Every week the faculty and student body in grades one through four gather together in the Worship Center to express devotion to our Lord through praise and worship. Biblical truths and principles of life are taught by our staff, pastors and guest speakers. We welcome parents to attend with their children and worship with us.

BIBLE/CHARACTER FOUNDATION

Bible study is an integral part of the school curriculum at Willamette Christian School. The Scriptures are studied in such a way that a child will discover and be able to apply the relevance of the Bible and its principles to everyday situations and experiences. Students study daily in the classroom environment where a variety of approaches and techniques are used to discover Biblical meanings and principles. Special emphasis is given to the following character traits through the ACSI character curriculum: wisdom, obedience, responsibility, attentiveness, faith, sensitivity, thankfulness, orderliness, courage, meekness, loyalty, joy, self-control, honesty, helpfulness, diligence, patience, dependability, initiative, love and resourcefulness.

Willamette Christian School utilizes the ACSI Bible curriculum as a guideline for Biblical scope and instructional sequence. The fourth grade Christ and His World presents the great doctrines of Christianity in an exciting and understandable manner. There is a strong emphasis on bible study tools and skills, essential doctrines of the Bible, and application lessons on prayer, devotions, personal evangelism and holding onto the Truth.

Bob Jones University Press authors the reading program for grades three through six. This is an innovative developmental reading program providing teaching, practice, application and assessment of essential reading skills in a unique way. Each student receives a reading test as well as a workbook to provide further practice, application, and assessment skills. The reading program is supplemented with a classroom reading of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis as well as other novels.

Read and Think 4 Skill Sheets and Adventures in Other Lands are timed reading exercises that are administered weekly to develop reading speed, skills, and power of comprehension. The students also read a selected novel to identify the elements of literature.

The ability to communicate with one another and with God is part of His plan for our lives. The written form of our language requires accurate spelling. Thus, spelling becomes an important part of the communication process. Writing allows the transfer of information over space and time. This is unique to humans and is a clear reflection of the nature of God.

WCS works to create lifelong spellers. Students need to have a grasp of spelling rules as well as a knowledge of how to spell basic to advanced words, not just for Friday tests, but in everyday work. We use a variety of methods to accomplish this. The main resource is Rebecca Sitton’s Sourcebook Method. This method is based on the top 1,200 most frequently used words in the English language. The program uses a variety of interesting games and lessons to practice synonyms, homonyms, and other word groups. Words are graded in context taken from everyday writing, "cloze" tests, and dictation. We also utilize the ACSI Spelling Bee lists in the first semester.

The A Beka penmanship text, Penmanship Mastery I, provides daily practice for penmanship excellence. Correct formation, spacing, letter size, slant and overall neatness are emphasized. Students will enjoy the variety of activities on the workbook pages. Weekly tests are administered.

Each Monday students are required to describe with creativity, their weekend events in the "Weekend News". Students are also required to illustrate their article. The grades for the "Weekend News" could be recorded in Language, Spelling and/or Writing.

Each day sentences from Daily Oral Language are presented. The sentences contain errors in punctuation, capitalization and usage. Through class discussion, previously learned skills are reviewed and new applications are taught.

In addition, the A Beka language curriculum provides each child with the workbook Language 4 and a test booklet. A daily language lesson will include oral drills, teaching of new materials and practice work in the workbook. Listed below are many of the skills your child will learn:

        * Sentence structure                     

        *Writing with detail

        * Kinds of sentences                    

        * Writing Encyclopedia and book reports

        * Punctuation and capitalization     

        * Dictionary skills

        * Abbreviations                            

        * Word Usage

        * Possessive words                       

        * Eight parts of speech

        * Letters                                       

        * Diagramming

        * Gathering information                 

        * Creative writing

Students solve verbal or representational analogies daily. This enables students to understand the connecting relationships between words. In the process, students develop skills in critical and creative thinking, vocabulary and test taking skills.

Students receive mini-mental exercises weekly where they need it the most: number sense, patterns, estimation, mental mathematics and geometry through the Daily Mathematics series. Critical thinking skills are incorporated into daily problem solving, helping students see the connections among a variety of math topics. Problems emphasize real-world situations, reinforcing the importance of mathematics in student’s daily lives.

