Grades 1-4
Through a solid academic curriculum, lower school students at CEA acquire the necessary skills and knowledge allowing them to grow. The goal of Lower School is to challenge and inspire students to develop a lifelong love of learning. The curriculum extends beyond the standard format of reading, language arts, math, social studies, and science, offering students a cohesive and comprehensive education in the arts, humanities and sciences. The integration of the arts into all academic areas promotes students’ ability to understand abstract concepts, make connections between areas of study, and find applications of lessons to their daily lives, enhancing their preparation for the coming upper school years. Educators aim to work together on cross-disciplinary units of study that reinforce connection-making and allow students to understand the various perspectives surrounding each unit. All students take Spanish, music, dance, visual arts, religion, P.E. and fitness each week.
In third grade, students begin participation in the Mastery Program, which assigns specific learning periods devoted to allowing students to explore an area of interest. Lessons learned in mastery transfer to all other areas of learning, allowing students the opportunity to reinforce and make connections. Read More About the Mastery Program