Elementary School (Grades 1-6)
Our curriculum follows the American Diploma program and is core standards-based. Our program is informed by best practices in teaching and learning. The academic program is anchored to Arizona curriculum standards.
What is the Elementary School Program?
This program is an international curriculum framework that spans from Grade 1 to Grade 6. This framework is built upon essential elements that help to shape the overall learning experiences for the child. These essential elements help to guide learning for teachers and students. At AIS, the Elementary School Program reflects not only what we do, but who we are.
Central to this program is the conceptual lens of curriculum, which helps to drive teaching and learning of essential skills and enduring understandings.
The essential elements include:
- • Transdiscplinary Themes
- • Concepts
- • Skills
- • Learner Profile and Attitudess
- • Action
These essential elements combine to form Units of Inquiry at each grade level and promote coherence within the overall program.
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Middle School (Grades 7-9)
At AIS, we believe that Middle School is an incredibly special time in a child’s development. Children are transitioning between childhood and
adolescence; children are changing not only physically but also morally, psychologically and social emotionally. Research tells us that the
adolescent brain is undergoing rapid changes and therefore we must redesign learning in order to harness the incredible potential of adolescents.
We must encourage them to act on their ideas, pursue high levels of scholarship and become more fully realized as people and learners.
We have adopted from the above-mentioned framework a list of Essential Attributes:
Learning for young adolescents must be:
- • Developmentally Responsive, using the nature of young adolescents as the foundation on which all decisions are made.
- • Challenging, recognizing that every student can learn and everyone is held to high expectations.
- • Empowering, providing all students with the knowledge and skills they need to take control of their lives
- • Equitable, advocating for every student’s right to learn and providing challenging and relevant learning opportunities
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High School (Grades 10-12)
High School Curriculum includes literature and composition. Literature curriculum includes an array of American, British and World literary reading
selections. It is a genre-based course in which students sharpen their reading comprehension skills and analyze important themes in classic and
modern works of literature, including short stories, poetry, drama, and novels. Students refine their skills of written expression by writing
narrative essays, persuasive essays, research papers, workplace documentation, and more. They develop vocabulary skills and refresh their knowledge
of grammar, usage, and mechanics in preparation for standardized tests.