Lower School Curriculum
Through the Lower School curriculum, students begin to explore the world around them. They acquire excellent reading and writing skills, integrate the basic concepts of science and math, begin to study Spanish, and express themselves creatively through the arts. Every girl is encouraged to become a life-long learner and leaves the Lower School well-prepared for the increasing challenges of Chapin’s Middle School.
Literacy
Our Literacy Program develops thoughtful readers, effective writers and skilled communicators. At Chapin, literacy encompasses reading, word study, writing, handwriting and opportunities for speaking and listening. In reading and phonics, students progress from learning basic sounds to decoding complex multisyllabic words. They build comprehension by engaging with texts both individually and in groups, asking deep questions, considering perspectives, making meaningful connections, and drawing inferences. We believe that even the youngest writers have compelling stories to tell. Our focus is on both spelling and grammar as well as on the writing process. Students write across genres and develop their voices. Students leave the Lower School as fluent, lifelong readers, enthusiastic speakers and listeners, and compelling writers ready to tackle the challenges ahead.
- In our Kindergarten program, we lay the foundation for a robust literacy education. Students develop their phonemic awareness, learn phonetic concepts, and build an extensive repertoire of sight words. The girls expand their vocabulary and are exposed to more complex fiction and nonfiction texts. Kindergarten writers express themselves through personal narratives, using illustrations and full sentences to describe their unique experiences and stories. As budding experts in a variety of topics, they write informational how-to pieces with sequential steps.
- Our Class 1 curriculum supports students as they further develop, refine and expand their skills. They bolster their phonemic awareness, investigate phonetic concepts, read sight words with increased fluency and learn to spell many trick words. As readers, they explore a variety of genres including fiction, nonfiction and realistic fiction. They draw connections and deepen their comprehension through conversation and written reflection. Using their vocabulary and understanding of each genre, students transfer their reading skills to their writing, crafting well-structured and engaging texts.
- Class 2 students build on their skills by exploring new literary topics and genres. They delve deeper into phonics, focusing on complex sound patterns and spelling rules. Small book clubs foster rich discussions on mysteries, fiction and nonfiction, enhance critical thinking, and cultivate empathy. Students strengthen their writing through detailed creative narratives and convincing opinion pieces. They use expanded vocabulary, text structure and grammar, and syntax knowledge to craft compelling paragraphs.
- Class 3 students study complex phonics and spelling rules. With enhanced critical thinking skills, they are able to gain perspective and extend empathy. Exploring diverse genres, including biographies, they make inferences and grapple with symbolism and figurative language. Through written responses and discussions, students deepen comprehension of themes, character development, vocabulary, plot and setting. Their writing becomes more sophisticated as they cite evidence and consider alternative perspectives through persuasive essays, creative narratives and rich realistic fiction stories.
Science
Our Lower School Science curriculum inspires curiosity, emphasizes the process of learning, and builds confidence. Designed as a makerspace, the Lower School Science Lab embodies our core philosophy: students learn by doing. Through active exploration, young scientists construct an understanding of the world around them—whether they are planting seeds, programming robots or building bridges. Our goal is to nurture their natural questions and challenge them to ask even deeper ones.
Each year, students engage in Earth, physical, and life science units designed to build both content knowledge and key scientific skills. Units begin with an engaging phenomenon that springboards students into inquiry, where they practice the scientific method through firsthand observation and experimentation. Throughout the curriculum, units integrate data literacy, engineering and design thinking, giving students hands-on experience with STEAM skills.
- In Kindergarten, students are introduced to science through an initial mini unit on nutrition. They take food samples of different fruits and vegetables as part of their first experience with data collection. Later in the fall, students develop observation and classification skills while constructing a life-size tree model to study plant structure. In the spring, they investigate animal life cycles firsthand, tracking daily changes as they hatch chicks and raise butterflies.
- Class 1 is a year of environmental stewardship, beginning with a hands-on study of plants. Afterwards, they learn about worms and decomposition to become stewards of the Lower School compost bin. Students combine social studies and sustainability by using recycled materials and paper engineering skills to construct a large model city.
- In Class 2, students begin the year exploring insect adaptations by catching local insects and raising mealworms over several weeks. This data-driven unit culminates in an annual Insect Fair integrated with Literacy, Music and Library. The Class 2 curriculum also features an interdisciplinary study of New York City, with science focusing on learning about bridges.
- In Class 3, students dive deeply into physical sciences through hands-on inquiry and real-world application. In the fall, they investigate engineering principles by constructing and testing simple machines. Winter brings an exploration of circuitry and electricity, where students apply their knowledge to code and design interactive projects for the annual Video Game Fair. To cap off their Lower School science journey, students engage in chemistry, applying analytical skills to identify unknown substances through systematic testing and observation.
