Specialist Programs
Art
Children are naturally creative and love to learn ways to express their creativity using many materials. The Lower School art program offers age-appropriate projects which frequently integrate elements from the classroom curriculum. Projects are related to art history as students study famous artists and create artwork in that artist’s style. Art classes are taught in the classroom for Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten, and once a week in the Art Room for students in Primary through 5th grade. Our art teachers are active members of the Portland arts community.
Spanish
Beginning in Kindergarten and continuing all the way through 5th grade, OES students learn practical vocabulary, basic grammatical structure, and widen their cultural knowledge base to help in the acquisition of Spanish language. With a very dynamic and interactive program our aim is to engage students in a fun language experience, rich with cultural learning. Spanish is provided twice a week in Kindergarten to Grade 3, and three times per week in Grades 4 and 5.
Physical Education
Physical activity is critical to developing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Our students participate weekly in a minimum of two hours of physical education, broken into 3-5 class sessions per week. Students are taught motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities, along with a sense of responsibility for their own personal and social behavior, including respect for self and others in physical activity settings. OES has an all-weather track, an artificial turf playing field and two athletic facilities which allow for year round indoor and outdoor activities.
Music
The Kodály approach is at the core of our music program. Students learn the Solfa system (do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do) with hand and body signs that represent the musical pitches, providing a kinesthetic link to each pitch and the melodic intervals between them.
While voice is the predominant instrument in the Kodály curriculum, other instruments are integrated regularly, including the recorder, xylophone, handbells, and a range of percussion instruments.
Science
The goal of the Lower School science curriculum is to nurture a child’s natural curiosity and creativity and to teach the scientific method. Students learn science through a variety of hands-on activities and experiments, with room for student driven modifications. All students keep a lab notebook with notes that are personally meaningful. Parents are encouraged to sign-up as a classroom volunteer to assist in the science activities.
Topics that have been covered by Grade:
- Primary: Machines, Human Body, Crystals, Paper Science, Water Science, Design & Construction, Environments & Adaptations
- First Grade: Mealworms, Bones, Crystals, Design & Construction, Levers & Balances, Glue Making, Air Science
- Second Grade: Shoebox Cars, Electricity, Simple Mechanics, Magnets, Botany, Toy Making
- Third Grade: Tree ID, Bubbles, Crime Lab, Acid/Base Chemistry, Bridge Building, Genetics, Air Science, Owl Pellets, Senses
- Fourth Grade: Water, Snails, Electricity, Wetlands, Circulatory System, Respiratory System, Digestive System
- Fifth Grade: Astronomy, Geology, Exothermic Chemistry, Mystery Powder Chemistry, Newton’s Physics, Endangered Animal Zoology
Library
Our library program supports and enriches our Lower School curriculum and provides both print and on-line resources for research-based projects across the grades. We strive to meet the needs of our readers at all developmental stages of literacy. With a rich collection of quality picture books, exciting non-fiction, engaging chapter books and popular series, the library is a center for pleasure reading and students explore various literary genres while developing their reading skills. Every Lower School class visits the library weekly.
