2004 US-301
Dunn, NC 28334
910-292-2107
info@brooksideca.org
Elementary School
At Brookside Christian Academy one of our goals is for students to love learning. While that’s certainly an individual preference, we want to engage each student, challenge, and support them. To that end we strive to make classroom instruction as active as possible, support students at their current instructional level, and challenge them to take ownership of their learning.
For our K-2 students playing is learning. Students experience a tremendous amount of growth in the areas of spiritual awareness, social engagement, reading acquisition, and number sense. We believe in a developmentally appropriate level of academic demand.
English Language Arts Instruction
Students do not have to be reading to enter our kindergarten program. In the k-2 years, students are learning to read. Through our Sonlight reading curriculum students move from phonemic awareness to reading through the use of systematic phonics instruction. In kindergarten students master individual letter sounds and read CVC words. In first grade they move to blends, digraphs, and long vowel sounds. In second grade they continue direct phonics instruction focusing on compound words and more complex spelling patterns. Our pace of instruction is deliberately slow so that every student feels successful, can read the material given to them, and develops a life-long love of reading. Fluency and comprehension levels explode in 3rd-5th grade as students begin reading novels that integrate with their history content.
Students use a variety of resources as they learn handwriting, grammar, and creative expression through writing. Resources are coordinated to provide a systematic, targeted learning path. Methods of application are coordinated to provide opportunities that appeal to a variety of learning styles.
Math Instruction
Number sense and fluency with operations has become the exception instead of the rule in recent years. At BCA our mission is to reverse that trend. Singapore Math provides students with a balance of math patterns, visual models, mental math, and traditional math algorithms. We agree with memorizing basic math facts to provide for fluency when calculating more complex problems. We agree with grappling with real world word problems. We believe in every student feeling like a mathematician!
History Instruction
History is a pivotal part of students’ instruction. It is integrated with ELA instruction. Students spiral through US History and World History several times throughout their time at BCA. Students experience a read aloud of historical fiction, map studies, and a focus on chronology with timeline books.
Science Instruction
In K-2 students survey a variety of science topics in short unit studies. Science is active and exciting. Beginning in third grade, students begin to understand the world around them using Apologia and the days of creation as the basis for study.