St. Pius X Catholic
School offers an Early Childhood Program beginning at the
age of three. Our pre-school environment is a place where
children can grow in knowledge of God’s love for them and in
love and concern for others. The classroom atmosphere is
warm and inviting with dedicated, experienced teachers whose
main goal is to make learning fun.
Our Early Childhood
curriculum is based on Differentiated Instruction. A
variety of strategies allow the teacher to tailor
instruction to individual needs. The use of discovery, play,
songs, games, manipulatives, learning centers, and hands-on
structured and unstructured activities engage the students.
Learning centers invite children to come and to see, to come
and to do, to come and to learn. They allow children to make
choices, to move freely and independently, to interact with
other students, and to grow in areas of need. Centers
provide opportunities for a large number of children to
learn individually or in smaller groups so that the teacher
can take advantage of moments of readiness, keen interest,
and desire. The learning centers in each classroom are
library, art, science, manipulatives, blocks, housekeeping,
computer, puzzles and games.
Specialist classes
in Spanish, art, music, library, physical education, and
computer are offered weekly. An Early Childhood Science and
Technology Lab is also incorporated into the curriculum.
Interactive whiteboards, computers, and visualizers are
available to enhance student learning. All lessons are
correlated with Louisiana Standards and Catholic Identity
Standards.
Our Pre-
Kindergarten Three Program is taught through monthly
thematic units. Each month the program focuses on a
different shape, color, number, Nursery Rhyme, and theme.
All subjects are taught with a hands-on approach across the
curriculum. Emphasis is placed on fine and gross motor
skill development, social interaction, problem solving
skills, and discovery of self.
Our
Pre-Kindergarten Four Program uses a
cross-curricular approach with the alphabet as its basis.
The curriculum covers the major subject areas and is taught
through the letter of the week. To enhance the learning
process, children are taught in a hands-on environment where
they are able to learn through discovery. Our program also
focuses on handwriting and pre-reading skills that are
taught through phonetic awareness. Introduction of
vocabulary words, letter recognition, and sound recognition
form the basis of our pre-reading curriculum. Mathematical
skills are integrated throughout the day. The day begins
with calendar math and counting to the 100th day
of school. In the afternoon, the children even count their
napkins for snack. Math concepts covered in PreK4 include:
patterning, sequencing, graphing, number recognition, and
using one to one correspondence.
Our Kindergarten
Program strives to enhance the developmental needs of
young children. Beginning to Read, Write, and Listen
is a comprehensive reading-language arts program that is
utilized in the kindergarten curriculum. It contains and
correlates reading, handwriting, auditory, and oral language
skills for the child who does not know how to read and
write. It provides the student with a thorough understanding
of the letters of the alphabet and their sounds - the most
basic written language. Beginning to Read, Write, and
Listen is the foundation for a student's understanding
of letters as written symbols for spoken sounds. It is a
multi-sensory program of visual, kinesthetic, and auditory
activities, which meets the specialized needs of the
beginning student. In the math program, emphasis is focused
on the development of concepts. The children learn number
concepts and operations with manipulatives such as blocks,
cubes, links, and other appropriate materials. The
activities are designed to help the child achieve an
understanding of mathematical concepts without the pressure
of memorizing and recording symbolically. Science and social
studies are taught through a variety of activities across
the curriculum and through the weekly reader. Listening to
simple Bible stories, creative art projects, singing songs,
role playing, and telling stories provide first steps in the
religious formation and education of children
