Academic Excellence

The Early Childhood program includes rich, developmentally appropriate opportunities for learning readiness, exploration, socialization, and play. Through a balanced array of open-ended choices and structured activities, our Beginners and Pre-Kindergarten programs support a full range of a child’s development, including socialization and self-help skills, fine and gross motor skills, and receptive and expressive language skills. Creativity and cognitive growth are nurtured at this level through theme-based units such as Me and My Community, Art and Artists, and Colors and Shapes.

Beginners and Pre-Kindergarten programs end at noon with an option for students to stay until 2:45 in the Discovery Program. Staffed by the Beginners and Pre-Kindergarten teachers, this optional afternoon program provides a balance of structured activities and free play, as well as time for lunch and a quiet rest period. Each day of the week offers an activity focused in one the following areas: cooking, music, art, drama, or computers. Students may enroll in the Discovery Program from one to four days a week (Monday-Thursday).

In our full-day Kindergarten program students build upon what they have learned in Beginners and Pre-K. While the schedule continues to allow for independent choice activities, students are introduced to more formal lessons in reading, writing, math and social studies. Building and reinforcing foundational reading and writing skills, Kindergarteners participate in small reading groups and write fictional and nonfictional stories. In math, they continue to build their knowledge of operations and algorithms supported by the use of manipulatives. Social Studies learning focuses on current day Boston and the State of Massachusetts.

Amidst a rich interdisciplinary program, learning in Grades 1-3 focuses on essential skill development, especially in reading, writing, and math. Students benefit from the continuation of a warm and supportive classroom environment that begins to foster more independence both socially and academically. We use a variety of instructional models, including fluid, skill-based groups, to better differentiate instruction and to respond to the developmental range of students. By third grade students have begun to solidify skills and poised to transition to Upper School. A highlight of their year includes the introduction of RoboLab which incorporates elements of science, technology, math, and engineering and invites students to build and program robotic vehicles.

The Upper School program is the culmination of the CHS experience. While continuing to gain new knowledge, students in Grades 4-6 engage in learning opportunities that focus on rich, in-depth content and on the application of skills in the service of increasingly complex and multi-layered projects. Strengthening their sense of independence, students assume more responsibility for their own learning and for the organization of time and materials. At this level technology is significantly integrated into the classroom, both in homeroom and special subjects, and students benefit from explorations which are enriched by meaningful interdisciplinary connections. Two Upper School highlights include a formal Athletics Program and a Leadership Program, both of which reflect our commitment to nurturing the development of well-rounded students and to preparing them fully for their next steps beyond CHS.

Our Language Arts program fosters the growth of oral and written communication skills including speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Opportunities to develop skill and confidence in speaking before a group are plentiful in both our curriculum and school culture. Students become poised public speakers through storytelling, group discussions, community meetings, assemblies, Readers’ Theatre, and class plays.

Reading

The CHS reading program aims to develop skilled independent readers, who read for enjoyment as well as for information.  For our youngest students, a language-rich environment develops pre-reading skills through building phonemic awareness, cultivating listening skills, expanding vocabulary and fostering a sense of story. Building upon this foundation, students in Kindergarten through Grade Three work on reading mechanics and basic comprehension in fluid, skill-based instructional groups. We provide students with a broad and balanced collection of reading strategies and with opportunities to practice and hone their skills on a range of developmentally appropriate texts.  With greater independence, students in the upper grades apply these skills as they read for content.  Continuing to develop fluency and comprehension, they read a variety of literature and expository text in multiple subject areas and reading venues across the curriculum. They are encouraged to become active and critical readers and learn to make connections in their reading at increasingly complex levels. Throughout the grades at CHS, students learn to appreciate and respond to different genres and text that represent a variety of multi-cultural perspectives and incorporate cross-curricular topics and themes. They have opportunities to experience language arts in a variety of ways that foster individual interest, a sense of community and leadership skills.

Writing

The Writing program focuses on developing competent writers that can express ideas in a variety formats, forums, and genres. Throughout the years they acquire skills in vocabulary, conventions, and organization while finding and refining their personal voice. Writing for our youngest students begins with picture drawings and scribbling to represent stories.  As children develop, they use invented spelling to create labels and short sentences. Gradually students begin publishing small moment stories and are expressing themselves through journal writing.  By third grade children are well versed in the writing process and have the opportunities to apply this process in different formats such as memoirs, letters, personal narratives, and poetry.  In grades fourth through sixth, students express increasingly complex ideas in lengthier and more structured creative and expository writing pieces such as persuasive essays, research reports, and responses to literature.  Chestnut Hill students in all grades utilize their writing skills in all subject areas and throughout all aspects of their learning.

The core of mathematical learning at CHS is to encourage all students to become active, independent problem solvers, to have a strong number sense, and to communicate logically using mathematical terms.

