This is a gentle introduction to conversational Japanese and Japanese culture for the younger crowd! With more focus on building simple vocabulary and character recognition, this class is a great start for students who are interested in Japanese but aren’t ready for the more intense grammar of the upper level class. In addition to language practice, Lonna introduces her students to Japanese holidays, traditions, foods and pop culture in her classes.

Our Elementary core program consists of 2 hours of classroom instruction per week, with a complete syllabus of activities and suggested assignments provided for 3.5 – 4 additional days of study at home. Elementary aged students focus on skill building in the areas of math and literacy. For the 2017-18 year, we will continue exploration- and observation-based science, and enjoy books together with our Socratic discussion-based literature program. For math, students will continue their home programs and use time at IfSpace to enjoy Math Circle activities, as well as begin pre-algebra with Hands-On Equations in the second semester. We will take a deep dive into Ancient History, spending each semester creating a living history museum at IfSpace complete with costumes, sets, props, and role plays.

2017-18 curriculum includes the The Story of the World Volume I, Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding, Hands-On Equations, and grammar and language arts concepts as introduced in the Royal Fireworks Press/MCT materials. A complete list of curricula, history and science spines, and living books and supplies will be supplied to families upon registration.

In this art class we will use a variety of unusual materials to create abstract art projects. Projects will be child led and messy! Some examples of process art are pendulum painting, paint filled balloon explosion art, bubble painting and marble painting.

We will choose a book as a class to read and discuss. Together we will explore different types of literature, and complete a student-based project centered on our book!

This is a hands-on class where students learn about chemistry, and perform experiements and demonstrations based on what they learn! We will talk about chemical reactions, the properties of matter, and where we see chemistry in our day-to-day life.