News

Laying the Groundwork for a Lifetime of Excellent Writing

PCA is excited to announce the addition of our new ELA Writing program, IEW (Institute for Excellence in Writing). Last year, our teachers spent 4 days in training with lead expert Linda Mikottis learning the program's curriculum and implementation. IEW's mission is to "equip teachers with methods and materials that will aid them in training their students to become confident and competent communicators and thinkers" (IEW, 1999).  

With all Lower School teachers (and Upper school ELA) trained, we are excited to see the results this program will bring to our students. The work is already underway and our students are right on track. This week, second grade students worked on creating their very first "key word outline." They read a short story together, identify key words, create an outline, then re-tell their story using their outline words. K-5 parents, keep a watch out for this work and make sure to ask your children about it at home.  

Lower School STEM Classes Explore Engineering Design

We have had a fantastic start with S.T.E.M. (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) this year! Last week students were learning about the engineering design process; how to investigate, research, imagine, plan, create, test and improve upon a project.  The class is focused around team building skills and collaborative learning. Students in grades 2nd-5th were challenged with constructing a pipeline while Kindergarten and 1st graders built "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" trees to test how many letters their tree would hold. The students are wrapping up the month by focusing on variations of the Tower Challenge. They will create a tower from straws that will hold two ping-pong balls. Lower School STEM teacher Ellen Peek says it promises to be a great year of risk taking and growth!