Early Childhood and Elementary

Holy Nativity’s Jr. Pre-K program is focused on introducing our students to the joys of school, friendship and a love for learning. Our classrooms are equipped with play areas that provide opportunities for dramatic play, expansion of the imagination and gross/fine motor development while learning to cooperate and interact with others. We strive to teach them how to treat others with dignity and respect, through our school rules of “Love God” and “Love your neighbor”. Students are eased into the school routine by learning how to be independent and responsible for their belongings, transitioning to different activities and becoming an active member of instructional and play time.

We adhere to the traditional concept that you can never read too many books to a child while also incorporating today’s cutting edge technology through the use of iPads and Chromebooks.

Our academics for the Jr. Pre-K program include but are not limited to:

• Upper and lowercase letter identification
• Phonemic awareness
• Number sense and sequencing
• Patterns
• Shape recognition and handwriting

We use such tools as “Mat Man” from the Handwriting Without Tears program to learn about correct formation of letters, positional concepts and body awareness. We use a letter of the week theme and incorporate numerous art projects and a weekly science project to reinforce each letter we are studying. Some examples of our science projects include making homemade play-doh, planting and growing seeds, and studying the mixtures of colors to create new colors. To ensure continuity through out their schooling at HNES, we begin teaching key vocabulary from our school-wide Singapore math program so that our children are familiar with some of the math terms as they advance. We specifically work on number bonds and explore how numbers work together to create a larger number.

Jr. Pre-K is an important step for every child to easily transition into the next level of rigor in the school routine and academics.

Holy Nativity’s Pre-K is a fun, happy place filled with exciting learning experiences and social development. Students are immersed in a fluid mixture of math, language arts, science, social skills, and the creative arts. We use a cutting edge curriculum, founded on solid brain research, with attention to the varied developmental stages of preschool-age children. Students are expected to practice academic skills independently, in small groups, and in whole class experiences. Our days are filled with visits from members of the community like Sargent Gailfoil, who teaches us that police officers are cooler than superheroes, and Nurse Cathy, who teaches us how to protect ourselves from germs. Our goal is to create fearless learners who love to tackle new information and skills. We provide an environment where children learn not only academics; they learn to appreciate their own uniqueness and the wonderful uniqueness of those around them.

Our academics for the Pre-K program include but are not limited to:

• Surpassing State Standards in our learning expectations incorporating the Whole Language approach
• Digital fingerprinting with the Sheriff’s Department
• Gyotaku painting with a real fish
• We become scientists with so many experiments
• Wall-sized rainbow collage which Incorporates the idea of recycling
• Pre-K Quilt which celebrates the individual uniqueness of us all

Holy Nativity’s Kindergarten program aligns to FCIS standards while incorporating Florida State and National Common Core Standards.

Students are immersed daily in Journey's Language Arts, Singapore Math, and Handwriting Without Tears. All three curriculums are based on the latest brain research and best practices. We include a strong focus on Social Studies and Science through field trips and in-house experimentation. Collaborative learning is fostered through teacher led small group activities in which all students are expected to participate and engage each other. Great attention is paid to the varied levels of individual learners and differentiated instruction is used to meet the needs of all students. iPads and Chromebooks are used for group and individual learning.

This is a rigorous program, but the children just see it as fun!

The following are the current choices for our elementary curriculum. Our curriculum choices are driven by our mission and based on the most current research into what works to effectively educate children.

SINGAPORE MATH (PRIMARY MATH FROM SINGAPORE)
Singapore Math is fully implemented in Jr. Pre-K through 5th Grade. The deep conceptual understanding will become more and more apparent as math becomes more complex. There are many informative videos available on YouTube to view actual classrooms using this leading international math program.

Singapore Math Sample Subtraction Problems

Singapore Math Sample Multiplication Problems

MATH AND SCIENCE MANIPULATIVES
Many, many manipulatives are used with our Singapore math lessons. All concepts are initially introduced at the concrete stage of development. Materials, such as those for measurement, are also useful for science.

