Lower Schools
The Lower School curriculum is designed to provide students with a thorough and cohesive program of learning based on a Christian worldview. Teachers assist students in developing necessary skills and knowledge, while fueling the natural curiosity of young children. They work to help students establish a commitment to excellence. Through scheduled curriculum review and evaluation, teachers update and refine teaching material and instructional techniques in an effort to help students reach essential grade-level proficiency. The scope of learning in each subject area is designed to build on the previous year’s instruction and to prepare students for success in the next grade level. Through well-planned assignments increasing in complexity and essential independence, students leaving our lower school are well prepared to meet the middle school years with confidence.
Benefits of Our Christian Lower School
Our school offers a robust curriculum and many opportunities for academic advancement, but getting a Christian education offers added value for multiple reasons. Our students benefit in a number of ways:
- Biblical Worldview: Since we incorporate our faith into the academic curriculum, our students will develop a Christian worldview through the course of the year. They will have the opportunity to grow in their faith through discussion with their peers and faculty.
- Character Development: We instill Christian values every day through our academics, athletics, and extracurricular options. Students will learn faith, discipline, and other excellent attributes.
- Role Models: Our qualified and experienced staff is made up of exemplary role models from whom your child can take all kinds of life lessons. We believe in surrounding every child with guiding figures to help them grow into their potential.
- Smaller Class Sizes: Since Christian lower schools tend to be more exclusive, we can offer smaller class sizes and more individualized attention for each student, helping your child succeed academically and socially.
- Bible Class: Bible classes aim to develop basic biblical literacy in children. Children learn they are made in the image of God, are loved by Him, and are made for a purpose. They begin to understand the meaning of “worldview.”
Developing Diligent Disciples
One of the primary goals at the Lower School is teaching kids how to be students...of God's word, God's world, and each other. In order to get the best from their education, and from life, kids need to become "Diligent DISCIPLES”:
- Do your best – Learn from your mistakes.
- Integrity – Do what is right, even when no one is looking.
- Stewardship – Make good use of all God has given you.
- Courtesy – Good manners show your respect for others.
- Ignore distractions – Keep little things little.
- Plan your time, your goals, and make things happen.
- Learn all you can – Be curious and ask good questions.
- Encourage one another – You’re part of a team.
- Share what you have, what you know, and who you are – You are unique.
By the end of their time at the lower school, students should know the principles inside and out; considering them as they make choices in behavior and attitude, and putting them into practice not only at school, but everywhere they go. Contact our Christian elementary school today to learn more about what we have to offer. We proudly serve Annapolis & Severn, MD.
1st graders are eager to read and write. Students in 1st grade build on a foundation of letter sounds, sight words, and decoding abilities. A significant portion of the day is devoted to the development of these skills, taking students from a variety of starting points to ever increasing independence in the language arts. Handwriting skills are developed for consistency in size, slant, and legibility, and spelling lessons begin. Students have many opportunities to put their thoughts into writing. 
Students in 2nd grade become more independent as they start to apply previously learned basic skills. They discover reading for enjoyment and develop writing skills as a form of communication. Instruction in phonics continues, while increasing the amount of time on reading comprehension and reading fluency. 
Students in the 3rd grade are ready to develop more as independent readers. Students fine tune their reading comprehension skills and learn to analyze a text by summarizing, comparing, and contrasting characters and events. The reading program is novel-based, with plenty of non-fiction reading as well. Emphasis is placed on writing for different purposes, such as narrating, informing, describing, and researching. The development of skills in reading, research, and writing culminate in the presentation of a state report.
4th grade is the year when kids turn a corner and are expected to take greater personal responsibility for their work. Good organizational skills are emphasized across the curriculum. Children begin using the daily planner to record and check off daily assignments. Being responsible and keeping everything together is an challenge, and teachers work with students to develop ways to tackle this important new skill.
The focus in our 5th grade classrooms is to develop competence in organizational and study skills as well as to provide the academic preparation students will need for success in Middle School. While presenting several research assignments, kids learn more effective written and spoken communication. Mastered reading empowers students to acquire knowledge independently. Students ascertain truth about God’s world through discovery and investigation in science and math. They learn to see Jesus Christ throughout the Bible, beginning with pictures and prophecies in the Old Testament and through studying the life of Christ in the Gospels.