STEAM
In the Lower School, educational technology is used intentionally to enrich curriculum, support student learning and deepen exploration across disciplines and grade levels. Students engage with both low-tech and high-tech tools as they build foundational skills, solve problems, create, collaborate and begin to understand how technology can improve the daily lives of individuals and communities.
Lower School students benefit from a 1:1 iPad program and use a wide range of digital tools throughout the year. In addition to developing confidence with iPads, keyboards and digital creation platforms, students are introduced to coding, robotics, digital citizenship and the Design Thinking Process through hands-on, project-based learning experiences closely connected to their classroom studies.
Across the Lower School, students explore technology as creators, designers and problem-solvers. They learn to sequence commands, debug programs, organize information, communicate ideas visually, work collaboratively and reflect on their choices as responsible digital citizens. These experiences grow in complexity from Kindergarten through Class 3, allowing students to build confidence, independence, and flexibility as technology users.
- In Kindergarten, students begin building foundational technology skills through iPad explorations, digital citizenship lessons, screen-free coding games, and Bee-Bot challenges. They practice sequencing, problem-solving and sharing their ideas using age-appropriate tools.
- In Class 1, students use technology as a tool for storytelling, design and communication. Through ScratchJr., students create original video games while exploring coding concepts such as sequencing, loops, events, character design and user experience.
- In Class 2, students deepen their understanding of digital citizenship, multimedia creation and design through a variety of projects. During the Friendship Fair, students use Seesaw to create digital signage that advertises their homemade products. Later in the year, students use stop motion animation to plan scenes, tell stories, and share their learning in creative ways.
- In Class 3, students develop greater independence as digital creators and problem-solvers. They use tools such as Google Slides, Scratch, Makey Makey, and robotics platforms to organize research, design multimedia presentations, create interactive video games, and explore physical computing through hands-on projects.
Public Speaking
The Lower School curriculum is rich with opportunities to use public speaking. From the early days of Kindergarten and Class 1, our youngest students train in using their emerging voices by sharing ideas and asking questions throughout the day, whether sharing in Morning Meeting, with a partner in a turn-and-talk or presenting in front of peers. After a lesson, students often return to the rug for discourse — an opportunity for students to share with peers the way they have solved a math problem or their creative process.
Second graders are guided in the importance and richness of storytelling, learning that our own stories and those of New York City’s past shape how we understand history, but also inspire our hopes and vision for the future. Students take on the role of urban planners as they generate ideas and propose innovative infrastructure projects that would benefit New York City. In Class 3, persuasive speech giving provides the oldest students in the Lower School a widening sense of power in presenting a claim and supporting evidence allied to strong speaking skills. A Speech and Debate course, held once in a 6-day cycle, titled “CommuniGators,” deepens students’ public speaking skills.
The entirety of the K-3 program is to foster oracy — skills that include the range of speaking and listening practices, which help students embody how to be supportive and thoughtful members of this community and beyond.
As part of Chapin's ever-deepening engagement with a range of topics and viewpoints in our classrooms, all students are taught to engage respectfully and appropriately with other points of view; learning that attentive and accurate listening are integral to successful civil discourse.
Library
The Lower School Library provides an open and inviting space where students are actively encouraged to explore stories, genres, subjects and ideas during their once-a-cycle library classes. With an expansive and diverse collection of over 28,000 books geared specifically towards readers in Kindergarten through third grade, students can see themselves, learn about others, pursue current interests and make discoveries.
Foundational research skills like responsible library citizenship and independent navigation of the collection are introduced beginning in Kindergarten and built upon each year.
In Classes 1 and 2, students learn key visual literacy skills by evaluating illustrations and text for greater meaning and understanding. Through storytelling, genre studies and exposure to both fiction and nonfiction parts of the collection, students are encouraged to make thematic connections and practice comparing and contrasting books on similar topics to find the right one for them.
Our Class 3 students, in addition to being connoisseurs of their favorite genres, become experts in searching the online catalog, recognizing the importance of citation, and identifying the strengths and weaknesses of both physical print and digital resources.
Throughout it all, our students develop a love for independent, recreational reading. To support our students’ curiosity and creativity, the Lower School Library partners with both classroom teachers and families so that every book that goes home is an opportunity for a student to learn something — whether it's the content of the book itself or a better understanding of who they are as a reader.
Visual Arts
Lower School artists use their creative voices to explore identity, culture and community. As they develop a deeper understanding of themselves, students build meaningful connections by sharing within their classroom, studying diverse creators across various mediums and engaging with visiting professionals. Our curriculum is intentionally interdisciplinary, integrating art with subjects like Spanish, science and social studies. To learn more about our Lower School visual arts curriculum, click HERE.
