Curriculum

• Teachers at St. Clare School participate in ongoing professional development for the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), reading and literacy, including the science of reading, and the Eureka Math2 program. 

• K-5 students participate in weekly science lessons aligned to the NGSS

• Students in grades 6, 7, and 8 engage in hands-on weekly science labs developing communication, critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration skills

• Amplify and Mystery Science are the primary NGSS resources that support communication skills, critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration

• Teachers integrate Catholic identity into all aspects of the science curriculum

• Middle school students visit the Maker Lab at Santa Clara University

• Students have access to 1:1 iPads

• Technology is integrated into all facets of the curriculum

• Diverse needs of all students are addressed

ALLELU! - GRADES TK-K (OUR SUNDAY VISITOR)

ALIVE IN CHRIST - GRADES 1-8 (OUR SUNDAY VISITOR)

Religion instruction at St. Clare School is in alignment with the Religion Outcomes of the Diocese of San Jose. St. Clare students are taught to understand that religion is a way of life and not just a subject. The Student Learning Expectations (SLE's) of Habits of the Mind, Habits of the Heart, and Habits of the Spirit are incorporated across the curriculum into all subject areas.

Living out the practices of our Catholic faith and Christian service is evident in the life of the school community. We start each day with scripture reflection, prayer, and the affirmation of students’ Silver Box/Habits of the Mind, Heart, and Spirit behaviors. Moral decision making is a significant component in the Religion Program at St. Clare School. Students at all levels support our wider community through our participation in many outreach activities.

Using a balanced approach, Alive in Christ provides a comprehension presentation of the Catholic faith and is in conformity with the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Religion curriculum assists students in acquiring knowledge of our faith and challenges them to implement the understanding of that faith through Christian service and worship. Students provide Christian service to the parish and school by leading and serving at school and parish liturgies.

Collections - English Language Arts Program, Grades 6-8 (Houghton, Mifflin, Harcourt)

Students analyze complex texts, determine evidence, reason critically, and communicate thoughtfully. Collections—the nation’s leading ELA program for Grades 6–12—provides a multi-faceted digital and print approach that transcends the traditional anthology and resonates with today’s students.

St. Clare’s ELA Curriculum:

• Promotes active and engaged learning with a blended digital and print approach

• Provides balance of complex texts with collections of fiction, nonfiction, and informational text

• Promotes deeper learning through enhanced collaboration with interactive digital tools

Journeys - English Language Arts Program, Grades K-5 (Houghton, Mifflin, Harcourt)

Journeys, the K-5 companion to Collections, empowers students by skill mastery; inspired by authentic, award-winning text; and the confidence that they are building the skills needed for college and careers. Backed by proven results, Journeys is the most widely-used reading program in the country. Journeys is a research-based, comprehensive English Language Arts program designed to provide solid instruction that is clear and focused with realistic pacing and manageable resources.

Journeys Leveled Readers allow teachers to meet the needs of students through multiple titles in a variety of genres at each reading level. With precisely leveled texts and lesson plans designed by Irene Fountas—Journeys Special Consultant and leader in guided reading—students are systematically building reading success as well as confidence in their own reading.

LEXIA

Lexia Reading, implemented in grades K-5, provides all learners a systematic and structured approach to six areas of reading: phonological awareness, phonics, structural analysis, automaticity, vocabulary, and comprehension.

The programs create personalized learning paths for each student through an adaptive placement and scaffolded activities that align to California Common Core Standards.

Reading A-Z

Students utilize the Reading A-Z Program in kindergarten through fifth grade. This program is tailored to the individualized learning of each student as s/he acquires new skills and competencies in reading. Students progress from the most basic fluency level "aa", to the most advanced level "Z2". Instruction caters to the level of the individual student in the classroom and each child’s progress is regularly monitored by the teacher.

Raz-Kids: Link to Raz-Kids

Raz-Kids is an award-winning teaching product that provides comprehensive leveled reading resources for students. With hundreds of eBooks offered at twenty-nine (29) different levels of reading difficulty, it is easy to put the right content in each student's hands.

