Overview
Technology
Music
Art
Physical Education
Foreign Language
Character Education
Success for every child, every day
Carden West provides many enrichment opportunities for students. Teachers enhance and extend the daily curriculum as students are ready. Students are challenged to analyze and synthesize their knowledge in order to apply their learning in new and creative ways.
As part of the Carden West mission to "promote social and ethical responsibility," classes participate in projects that return value to the community. In these "service learning" opportunities, students apply their knowledge, research skills, powers of observation, creativity, and leadership abilities to extend their learning while benefiting the community.
At Carden West School, our classroom teachers work closely with our technology teachers to integrate technology into the core curriculum through a proven project-based program. Students learn to produce high-quality interactive multi-media projects.
Our Technology Resource Teacher interviews our classroom teachers to learn what curriculum content should be reinforced so that the classroom content can be used when teaching the application skills. For example, the Technology Resource Teacher may be working on databases. Students studying transportation in their classroom may create a database about different kinds of transportation, various fuels, and uses for the transportation - passengers, freight, etc. Students reinforce learning their classroom curriculum content while learning application skills.
Skills taught include keyboarding, word processing, graphic design, databases, spreadsheets, and telecommunications.
Music
Music is an integral part of our curriculum at Carden West School. The program encompasses a wide range of areas, including rhythm, melody, form, texture and harmony. Carden West students participate in seasonal concerts in the winter and spring. Music is also used in special performances, and the children get involved in the creation of new songs.
We believe that art is a valued part of every child's curriculum. Creativity and creative thinking are essential tools for developing problem-solving skills, expressing ideas and making connections. Our program includes exposing students to the basic elements of art. Students experiment with numerous art media, such as paint, pastels, colored pencils, collage and sculpturing materials. In addition, they examine famous artists and their works of art as an integral part of the curriculum.
In keeping with our philosophy, Success for Every Child, Every Day, the philosophy of physical education is: Every Child Can. Every child can develop appropriate skills, feel good about his or her body, and relate to others in positive ways. Our P.E. teachers instill an understanding of the elements of fair play and good sportsmanship, respect for the rights and opinions of others, and respect for rules by which we live, including the meaning of the "Golden Rule." Students participate in health-enhancing physical activity at least three times a week.
Students understand that wellness involves more than being physically fit. They appreciate the relationships with others that result from participation in physical activity.
The Carden West School family believes that learning a foreign language exposes learners to new cultures and new horizons. Preschool children, starting with the 2-year-old program, are exposed to the Spanish language. Language training includes culture appreciation and beginning vocabulary development, learned through engaging hands-on activities and song.
French, Spanish and Mandarin are offered to all K-8 students. All K-2 students learn Spanish, and select either French or Mandarin as a mandatory option. In our primary grades, foreign language teachers cover basic words and phrases and students begin writing words and simple sentences. The children learn familiar childhood songs and perform them during the winter and spring concerts. In the upper elementary grades 3rd-8th, students delve deeper into one of the three languages offered. They begin reading stories and conversing in the language. To monitor student progress, parents receive regular feedback from the foreign language instructors.
After-school languages offered include Hindi and German starting fall 2010.
Carden West has developed an exciting character education program where students build their "pyramids of success". Each month, we introduce a new "character word" of the month. Character education takes place throughout the entire school day as all teachers, staff, and administration are presented with opportunities to model and teach positive character traits. Each month, an assembly is held to recognize students for their positive behavior and hard work.