How is Lower School at St. Stephen’s Unique?
Lower School at St. Stephen’s is a time of excitement, adventure, and wonder where our students are having their eyes opened to the world around them, full of new experiences. They begin with the wonder of letters which then turn into words and soon thereafter reading. The ability to read opens the students up to whole new adventures, past, present, and future.
Chanting and singing are often employed to help students memorize facts, dates, people, places, and things. Stories are used to foster their vivid imaginations, and they are taught how to express these imaginations through writing. Students are exposed to great works of poetry and an appetite for the true, good, and beautiful is developed. Their hearts are inclined toward the God who created them through the integration of a Christian worldview in all subjects. Character traits such as honesty, kindness, and hard work are fostered in the student’s young mind through stories, memorization, and singing.
Lower School is focused on developing the key reading, writing, and math skills that are the foundation for future studies, but these basics are augmented with history, science, and fine arts. The entirety of human history is covered through the Lower School years, from ancient Egypt in 2nd grade through modern day in 6th grade. This overview serves to establish markers that the students will reply upon as they do the entire cycle again in the Upper School years. Our science program is geared toward developing a curiosity and appreciation for the incredible complexity of God’s creation. Teaching how to use the scientific method is a focus along with many hands-on experiences beyond the textbook. Our art program is second to none in teaching the various techniques of drawing, painting, and sculpture, and our Lower School students have won many regional and national awards for their art work.
