Kindergarten Program

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A "Child's Garden" of Learning.



Kindergarten provides your child with an opportunity to learn and practice the essential social, emotional, problem-solving, and study skills that they will use throughout their schooling. The development of self-esteem is one of the important goals of Kindergarten. This is the process of helping your child feel good about who they are and confident in their ability to tackle the challenges of learning.

Glenwood Country Day School’s Kindergarten is a time for sparking and directing you child’s curiosity and natural love of learning!

Focuses

Social
& Emotional

Problem
Solving

Sense of
Self-worth

We all have different gifts, so we all have different ways of saying to the world who we are.

Mr. Rogers

Social Studies
Science
Language Arts
P.E.
Music
Math

The Kindergarten Social Studies program focuses on interrelated themes and uses an interdisciplinary/multisensory approach to help students learn about themselves and their family heritage, harvest time, Pilgrims and Native Americans, fire safety and Homes Around the World.

In Science, Kindergarten students increase their awareness of themselves and their natural surroundings through hands-on activities, simple laboratory experiences, and the development of basic scientific skills. Our curriculum covers Earth Science, Physical Science, and Life Science. Units at this grade level focus on magnets, air pollution and recycling, the five senses and the human body.

The Kindergarten Language Arts curriculum integrates reading, writing, listening, thinking, speaking, and language experiences with the goal of exciting children about literacy. The reading readiness program in Kindergarten is phonics-based and incorporate experiences rich in language and literature. The program’s initial approach to reading relies on letter knowledge and alphabet order, sound-spelling correspondences, and the blending of sounds into words. Recognizing words, understanding word meanings, and developing a sight vocabulary of the most frequently used words further prepares children to read. Student’s enjoy being read a wide variety of literature. Group discussions are important in building reading comprehension. Students begin the writing process by dictating stories for publication.

The Kindergarten Physical Education curriculum provides a variety of experiences for students with an emphasis on listening skills, fitness, body awareness, and cooperation. Classes include both movement exploration activities and noncompetitive group, partner, and individual activities. The program centers on helping children develop specific gross and fine motor skills, and as the year progresses, the children begin to use some of these skills in a variety of low-organizational games.

In Music, Kindergarten students develop a basic understanding of rhythm through beginning dance, movement, and singing, and by playing rhythm instruments. Finger plays and drama are included.

The Kindergarten Math curriculum uses an exploratory hands-on approach to help students reason and communicate mathematically, develop multiple problem solving strategies, and make mathematical connections. Computational practice is an integral part of instruction. Our program builds on previous experience, offers repeated exposure to mathematical concepts, incorporates technology and integrates math into ongoing daily routines across the curriculum with a special emphasis on Science and Social Studies.

Units in Kindergarten focus on reading, counting, and writing numbers to 100, skip counting by twos, fives, and tens, adding and subtracting through ten and with one from any number , understanding >,< and = based on counts, recognizing and making bar graphs, recognizing shapes, measuring in feet, telling time by the hour, estimating time, identifying and counting coins less than a dollar, and performing money exchanges.

