Intermediary Grades (3-5)

Love God | Love Learning | Love Self | Love Others

Intermediary Grades (3-5)

SCJ students continue to develop the foundational skills they have learned from previous years. Math, reading, writing, and science are taken to the next level as the students are preparing for entry into middle school. Technology, independence, and excellence are highlighted as the children are encouraged to utilize social skills to learn more about themselves and those around them.

Third Grade

In third grade, our students are encouraged to grow on the strong foundation they have built in Primary grades. More intensive projects and experiences allow them to flourish in all areas including math, science, writing, and innovation. Continued skills are taught to optimize social and emotional development.

In math, they learn place value, addition strategies, subtraction strategies, measurement, area, perimeter, basic geometry and grasp various other skills. A big topic in 3rd-grade math in multiplication and division. To make learning fun we have a multiplication muscle board where students add a dumbbell weight above their picture whenever a fact is mastered.

Towards the end of the year, third graders make a robot using their knowledge of area and perimeter.

Our third grade, along with the rest of the school, is implementing the Jane Schaffer Writing Program as the writing curriculum in the classroom. Third grade students focus their writing skills on building effective paragraphs by using concrete details- evidence- and commentary -opinion- within a paragraph’s structure. Within ELA, the third graders also practice spelling, vocabulary, and grammar skills. Correspondence with their Pen Pals allow 3rd graders to make friends while practicing style, voice, and letter writing conventions. In addition, the third grade class also writes a story together, and it is published at the end of the year.

Each week in reading class, our students utilize a different reading comprehension strategy, analytical skill, genre characteristics, and a vocabulary strategy. Students also have two novel unit studies throughout the year. Throughout the units, various reading strategies and skills are practiced with the material in each novel. The Reading Wonders Curriculum (McGraw Hill) covers sequence, theme, main idea, and author’s point of view. Our unique project for reading is a collaborative class project where the students creatively develop a story and elaborate on the story arc of the characters.

Using inquiry-discovery, Mystery Science creates a project-based approach to all science lessons. The topics in science include fossils, animals, life cycles, plant cycle, water and climate, forces, motion and magnets. Each lesson contains a hands-on activity component to bring the lesson to life and solidify the students’ learning. Science in third grade also explores pollination, traits and selection in both plants and animals, and weather patterns.

In social studies, students explore various aspects of California using the Studies Weekly series. Students receive a newspaper that uncovers a different topic including California regions, the Gold Rush, different tribes, and the states surrounding California. The third-grade class explores the topography of California, the lifestyle of its early people writing, and the history of how California became part of the United States. Students make totem pole projects and create Native American Teepees for a deeper understanding of Native American life and culture.

Third grade religion curriculum focuses on the Church. There is a deeper focus into the beginning of Christianity, parts of the Mass, and the 7 sacraments. Students learn about the lives of the saints, the seven sacraments, prayer, and living as a member of the Church. Students pray daily and are encouraged to build their relationship with God. One of the special projects include the lives of saints where students research and write about their saint of choice.

Fourth Grade

In fourth grade, students explore more complex concepts in all subjects through cooperative literacy. The class learns structures which promote active engagement through positive interdependence, individual accountability, equal participation, and simultaneous interaction. They learn to work together and play their part in learning.

Throughout the year, students study math concepts involving place value, addition and subtraction strategies, multiplication, division, measurement, probability, fractions, geometry, perimeter, area and volume.

In English language arts, our fourth graders learn how to write effective paragraphs and essays through the Jane Schaffer Writing Program. Within the program, they master building a paragraph structure and practice critical thinking about the writing topics. Students individually evaluate evidence and create their own commentary. In addition to writing in ELA, the class also memorizes spelling words and are tested each Thursday.

Every week in reading class, our students utilize a different reading comprehension strategy, analytical skill, genre characteristics, and a vocabulary strategy. For homework, they read daily, and they are assigned a book report project every two months. Some of the past projects include creating their own book jacket, presenting a rehearsed book talk, and a paper bag project where students find and describe tangible items related to their novel.

