Kindergarten to 5th Grade | International School of Brooklyn

ISB’s holistic approach to education in a language immersion setting prepares students for the intellectual challenges of the next phases of their education and personal growth. It focuses on the development of the whole child as an inquirer - both in the classroom and in the world outside.

ISB’s Kindergarten-5th Grade program incorporates local and global perspectives and issues into the curriculum, asking students to look at six related, transdisciplinary themes that provide the breadth of exploration across disciplines. Throughout the curriculum, students engage in six-week long transdisciplinary Units of Inquiry, focusing on such themes as “who we are”, “where we are in place and time”, and “how the world works”.

By developing their inquiry skills at this early stage, students become active learners and have the opportunity to take charge of their own learning. All units also incorporate field trips to give real-life context to what is being learned in the classroom.

Kindergarten to 5th Grade Overview

Kindergarten: 90% instruction in the target language (French or Spanish), 10% in English
1st–3rd Grades: 75% instruction in the target language (French or Spanish), 25% in English
4th–5th Grades: 50% instruction in the target language, 50% in English
Culturally and linguistically authentic classrooms: Books and resources are primary language only (not translated), and teachers bring in their own cultural backgrounds to reinforce lessons
Head teachers are native speakers in their language of instruction
Core subjects (Math, Science, Reading, Writing, Social Studies) are taught in an interdisciplinary manner everyday, with additional weekly classes in Art and Science and twice weekly classes in Physical Education and Music (twice weekly in 2nd Grade-5th Grade, weekly in Nursery-1st Grade)
Twice daily recess
School Day Hours: 8:30am–3:30pm (extended care available from 3:30pm–6pm)
Project-based learning is incorporated into each unit, allowing students to build their skills and synthesize learned content

Picture Me! A Portrait Collaboration between 2nd and 7th Grade Students

NEWS UPDATE April 27, 2018

This year, the art department was motivated to find opportunities for cross-divisional collaboration in the art studio. After brainstorming what sort of project could become a tradition in art class and inspire students to look forward to collaborating together artistically, we came up with the idea of having the 2nd and 7th Graders create portraits of each other. This seemed like the perfect way to promote collaboration, as well as to spark new friendship among the students. A portrait involves the representation of someone, and in order to represent your subject well, you need to get to know a person to show their personality in the portrait. We paired each 2nd Grade artist with a 7th Grade artist and began the exploration.

All the School’s a Stage: Performing Arts at ISB

NEWS UPDATE February 14, 2018

ISB’s performing arts curriculum emphasizes creativity and exploration from its beginning in Nursery music through its finale in 8th Grade. What does this mean in the classroom? How does the curriculum build from our Preschool music program through our Middle School Performing Arts program? How does performance arts at ISB integrate into our curriculum, and how does the program reflect ISB’s core values? ISB Teachers Melanie Cozzi and Mariko Watt sat down to answer these questions and to highlight the many ways performing arts enrich the student experience at ISB.

ISB Students Participate in Hour of Code

NEWS UPDATE February 2, 2018

Each year during Computer Science Education Week, ISB students participate in Hour of Code, a global movement designed to celebrate computer science and introduce students to the world of coding. During the recent Hour of Code at ISB, students in 3rd-5th Grade logged onto code.org and started working through a progression of coding puzzles. These activities help students develop their understanding of algorithms, nested loops, while loops, conditionals, and events. This course is crafted to build a strong foundation in basic coding concepts.

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