Instructional practices are based on the standards established by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Lessons are enhanced with hands-on, experiential activities using a variety of manipulatives and interactive technology. The mathematics program is designed to engage students in creative thinking, and to broaden their knowledge and deepen their understanding in all areas of mathematics, including number sense and operations, geometry, patterns and algebraic relationship, data collection and representation, and probability. Common mathematical language provides continuity across grade levels.

Teachers recognize the individuality of each child’s developmental level, their strengths and needs. Learning takes place both in small groups and as part of whole class activities. Students move from concrete to abstract thinking, internalizing more complex mathematical concepts.  Opportunities are provided at all levels to encourage children to become active and independent learners.

Building on children’s natural curiosity and desire to explore the world around them, this hands-on, activity-based program encourages students to ask questions, brainstorm answers, devise experiments, make predictions, discover and record results, and draw conclusions. Activities reflect the main branches of science including life and earth science, physics and chemistry. Using a scientist’s special tools, such as magnifiers, children examine the structures in a leaf or the eyes and antennae of a snail. After dissecting owl pellets, the students compare the tiny bones they find to those in the

human skeleton. Tapping maple trees on the school grounds allows the children to make the connection between the living tree and the final delicious product. The chemistry of food leads to some tasty edible experiments as well as to thoughtful discussions about making healthy choices.

All students participate in The Chestnut Hill School’s annual science fair. Beginners through first graders create group projects such as a huge coral reef or rock collection to complement subjects they have been studying. In second grade, each student designs and models an original invention for their “invention convention,” coming up with such creative ideas as a personal zamboni made from an ice skate or a device for getting out of bed in the morning. Third through sixth grade students each come up with a question, such as, “What is Growing on My Food?” or “How Does Changing the Formula Affect Silly Putty?” and then find their own answers by researching the subject of developing an experiment.

The social studies curriculum exposes students to the diversity of our world, past and present, culturally, and geographically. By learning about individuals, communities, history, and current events, students at The Chestnut Hill School learn to appreciate and respect differences in people and cultures as they also develop analytic and communication skills that will serve them throughout their lives. Within each grade, classes investigate various regions throughout the globe. By using a variety of materials to explore the geography and history that has helped form contemporary culture, students gain a more tangible understanding of the development of world events. They learn about the world they live in, how some of the issues the world faces have developed over time, and how the past can influence the present.

For our youngest students, social studies lessons often relate directly to personal experience, as in the Beginners opening unit of “Me and My Family.” By learning about their classmates, the students are exposed to the different physical characteristics, interests, and family structures found within the school community.

In older grades, social studies activities continue to provide concrete experiences and also include more abstract learning and complex concepts. Students read texts which connect to social studies topics, participate in class discussions which ask them to reflect on and analyze content, and engage in writing activities which bridge multiple areas of their learning. Beginning research skills are incorporated within a variety of projects ranging from Fourth Graders’ exploration of family crests during their study of Medieval Europe to Fifth Grader’s presentation of Colonial American themes to their classmates. Sixth Grade culminates with a detailed, multi-media project of an African country.

As part of supporting our students’ becoming productive global citizens, building social competency is an important part of our social studies curriculum. The Open Circle program is used in Beginners through Fifth Grade and is followed in Sixth Grade with weekly meetings on social and community topics.

The art curriculum at The Chestnut Hill School is designed to train the eyes to see, to encourage self-expression, and to nurture the ability of students to make choices and solve problems. For the youngest grades, the art program invites joyful exploration of various materials from finger pint to modeling clay, emphasizing process over product. As they grow, children develop the ability to generate and expand on ideas and learn to follow them through to completion. Project goals are specific but broad enough to encourage individuality while allowing children with differing abilities and interests to be successful. When fourth grade students create polymer marionettes, for example, some students choose to model the clothing in clay, while others prefer to make the costumes from fabric. Materials are varied and a range of tools are provided, such as thick- to fine-tipped brushes, fat pencils, fine to large needles, etc. Projects are also often assigned in coordination with other classroom curricula, such as making a mummy in a sarcophagus to coincide with the third grade study of ancient Egypt, or making a lampshade to go on a lamp made in woodworking. Creative problem-solving and a “can do” attitude are encouraged at all times, with the aim that each student will learn to appreciate him- or herself as an artist.

The Library program teaches skills and attitudes essential to students throughout their educational experience at The Chestnut Hill School and beyond. Teaching how to find, enjoy, understand, and use resources are the underlying instructional goals of the program. In support of these goals, our library’s collection of over 7,000 volumes enriches all aspects of the curriculum, reflects a broad range of literary interests, and represents the diverse and multicultural nature of our world.

In Beginners and Pre-Kindergarten, stories are used to delight while teaching about language, life experiences, and the world around us. Books by a variety of authors and illustrators engage students in the curriculum as the instructor points out text features such as rhyme, alliteration, or the sounds that letters make. The use of story reenactments, props, and puppets bring the literature to life and seek to immerse students in the world of the story.

