During the Lower School years, children build upon a foundation of early childhood development through continued concrete, hands-on,
active learning experiences
Throughout the Lower School years, children grow understandings from the concrete to symbolic and, eventually, to abstract levels. Through systematic, scaffolded learning opportunities and varied interactions with peers, the elementary age child builds a strong academic foundation, a curiosity for learning, and a sense of self that will support positive and productive educational, social, and emotional development in his or her lifelong journey of growth.
In our small classes, teachers work shoulder-to-shoulder with students, supporting each child’s development and learning experiences through ability-appropriate instruction. Concepts are taught over time, first at a simplified level and eventually at a complex level, each time gradually increasing in difficulty. With a workshop framework as the core of our instructional model, students can set and achieve personal goals for growth, while continuing to build developmentally-appropriate cognitive skills alongside peers.
Additionally, our right-sized classes and nurturing learning environment allow students to cultivate critical co-cognitive traits, including confidence, independence, courage, metacognition, and empathy.
Step into the shoes of a Lower School student at Charlotte Prep! We tried to capture all the excitement of one day at school with this short video.
Our Curriculum
Our curriculum is designed so that teachers facilitate student discovery of relationships between bits of information and so that new learning can be transferred and applied to new situations. In Kindergarten through 2nd Grade, foundational language skills–in the areas of reading, writing, speaking, and listening—are the focus of daily instruction, including decoding knowledge, word attack strategies, fluency, literal and inferential comprehension skills, and essential skills in the writing process. As students progress into 3rd and 4th Grades, they utilize these foundational abilities to support cross-discipline learning, develop interpretive and analytic comprehension skills, and establish their voices as writers. Mathematics at Charlotte Prep is grounded in a global philosophy. A balanced approach is used to build and apply computational, conceptual, and problem-solving knowledge and skills in to daily work with real-world mathematical situations.
Our Students
Students in Kindergarten through 4th Grade participate routinely in a 6-day rotation of specialized classes, providing students with well-balanced opportunities to engage in hands-on, unique learning opportunities. Students participate in Fine Arts classes (music, drama, and art), Technology and STEM, Spanish, and Physical Education. Throughout their time at school, students will work independently as well as in teams, learning core life skills such as collaboration and problem-solving that will help to prepare them for their future careers.
“Our Montessori ideals carry into the Lower School and the Middle School—that respect for the child, the respect for their development, the nourishing of independence and leadership, the relationships between members of the community. Those are all strong Montessori concepts carried through the rest of the school.”
- Lower School Teacher
Resources
Megan Wright has significant experience in lower school teaching and learning and has gained valuable leadership experience as both the director of summer camps at the Town School and the board president of Spark Movement Collective, both in New York City. Megan has also participated in significant and varied professional development, including work in literacy; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and mathematics. Megan has a BFA in art education from Ohio University and an MS Ed in early childhood education from Hunter College in New York City.
Information Video
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Lower School in Action
Oct30Growing Flexible ThinkersWhen we think about preparing young children for school, many parents focus on foundational academics, like counting or recognizing shapes, or social skills, such as sharing and communicating. While these are essential, there’s another skill that deserves equal attention: flexible thinking.
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May1Third Grade Wax MuseumAs one of Prep's signature experiences each year, our third graders create their very own wax museum! The students dress as a historical figure they have researched, stand "frozen," and recite a speech when visitors approach them.
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Dec15Kindergarten's Gingerbread Baby Scavenger HuntEach year, Mrs. Tucker does a one-of-a-kind STEM challenge with our Kindergartens. They bake gingerbread babies and design traps to catch them using the engineering process. Then when their mischievous babies run away, they're taken on a hunt around the school to get them back!
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Mar22Second Graders Host an Outside-the-Box Lesson in Black HistoryOur second graders recently served lunch to Charlotte community members along with sides of information about the lives of more than 40 remarkable African Americans for Black History Month.
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