The
Curriculum at Mountain School is comprehensive.
While students choose, teachers assure that the various
elements of the curriculum are covered. Teachers
also assure that students have a thorough understanding of
the materials studied in each course before moving on.
Teachers look for a broad, conceptual understanding of the
subject matter. In other words, students must
demonstrate an understanding of what is involved in a
course, why the things involved are important, and how to
apply what they've learned.
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Language
Arts |
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| Literacy is central to
the curriculum. Talk is encouraged. Talk
becomes central to the acquisition of other literary
skills: from talk to writing, writing through dictation at
first, then from writing to reading. |
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Students train
with phonics and then by reading their own compositions -
a real motivator. Student writings are published in
our school newsletter and on this website. Reading
extends from student writings to the classics. They
read and are encouraged not only to interpret but to
question, to become critical readers and writers. |
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Mathematics |
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Even before what is
commonly considered to be the basics of math, students are
introduced to the very elements that created the ancient
need for mathematics - ways of accounting for the shapes
of the world; the most common geometric plan and the names
and properties of solid shapes. Next: addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division. Once
mastered, students move to fractions, decimals, and
percents. All materials utilize workbook and word
problems, skills and concepts.
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Science |
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Students are taught the
processes of scientific investigation. They are
gradually able to design, conduct, and evaluate their own
experiments, culminating in participation in science
fairs.
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