The Elementary Art Program provides a foundation in which students develop the capacity to create, respond and communicate through the language of Visual Art.  Our curriculum gives students the opportunity to develop skills using a variety of media as well as enhance learning through the integration of Art with other subject areas such as Science, Math, Language Arts, History and Music. Students are encouraged to explore and express their ideas in an environment that nurtures imaginative thinkers and inventive problem solvers. 

The Elementary Art Program is aligned to the principles and guidelines of the Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards and National Visual Arts Standards. It is part of a comprehensive K-12 Visual Art Program which focuses on the instruction of the elements and principles of art in a sequential and spiraling curriculum.  Our program is designed for students to explore various facets of art such as two-dimensional and three-dimensional design, art history, multi-cultural and literacy connections, as well as a variety of ways to make art.  Additionally, throughout the curriculum, students learn how to talk about art and how to evaluate what they see.  Key areas of focus include critical thinking, problem-solving skills, imagination and inventive solutions. 

It is important to note that Art enhances the academic, social, emotional and creative growth of each student. 

Students will

• know and apply grade level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

• decode multisyllabic words.

• read grade appropriate irregularly spelled words.

• read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.

• use context clues to confirm or self correct word recognition and understanding.

• ask and answer questions to demonstrate comprehension of literature.

• retell stories, fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures identifying main idea, lesson, or moral.

• identify elements of fiction (e.g. characters, setting, plot, problem, solution) and elements of poetry (rhyme, rhythm, figurative language, alliteration, onomatopoeia).

• compare and contract themes, settings, and plots of stories.

• read and comprehend informational texts determining main idea of the text and supportive details.

• compare and contrast the texts on the same topic.

• write narrative with the major components of the writing diamond, e.g.  an entertaining beginning, elaborative detail, suspense, main event and extended ending.

• write opinion pieces on topics or texts supporting point of view with reasons.

• write informative texts to examine a topic and convey ideas clearly and accurately.

• write poems, descriptions, and stories with figurative language.

• use technology to produce and publish writing.

• conduct a short research project that builds knowledge about a topic.

• engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions.

• demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

• form and properly use nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions in speaking and writing.

• demonstrate the command of conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

Students will

• fluently add and subtract within 1000 using place value strategies and properties of operations.

• use place value to round whole numbers to the nearest 10 or 100.

• multiply one digit whole numbers by multiples of 10 in the range 10-90 (e.g. 8x50, 9x80).

• memorize all products of two one-digit numbers.

• fluently multiply and divide within 100.

• understand inverse relationship between multiplication and division.

• understand commutative, associative, and distributive properties.

• explain a whole number product and quotient.

• use multiplication and division within 100 to solve word problems.

• solve for the unknown number in an equation 15= x 3, 8x=32, 9= ÷4, 12=96÷.

• solve two step word problems using the four operations.

• identify arithmetic patterns (4 times a number is always even).

• understand a fraction is part of a whole number partitioned equally.

• represent a fraction on a number line.

• identify and generate equivalent fractions.

• compare fractions.

• express whole numbers as fractions.

• tell and write time to the nearest minute, solve word problems involving elapsed time.

• measure and estimate liquid volume and mass using grams (g), kilograms (kg), and liters (l).

• draw a scaled picture graph and bar graph representing a data set, solve problems using data from scaled graphs.

• generate measurement data of length with marked whole numbers, halves, or quarters.

• recognize area as an attribute of plane figures and understand concepts of area measurement.

• measure areas by counting unit squares.

• relate area to the operations of multiplication and addition.

• solve real-world and mathematical problems involving perimeter of polygons.

• understand that shapes in different categories may share attributes and the shared attributes can define a larger category.

• partition shapes into parts with equal areas.

WPS Elementary Family Math Resources
Bridges Family Support
Math at Home 

Students will be able to apply their musical knowledge and skills to perform on the recorder properly and musically. Students will be able to understand how sound is produced using different voices and instruments. 

Students will

• create and improvise short songs and rhythmic patterns on the recorder.

• individually sing, play and read simple phrases following basic standard notation (Sixteenth note, whole note, Pentatonic Scale)

• play G-A-B-C' on the recorder with proper playing technique and quality tone.

Students will

• demonstrate a refinement of locomotor with repetition.

• refine locomotor skills with and without manipulatives in games.

• practice skills with low organized games.

• practice interpersonal skills in game settings.

• improve social skills.

• show and appreciation for diversity.

Students will answer the questions:

• What are the major stages of the life cycle of the frog?

• How do inherited characteristics change over time as adaptation to changes in the environment that enables organisms to survive?

• How have changes in the environment caused animals to die or migrate?

• How do organisms meet some of their needs in an environment by using behaviors?

• What is the difference between instinctive behaviors and learned behaviors?

• How can organisms cause changes in their environment to ensure survival?  How do these changes affect the ecosystem?

• How is energy from the sun used by plants within a food chain?

• What causes magnetic poles to repel or attract each other?

• What objects and/or materials will attract to magnets?  What objects and/or materials will not attract magnets?

• How is sound produced and how does sound travel?  How does rate of vibration relate to pitch?

• What is included in the solar system?  What is Earth’s role in the solar system?

• How do natural systems compare to mechanical systems that are designed to serve similar purposes?

Students will

• learn about the history of Massachusetts from the arrival of the Pilgrims.

• explain how the Puritans and Pilgrims differed.

• explain important political, economic and military developments in Boston leading up to the American Revolution.  

• learn about famous people and events in Massachusetts history.

• use cardinal directions, map scales, legends, and titles to locate places on maps of New England, Massachusetts, and Walpole.

• use the word “decade” and “century” correctly.

• explain a tax and purposes of taxes.

• explain why we have governments and discover ways we can influence local government.