In Kindergarten through Grade 4, weekly library classes are times during which students learn to choose and borrow books for various purposes, and in which students’ literacy, information, and thinking skills are encouraged and developed. Throughout the Upper School, books and electronic sources that support the curriculum continue to foster literature appreciation, reading fluency and comprehension, and information seeking and usage skills. In Grade 4, for example, the study of Medieval Europe is enriched by a host of resources as students choose a topic. All aspects of the library program encourage the development of students who will become lifelong readers and ethical users of information.

Using the vehicles of singing, saying, dancing, and playing, The Chestnut Hill School’s music program provides many opportunities for children to be drawn into music, not only as listeners, but as participants who know what it feels like to become part of a piece of music. All students at The Chestnut Hill School participate in performance at varying levels, with opportunities to perform found in music class, community meetings, assemblies, class plays, in-class performances and all-school concerts.

The study of instruments begins in our youngest grades with simple drums, rhythm sticks and bells, moves into recorder lessons in third grade, and culminates with basic keyboard and music technology skills in sixth grade. Students have access to a full complement of Orff instruments, including unpitched percussion instruments, drums, recorders and

xylophones. Our music technology lab includes software to reinforce fundamental skills and compose music, as well as eight keyboards and midi technology. Kindergarteners, first graders and second-graders also take part in Suzuki-based violin instruction, introducing them to string instruments as well as aiding in their development of fine motor and listening skills.

At The Chestnut Hill School, children learn lifelong fitness skills from an early age. Beginners jump, leap, catch, and kick. Older children dodge, volley, dribble, and strike.

Children learn to take risks, but to play by the rules. As their skills improve, they develop self-esteem and become more physically motivated. Socially, they learn about teamwork, leadership, sportsmanship, and school spirit. Students participate in physical education two to four days a week, with additional athletics after school once a week in grades two through six. Beginning in fourth grade,students participate in interscholastic sports, playing other independent schools competitively in soccer, field hockey, basketball, and baseball/softball.

We want each child to be successful and to pursue a lifetime of active and healthy choices. By incorporating challenging yet achievable tasks, our program allows children to feel pride in their accomplishments, paving the way for a positive lifelong appreciation of physical activity.

The Spanish program at The Chestnut Hill School exposes children to the language, cultures and customs of the Hispanic world. Through a hands-on, content-based approach, the students develop their listening, speaking, reading and writing skills by building on acquired vocabulary and grammar, grade by grade. All classes are conducted primarily in Spanish, using a multisensory approach.

The Beginners through Grade Two Spanish curriculum focuses on listening and comprehension skills through the use of songs, rhymes, games, and Total Physical Response—acting what is being said or sung—to introduce language concepts. Language is taught in a stress-free manner through the natural approach, mirroring the manner in which children acquire their first language. Children are introduced to Latin American holiday celebrations such as “Día de los Muertos,” “Carnival,” and “Cinco de Mayo.”

Grades Three through Six follow a more intense curriculum in which students use listening, speaking, reading, and writing in Spanish as a way not only of increasing their Spanish skills, but also of supporting their curriculum in other areas of the school. Web skills as well as Spanish vocabulary are learned as the instructor, using an interactive white board, leads the class in studying time tables and purchasing tickets on the Spanish-language website for the Madrid train station. Fourth graders, studying Medieval and Renaissance European history in social studies, will correspondingly learn about Medieval Spanish cities such as Segovia and Toledo, and famous Spanish Renaissance artists such as El Greco, Goya and Velasquez.

Learning and teaching at The Chestnut Hill School are meaningfully supported and enriched by the use of technology. Across the curriculum, students use technology tools to create projects demonstrating their learning, to access and evaluate information, and to communicate with others. As students progress throughout the grades, our goal is not only for them to achieve critical benchmarks of technological proficiency but to develop an awareness of and sense of responsibility for using technology in safe and ethical ways. Equally important, we seek to foster the development of 21^st century skills and perspectives that students will need in a diverse and globally connected world. Students in Kindergarten-Grade Three receive weekly instruction in the computer lab, but a rich array of technology resources, including three mobile laptop carts and interactive whiteboards in nearly every classroom, allows for significant technology integration throughout the school.

Beginning in Pre-Kindergarten, The Chestnut Hill School’s woodworking program introduces students to the basics of finished woodworking, including safety, following directions, sanding and filing, drilling, fastening, and finish-work. At each grade level,

age-appropriate tools and projects provide students with the chance to make something “real” and useful: a napkin holder, for instance, or a CD rack. Attention is given to fine and gross-motor-skill development, along with following directions, attention to detail, and, always, safety. Children who complete projects early are sometimes tapped to help

their classmates, while others may choose to pursue an additional project independently. The curriculum focuses particularly on finishing touches—a neat stain or paint job, a beveled edge, a screw hidden by a dowel—and the resulting projects give students the well-earned pride of personal accomplishment.