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ELEMENTARY ACADEMICS

Maranatha Christian Schools provides a challenging academic program by utilizing excellent curriculum and strong instruction to guide student achievement at the Elementary level. Biblical principles are integrated into the instruction of all subjects ensuring a Christian perspective of education and learning. Students also attend weekly classes in art, music, computer, PE, library and Spanish to give depth and diversity to their educational experience. Click on a grade below to see more details.

CURRICULUM DETAILS


Students in the full-day Kindergarten program learn and develop socially, academically, emotionally and spiritually in a thematic, age-appropriate environment. In language arts students are taught the foundation of phonics as they begin to read, spell, and write. Students will be taught the mechanics of sentence structure and will apply those skills to journaling. For math concepts, students learn all state standards including sorting, patterning, counting, addition and subtraction, shapes and measurement. Social studies include reading a map and graph, Christmas around the world, and community helpers. Science includes the life cycle of the chicken and butterfly, states of matter, Lego engineering, habitats, weather, seasons and parts of the animal. In Bible, students learn about topics and characters including creation, the life of Christ, prayer, missions, Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, and Jonah.

CURRICULUM

  • Bob Jones University Press: Bible
  • Pearson: Social Studies
  • Delta Education: Science supplement
  • Pearson: Language Arts, Science
  • HMH: Math


First grade continues to build a strong academic foundation for the successful development of the students. The language arts curriculum builds on phonological awareness, phonics, oral reading and comprehension, spelling, vocabulary, and writing. Students continue to learn God's word with Bible stories about Moses, Peter, Paul, God's promises and care, also including Bible verse memorization and daily prayer. In math, students build knowledge in the areas of number sense, algebra, measurement and geometry, probability and problem solving with plenty of hands-on manipulatives to shape understanding. Important themes in Social Studies include God’s World, maps, oceans and continents, family, community, states and our country, Native Americans and pilgrims, and cultures today and long ago. In science, students see God's world through observation and hands-on learning of topics including motion and forces, weather, seasons, solids, liquids, gases, plants, and animals.

CURRICULUM

  • Deep Roots: Bible
  • Bob Jones University Press: History
  • Pearson: Language Arts, Science
  • Houghton-Mifflin: Math
  • A Reason for Handwriting: Penmanship 


Second grade students grow and develop skills that are necessary for academic and spiritual maturity. During Bible lessons, students study themes including God is King, obedience, humility, serving, forgiveness, giving and thankfulness. The enriching language arts program continues to emphasize phonics and comprehension skills through enjoyable children's literature, and building strong skills in grammar and spelling to strengthen writing skills. Cursive handwriting is introduced and practiced, while students master good printing skills. Math lessons continue to build on key skills in number sense, and students are introduced to multiplication and division. In Social Studies the students learn about their community and their involvement in the world around them. They study the makeup of their country, its government and leaders, citizenship, and laws. They study the economy from the perspective of producing and consuming goods and service workers. They learn to read maps, study various cultures, and the advancement of technology. They also study America’s first settlers and prominent American heroes. In science, students are exposed to many hands-on experiments and activities where they learn about plant life and God's living world, along with health and physical science. In science, the students study matter with an exciting hot air balloon experiment to apply the physical science they learn.

CURRICULUM

  • Deep Roots: Bible
  • Bob Jones University Press: History
  • Pearson: Language Arts, Science
  • Houghton-Mifflin: Math
  • A Reason for Handwriting: Penmanship 


Third graders come ready to build on their solid academic skills and begin to apply the added responsibility of managing student agendas and homework. In language arts, students continue to build on grammar and spelling skills, along with critical thinking skills in reading and writing. In Bible, students will study many important themes including sin and salvation, purity, why Jesus came, and choosing friends, along with growing spiritually through prayer and Bible verse memorization. The math program builds on regrouping, multiplication and division facts to 12, fractions geometry and problem-solving. In science, students will learn about the classification of animals and study weather and climate. They will practice the scientific method with experiments and hands-on activities that focus on engineering, physical laws of motion, and matter. In history, students will learn about the settlement of our great country, the formation of communities and our governments, conduct an in-depth state research project, and discuss the value of citizenship.

CURRICULUM

  • Deep Roots: Bible
  • Bob Jones University Press: History
  • Pearson: Language Arts, Science
  • Houghton-Mifflin: Math
  • A Reason for Handwriting: Penmanship 


Fourth grade is a year of encouraging students to have a greater independence and responsibility for their academic success.  Bible truths are integrated into the instruction of all subjects, and students continue to build Bible knowledge with themes including attributes of God, faithfulness, and contentment.  Students expand their language arts skills in grammar, spelling, and writing. In reading, students develop higher level reading skills with high-interest stories both fiction and non-fiction. The scientific process is practiced throughout the science program covering Eco-systems, electricity, forces, light, rock & minerals and erosion. As part of the study of the history of California, students travel to Sacramento for a two-day trip to the state capitol, Marshall’s Gold Discovery in Coloma, Old Sacramento, Sutter’s Fort and the Railroad Museum. 

CURRICULUM

  • Deep Roots: Bible
  • Bob Jones University Press: History
  • Pearson: Language Arts, Science
  • Houghton-Mifflin: Math
  • A Reason for Handwriting: Penmanship 


Fifth grade pacing and curriculum is focused on preparing students to succeed and mature both socially and academically for Junior High. The fifth grade Bible curriculum teaches students themes on sin and grace, obedience, holiness, the body as a temple, evangelism, missions and false teachers in addition to memorization of verses. The language arts program prepares students for the rigors of junior high with a comprehensive study of grammar, spelling, expository and narrative writing, and reading. Students learn concepts in physical and life sciences including mixtures and solutions, living systems, and the study of water and planet earth.  The curriculum provides many hands-on learning experiments and activities to enrich the students’ understanding of science. In history, students learn how the United States gained independence as a country through major events such as the Revolutionary War. The Math program focuses on concepts and skills that prepare students for a successful transition to pre-algebra courses in Junior High.   

CURRICULUM

  • Deep Roots: Bible
  • Bob Jones University Press: History
  • Pearson: Language Arts, Science
  • Houghton-Mifflin: Math
  • A Reason for Handwriting: Penmanship 


map testing

We are pleased to provide MAP testing for students grades K-8. MAP stands for Measures of Academic Progress, a comprehensive assessment program measuring students’ general knowledge and academic growth in Reading, Language Usage, and Mathematics. Teachers, students, and parents will benefit from the results as we will begin to customize instruction, set classroom and student goals for the measurement of academic growth.


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