K-8 Courses

At K¹², we nurture inquisitive minds.

We take the simple approach that Big Ideas + Consecutive Down Payments + Practice = Mastery. Throughout our K through 8 course offerings, you will find certain recurring themes that build on the previous grades' teaching and weave an ever-richer tapestry of knowledge around the most important concepts.

Bringing Lessons to Life

The K¹² curriculum brings lessons to life with a rich mixture of online and offline teaching tools, including interactive animations, award-winning printed books with beautiful illustrations and narrative, original CDs and videos, and materials for hands-on experiments. In addition, lesson plans for each subject are integrated, so your child may be reading literature from the same time period as the art or history lesson he or she is studying.

Lessons are followed by assessments, so you can be sure that your child has mastered a particular area before moving on. Our individualized approach means your child can go as fast or slow as needed. The online assessments are integrated with the planning and progress tools, making it easy to find the right pace by subject and to stay on track.

Language Arts/English

K¹² Language Arts/English helps students develop important reading and writing skills, while also inspiring a love of literature. Combining phonics, literature, language skills, and spelling lessons, the Language Arts/English program emphasizes classic works, teaches writing as a process, and prepares students for standardized tests in the areas of language skills and reading comprehension. Younger children learn the basics of phonics and grammar and prepare for reading through systematic, multi-sensory activities, while older students develop literary analysis and comprehension skills by reading novels and nonfiction works.
 

Math

Building upon the success of a long-established program, K¹² Math balances mastery of fundamental skills with critical thinking and problem-solving. K¹² Math emphasizes an active, multi-sensory approach to ensure that students understand the concrete realities that underlie mathematical concepts. Regular practice and review ensures mastery of basic skills. Online games and animations motivate students and help illustrate concepts, while challenge problems help develop critical thinking skills. From helping younger students make the link between the concrete and the abstract to introducing older students to Algebra, K¹² Math provides a thorough mathematic grounding.
 

Science

K¹² is unique in offering real science for young students. The program balances hands-on experience with systematic study of scientific terms and concepts. Students perform many experiments to help them understand scientific principles, and receive guided instruction in important scientific concepts. Exploring life, earth, and physical sciences in each grade, K¹² Science nurtures curiosity, analytical skills, and an appreciation of how the world is shaped by ongoing scientific and technological advances. Students learn about the human body, plants and animals, rocks and minerals, stars, matter, motion, and much more. Through hands-on experiments, the program helps students develop skills of observation and analysis, and learn how scientists understand our world.
 

History

With integrated topics in geography and civics, K¹² History opens young minds and imaginations to far-off lands, distant times, and diverse cultures. K¹² emphasizes the story in history—a story that includes not only great men and women but also everyday people.

The kindergarten History program takes your student on a world tour of the seven continents, and provides an overview of American History through a series of biographies of famous Americans. The History program in grades 1–4 tells the story of civilization from the Stone Age to the Space Age. Older students explore major themes and topics in greater depth through a pair of two-year survey courses, one on World History and the other on American History.
 

World Languages

The only online language-learning program designed specifically for kids, the K¹² World Language offering helps students read, write, speak, and listen for meaning in five languages (Spanish, French, German, Latin, and Chinese).

Combining a variety of games, simple narratives, and regular writing and speaking challenges, the World Language program highlights common vocabulary terms and phrases, introducing younger students to a wide range of grammar patterns, while helping older students master numerous grammar principles. Courses prepare students to generate language incorporating the vocabulary and patterns they have learned. In addition, culture lessons challenge younger students to recognize different cultural manifestations, while older students analyze and compare practices and perspectives of various cultures.

Each week consists of an ongoing adventure story; new vocabulary or grammar patterns; numerous interactive games reinforcing the week’s content;, reading and listening comprehension activities; speaking and writing activities; multimedia cultural presentations from areas across the globe; and assessments so that students can measure their progress in proficiency through quizzes, tests, and regular speaking and writing submissions.

Courses thoroughly meet all national standards as set forth by ACTFL (the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) and follows state guidelines in covering level-appropriate standards in communication, cultures, linguistic and cultural comparisons, cross-curricular connections, and engaging with target-language speaking communities.
 

Art

Following the timelines in the History lessons, K¹² Art lessons introduce students to great works of art from different cultures and eras, while engaging them in creative activity—painting, drawing, molding with clay, etc. Students are introduced to the elements of art—line, shape, color—and identify different types of artwork as they learn about important paintings, sculpture, and architecture. They study the works of famous artists, from Rembrandt to Warhol, and learn about different artistic movements such as Impressionism and Cubism. Students also create their own works of art similar to those they have learned about, such as mobiles, collages, and stained glass.
 

Music

K¹² Music teaches basic music concepts at different, age-appropriate levels, so that all music students have a consistent understanding of the essential concepts governing Western music. The curriculum builds quickly, in a structured, sensible way. The concepts in the lessons are critical to fostering music comprehension, which is taught in stages as students move through their years in K¹². Much more than simple music appreciation, this is an approach that will help students train their own ears, voices, and bodies in the fundamental building blocks of music.

Our Music Placement Chart will help you determine the right music course level for your child.
 

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K-8 Course Catalog

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