ROCKET MATH
Adopted in 2012-2013, to supplement Singapore Math, Rocket Math is a daily 10 to 15 minute approach to teaching and reinforcing math facts fluency—addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. This vital aspect of math is not included in Singapore Math because, in Singapore math facts are learned at home and not included in school work. More information is available on the Rocket Math website and there is a great Rocket Map App available that compliments our classroom efforts perfectly.

SCIENCE MATRIX
Our kindergarten through 5th grade teachers vertically aligned all of their science units, thus ensuring that every science topic and all standards are included in our elementary curriculum. HNES did not adopt the “integrated science” curriculum approach being used by the state of Florida (a way of presenting science where a portion of each science topic is taught at each grade level with increasing depth). Our elementary and middle school science is topic specific, so that a subject can be treated in depth when and where the students encounter it. A copy of the science matrix created by the teachers is available for all parents, and the teachers at each grade level welcome parent suggestions and sharing of expertise—in or out of the classroom.

SOCIAL STUDIES MATRIX
A coordinated K-5th social studies matrix is now in production and estimated to be completed by the beginning of the school year. This matrix will serve a similar purpose as the science matrix, to guarantee that students are taught all the standards and topics of the elementary social sciences, plus will help parents know what to expect at each grade level. The talents and interests of our families enrich our classrooms and we hope this matrix will better enable members of the HNES family to share these talents and interests with their children.

READING CURRICULUM FOR K-5
For our reading curriculum we selected Journeys by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Journeys is where the reading adventure begins! Developed on a solid foundation of proven instruction and easy-to-manage organization, this exciting K–6 reading program includes Adventure Units and Guided Reading with literacy expert Irene Fountas. 

Kindergarten

• Valentine Day Sock Hop
• Mother Goose Parade
• Career Studies and Career Day Parade
• Fire Station Visit
• Picking Berries at the Strawberry Farm
• Halloween Costume Parade

1st Grade

• Famous Americans Research Paper and Schoolwide Presentations
• Famous American Schoolwide Parade
• PJ’s and Polar Express
• Animal Reports
• Visit to the Zoo on Panama City Beach, FL

2nd Grade

• Create a Family Memory Coat and Family Tree
• Magic Treehouse Report and Schoolwide Presentations
• Visit Gulf World on Panama City Beach, FL

3rd Grade

• State Research Report and Schoolwide Presentations
• Penguin Study and Projects
• Visit the Florida Caverns in Marianna, FL
• Visit the Mayor’s Office and the Commission's Meeting Room

4th Grade

• Host the Schoolwide Space Bubble
• Rainforest Study and Mural
• Novel Studies
• Visit our Florida State Capital in Tallahassee, FL
• 3 Day Field Trip to St. Augustine, FL

5th Grade

• Native American Tribe Research and Projects
• Novel Studies
• Middle School Shadow Day
• Beta Club Social
• Four Day Field Trip to Boston, MA

VISUAL ARTS AT HNES IS ART-RAGEOUS!  

Weekly art classes are taught to all students from Jr. Pre-K - 5th grade.  

In these classes, students explore different styles and techniques of art as they experiment with different mediums, such as pastels, paint, collages, sculpture and more.

Students also participate in our favorite annual art traditions, such as designing their Christmas plate artwork, participating in the yearbook cover contest and creating realistic self-portraits in grades K-5. 

PHOTOS and INFO

PHOTOS and INFO

PE is required twice a week.  The PE department awards good sportsmanship ribbons monthly during chapel, hosts a Field Day the last week of school, prepares students for Presidential Physical Fitness testing.  The PE department hosts the annual Fun Run in February, which has become a popular event in running circles and an excellent fund-raiser for our PE department. It is a lot of fun for HNES families and friends.

Physical Education, Sports, Outdoor Activities:

• Field Day
• Junior Olympics
• Sportsmanship Awards
• Extreme Sports
• 5K Fun Run/Walk
• National and Presidential Physical Fitness Awards

PHOTOS and INFO

PHOTOS and INFO