ACADEMIC PROGRAM

The CRC Charter School academic program is based on the best research of how children learn with integration of skill learning across traditional subject field divisions including arts, foreign languages, music and PE. We recognize that Content Counts--it provides a valuable drive to skill learning as well as providing the materials used for building a child's knowledge of the world. Our children read to learn and thus learn to read. We apply this same approach to mathematics and science skills.

The school year at CRCCS is currently divided into four “core commonalities” or thematic units that aid the integretation of all academic and special subjects. We aim with these thematics to meet or exceed all Florida State Standards. The specifics of our program are subject to modification based on experience and identification of student need and success. Indeed, we feel that it is this educational program flexibility provided for by Florida Charter School law that allows our school to be a special place to learn and teach.

The thematic units below are for the 2006-7 school year:
Structures of Life Membership in Groups Our Amazing Planet Producers and Consumers

Each nine week period everyone --kinderdergarten through fifth grade-- studies in a grade level appropriate fashion an important aspect of the theme.  For example, during Structures of Life, our first graders will be observing, reading and writing about the life cycle of the lima bean while our third graders are studying the habitate of live crawfish, and our fifth graders are researching the salt tolerance of brime shrimp eggs. The knowledge of each theme is supported and deepened as students use and learn basic skills exploring the topic during general subject class time as well as during science labs, music, art and computer specials.

As indicated above, beyond the core grade class level activities, our students may rotate through art, music, science lab, and Spanish depending on their grade level. In addition, they may experience drama and physical education and even have recess. New this year for the upper grades will be computer lab.  The exact program of each student may differ depending on the students, age, skills and progress. For students that need the extra help, intensive, very small group reading instruction is given in the afternoons focusing on phonics, fluency, or comprehension. Students who are beyond these needs may be engaged in "Reading Theater" or other more advanced group activities.

Student Assessment: Each student undergoes individual assessment prior to entrance into the school and frequent re-assessment during the year to measure progress and to identify where the school and the student's guardians can improve in helping each child. We share the results with the student's guardians.

 

By law all our students are obligated to participate in the state required tests. Unfortunately these do not give us useful measures of individual progress and can actually be very misleading as to the quality of the education happening at a school. We refuse to "teach to the test" because we see this as limiting rather than expanding the educational process.

 

Traditional Report cards are distributed every nine weeks at the completion of each thematic unit.

Core Academic Subjects: Language Arts, Reading, Math, Science and Social Studies Other Subjects: Art, Music, Spanish, P. E. and Science Lab
A
90-100
E
Exemplary
B
80-89
S
Satisfactory
C
70-79
N
Needs improvement
D
60-69
 U Unsatisfactory

For more information click the following topics:

Language Arts Social Studies Math

Science and

PE and Recess Library
Art Music Spanish Computer Lab Return to Homepage