Dance
Lower School Dance is a creative movement-based program designed to encourage body and spatial awareness while strengthening the students' sense of self. This is achieved by guiding the students through integrated movement explorations.
Collaborative projects are an essential component of the dance curriculum, providing students with opportunities to develop the language of dance, express ideas, problem solve and create original choreography. The dance curriculum integrates with both homeroom and other disciplines to deepen a student's overall experience. To learn more about our Lower School dance curriculum, click HERE.
Mathematics
In the Lower School Mathematics Program, inquiry-based explorations, real-world problems, games and direct instruction are essential for developing students' conceptual understanding and problem-solving skills. Through hands-on experiences and daily discussions, students learn to communicate in the language of math, connect concepts and apply their learning to new situations. They engage in increasingly complex problem solving, reason strategically and apply their mathematical understanding in authentic contexts. A combination of whole class instruction and small group work ensures that each young mathematician receives the necessary support and challenges to thrive. Throughout their time in Lower School, students engage in 4 ”Cs” — Constructing Understanding, Connecting Ideas, Communicating Thinking and Computing with Numbers.
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In Kindergarten, students develop deep number sense through counting, comparing, ordering, composing and decomposing numbers. They represent and solve addition and subtraction situations within 10, build foundational understanding of the base-ten system through teen numbers, and analyze, compare, classify and describe objects based on their attributes. Students begin to explain their thinking and make mathematical observations.
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In Class 1, students develop fluency with addition and subtraction and apply a variety of strategies to solve increasingly complex problems. They build a robust understanding of place value and the structure of the base-ten system, solve word problems using multiple representations and strategies, and explore geometry by analyzing shapes and partitioning them into equal shares. Students begin to justify their reasoning, compare solution strategies, and make connections between mathematical ideas.
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In Class 2, students develop efficient and accurate strategies for addition and subtraction within 1,000 while deepening their understanding of place value to reason about, compare and operate with three-digit numbers. They solve multi-step word problems involving numbers, measurement and data; analyze and classify two- and three-dimensional shapes; explore measurement concepts including introductory experiences with area and perimeter; develop foundational fraction concepts through equal shares, fraction number lines, and fraction comparison; and build conceptual foundations for multiplication and division through equal groups, arrays, and repeated reasoning. Students increasingly organize their thinking, defend their reasoning with evidence, and persevere through more challenging problems.
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In Class 3, students apply place value understanding and properties of operations to perform strategic calculations and solve sophisticated problems. They develop fluency with multiplication and division, apply both operations to solve multi-step problems, and engage in complex problem solving that requires mathematical reasoning, perseverance, and strategic thinking. Students develop a deep understanding of fractions by reasoning about size, equivalence and relationships between fractions while representing and comparing fractions on the number line. They also analyze geometric properties and solve problems involving area, perimeter, measurement and data. Students work more independently, revise their thinking in response to new information, defend their reasoning, and evaluate the efficiency of different solution paths.
Social Studies
The foundation for the Lower School Social Studies curriculum is built on the concept of community, which informs our understanding of the past and our thinking about the future. Within the study of community, students become caring learners, who feel valued for their own experiences and cultural backgrounds. We use an inquiry approach, encouraging students to ask questions and explore the world around them as they study four main domains of Social Studies education: geography, economics, civics and history. Lower School teachers inspire students to appreciate the value of living in a diverse and sustainable environment and to understand their responsibility as citizens of school, neighborhood, city, country and the global community.
In Kindergarten: Getting to Know My Community — Myself, My Classmates, Families and Chapin’s History. Young learners build community, advocate for their needs and care for their environment. They discover how families and communities support each other and explore their place in the world through history and geography. They gain a sense of identity, community and responsibility by examining how schools and families have changed. As part of their inquiry-based "Chapin Study," the girls develop thoughtful questions and explore the School’s characteristics, values and traditions, as well as the people who help make Chapin a supportive, positive and inclusive place.
In Class 1: Building the Future: A Study of Sustainable, Innovative, and Equitable Communities. Students learn about the history of our neighborhood and others around the globe to inspire their community designs. Students explore how geography impacts community, learn to differentiate between needs and wants, and gain a deeper understanding of how to contribute to creating sustainable, innovative and equitable communities. Embracing the role of urban planners, students collaborate, build and design essential structures to bring their ideal community to life.