In addition, the A Beka math curriculum is used as the core textbook. Computation skills lay the foundation for the mathematics program. These skills are taught and practiced, not as an end in themselves, but as a means to helping students solve problems. Games are utilized as well to reinforce math skills learned in class. The study of math encourages students to believe in the absolutes of the universe, to work diligently to get right answers and to see the facts of mathematics as part of the truth and order that God has built into the universe. Listed below are many of the skills the fourth grade student will learn:

        * Place value of whole numbers and decimals        

        * Factoring

        * Mastery of fundamental operation                       

        * Divisibility Rules

        * Addition/Subtraction/Multiplication of fractions    

        * Making change

        * Converting measures within the same system       

        * Introduction to decimals and solving measurement equations                     

        * Graphs and scale drawing

        * Reading a thermometer                                       

        * Geometric shapes

        * Solving equations using addition and subtraction  

        * Perimeter/area axioms

        * Roman numerals                                                 

        * Estimating answers

        * Estimation                                                           

        * English/metric measures

        * Averaging                                                           

        * English/metric ruler

SCIENCE

Science is the study of God’s order, provision and general revelation as discovered is His physical creation. The science program at Willamette Christian School offers a comprehensive basis which gives the students understanding of the content and processes of life, physical and earth sciences. The Bob Jones University Press text, Science for Christian School 4 is used as the core textbook for fourth grade. The goal for fourth grade science is to develop a scientific attitude in each child that will give him an interest in the world that God has created and to make him aware of the important role that science plays in human progress and development.

Listed below are the topics taught:

        * Earth: erosion

        * Space: moon

        * Life: insects, plants, animals

        * Health: digestion

        *Physical: machines, electricity, light (eye), length, area, volume

Based upon the foundational truths of the scriptures, Willamette Christian’s history program is presented with the firm conviction that "the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof." History, therefore, is a revelation of God in His dealings with man and the universe. The Bob Jones Heritage Studies 4 provides the core textbook, Doors of Opportunity: Nineteenth Century America. While this series includes history, geography, economics, culture, and government concepts, it also emphasizes Christian philosophy, character and attitudes, promoting a balanced approach to social studies instruction. Topics include:

        * North and South Pole explorations

        * Economics

        * The fifty States

        * Immigration

        * Evangelists and Missionaries

        * Invention

        * Industrial Revolution

        * United States Government

Geography and map skills are also developed.

Students will experience an in-depth study of their home state - Oregon. Each student will develop an Oregon notebook to record discoveries. This unit culminates with a field trip providing a hands-on experience for WCS fourth graders. Oregon studies include a theme of the month, stories, current events, vocabulary, regions, geography, maps, crafts and wildlife. Students will review and memorize the counties of Oregon write to each county and write a final report.

WCS students participate in a multimedia Spanish curriculum. Viva el Espanol is a complete language development program designed for teaching Spanish in elementary and middle school. The main objectives in our Spanish program guide students through the development of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, with a special emphasis on communicative activities to create actual and practical uses of the language. While learning Spanish, students also explore the cultures of the Hispanic world. Viva el Espanol makes learning Spanish fun and creates a positive attitude toward learning languages and experiencing a different culture.

We design art classes at Willamette Christian School to stretch the imagination of the children and challenge their creativity. Our curriculum introduces children to great artists, their works, various art techniques and a wide selection of art products. This is accomplished through the use of theme units such as Holidays, A Trip Around the World, and mixed mediums. Students learn about color mixing, shading, texture, size and color values. Foil art, origami, crayon rubbings, gingerbread houses, pop-up cards and soap carvings are just a few examples of the fun and exciting projects we offer to our art students.

God created music as a gift for us. In turn, we must use it for Him. Music is a skill that must be trained and developed, and in doing so, students will learn music as an avenue to praise and worship God. Fourth grade students will participate in weekly music classes as well as special school programs involving music presentation.

A general introduction to computer terms and basics begins the class. An overview of mouse movement and entering and closing programs is reviewed. A typing program, Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing 5, is the primary teaching tool by which students are taught correct finger placement and usage for the keyboard. During special seasons, holidays, etc., they learn to make posters and cards from the Print Artist 3.0 program. Corel Word Perfect Suite 7 is also utilized to create "word art" and to learn word processing. Once a month students will be given an opportunity to type that month’s memory verse. Occasionally there will also be opportunity for the fourth graders to play educational games.

Fitness and skill development are the primary goals of the PE program. Students participate in exercises to promote cardiovascular endurance, muscle strength and flexibility. Basic motor and manipulative skills are sequenced or combined for greater movement challenges. Games, relays and drills are designed to enhance skill related fitness or specific sport skills. Partner and group activities are used to meet growing social needs while emphasizing individual development.

Throughout the year there are opportunities for students to participate in various ACSI sponsored academic competitions with students from other Christian schools. Competitions at the classroom level select fourth grade representatives from WCS for the ACSI Spelling Bee, Speech Meet and Math Olympics. Students in grades four through six may participate in the ACSI Musicale, an event featuring choral and instrumental music evaluations and rehearsal with a guest conductor for a mass choir and a mass band performance at the end of the day.

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