Curriculum Advice for Math, Reading/writing Elementary

I am fairly new to this area so I can't really help with names of schools for you to consider. I can say from my experiences as a 1st/2nd grade teacher in California that I really like Everyday Mathematics. I have taught both Saxon and Everyday and think that Everyday is a better choice... don't get me wrong Saxon is a good program too. I enjoyed teaching Everyday Mathematics because it builds upon itself and gives real life reasons for why each skill is needed. I also liked that each section has a review of past skills, a game that uses a new skill, a lot of partner activities (which children usually love) and hands on activities that reinforce what they are learning. The one down side to this program is that it is lacking the memorization of facts. I found this to be an easy thing to fix by adding a "five minute game" everyday ... essentially a timed test of 100 questions and they see how far they get in 5 minutes. The goal is to try to get farther and to beat their time from the day before... this is something that could easily be done at home if not done in class. I believe that the Bear Creek school in Woodinville uses the Everyday MAthematics curriculum, but I am not positive... Good luck

Hi H.,

I'm not sure where you're located, but I teach in the Lake Washington School District. We use The Six Traits (a program created by Vicki Spandel of NWREL, out of Portland) and Step Up To Writing; students seem to do well with these. Step Up is more for elementary school age and/or remedial (older kids), but the 6 Traits program is used throughout. The great thing about 6 Traits is that it shows kids that writing is more than just spelling, grammar, and other conventions (albeit, all important!), and that they can still succeed and be "good" writers, even if that area is lacking. Different grades work on different traits, generally. With Step Up, kids learn to expand on their ideas in a formulaic fashion, which is much more important as they grow as writers.

Hope this helps...try visiting the LWSD website for more information, or contact local elementary schools in your area to discuss their writing program/philosophy.

I don't know where you live, but I know that the Lake Washington School District in Kirkland/Redmond generally has really good curriculum for there students. I used to teach in that district but switched to edmonds to be closer to home. Edmonds District is definitely not as strong in curriculum but I would trust any Lake Washington District school.

H.,

My first thought was Kumon or Sylvan Learning Center. They are both alternative teaching for kids that either need the extra help, or are more advanced than their grade.

Hope this helps,
Melissa