In Class 2: Bridges and Boroughs: Stories That Shape New York. Storytelling is the entry point to an exploration of how history, geography and innovation have shaped communities over time. Students investigate the Hudson River, the Brooklyn Bridge and the New York City subway system, discovering how New York's waterways, bridges and tunnels connect people and fuel growth. Through the voices of those who lived here for generations and those who arrived from elsewhere, students see how traditions, ideas and resources shape community life. Looking ahead, students imagine their own roles in New York's story, recognizing that they are the citizens and problem-solvers whose creativity, resilience and responsibility will determine our future.
In Class 3: Exploring the Regions of the United States. The curriculum utilizes the four core social sciences to investigate the history, geography and civic life of each region. This exploration helps students understand the distinctive cultures and varied experiences across the country. They end the year synthesizing all they have learned. The girls also integrate an Arts component to creatively share their learning with the community.
Spanish
The Lower School Spanish program provides students with a culturally immersive language experience that builds confidence and skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing in español. Through a rich array of activities, such as storytelling, songs, theater, games, Total Physical Response (a teaching method that links speech and movement) and exploration of traditions across the Spanish-speaking world, students develop both fluency and a meaningful, lasting connection to the language.
Rooted in hands-on, interdisciplinary learning, the program emphasizes collaboration across disciplines. Spanish teachers partner closely with homeroom teams, department heads, and co-curricular teachers to design integrated units that connect with social studies, the arts, science and the Library. These collaborative projects deepen students’ understanding and empower them to use Spanish as a tool to explore big ideas across content areas.
Students are encouraged to take risks, try new things and play with language — often through improvisation-based strategies that foster creative expression, flexible thinking and curiosity. They are supported in expressing themselves freely and joyfully in Spanish, building not only their language skills but also cultural awareness and a lasting appreciation for the diverse voices of the Spanish-speaking world.
Physical Education
We believe that students' physical, intellectual and emotional lives are interconnected. The Lower School Physical Education curriculum is specifically designed to foster the enjoyment of movement, develop physical and cognitive abilities, understand the importance of health and wellness, guide social and emotional growth, and cultivate character through decision-making and teamwork activities. Skill development, fun fitness, inclusive participation and fair play are key components of our curriculum. The student-teacher ratio is kept small in order to maximize learning through individual attention. By the time students leave Lower School, they have foundational skills, an age-appropriate understanding of rules and strategies, a respect for and an appreciation of others, and a healthy spirit toward all aspects of movement and play.
- In Kindergarten, students develop fundamental movement skills through engaging games, activities and challenges that promote confidence, coordination and a love of being active. Students learn how to move safely and effectively while practicing skills such as running, jumping, throwing, catching, balancing and working with equipment.
- Class 1 students continue to build fundamental movement skills while developing greater confidence, coordination and body awareness. Through a variety of games, fitness activities and skill-based lessons, students practice skills such as locomotor movements, throwing, catching, striking, kicking and volleying. They begin to apply simple rules and strategies while learning the importance of teamwork, fair play and respectful communication.
- Class 2 Physical Education builds upon the skills developed in earlier grades while refining movement patterns and increasing students' understanding of games and activities. Through a variety of individual, partner, and team-based experiences, students continue to develop essential skills. They begin to make thoughtful decisions during play and demonstrate greater independence and responsibility.
- In Class 3, students continue to strengthen and refine their movement skills while applying them in increasingly complex games, sports and fitness activities. Students demonstrate greater proficiency in activities that involve throwing, catching, striking, kicking, dribbling, and cooperative play. They learn to apply strategies, make effective decisions, and work collaboratively with teammates while demonstrating leadership, responsibility, and respect for others.
Drama
Drama in the Lower School provides students with the opportunity to cultivate creativity, express their learning through performance, and develop skills such as empathy and confidence while deepening their connection to each other and the world around them. With a focus on Arts Integration, we examine how drama can more powerfully interact with other subjects of study. Students get experience with various art forms including puppetry, filmmaking and playbuilding. To learn more about our Lower School drama curriculum, click HERE.
Music
Our Lower School music program strives to develop a life-long love of music making. We blend various pedagogical methods along with student voice to create a music program where students feel seen and valued. Our program honors various culture’s music and musical traditions as students develop their musicianship. This program collaborates across disciplines and divisions to deepen our musical knowledge and community. Chapin celebrates and encourages student performances throughout the school year. To learn more about the Lower School music curriculum, click HERE.
Learning Resources
In a learning environment that is adaptive and collaborative, the Lower School learning team supports students’ development and potential across the curriculum. They work with students both in and out of their homeroom classrooms and collaborate with classroom teachers to fine-tune their teaching practices to best suit each child's needs. They are an integral part of each grade level team and meet weekly to provide resources that help teachers reinforce or extend concepts with their students. In addition to their work in the classroom, the Learning Resource teachers partner with families in support of students.