The social studies curriculum in fourth grade surveys California geography and history. Students attend a Walkthrough California presentation. A Walkthrough is an engaging and interactive educational presentation of standards-based history curriculum through literacy and the arts. Many consider the 2½ hour presentation to be an unforgettable educational experience. The presentation is facilitated by an animated and trained presenter who guides students through historical events using dynamic, kid-friendly stories and activities. Field trips are chosen to enhance the social studies learning experience. Field trips in fourth grade include visiting the Leonis Adobe Museum in Calabasas for hands-on learning of California life on a ranch during the 1800s. The fourth graders also visit Riley’s Farm to experience life during the California Gold Rush.

Mystery Science is our science curriculum. Topics in science focus on investigating human organ systems, rocks and fossils, sound waves, and motion. The third trimester in fourth grade science is centered on coding on iPads through the MIT Scratch program.

Religion classes occur daily and always begin with prayer. The religion curriculum helps fourth graders grow in their faith in Jesus Christ, and gain insight into each of the Ten Commandments. The students come to understand the meaning of the Ten Commandments and how they help us love God and others. Finally, the religion program wraps up the year with teaching the students how to grow in holiness. Fourth graders experience tremendous growth in loving God, loving learning, loving others, and loving self throughout the school year.

Fifth Grade

The fifth-grade students are introduced to more complex topics and more abstract material than the lower grades. The fifth graders delve into projects to enhance their learning experience of upper intermediary level concepts. Fifth grade is also frequently immersed in team building activities that help students learn.

In math, the fifth graders spend much of the year learning how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals and use the same respective operations with fractions. Towards the end of the school year, fifth graders use geometry to learn about solid figures as well as two- and three-dimensional figures.

The reading curriculum includes a weekly lesson rotation utilizing a reading comprehension strategy, analytical skill, genre characteristics, and a vocabulary strategy. The fifth-grade students also read a variety of novels in class in addition to independent reading at home. Past fifth grade book report projects include a book buffet, book talk presentation, and a diorama style project.

In English language arts, the fifth-grade curriculum has an emphasis on building vocabulary, learning how to write effective paragraphs and putting together essays through the Jane Schaffer Writing Program. Within the program, fifth graders master building a paragraph structure and practice critical thinking about the writing topics. The focus this year is on writing an expository text. Students eventually write a full biography essay in class. Throughout the writing, fifth graders individually evaluate evidence and create their own commentary. In addition to writing in ELA, the class also memorizes spelling words and are tested weekly.

Fifth grade uses Mystery Science as its curriculum. The students study ecosystems, the food web, water cycle, earth’s systems, space, and chemical reactions. Fifth graders create many projects including a solar system and are scheduled to go to outdoor school this year on a field trip. The fifth grade also visits JPL on a field trip to receive hands-on experience from scientists to learn more about space.

The focus of fifth grade’s social studies curriculum is United States history. Students begin the year by investigating early exploration and the founding of the early American colonies. They then move onto the settlements of Jamestown and other large establishments. After these, the fifth graders progress through the Revolutionary War, Declaration of Independence, becoming a nation, and finish with Westward Expansion. Special projects in social studies include an early colonies comic strip, a state project, a multicultural project and a president’s project.

Fifth grade’s religion curriculum zeroes in on the seven sacraments. Students come to understand how we are initiated into the Catholic Church through Baptism, the Eucharist and Confirmation. Next, the fifth graders study the sacraments of healing: Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick. Finally, the class begins to recognize our vocation through the sacraments of Holy Orders and Matrimony. They also learn about being a disciple of Jesus and creating good moral habits through the virtues.

A unique feature of St. Cyril’s fifth grade is the class’s participation in an Oratorical Contest. Students spend months memorizing a speech from a famous historical figure and present the speech in late March. They gain skills in public speaking, tone, presenting, meaningful body language, and leadership. Each speech is different, and each speaker is individually judged. Other experiences in fifth grade include virtual author visits, where students are able to hear from and ask questions to famous writers.

St. Cyril of Jerusalem School is committed to providing a nurturing environment to families of ALL faiths. We are a community of learners who are effective, contributing members who appreciate differences and welcome all.