SOMERVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

SOMERVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

PRESCHOOL CURRICULUM FOR

FOUR-YEAR-OLDS

Adopted by the Somerville Board of Education on June 17, 2008; Revised by the Somerville Board of Education on August 12, 2008

PHILOSOPHY

The Somerville Public School district recognizes the importance of early childhood education and strives to provide its students with a foundation of developmentally-appropriate learning experiences. These experiences encompass the attitudes, dispositions, knowledge, and skills in the developmental domains of cognition, language, social-emotional health, and physical-motor skills with respect to individual, family, cultural, and socioeconomic variations.

The preschool program incorporates a variety of themes as the vehicles to focus on and integrate instruction in emergent academic skills in the areas of language arts literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, world languages, physical education, health, and social-emotional development. By relating activities through themes, children's generalization of knowledge and skills from one experience to the next is facilitated. Theme teaching provides children access to the topic in ways that best suit their individual learning styles.

CURRICULUM MAP PRESCHOOL MONTHLY THEMATIC UNITS

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

ALL ABOUT ME My name: spell name,

recognize name in print My personal features What I Like My emotions

AUTUMN Leaves changing colors Trees serve many purposes,

ANIMALS AND HABITAT Pets Zoo animals

e.g., habitats, wildlife How we dress for

weather changes Harvest

Farm animals Jungle/forest wildlife Review and comparison

to ourselves

DECEMBER

WINTER How we dress in winter Activities in winter How animals prepare

in winter Environmental changes

JANUARY

HIBERNATION Animal habitats Needs of living things

FEBRUARY

MARCH

BUBBLES, BLIZZARDS, SPRING

BREAD & BUTTER

How we dress for

Matter

weather changes

Solids Liquids Changing shapes Changing temperatures

Wind and other climate changes

Changes in growth

APRIL

OUR GARDEN Seeds Flowers, fruits,

and vegetables Needs of living things Rain - water cycle

MAY

BIRDS, INSECTS & SPIDERS Life cycle Differences Basic needs

JUNE

SUMMER How we dress for

weather change Activities in the summer

ALL ABOUT MY FRIENDS Cooperative play

KEEPING SAFE 911 - how and when to

(share, take turns,

use/why

wait turns, class rules)

Police officers, firefighters

Conflict resolution Friends' personal Characteristics

Stranger danger Good touch, bad touch

compared to mine

Hazards (fire prevention,

How we are alike and different dangers, poisons)

Harmful substances

GIVING THANKS Families Communities All different/

all similar Celebration of Thanksgiving

SEASONAL CELEBRATIONS Christmas, Chanukah,

Kwanzaa, other celebrations

Cultural diversity

Family

Traditions - similar and different

THE SOLAR SYSTEM Sun-moon-stars Space travel

ALL ABOUT MY CLASSROOM/SCHOOL

Classroom arrangement Routine and rules Areas Name of school Car-bus safety

TAKING CARE OF MY BODY HEALTHY EATING

Body parts

Food pyramid/nutrition

Health and hygiene

Caring for our bodies

Personal grooming/ dental care

THE FIVE SENSES Awareness of taste, touch,

smell, sight, sound The scientific process Exploring with our senses

TIME calendar/year change Clock/calendar Day and night time

activities

SPECIAL PEOPLE, SPECIAL DAYS

MAGNETS Push/pull

Valentine's Day

Experiment with properties

George Washington

Groundhog Day

African-American heroes and heroines

WORKERS, TOOLS,

AND UNIFORMS Workers in the community

Jobs and careers

Concepts of work: money, goods,

services

REMEMBERING SPECIAL PEOPLE Mother's Day Memorial Day

GIANTS

Giant animals Elephants, giraffes, and whales

Giant man-made structures

ocean liners, skyscrapers

Measurement

Dinosaurs

OUR EARTH Land forms and make-up

e.g., soil, rock, land, mountain Water, e.g., ponds, rivers, oceans The globe

CARING FOR OUR EARTH WHEELS & WINGS

Pollution and clean-up Don't waste conservation

Recycle

Bus drivers, pilots,

conductors, etc. Different modes of travel

Introduction to maps

REMEMBERING SPECIAL PEOPLE Father's Day End of year ceremony

ALL ABOUT MY FAMILY Members and roles What families do together *Where I live

(telephone, address, township)

* Reocurring theme

DISCOVERING AMERICA Ocean/land Christopher Columbus Diversity (culture) Greeting others

(new language)

Caring for the earth (ocean, land)

*KINDNESS Friendship Cooperation, getting

along with others Resolving conflicts

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, Mother

Theresa, and others

MULTI-CULTURAL MONTH Simple greetings and

introductions in other languages

SEPTEMBER

THEME OBJECTIVES:

ALL ABOUT ME

The child will... ? Develop a positive self-image. ? Respond to his/her name when called. ? Recognize his/her own name symbol. ? Recognize his/her own name imprint. ? Identify gender in self and others. ? Identify emotions. ? Identify physical characteristics of self. ? Identify favorite activities, possessions, and other items. ? Begin to provide personal information.

ALL ABOUT MY FRIENDS

The child will... ? Begin to understand how human beings are alike and different. o By physical characteristics o By attributes o Mentally and physically challenged ? Learn to play cooperatively with others. ? Develop an understanding of conflict resolution skills.

ALL ABOUT MY FAMILY

The child will... ? Identify family members. ? Understand roles of family members. ? Talk about family activities and differences in family structures.

ALL ABOUT MY CLASSROOM/SCHOOL

The child will... ? Understand the daily classroom routine and rules. ? Identify the different areas of the classroom. ? Identify the name of the school. ? Understand ways to stay safe while traveling to and from school.

OCTOBER

THEME OBJECTIVES:

AUTUMN

The child will... ? Observe and name various weather conditions. ? Talk about changes in the weather. ? Learn how to dress for different weather conditions. ? Learn about activities related to autumn. ? Learn about community helpers. ? Identify different seasonal fruits and vegetables. ? Identify seasonal characteristics of trees.

TAKING CARE OF MY BODY

The child will... ? Identify body parts. ? Identify an understanding of ways to stay healthy.

KEEPING SAFE

The child will... ? Recognize individuals in the community who help. ? Learn about fire safety. ? Learn a variety of health safety rules.

DISCOVERING AMERICA

The child will... ? Learn about Christopher Columbus and Native Americans. ? Learn about seasonal holidays. ? Develop an understanding of other cultures (e.g., greetings). ? Develop an understanding of landforms and how to care for them.

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