|  | | |
| The Adventure Unfolds: Lower School |
Maumee Valley’s Lower School is where children thrive on a rich, challenging curriculum delivered by compassionate teachers in an intimate classroom setting. Our teachers pay close attention to each individual’s needs and learning styles, and take special care to reach out to the whole being of every child--exercising their senses, their hearts, their imaginations, their bodies and all their diverse intelligences.
Our unique multi-age classrooms allow younger students to learn by watching and modeling older students who have mastered certain skills. Older students, in turn, hone what they have learned by helping to teach others. At the same time, all students gain a deeper level of understanding while encouraging compassion, teamwork and mentoring.
The Lower School is divided into three areas: Primary (Grades 1 and 2); Lower Intermediate (Grades 3 and 4); and Upper Intermediate (Grades 5 and 6). |
Primary - Grades 1 and 2Building a strong educational foundation begins with skill development. We take teaching the “how” to the next level by exploring the “why” so students develop a stronger base and deeper understanding. Our theme-based learning concept incorporates all aspects of their studies – including science, art, music and language – and encourages learning through discovery, self-exploration and problem solving. Themes range from Ocean Studies to Fairy Tales and beyond.
We understand that no two minds learn in the same way. We intentionally keep class sizes small, and teachers utilize skill-based groupings and flexible instruction approaches – all mainstays of a Maumee Valley education – in an effort to stay in tune to the individual needs and responses of students. |
|
| Lower Intermediate - Grades 3 and 4 Theme-based learning remains a vital part of the Lower Intermediate curriculum at Maumee Valley. Teachers enable students to really get inside a subject by going beyond the textbook. Students are given the opportunity to take what they’ve learned in the classroom and apply it to the real world through overnight excursions to Michigan’s Camp Storer, and South Bass Island in Ohio. These trips further help students learn through observation and hands-on-experience. |
|
Upper Intermediate - Grades 5 and 6Upper Intermediate students spend a great deal of time preparing for what comes next in their educational journey: Middle School. Emphasis is given to relating the critical importance of responsibility and self-direction, including creating good study habits and being prepared to complete tests and more complex projects. Students in grades 5 and 6 take greater ownership in their work in general. They must demonstrate what they learn in a variety of ways and apply their knowledge to solve problems and carry out tasks.
At this level, content-based learning becomes the bridge that helps our students successfully transition to grades 7 and 8, through the introduction of a grading scale on tests and assignments, with report cards providing a record of accomplishments and progress.
Experiential learning also continues to be an important part of Upper Intermediate educational experience. Students participate in three highly anticipated, weeklong trips in grades 5 and 6, including excursions to the Rocket Center Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama; Joy Outdoor Education Center in Cincinnati, Ohio; and Howell Conference and Nature Center in Howell, Michigan. |
|
| |
|