Prescott Adventist Christian School’s approach is based on tried and true methods. Research suggests that most children learn to read between the ages of five and seven. Fostering a love for reading, writing, and a love for language is critical during this time. We combine a developmental philosophy with a traditional approach to reading instruction and language acquisition.
In addition to the content standards set forth by the state of Arizona, PACS’ goals for the reading and language arts program in the lower school (kindergarten through grade 3) include:
- Fostering reading and writing independence
- Building upon fundamental reading skills
- Developing new comprehension strategies
- Introducing a variety of reading genres to instill a love for reading
- Developing and strengthening phonics and spelling skills
Writing projects in the lower school include creative writing, autobiographies, and personal narratives. Beginning in kindergarten, our students are exposed to print-rich literacy environments and receive explicit instruction in phonics. By the end of kindergarten, most students have moved beyond the emergent reader stage to simple primer-level chapter books.
Throughout the lower school, students learn about features of literature such as authors, illustrators, and title pages—all of which they apply in their own writing (through text and pictures). They also work on developing “good reader” strategies, such as using pictures and contextual clues to identify unknown words and phrases. In alignment with our individualized goals, students who have developed solid reading skills are introduced to texts designed to reinforce and build upon those skills and to expand their growing vocabularies and comprehension. Students After students enter the fourth grade, they are increasingly asked to work on developing their ability to understand texts both literally and interpretively.
As students transition into the upper school (grades 4 through 6), they are challenged to read and think critically about more-complex materials, such as short stories, novels, nonfiction, and expository and persuasive texts. Through established grammar, skill building, and vocabulary programs, students continue to deepen their understanding of language structure, grammar, and conventions while practicing reading strategies and engaging in intensive vocabulary building.
One of the goals of the writing program in the upper grades is to help students gain clarity in expressing their ideas. They learn about and experience writing in a variety of genres, including personal narrative, response to literature, exposition, research findings, and persuasion. Select students will write and edit for the PACS Post—our new school newspaper.
Throughout their time at PACS, students develop a keen interest in reading and writing along with the critical thinking skills necessary to successfully compete in modern times. Some standard curriculum resources used at PACS include:
Lower school language arts resources:
- A Readon for Handwriting
- Core Literature and Spiritiual Books
- Variety of Phonics
- Leveled Readers
- Skilpaks
- Teacher Created Resources
- Spelling City
- IXL English
Upper school language arts resources:
- Core Literature (to include Sacred Books)
- Leveled Readers
- Specific Skill Series
- Skilpaks
- Daily Oral Language
- Reading Daybooks
- Spelling City
- IXL English