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21st Century Curriculum
The Mulberry Curriculum covers all the concepts and skills in the California Academic Standards and the child-centered curriculum is based on developmental guidelines.
Mulberry School also provides students with the 7 critical skills needed for success in college and the 21st century workforce, as identified by Harvard University's Tony Wagner, in his book, “The Global Achievement Gap”:
- curiosity and imagination
- accessing and analyzing information
- critical thinking and problem solving
- effective oral and written communications
- initiative and entrepreneurialism
- collaboration and leadership
- agility and adaptability
Mulberry School's 21st Century Curriculum addresses the needs of the "whole" child. Knowledge is not acquired merely through memorization, but is gained through research and its application. It is built upon and connected to previous knowledge and personal experience, making it more meaningful to each student. Mulberry School teaches children to:
- Conduct research and use a variety of tools to find answers
- Work in teams, tackle complex problems, present to groups, express their ideas in writing
- Address global issues and serve fellow citizens
At Mulberry, we teach the way children learn. Children are naturally curious and the human brain tends to seek patterns and sort information. Learning occurs when children are encouraged to wonder, think, discover and eventually construct their own understanding of the world. Therefore, in every class, in every subject, students are given time…time to ask questions… time to test their theories…time to learn from their mistakes… and time to reflect on what they have learned.
Differentiated Curriculum supports different Learning Styles
Different children have different styles of learning – some learn through seeing, some through listening, some through touching, moving or doing. Lessons are crafted to accommodate different learning styles and different skill levels, so students can learn in their own way and at their own pace. Teachers offer a fine balance between direct instruction and opportunities to explore and discover new concepts. Mulberry students develop a love of learning that lasts a lifetime.
Interdisciplinary & Integrated Curriculum
Interdisciplinary and integrated units of study provide students opportunities to make connections and discover real-life applications. Students actively work on hands-on projects (Human Body, Tidal Zones, Gardening...) - in which they construct their own knowledge, collaborate with peers, and use their creativity and problem solving skills.
Project based & Themed Curriculum
Thematic units (Polar Bears & Penguins, African Savannah, Monarch Butterflies...) are developed across subject areas, so that students constantly see connections and gain a deeper understanding. Students use reading comprehension and writing skills to synthesize what they learn in science and social studies. Art (water colors, pastels, oils, quilting, glass, ceramics...) is connected to all subject areas so students can demonstrate their creative interpretations of what they have read, written, and studied in all areas.
"Creativity is as important in education as literacy and we should treat it with the same status."
- Sir Ken Robinson, International Creativity Expert, 2006
Multi-age, Cross Grade Curriculum
Integral to creating a community of learners, is the time spent at Mulberry in inter-grade activities. These activities give children the opportunity to teach younger children, make new friends in other grades and see themselves within a range of skills and abilities. For this reason, every class is paired with another class for reading buddies.
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Other grade crossovers include:
- Junior Kindergartners and Kindergartners get together weekly to play or for special celebrations
- 1st and 2nd grade meet weekly for theme centers
- 5th graders create science fair projects with kindergartners
- 2nd and 3rd grades meet regularly for reader's theatre or writer's workshop
- 3rd and 4th grades go on the Tall Ships Discovery voyage together
Academics
Reading & Readers Workshop
Mulberry uses a balanced approach to developing all aspects of language – listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. “Readers Workshop” gives all students the tools to become effective and avid readers.
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Teachers use literature and small group instruction to model effective reading strategies. Mini-lessons highlight features of a genre, an author’s craft, and literary devices. Students learn to analyze and appreciate literature from a very young age. They become aware of the strategies they are using while reading in order to understand the material, and they develop a keen awareness of the type of genres and styles of writing they enjoy.
Reading progresses through the grades:
- In Junior Kindergarten and Kindergarten, students are immersed in a literacy rich environment. They quickly learn letter sounds using a multi-sensory technique. They discover concepts about print through shared reading experiences using literature and poetry. Songs and games are used to develop phonemic awareness - knowing that words are made up of individual sounds. Children come into JK and Kindergarten with different skill sets and experiences with written and spoken language. Children at this age learn about the power and joy of reading and writing through direct instruction, exploration, and modeling. They take great pleasure at writing their own individual books and class books.
- In first and second grade, students become fluent, effective, voracious readers. Students learn to make connections, create predictions, and monitor their understanding independently. To increase comprehension, they respond to their reading by writing and by participating in discussion groups called book clubs.