  • Mrs. Poland, We really appreciate you taking the time yesterday on a holiday to meet Parker! Thank you again for the thoughtful transition. Susan
  • Mrs. Poland, The boys had a really good summer. You all did such a great job with selecting amazing camp counselors, coordinating everything, and just ensuring they all had a safe summer. Thank you, Mikella
  • Mrs. Poland, I got a phone call from Sam right after his assessment and he was all smiles and happiness. I couldn't be more relieved. What a complete 180 from getting him out the door to go. I could not be more grateful and relieved that it ended up being a positive experience for him. Thank you!!!! See you next week at the open house! :) Kristen
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, I just wanted to say thank you for a great summer. It was Mads' first time at Glenwood and he loved it! We look forward to returning next summer. Have a great year! Danielle
  • I read to these friends every Tuesday and they are the most polite, caring and attentive children for this age group that I have ever worked with. Jeannie
  • Love the place, they treat my kids like family. Nick
  • When Mrs. Poland gave me a tour of GCDS, I felt like she was the owner of the school. Her compassion shown through. Beth
  • Being a resident of Columbia, it was refreshing to place my child at Summer Adventures Camp. Lee
  • It was refreshing to have my child at Summer Adventures Camp on 40 wooded acres. Jonathan
  • Having a class size of only 6 is why my child goes to GCDS. Jennifer
  • I just want to thank you and the rest of your team for a great first day for Emma and Jack. They had a wonderful time and I just want to thank you for caring for them and keeping them safe in these trying times. Krystal
  • We want to thank you for your hard work in creating engaging lessons and meeting with students every day. As a teacher, I know how difficult it is to facilitate meaningful interaction with students in the current circumstances. Evelyn looks forward to circle time and loves watching your videos every day. Scott and Katherine
  • I've said it before to Mrs. Poland, but I'll say it again...my kids LOVE camp. I asked Ollie all kinds of questions on Saturday about it and he was getting very excited about everything he was telling me. He loves lunch outside. He also told me this weekend that he hurt his leg, but it was ok, Mrs. Harp would clean it and make it better at camp. Vivian usually dreads the idea of swim lessons, but because of camp, she thinks maybe she could handle swim lessons, and when I ask her if there is anything she doesn't like at camp, she told me she likes everything! Thank you for all of your hard work! Katie
  • I can't believe we're already signing up for the last week :( We are all so sad to see camp ending after next week. The kids really enjoyed it - they loved the activities and their teachers. Thanks for putting on a great camp, especially considering the pandemic! Erin
  • Ms. Poland, Following up with you via email after our parent/teacher conference last night. We want to thank you and the entire staff at Glenwood Country Day School (GCDS) for enduring the risk of the current pandemic by providing in-person education to our daughter. This summer, she was a rising Kindergarten student with learning delays with her speech. The virtual experience of the Spring of 2020 turned her off from learning and we saw her regress. We made the decision to enroll her in GCDS's Kindergarten program in the Fall of 2020 and it was the best decision we ever made. Our little girl, who was struggling with learning and turned off from the concept of online school, is now flourishing. Every day she is excited to go to school and most importantly her learning and comprehension is on par with other Kindergarten students. The other night, she read a sight word book to us and the look of pure joy and satisfaction on her face was something we will never forget. We are tremendously grateful to you and the rest of the GCDS staff for helping our daughter find her confidence and desire to learn. With many thanks, Matt & Tess Wiley Matt and Tess
  • Thank you for an amazing school year- the kids had a blast and learned so much! You guys are really awesome! Kristen
  • Thank you GCDS! When all other schools were virtual or hybrid this year, you made the courageous decision to go fully in person 5 days a week! And we made it through a whole school year with no COVID closings! On behalf of all working parents, THANK YOU!!!!! Darren
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, I wanted to let you know we are going to get a head start on our traveling for the 4th of July weekend. So the boys will not be at camp on Friday. I want to thank you & everyone at the camp! The boys are having a BLAST and we will definitely be back next summer!!! Stay cool, Kelly
  • Thanks to you and your great staff for once again doing a great job keeping our kids engaged and safe. Darren
  • I'm glad that Mr. Dameon will be continuing at the school. Our daughter talks about him a lot and it's clear to us that she really enjoyed being around him. Kudos to you, Ms. Poland and Mrs. Stradling, for putting together a rockstar team. Adam and Nicole
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, My son had a great experience at Glenwood Country Day Camp this summer. It was his first summer at the camp and he didn't know anyone. After the first day, he felt very comfortable and met lots of friends. He enjoyed swimming, crafts, and field time. He can't wait to come back next summer and I'm looking forward to my youngest child being able to enjoy camp at Glenwood as well! Thank you! Kori
  • Just a quick note to let you know how much my son is enjoying camp this week. When I picked him up on Tuesday, I asked him how his day was and he replied that it "was the best day ever." I learned that his best buddy (also a camper) told his mom the same thing that afternoon! Yet, when I picked my son up yesterday and asked him the same question, he answered that his day "was even better than yesterday". You all must be doing something right to keep these 7 year old's so happy! Thanks and keep up the good work, Beth
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, We're all sad that the kids are missing their last day this summer at Glenwood. I wanted to thank you for everything this summer, specifically for your help in making sure Clark's camp experience ended on a good note. We hope you have a great rest of the summer and we hope to see you again next year. Thanks again! Kori
  • Madison ranked her teachers… Kindergarten= 9/10 First=9/10 I asked her what a 10 was and she said. Mr. Dameon! Kara