- Brown
- Overview
Our Academics & Electives
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We draw upon the expertise of our educators and work together to create models of outstanding achievement in every classroom. Through implementing high-quality instructional materials and transforming the academic culture in our schools, we challenge and inspire our students to thrive in the world. With a wide variety of academics and enrichment opportunities aligned with state standards, we support students in unlocking their potential as they extend their skills and talents beyond the classroom. Our core curriculum includes:
- English Language Arts - We are committed to nurturing and developing a strong literacy foundation for all students in the early school years by implementing literacy instructional frameworks that prepare students to become independent readers and writers.
- Math - The mathematics curriculum seeks to ensure mathematical competence and confidence in students in mathematics-rich classroom environments.
- Science - Classroom experiences in science are connected to real-world phenomena and provide opportunities to engage in science and engineering practices through exposure to STEM-related career pathways.
- Social Studies - Students gain the content knowledge, intellectual skills, and core democratic values necessary for fulling their civic duties in a participatory democracy and effectively engaging in our global society.
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Our Social Studies curriculum is aligned with the Michigan State Standards and aims to develop a foundation of historical skills and concepts over time. Kindergarten focuses on students recognizing their place in the world and their individual responsibilities. Grades 1-3 introduces students to the concepts of Economics, Diversity, Geography, as well as Detroit and Michigan History. Grades 4 -5 instruction shifts to World History, Government, Impacts of War and continues to expand upon Detroit and Michigan History.
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DPSCD implements a Science Curriculum that provides students opportunities to predict, question, test, investigate, and draw scientific conclusions. All instructional units are aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards and foster collaboration and engineering practice.
Grades K-2 Mystery Science
Kindergarten Concepts
- Force
- Weather
- Plant & Animal Secrets
First Grade Concepts
- Lights and Sounds
- Spinning Sky
- Plants and Animals Superpowers
Second Grade Concepts
- Material Magic
- Work of Water
- Animal Adventures
- Plant Adventures
Grades 3-5 Create for STEM
3rd Grade Concepts
- Squirrels: Why Do I See So Many Squirrels?
- Toys: How Can We Design Fun Moving Toys That Other Kids Can Build?
- Birds: How Can We Help The Birds Around Our School Grow Up and Thrive?
4th Grade Concepts
- Dynamic Earth: How Is Earth Going To Change Over 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000 and 1 Million Years?
- Energy: How Can We Harvest Energy To Meet Our Needs?
- Fire: If Fire Is A Hazard, Why Do So Many Animals And Animals Depend On Fire?
5th Grade Concepts
- Stars: How Could You Travel 1,000 Miles in the Same Direction on Land, Air, Sea Without a Compass, Map or Phone?
- Taste: How Can I Create a New Taste?
- Water: How can I help my community to always have clean and healthy freshwater?
Grades 6-8 IQWST
IQWST (Investigating and Questioning Our World through Science and Technology) at its core engages students in scientific practices as they experience, investigate and explain phenomena while learning core ideas.6th Grade
Unit 1 Can I Believe My Eyes?
Unit 2 How Can I Smell Things from a Distance?
Unit 3 Where Have All the Creatures Gone?
7th & 8th Grade
Unit 1 How Can I Make New Stuff from Old Stuff?
Unit 2 Why Do Some Things Stop While Others Keep Going?
Unit 3 What Makes the Weather Change?
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In 2018, DPSCD adopted the Eureka Math Curriculum with the intention of helping our students shift from just finding the answers to actually understanding the why and how behind the mathematic processes. Eureka Math uses sequenced modules to help students achieve a deeper understanding of concepts while developing strong critical thinking skills. The program is a Common-Core aligned curriculum that helps students build upon their skills, provides real word stories and application lessons, and encourages mental strategies to problem solve. Grade level clusters have key focus areas and each grade level has specific modules of engagement. For information, please visit the DPSCD Math Curriculum Page.
Key Areas of Focus for K-2nd
- Addition and subtraction - concepts, skills and problem solving
Kindergarten
- Representing, relating, and operating on whole numbers, initially with sets of objects
- Describing shapes and space.
- Focus on number concepts
Grade 1
- developing understanding of addition, subtraction
- strategies for addition and subtraction within 20
- developing understanding of whole number relationships and place value, including grouping in tens and ones
- developing understanding of linear measurement and measuring lengths as iterating length units
- reasoning about attributes of, and composing and decomposing geometric shapes.
