distinguish and identify the sounds of language. Identifying initial sounds and rhyming words is an auditory delight, and these experiences are exciting and entertaining as students anxiously click here and there on the computer keyboard to see what happens next.
 
The next step is to match these sounds with symbols they see on the computer screen and on the written page. This is phonic analysis, knowing the relationship between printed letters and spoken sounds and being able to apply that knowledge to unknown words in a text. Much of this is accomplished during shared reading of books in brightly moving units of study, such as “A Review: Race to the Finish.”

During this course, phonic analysis leads to the recognition of new words. That is, students build a reading vocabulary of sight words. Eventually, this skill will allow them to comprehend and not just process decoding. They will learn to both say the sounds of words and also identify words quickly while reading.

Writing

The use of technology blended with traditional teaching strategies makes writing at the Kindergarten level both exciting and effective. At the beginning level, kindergartners explore the various purposes of writing, such as using a small range of familiar forms, like letters.

At first, children are engrossed in watching how upper and lower case letters are formed through animation on the screen. Next, they get to use their fine motor muscles as they print the letters on Kindergarten paper for the VLA Teacher to see. Later, they use technology to see letters come alive to form words. Of course, the culminating step is to experience short sentences in fun and colorful ways right on the computer. Using such on-line offerings as models, students eventually print words and short sentences on paper for the VLA Teacher’s close inspection and interaction with his/her students.

Good models are very important as students learn to master writing conventions. Once again, this virtual course provides many exciting templates as children begin to spell, punctuate, and use grammatical structures of English to effectively communicate ideas in writing and to express themselves.

Communication

It is important that very young students learn to communicate effectively through exposure to well- versed models. The JCESC virtual program and the on-site mentors provide such models with plenty of opportunities for students to practice.

Even at this early age, students hone their communication skills by speaking, listening and providing and interpreting visual images. They do this by delivering presentations to audiences (brothers, sisters, mothers, friends, and even stuffed animals) that effectively inform or entertain their listeners.

All of these skills lead to easy, smooth reading; appropriate writing techniques; and effective oral and visual communication. Individual students achieve appropriate levels at various times. However, the goal of the JCESC virtual course is to help students use modern technology to build a foundation early in their school experiences that will support fluent reading; writing that meets the application and convention requirements; and proficient communication skills.

• Observe and ask questions about the natural environment
• Plan and conduct simple investigations
• Employ simple equipment and tools to gather data and extend the senses
• Use appropriate mathematics with data to construct reasonable explanations
• Communicate about observations, investigations, and explanations
• Review and ask questions about the observations and explanations of others

Presentation of the Kindergarten Virtual Science Course incorporates the following:

2 Semesters: 1 Credit

The kindergarten year is the time for children to begin to form concepts about the world beyond their own classroom and communities. Culture, heritage and democratic principles are explored, building upon the foundation of the classroom experience. The Kindergarten Social Studies Content Statements form the basis for students deepening their learning about themselves and beginning to form an understanding of roles, responsibility for actions, and decision making in the context of the group setting.

Spanish Kindergarten

1 Semester: (1/2 credit)
Required Course Materials

Students in Spanish KG will be introduced to the basic skills of communication in the target language. They will learn basic rules of pronunciation in the target language and compare these rules to their native language. Students will learn vocabulary, numbers, colors, shapes and simple greetings and salutations. Students will also identify cultural items and foods that have come from Spanish speaking countries.