Elementary School

Bible and Character
The students are taught beginning Old Testament stories and truths, as well as important character traits such as honesty, love, and thankfulness.

Reading
Using Abeka Phonics program, students grow from simply identifying letters and sounds to reading short and long vowel words and sentences with fluency and expression.

Math
Kindergarten students learn foundational concepts of counting, number sense to 100, shapes, ideas of greater/less, and simple adding and subtraction.

Science and Social Studies
Unit studies are used as the basis of our science and social studies learning. In the fall, we learn about senses, nocturnal animals, the first Thanksgiving, and Christmas in other countries. We visit the Tallahassee Museum to give up close experience with the animals we’ve studied. In the spring, we cover basic health, safety, and manners. We finish the year with a unit about ocean animals and bees, including trips to the Gulf Specimen Marine Lab and a local beehive.

Writing
Students will master letter formation and emergent writing skills.

Bible & Leadership
In first grade, we focus on understanding the greatest storyline of all time: the story of a creator God, his love for us, and the sacrifi ce of His Son to bring us back to Him. Each month, one of CLA’s ten leadership traits is highlighted as the focus of study, discussion, and practice.

Reading
First grade focuses on taking the building blocks of reading: phonics, fl uency, vocabulary, and comprehension and mixes in confi dence to create readers! At CLA, these goals are accomplished through our assigned level readers as well as independent books and read aloud.

Math
Students focus on mastering addition and subtraction facts and using these to learn to add and subtract larger numbers. Students also explore concepts such as shape, length, weight, graphs, time, and money.

Grammar
Students are introduced to the foundational parts of speech; learning to recognize each in a sentence and utilize these parts of speech in their own writing. Students also gain a fi rm grasp of a complete sentence, capitalization, and punctuation.

Spelling
Students learn to spell words focusing on one to two patterns from our phonics curriculum each week. Students also focus on mastering the spelling of common sight words.

Writing
First grade adventurers are introduced to and practice many types of writing: journaling, friendly letters, personal narratives, how-to writing, informative pieces, and even poetry. Students practice building complete and interesting sentences and writing a strong paragraph.

Social Studies & Science
First grade social studies begins the year with a study of basic geography and then moves on to introduce each of the 50 states in the United States of America. In addition, we also study pilgrims and Native Americans in detail and visit Mission San Luis to see history first hand! Science in first grade is all about investigating all kinds of animals and their habitats and includes a visit to St. Marks Wildlife Refuge.

Bible & History
Second graders will explore ancient civilizations from Sumer to the Roman Empire and build a timeline of ancient history while identifying key attributes of ancient cultures. Students will study how the history of ancient civilizations intersects with historic events and leaders from the Bible while also looking for and applying biblical truths in all aspects of learning.

Reading & Literature
Students grow to become fluent readers who use comprehension strategies to support answers with evidence from the text, infer unstated supporting details, make predictions, identify problems and solutions, and cause-andeffect relationships. 2nd grade novel studies include The Littles, The Mouse and the Motorcycle, and Charlotte’s Web.

Spelling
Spelling rules and phonics practice are achieved through the use of the All About Spelling Program.

Science
In the spring, second grade is immersed in an extensive unit on plants that culminates in an opportunity to explore nature at the Joe Budd Youth Conservation Center. This is always a favorite field trip with the children and parents of second grade!

Math
Students are introduced to and build upon concepts such as addition and subtraction with regrouping, multiplication, division, time, measurement, geometry, money, fractions, and problem solving.

Writing
Second graders continue to explore a wide variety of writing formats including, how-to writing, friendly letters, poetry, narrative essays, expository essays, and speeches.

Bible & Leadership
Third grade begins with an inductive Bible study where students learn the different names of God and His attributes. By learning His names and what they mean, children begin to understand His character and His love. Building on this knowledge, students will study the Lord’s Prayer and how they can use it as a model for their prayer life.

Reading
In Reading, third graders explore new comprehension techniques and dig deeper into novel studies. A Cricket in Times Square, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, and These are My People are among the titles read each year.

Grammar
Students learn the eight parts of speech and how to use them appropriately. Grammar skills are the building blocks for effective communication, and in third grade students practice grammar with catchy jingles and fun daily practice.

Writing
Third grade at CLA seeks to develop a love for writing in students while also encouraging them to enhance their work with a rich and varied vocabulary and increasing complexity in their paragraphs and essays.

Science
Third graders will learn about our planet: its make-up, landforms, natural resources, and how it changes. They will participate in hands-on activities, including making mud volcanoes and touring Marianna Caverns, for a direct learning experience.

Social Studies
The second half of the year, the focus will be on world cultures, geography and missions. The class looks at each continent and a few of the unique characteristics to be found in select cultures. Third graders try to gain a general understanding of where the countries are located and what a missionary might be facing in those environments.

Math
Students dig into why and how we found the answers to our equations. Students apply multiple strategies to solve problems, learning new concepts throughout the year.

Bible & Leadership
In fourth grade, we delve deep into the character and actions of Christ as revealed through the book of John and learn to apply them to our own lives.

Reading
Discovering other worlds is just a page away when a student knows how to savor a good book. We spend a lot of time cultivating a love of reading with the following novels: The Sign of the Beaver, 21 Balloons, The Bridge, and Esperanza Rising. We explore each book together as a class and engage in comprehension activities related to the stories.

Grammar
Foundational to great writing is a solid understanding of sentence structure and proper word use. Our grammar curriculum is designed to strengthen students’ knowledge and familiarity with the eight parts of speech and various sentence patterns.

Writing
As accomplished fourth graders, we will learn to be master writers with the ability to create images and induce emotions through words. We will use the IEW curriculum, as well as narrative and expository essay writing skills, to create essays that impress and delight.

Math
Since math is a skill most people use daily, special attention is paid to the mastery of key concepts, which covers everything from place value and story problems to multiplication and division in an interactive, mostly pain-free way.

Science
We will be studying human body and most of its systems. This will involve several hands-on activities including dissection and intricate diagramming and a field trip to the Florida State Athletic Training Facility.

Social Studies
We will be studying Florida History and the explorers. We will follow Ponce de Leon, Hernando de Soto, and many others as they traipse across this great state. This unit will include a fi eld trip to the capitol building and a day long tour of St. Augustine.

Bible & Leadership
Fifth Grade begins the year with an in-depth study of conflict and peacemaking strategies followed by studies of the books of James and 2nd Timothy. CLA’s core leadership values are an integral part of all Biblical and academic studies.

Reading
Students grow in comprehension and critical thinking while engaging in three novel studies, which bring our study of American History to life: The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Johnny Tremain, and Amos Fortune: Free Man.

Spelling
Emphasis is placed on important spelling rules, root words, and languages of origin, so students will deepen their understanding of spelling before entering middle school.

Grammar
Students master all eight parts of speech this year, applying this knowledge to diagram and classify complete sentences of various patterns.

Writing
Students will refine writing skills learned in fourth grade and learn to expand their writing using sophisticated techniques from the Institute for Excellence in Writing.

History
The study of American History, from the beginning of our country to the Civil War, takes place throughout the school year and culminates in a field trip to Charleston, SC to experience highlights of American History including Revolutionary and Civil War site.

Math
Students apply basic, already mastered concepts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) to fractions, decimals, ratios, percentages, and much more.

Science
Fifth grade begins the year with a study of astronomy, including a visit to the Challenger Learning Center and student presentations. During the second semester, we explore different aspects of chemistry and physical science through hands-on activities and a trip to the FSU MagLab.