Global awareness nurtures respect and tolerance for others, deepens understanding of culture and history, and provides high-interest contexts for learning.
THEMATIC STUDIES
In core classes, students study a variety of cultural themes, carefully selected to be developmentally appropriate and meet academic standards. From kindergarten through fifth grade, Perkins students examine cultures on a widening scale, starting with their own family culture, moving into the larger community, and finally around the globe. This thematic instruction integrates basic disciplines like reading, math, and music with the exploration of a broad subject.
Kindergarten and first grade, as befits their developmental level, concentrate on what is immediate to their lives. They start with examining all facets of families, including human, animal, and plant, and then move on to explore cultures within their community. Second and third grade take a deep dive into Native American culture, followed by a multidisciplinary examination of countries across the globe. Fourth and fifth graders examine how and why people move, from early explorers and colonizers to modern immigrants and refugees. Through literature, research, music and food, they develop a deep understanding of geography, language, people, and culture.
SERVICE LEARNING PROJECTS
Service learning projects allow us to address local, national, and global issues. Teachers, students, and parents design projects so that all involved have meaningful, motivating experiences, creating unique opportunities for Perkins students to learn about their community and world. The purpose of these projects is to inspire students and deepen their sense of personal and social responsibility. Whether having a “bucket-a-thon” to raise money to build a well in Cameroon, building “kitchen kits” for the International Rescue Committee, or collecting supplies for the pets of people without homes, Perkins children learn about their world and themselves through these innovative, interactive programs.
FRENCH
At Perkins, language class builds the foundation and appreciation of bilingualism, and becomes a way to connect as a global citizen through cultural studies of the French-speaking world and correspondence with pen pals from the banlieues of Paris to cosmopolitan Tunis.
The French learning experience mimics a child’s first language acquisition, whether it was English or any other language. A range of input from compelling and comprehensible to silly and fun makes French class an exciting place to experiment with language. Students learn the basics of French, as well as conversational skills, by participating in role-play, singing French songs, inventing characters, playing language games, and creating compelling (and often hilarious) short films.
The benefits of our French program are multifaceted: providing a strong foundation for those students who will go on to study French further; experience with linguistic differences for those who are going on to take a different language in middle and upper school; a great conversational toolkit; a memorable base of cultural literacy for all. Our goal is for Perkins students to experience language learning as a desirable and fulfilling pursuit, at any time in life.