Grade 2
- extending understanding of base-ten notation
- building fluency with addition and subtraction
- using standard units of measure
- describing and analyzing shapes
Key Areas of Focus for 3rd-5th
- Multiplication and division of whole numbers and fractions—concepts, skills, and problem solving
Grade 3
- developing understanding of multiplication and division and strategies for multiplication and division within 100
- developing understanding of fractions, especially unit fractions (fractions with numerator 1
- developing understanding of the structure of rectangular arrays and area
- describing and analyzing two-dimensional shapes.
Grade 4
- developing understanding and fluency with multi-digit multiplication
- developing understanding of dividing to find quotients involving multi-digit dividends
- developing an understanding of fraction equivalence, addition and subtraction of fractions with like denominators
- multiplication of fractions by whole numbers
- understanding that geometric figures can be analyzed and classified based on their properties, such as having parallel sides, perpendicular sides, particular angle measures, and symmetry.
Grade 5
- developing fluency with addition and subtraction of fractions
- developing understanding of the multiplication of fractions and of division of fractions
- extending division to two-digit divisors
- integrating decimal fractions into the place value system and developing understanding of operations with decimals to hundredths
- developing fluency with whole number and decimal operations
- developing understanding of volume
Key Areas of Focus for 6th-8th
- Ratios and proportional reasoning; early expressions and equations
Grade 6
- connecting ratio and rate to whole number multiplication and division and using concepts of ratio and rate to solve problems
- completing understanding of division of fractions and extending the notion of number to the system of rational numbers, which includes negative numbers
- writing, interpreting, and using expressions and equations
- developing understanding of statistical thinking.
Grade 7
- Analyze proportional relationships and use them to solve real-world and mathematical problems
- Apply and extend previous understandings of operations with fractions to add, subtract, multiply, and divide rational numbers
- Use properties of operations to generate equivalent expressions
- Solve real-life and mathematical problems using numerical and algebraic expressions and equations
- Draw, construct, and describe geometrical figures and describe the relationship between them
- Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving angle measure, area, surface area, and volume
- drawing inferences on populations based on samples
Grade 8
- formulating and reasoning about expressions and equations, including modeling an association in bivariate data with a linear equation
- solving linear equations and systems of linear equations
- grasping the concept of a function and using functions to describe quantitative relationships
- analyzing two- and three-dimensional space and figures using distance, angle, similarity, and congruence, and understanding and applying the Pythagorean theorem.
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EL Grades K-2
The EL curriculum offers either two or three hours of literacy instruction per day, depending on the grade level. The Grades K-2 curriculum offers two hours per day of content-based literacy, plus one hour of structured phonics. In conjunction with Module Lessons, explicit instruction is related to grammar, usage, mechanics, punctuation, and spelling. Together, these three hours of curriculum are considered comprehensive, meaning that they explicitly teach and formally assess all strands and standards of the Common Core English language arts (ELA) standards for each grade level.
EL Grades 3-5
The Grades 3-5 curriculum offers two hours of content-based literacy instruction per day. In conjunction with Module Lessons, explicit instruction is related to grammar, usage, mechanics, and punctuation.
EL Grades 6-8
These grades 6–8 curriculum modules are designed to address CCSS ELA outcomes during a 45-minute English Language Arts block. The overarching focus for all modules is on building students’ literacy skills as they develop knowledge about the world.
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Physical Education K-8
Physical Education classes at Ronald Brown Academy promote fitness, healthy choices, and sportsmanship through activities such as locomotor (running, walking and large body movements) and non-locomotor exercise (yoga and stretching), foundational skill-building in sports such as basketball, floor hockey, volleyball, tennis, soccer, football, and whiffle ball, and interactive health lessons across a variety of age-appropriate topics, including social/emotional health.
Art K-8
Drawing, Painting, Ceramics, Printmaking, Fiber Art, and jewelry are just a few of the art forms we will learn about. Students get a chance to collaborate with the teacher, as well as other student artists like themselves. The art room is an opportunity for your student to continue to develop their love for art, and receive help with the things they may already like about art. Students will learn how to work together through art and express their creative imagination.
STEM 3-8
Using Next Generation Science Standards and Engineering Principles, students investigate and explore phenomena in the world around them. Activities include scientific observations, engineering activities, and environmental stewardship programs. Partnerships such as Salmon In the Classroom, Great Lakes Education Program, and Rouge Education Project, Detroit Audubon, and Green Living Science help incorporate real-life experiences for STEM.