- In third, fourth, and fifth grade, students use critical thinking skills and comprehension skills to analyze and critique literature. Through discussion circles and written response activities, students are constantly making inferences, questioning the author, and synthesizing what they have read. Students identify major themes in related books and identify evidence that supports their viewpoint about the characters and events. Since vocabulary is key to comprehending more complex, advanced text, teachers provide direct instruction about how to use the context, the parts of speech, and the parts of a word, such as the prefix or suffix, to determine the meaning of a word.
Handwriting & Writers Workshop
Because good handwriting begins with developing fine motor skills and a child’s handgrip, our 4-day preschool and JK programs provide children with multiple opportunities to develop their fine motor skills using a large variety of writing and drawing tools. From Kindergarten through third grade, students use the Zaner Bloser program to learn proper letter formation, and cursive is introduced in third grade.
In “Writers Workshop” students embark on a journey, discovering what it means to be an author who can make others laugh, cry, reflect, and connect through the power of the pen. Students write journals, letters, stories in different genres, research reports and papers. They select topics that are important to them and learn to write drafts, edit, revise, illustrate and publish pieces with specific audiences in mind. For example, after watching the Winter 2010 Olympics, the fourth grade class researched their favorite events, athletes, teams and countries and wrote a book. Through mini-lessons and writing conferences with the teacher and peers, students gradually develop all six traits of writing – ideas, word choice, sentence fluency, organization, conventions, and voice.
Spelling
Knowing that children seek patterns when learning how to spell a group of words, we use the " Words Their Way" approach to teach spelling, vocabulary and phonics. Students in grades 1 – 5 are given words to sort and examine in order to identify patterns and commonalities, as opposed to simply memorizing how to spell each word. Every child is given words that are appropriate for his/her stage in spelling development. Students in the higher stages of spelling development study the meaning of suffixes and prefixes, and origin of word roots which influence how words are spelled. Through word study, students develop the knowledge and the strategies necessary for figuring out how to spell unfamiliar words.
Math
The Math curriculum is designed to provide ways to strengthen mathematical thinking skills and lots of opportunities to apply computational strategies. The goal is for students to see different ways to solve problems accurately and efficiently. In the early grades, teachers teach math concepts with concrete manipulatives or pictures so that children gain a solid foundation. Children are given multiple opportunities to explore a mathematical idea before moving on to paper and pencil.
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Teachers use a variety of investigations, games and activities including cooking and sewing to develop students' problem solving and computational skills. Students see how math is used in the real world and learn to explain their thinking with numbers, pictures or words when solving math problems.
Science
Students in all grades engage in hands-on experiments and investigations to understand the process of scientific inquiry and acquire essential knowledge about earth, life and physical sciences. Students study complex relationships in nature and the impact of humans on nature. Each grade tends to it's own garden, observe and care for a variety of animals (eg fish, frogs, caterpillars, mice, rats and snakes), observe animals on field trips and enjoy visits with bees, iguanas, parakeets, bats, eagles and wild cats.
Each year, students participate in the annual science fair, conducting scientific studies of their own questions about the world in which they live. Through the unique experiments and demonstrations, one can truly see that Mulberry focuses on the process…not the product.
Teachers help students understand how scientific concepts, theories and principles apply to real life. Field trips and Science Camp deepen students’ knowledge, giving them first-hand experiences and opportunities to learn from science experts. Students leave Mulberry as scientifically literate individuals who understand the connections between science, technology, environmental concerns, and societal issues.
Social Studies
Social studies is especially meaningful and exciting at Mulberry. Teachers design units that integrate art, reading, writing, speaking and mathematics with social studies, and field trips make history come alive. Students work on creative projects to apply and extend their understanding of key social studies concepts and periods in history.
- In the early grades, students learn about themselves and their role in a culturally diverse community. They study geography and history as it relates to our own place and time.
- In 3rd grade students learn about the history of local Ohlone Indians and mining for cinnabar.
- In 4th grade students explore the history of California with a special focus on California missions.
- In 5th grade, the history of the United States is examined. Students use critical thinking skills as they strive to understand the socio-political, and environmental impact of decisions and actions. Students read historical novels, letters, and original documents to understand different perspectives and fully understand why certain decisions were made and actions taken by leaders, parties, and groups.
More on Mulberry's 21st Century Curriculum
In addition to Academics, the Mulberry Curriculum includes a focus on developing children of character.
The entire Mulberry learning experience is enriched by PE, Art & Music, and Gardening, Cooking, Sewing, Field Trips, Service Projects & More.
For a glimpse into each grade, check the preschool and elementary pages, and be sure to visit Mulberry!
