Literacy at Boston K-8

At Boston K-8 we follow the Aurora Public Schools guidelines for literacy instruction.  In grades K-5 we use MONDO for our reading program, the Lucy Calkins curriculum for our writing instruction, and the Fountas and Pinnell curriculum for our Skills Block. In grades 6-8 we use the Readers and Writers Workshop. For grades 6-8, students choose reading material from the district approved reading list. Students in grades 6-8 are encouraged to find out who they are as readers and writers through immersion in text and writing experiences that mirror real life. 

The Literacy block is 2 1/ 2 hours long and is divided into three separate blocks of time.  Thirty minutes is devoted for the skills block, one hour is devoted to reading, and one hour for the writing block.

The Skills Block is devoted to phonics instruction and consists of a 10 minute whole group lesson on a particular principle. The last 20 minutes of the block is set aside for practicing and applying the principle.

The Reading Block begins with 10 minutes of shared reading on grade level appropriate material with a specific focus.  Forty five minutes are then devoted to small group instruction with the teacher, while students work at literacy stations including independent reading. The last 5 minutes is set aside for sharing of learning.

The Writing Block starts with a 10 minute writing demonstration given by the teacher with a specific focus.  The students then have 45 minutes to work in their draft books, where they go through the writing process of planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing.  The last 5 minutes of the writing block is set aside for sharing of student writing and learning.

Math at Boston K-8

At Boston K-8 we follow the Aurora Public Schools guidelines for Math Instruction.  We use the Investigations series as the primary Math resource in grades K-5 and The Connected Math series in Grades 6-8.  The Math Block in all grades includes a number talk, an Investigation or whole group lesson and independent Math stations. Below you will find a brief definition for each of these components. Number Talk: This provides students with an opportunity to practice basic computational skills using addition, subtraction, multiplication or division.  The teacher presents a problem on the board and the students share strategies for solving the problem.  The teacher writes what the students say.  At the end they all agree on an answer.  The number talk takes about 15 minutes. Investigation:  This provides students with an opportunity to work on developing mathematical understandings about patterns, algebra, geometry, measurement, statistics and probability.  These lessons are whole group and take from 30-60 minutes to complete. Individual Math Stations: This provides students with an opportunity to practice place value, fractions, decimals and percentages.  Students may also be working on computation skills at this time.  During this block of time the students are working independently or in small groups.  The time allowed for this is 30-40 minutes. For more information go to: www.aps.k12.co.us/instruct/resources/math/docs/elem_curriculum_guide/math_block.pdf