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When a student comes to the Lower School each morning, he/she enters a vibrant, happy learning community where she is nurtured and challenged to become an independent learner and a leader.

Ship Preparatory Academy's elementary department consists of K5-5th grade. At Ship Academy, we believe that every student can learn in an environment with high expectations and standards.  We create a classroom culture that fosters a loving, Christ-centered environment that our students can flourish academically and spiritually. Instilling confidence and a strong sense of self is an important focus in the Lower School: children flourish when they are seen as individuals and are able to develop talents and experience affirmation. The Lower School program offers opportunities for children to advance at their own developmental pace with appropriate support. An integrated content-based curriculum engages students in investigating various concepts.

Our reading program focuses on students developing their overall phonics, fluency and comprehension skills through utilizing a myriad of strategies that foster independence, engagement and an overall love of reading a variety of genres. In Writers Workshop, students learn how to write many different genres guided by topics and mentor texts introduced in the curriculum; they write independently and then share and celebrate their work with the classroom community. In math, problem-solving is emphasized through using different techniques, and daily enrichment is provided for students who have mastered a particular topic. Through Social Studies, students experience reading, writing, listening and speaking, connecting the arts, science and music in a rich and meaningful context.

 

The Lower School academic program emphasizes academic rigor, and is designed to develop competency and higher-order thinking, encourage creativity and promote independence in each student. Language, culture, and an understanding of people and events are integrated into every aspect of the program.  Creative expression is encouraged in both the academic subjects as well as in the visual and performing arts. Technology is integrated into the entire curriculum and learning is ongoing in all aspects of school life. The Lower School curriculum emphasizes the importance of collaboration between students to improve their sense of creativity, resiliency and overall confidence in problem solving during process-based projects that are integrated across the curriculum.

Values as well as traditions, play an influential role in helping each child appreciate that he/she is loved for who he/she is and as a member of the community.

 

 

Please view the Curriculum Guide for a complete look at the Pre-K through 12th grade curriculum.