Lower School

During their time in First Grade at Far Hills Country Day School, Your Child Will...

• Continue to Build Upon their Foundational Skills: First Grade students use a routine that guides them to see, say, spell, and write the words they’re studying. They have ample opportunities to apply what they have learned during independent practice and small group activities.
• Gain Awareness of Communities: Through thoughtfully planned Social Studies lessons, Grade 1 students learn about how individuals in our classroom, school, neighborhoods, and world communities are dependent upon one another.
• Expand Their Mathematical Thinking: Grade 1 students use a variety of tools and strategies to solve math problems in their daily lives.
• Gain Social Skills: Grade 1 students are taught skills that enable them to problem-solve successfully and build positive peer relationships.

During their time in Second Grade at Far Hills Country Day School, Your Child Will...

• Build Their Writing Skills: During their time in Grade 2, students will write personal narratives, imaginative stories, persuasive essays, and informational pieces. Spelling and grammar skills are studied and practiced weekly.
• Focus on Empathy: The core of Far Hills Country Day School’s Grade 2 Social Studies curriculum is empathy, teaching students the important idea of understanding the human condition and the diversity of cultures and experiences throughout the world.
• Learn About the "Piglet Mindset": Through observing and virtually getting to know a little blind and deaf dog named Piglet, students learn about optimism, resilience, perseverance, and acceptance. 
• Level Up: Grade 2 serves as the year to build foundational academic skills, challenge students to the next level, build mission skills, build “student skills,” and cultivate a love of learning. All disciplines in the Grade 2 program intentionally include cross-curricular components, the Far Hills Pillars, and mission skills.

During their time in Third Grade at Far Hills Country Day School, Your Child Will...

• Gain Independence: Grade 3 students begin to develop ownership of learning through the meaningful independent choice of rich, authentic texts.
• Use the Engineering Design Process: The signature STEAM project for Grade 3 includes building instruments using recycled materials while using the engineering design process.
• Take a Deep Dive into the Far Hills Pillars and Mission Skills: Through direct instruction, literature, videos, sharing circles, and role playing, third-grade students improve their ability to problem solve and navigate interpersonal relationships. Through daily academic challenges that include independent as well as small-group interactions, they also practice and develop our mission skills: Teamwork, Ethics, Time Management, Creativity, Resilience, and Curiosity.
• Learn Cursive: Cursive is not a lost art at Far Hills! Grade 3 students learn the cursive alphabet and enjoy opportunities to read and write in cursive throughout the year. 

During their time in Fourth Grade at Far Hills Country Day School, Your Child Will...

• Work Independently: Using HMH Into Reading, Far Hills Country Day School’s Grade 4 students have the opportunity to work independently, following a personalized path that accelerates their learning. In their small-group learning environment, students receive targeted, data-driven instruction while building meaningful relationships with their peers and teacher.
• Expand Their Writing Skills: Students produce writing in the following genres: reflection, narrative, expository, descriptive/creative, and persuasive.
• Practice Their Public Speaking and Performance Skills (A Lot!): Grade 4 students perform in four productions throughout the year: K–8 Holiday Concert, integration of performance and composition for their Fourth Grade Expo, Grandparents’/Special Friends’ Day Concert, and the Lower School Closing Ceremonies.
• Learn Interpersonal Skills:

  In Grade 4, students work to use their words to communicate their feelings with others in order to solve conflicts. We use different cross-curricular activities to incorporate the following skills:

  • self-awareness (recognize one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values);

  • self-management (effectively manage stress, controlling impulses, and motivating oneself);

  • social awareness (empathize with others, including those with diverse backgrounds and cultures);

  • relationship skills (maintain healthy relationships with others including communicating clearly, listening well, and cooperating with others); and

  • responsible decision-making (make choices about personal behavior and the well-being of oneself and others).