St. Paul Lutheran Church & School - Mission and Objectives

St. Paul Lutheran Preschool offers developmentally appropriate curriculum to promote the spiritual, social, emotional, cognitive and physical growth of young children. We believe children learn by doing and offer many hands on activities and choices and a balance of structured and less structured time. Partnering with parents in this first school experience is an important part of our program.

Jesus Time every day
Weekly pastor visits
Early childhood chapel
Yearly Christmas program
Classroom helpers
Field trips and special visitors
Large and small muscle skills
Art, Math, and Alphabet activities

Our 3 year olds meet either Thursday and Friday from 9-11:30 or Tuesday and Thursday from 12:30-3:00. Four year olds come MTW from 9-11:30 and our PreK class (older 4’s and 5 year olds) meet MTWTh from 12:40-3:10. Please call the office to schedule a visit to our Christ-Centered Preschool.

Kindergarten

The Kindergarten child is like a kaleidoscope, constantly changing, but always remaining a beautiful child of God. We work with these constant changes, by addressing the whole child in all areas of development: intellectual, social, emotional, physical, and most importantly spiritual.

Visits from “Zero the Hero”
Visits from the Cleveland MetroParks Zoo
Special times with Family
      Muffins with Mom
      Donuts with Dad
      Mother’s Day Brunch
      Birthday Party for Jesus
Lead a Christmas Worship Service
Nursing Home Visits

We offer both full and half day sessions of Kindergarten. The full day sessions allow more time for extended activities to meet the developmental needs of the children

First Grade

In the First Grade, students will:
      Develop independent study skills
      Demonstrate respectful behavior to adults and peers
      Grow their personal relationship with Jesus Christ
      Identify how God works in their lives daily
      Develop academically, physically, and socially

Personal prayer booklets
Incentive Reading Programs
      Touchdown Reading
      Reading Olympics
      Pirate Treasure Trove Reading
Social Studies
      Earth Day Project
      Science-Life Cycle Project
Special Guest Christmas Readers
K-2^nd Thanksgiving Feast
Cleveland Orchestra Field Trips

There are numerous opportunities for parent involvement in class activities throughout the year. Field trips are open to all parents.

Second Grade

It is imperative that each child becomes proficient in their basic math facts, develops a love for reading, and is able to express themselves using the written word. The success of the child goes hand in hand with developing a safe environment for learning.

Daily Jesus Time
Flat Stanley Project
Reading Road Rally
Reading Rodeo
Lake Farmpark Field Trip
Thanksgiving Feast
Class-led Chapel Service

Each and every student is accepted as an individual and a special child of God. A developmentally appropriate environment is promoted in every aspect of the classroom while meeting the Ohio Standards.

Third Grade

We as teachers strive to engage and motivate individual students by addressing each child’s unique interests and abilities by using all modalities of learning. We use technology in our classrooms, such as smart boards, to aid in presenting material. Using different tools for different learners is our goal. We meet and exceed the Ohio Standards creatively and effectively.

Visits to the Botanical Gardens
Visits to the Planetarium
Visits to Natural History Museum
Visits to the West Side Market
Exploration of the decades

Our small classroom sizes enable us to differentiate all learning styles one on one. We are enthusiastic about learning and so are our students.

Fourth Grade

In the Fourth Grade:
      Students will take responsibility and pride in their work
      A variety of methods is used to teach a variety of learners
      Structure is valued & there is learning through structure
        Learning is fun

Positive reinforcement system using class “money”
Yearly “virtual” trip to a foreign country
Class auction to end the year
Study family roots through a Family Tree Project
Ohio history
Field trips to Ohio historical sights

Fifth Grade

Objectives

Using an inquiry approach, we invite children to actively learn about their world. This constructivist approach lends itself to problem solving, simulations, research experiments, journaling, visualizing, and other student centered and student directed activities. We strive to build an engaged, independent, and organized Christian learner. Fifth grade activities are selected to correlate with state standards and St. Paul Lutheran School curriculum.

American Colonies’ Party and Book Oscar Party
Trade Fair
Space/US Constitution Simulation
DARE
Underground Railroad Experience at Hale Farm
Bridge Building Competition
Book Clubs
Science Lab Activities
Trip to Dearborn, MI (Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village)

Learning is a life-long endeavor. We, as educators, continually challenge ourselves to grow in our profession in order to enrich our students’ learning. We take classes, attend seminars, use technology, and read professional periodicals in order to be informed of the best methods and practices in education.

