Middle School (Grades 5-8)
Core Knowledge Curriculum
Teachers in grade 5 will be using the Core Knowledge Sequence in planning lessons; establishing a proven, content-rich curriculum throughout each student's tenure at the school. There is considerable research-based evidence associating a well-implemented Core Knowledge program with increased academic achievement. At St. Croix Prep, small class sizes, a small mission-driven school, and active involvement with teachers and parents will help build a strong support network for students within an environment in which they can thrive.
By coupling the Core Knowledge curriculum during the elementary and middle years with a classical mode of instruction, St. Croix Prep strives to release the full academic potential of each student. The solid foundation laid in the K-8 experience will subsequently be expanded to instill mental habits of logic-based questioning and the ability to succinctly express ideas orally and in writing in students’ high school years. We believe that this is essential to prepare students for a successful college or other post-secondary educational experience, as well as to develop the leaders needed in the coming generation.
For Core Knowledge at a glance for grades 3-5, click here.
Saxon Math
St. Croix Preparatory Academy uses Saxon Math for its math curriculum. There are three reasons for this choice:
1. Our sponsor, Friends of Ascension, strongly suggests all of its schools to use Saxon math as its standard math curriculum.
2. It is one of the two primary math curriculums used by other classical and college preparatory charter schools we have consulted with during our school development. The other curriculum is Singapore math.
3. The approach taken by Saxon fits very well with how St. Croix Prep defines ‘classical education’ and the trivium (as explained in White Paper Classical Education 2008-2009). Saxon’s instructional methods coincide with the grammar, logic and rhetoric categories we establish for every subject.
FOSS Science
FOSS is a research-based science curriculum for grades K–8 developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley. FOSS is also an ongoing research project dedicated to improving the learning and teaching of science. The FOSS project began over 20 years ago during a time of growing concern that our nation was not providing young students with an adequate science education. The FOSS program materials are designed to meet the challenge of providing meaningful science education for all students in diverse American classrooms and to prepare them for life in the 21st century. Development of the FOSS program was, and continues to be, guided by advances in the understanding of how youngsters think and learn.
Science is an active enterprise, made active by our human capacity to think. Scientific knowledge advances when scientists observe objects and events, think about how they relate to what is known, test their ideas in logical ways, and generate explanations that integrate the new information into the established order. Thus the scientific enterprise is both what we know (content) and how we come to know it (process). The best way for students to appreciate the scientific enterprise, learn important scientific concepts, and develop the ability to think critically is to actively construct ideas through their own inquiries, investigations, and analyses. The FOSS program was created to engage students in these processes as they explore the natural world.
