New Covenant Schools' Curriculum

Grammar School Curriculum Links

(links below take you off-site)

Saxon Math

Shurley English

Spalding Phonics

Excellence in Writing

Sattler Latin

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Middle Schoo l

Grammar School (Kindergarten - 4th grade)
The goal of a Grammar School education is to bring a student to mastery of the rudiments of language, writing, and arithmetic. It is, as Dorothy L. Sayers has remarked, "on the whole, pleasurable." Children love to learn, and classical education takes advantage of that. We emphasize language arts through direct instruction in phonics, classic literature, and early instruction in Latin, teaching in ways that delight and instill a sense of pride in a job accomplished. In Grammar School students are enabled to understand the mechanics of English, to appreciate its literature, and to gain insight into the language that provides the basis for more than 60% of its vocabulary. Mathematics is taught incrementally and thoroughly, preparing a student the demands of higher mathematics. The chart below provides a typical course of study for Grammar School students.

Kindergarten	First Grade	Second Grade	Third Grade	Fourth Grade
Spalding Phonics	Spalding Phonics	Spalding Phonics	Spalding Phonics	Spalding Phonics
Language Arts & Reading	Excellence in Writing &Language Arts	Excellence in Writing & Language Arts	Excellence in Writing & Language Arts	Excellence in Writing & Language Arts
Sattler Latin	Sattler Latin	Sattler Latin	Sattler Latin	Latin - Classical Academic
	Shurley Grammar	Shurley Grammar	Shurley Grammar	Shurley Grammar
Saxon Math	Saxon Math	Saxon Math	Saxon Math	Saxon Math
General Music	General Music	General Music	General Music	Band or Violin
Art Media	Art Media	Art Media	Art Media	Art Media
History Time-line (NCS)	History Time-line & Americana	History Time-line & Ancient Egypt	History Time-Line & Greece and Rome	History Time-line & Middle Ages
Physical Education	Physical Education	Physical Education	Physical Education	Physical Education
Chapel	Chapel	Chapel	Chapel	Chapel

New Covenant provides phonics and instruction in reading beginning in kindergarten. The goal of kindergarten is to make a child "reading-ready." Although many students begin to read in kindergarten, the goal of the program is to begin reading with some fluency by November of the first grade year. The program is intentionally designed for mastery of basic skills - not acceleration.

Pedagogical methods in the Grammar School (grades K-4) emphasize direct instruction, memorization, and mastery of basic skills in the context of a teacher centered classroom. Our curricular choices reflect this emphasis. Links to several of our curriculum providers are listed at the left should you wish to examine their programs more carefully. Links to these websites do not necessarily imply New Covenant's endorsement of all materials, nor do they necessarily reflect all the sources in use in a particular discipline at New Covenant.