6^th -8^th Grade Language Arts

Objectives

Throughout the year, we participate in activates that incorporate the four elements of language arts: Reading, writing, speaking and listening. The students are challenged to use their inferential and critical reading and thinking abilities and to expand their vocabularies by focusing on interesting words related to the stories that they are reading. Process writing is taught, modeled and encouraged because it allows the students to “take charge” of their own writing, and it creates confidence in written expression. Inspiring enthusiastic readers and creative authors is the goal of this program. Language Arts activities are selected to correlate with the state standards and the St. Paul Lutheran School curriculum.

Actor visits from the Great Lakes Theater
Trips to musicals and plays
Young Adult Novels and Classic Literature are studied
Variety of writing projects
Grammar, punctuation and mechanics lessons

Our small classroom sizes enable us to differentiate all learning styles one on one. The teachers are passionate for literacy, and this passion is passed on to the students. Various learning styles and individual differences are recognized.

7^th -8^th Grade Science, Girls’ Health, & P.E.

Students will
      Have interactive, hands-on experience through daily labs
      Use technology – integrating use of labs on laptops
      Focus on Scientific Method and data interpretation
      Experience differentiated instruction integrating other
           subject areas into science curriculum

7^th Grade
      Study and model genetics/DNA
      In depth study of the 5 kingdoms
      Dissection Unit

8^th Grade
      Orienteering at Huntington Reservation
      Earth Science
      Photography Scavenger Hunt

Both
Science Fair alternating years

8th Grade Religion, Algebra, & History

In 8^th Grade History, students establish a greater understanding of the growth of our nation and how we as God-fearing people fit into the current development of our countries past and present.

In 8^th Grade Algebra, students are prepared for their high school success by accomplishing an Algebra I course so they can continue their mathematics tract in a higher educational learning environment.

In 8^th Grade Religion, the key objective is to grow each student’s faith so they are prepared to serve, to share, and to care for all people everywhere.

American Revelation timeline
Constitution study
7-8^th participates in Washington DC or Ohio Trips
Prospective student day at Lutheran High School West
Every 5 week reward events
Seminars
Daily Bible study

The students have a daily opportunity to embody II Corinthians 3:18: “As the spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like Him and reflect His glory even more.”

Music

Singing, playing instruments, moving to music, and creating music enables students to acquire musical skills and knowledge. Listening to, analyzing, and evaluating music are important building blocks of musical learning.

Orff & Kodaly Methods of Music Education
Student learn music through singing, movement, Orff
instruments, recorders, chimes, handbells, & guitars
Field trips to Cleveland Orchestra & Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Special Ensembles : Guitar Club, Handbells, Choir, Strings,
& Band
Christmas and Spring Music Concerts

The blessings of student participation in the worship services and other related activities enhance spiritual growth and appreciation of the God given gift of music.

Technology

Students receive age appropriate instruction in the use of computer applications, keyboarding, computer science terminology and research. Beginning in kindergarten, students use software, office applications and Internet resources to support classroom learning. By eighth grade, students have proficiency in word processing, personal keyboarding, spreadsheet, and presentation applications.

1^st Grade learns the computer graphical user interface
2^nd Grade learns home row fingering in keyboarding.
3^rd Grade word-processes a classroom newspaper
4^th Grade learns spreadsheets by making charts for their Ohio and
state reports.
5^th Grade integrates many social studies projects using the Internet and software.
6^th Grade makes a class newspaper and learns PowerPoint.
7^th & 8^th Grade apply their years of office application studies to
solve real life scenarios
Digital Photography Seminar
Yearbook Seminar
Music Composing Seminar
Logic Software Seminar
Movie Making Seminar

St. Paul offers a lab with 22 networked personal computers and a full time technology coordinator for all students. Other technology resources include digital cameras and video cameras, scanners, digital microscopes, and Accelerated Reader books and tests.

Art

The goal of the visual arts program at St. Paul is to provide an outlet for personal expression in a creative, positive and informative manner. Students will learn the appropriate skills to express themselves in both two-dimensional and three-dimensional art forms using a variety of medias. Each grade level has a curriculum designed to increase understanding of the elements and principles of art. Various artist works will be used throughout the year to enhance the understanding of the above area and develop an awareness of the historical development of art. Displaying the student's work is also an important part of the program. Each week one student's artwork is chosen to be showcased as the "artist of the week". Artwork will also be displayed in throughout the school in hallways, classrooms, the library and the annual Art fair.