Students access their leveled text through an interactive learning portal designed to keep them motivated and engaged. Every eBook is available in online and mobile formats, and allows students to listen to, read at their own pace, and record themselves reading. Students then take a corresponding eQuiz complete with an extended answer response to test comprehension and determine future instructional needs.

WRITING

VOYAGES IN ENGLISH - GRAMMAR AND WRITING INSTRUCTION GRADES 1-8 (LOYOLA PRESS)

Writing instruction is tailored to the developing needs of the students at each grade level. A combination of the Voyages in English, Journeys, and Lucy Calkins programs are utilized. Voyages in English and Journeys have been successfully implemented in grades K - 4. Lucy Calkins is introduced in 5th grade and is fully implemented in 6th through 8th grades, along with Voyages in English. 

Voyages in English combines direct grammar and writing instruction with a focus on immediate application of grammar concepts in student writing. Building on skills that begin in kindergarten, students use consistent terminology, methods, and planning materials to create clear, concise written pieces across all writing genres. 

Journeys writing strategies and activities are similar to Voyages in English and are used to augment the Voyages in English program. 

The Lucy Calkins approach introduces more freedom of form and expression, but within the style and structure of well organized and well written narrative, informational/research based, opinion/persuasive, and literary essays, as emphasized by Voyages in English. Students participate in writing workshops in which they flow through the writing process of planning/prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and finally publishing.

The art curriculum at St. Clare School requires each grade to explore different artistic procedures in two-dimensional and three-dimensional mediums. Each grade level also studies multiple famous artists as a class, and the effect of these Masters on cultural art around the world. Teachers collaborate with on-site dedicated art teachers who work on communication, critical thinking, and creativity. Students participate in cross-curricular activities where they are asked to make connections or review topics taught in their other academic classes, such as science, language arts, or religion. The St. Clare Student Learning Expectations (SLE's) of Habits of the Mind, Heart, and Spirit are implemented into every class as well as the core California State Standards for visual arts in each grade level.

The art classes at St. Clare School play an integral role as the primary source of education under the Arts pillar of the STREAM Program. Students’ cross-curricular activities involve implementation of prior knowledge from other classes and the religious themes of the Catholic Church such as liturgical seasons, traditions, and sacraments that occur over the year. Developmental improvement in problem solving, observational, and fine motor skills is evident in the study of the arts and can be carried out in all other categories integrated in STREAM.

Eureka Math2 (EM2) - K-8 (GREAT MINDS PBC)

Joining 17 other schools within the diocese, St. Clare School introduced Eureka Math2, our new math curriculum at the beginning of the 2022-23 academic year. Eureka Math2 is an integrated approach to instruction using the Universal Design for Learning framework. It is designed to support and elevate mathematical thinking in all students at all learning levels. In its own words:

Eureka Math² classrooms look and sound different from other math classes. Every lesson includes opportunities for student discourse because peer-to-peer discussion helps students solidify their understanding of math concepts. The Eureka Math2 digital experience was carefully crafted to further support discourse, giving all students an opportunity to access the learning and share their mathematical thinking with their classmates while also providing teachers with a window into student thinking. Whether with a partner, in small groups, or in a full-class discussion, in a Eureka Math² classroom you see and hear students sharing their mathematical knowledge. Students learn to think like mathematicians as they tackle tough problems and answer their own questions.

Eureka Math2 instruction involves “consistent math models, rigor to support the productive struggle, and coherence across lessons, modules, and grades—and adds a new level of flexibility and accessibility as well as visibility into student understanding to make math instruction exponentially more teachable and engaging.”

Mathletics - Link to Mathletics

Mathletics is an online math program used by over 5,000 schools, and over a million students world-wide. Students work at their own pace with step-by-step animated support.

ALEKS, a Research-Based Online Math Program - Grades 5-8

ALEKS is an adaptive, online math program that uses artificial intelligence and open-response questioning to identify precisely what each student knows and doesn't know. Through truly individualized learning and assessment, ALEKS delivers a personalized learning path on the exact topics each student is most ready to learn.