Francis McClure Intermediate Curriculum
 
Reading
Our reading program is the HARCOURT READING/LANGUAGE ARTS PROGRAM. It is a standards based, comprehensive program that provides the materials and support needed to help all students become fluent, lifelong readers. The program includes a variety of classic and contemporary works, including realistic fiction, folktales, informational nonfiction, biography, autobiography, plays, and poems. It also provides frequent listening opportunities to develop vocabulary and promote a love of literature. Harcourt Reading includes a systematic grammar and spelling instruction to develop proficiency in the conventions of writing. Throughout the year, students are assessed in a variety of ways. Some assessments used are portfolios, comprehension tests, ongoing informal assessments, and holistic reading assessments.
Math
Our math program is SAXON MATH. Our students are exposed to a wide variety of mathematics activities throughout the year. Students learn through hands-on experiences, discussion, and exploration. The learning is reinforced through ongoing practice. Each day begins with "The Meeting" which is when students practice a wide variety of everyday skills. The next part is "The Lesson." During the lesson, a new concept is presented through discussion and an activity. Concepts presented are computation, problem-solving strategies, pattern identification, measurement, geometry, money, time, fractions, graphs, and charts. All of these concepts correlate with the Pennsylvania Academic Standards for Mathematics.
Science
The ASSET program embraces the concept that hands-on science is a process. ASSET is based on the fundamental belief that children learn science most effectively through experimental activities. Children learn best. furthermore, when the activities are taught in an environment that allows them to actively investigate scientific phenomena using concrete materials.

An inquiry-centered elementary science program, based on hands-on instructional units, will make children curious about their environment. As they learn about the essence of science by asking questions and working to find answers, they gain respect for evidence. As they learn important scientific concepts, they develop the ability to critically reflect on the problem-solving method. A hands-on, inquiry-oriented approach to science education teaches flexibility. Finally, as students gain a deeper understanding of their world through the scientific process, they acquire greater sensitivity to living things.

ASSET is providing the concrete materials and support to teachers to enable them to guide their elementary students through the same dynamic process scientists use in industry, the scientific method. Students' successful experiences will shape the way they look at and learn about the world around them for years to come.
Social Studies
Francis McClure Intermediate School's Social Studies curriculum was designed by educators who worked with the Smithsonian Institution's curatorial staff to create lessons that incorporate images culled from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, National Air & Space Museum, National Museum of American History, National Postal Museum, National Portrait Gallery, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The materials cover a range of subjects including geography, culture, civics, government and economics. The goal of the program is to help illuminate both America's past and its present for millions of social studies students.

The collaborative program includes museum gallery pages with full-color images of artifacts, and captions based directly on Smithsonian research. Special workbook activity pages encourage students to discover even more on their own.

Scott Foresman Social Studies looks and reads like the most compelling of trade books, but it has the rich content you need to meet each student's instructional goals. The program engages, inspires and allows for the development of a new generation of citizens. Students will learn how geography, economics, and government impact their lives and world while the comprehensive treatment of all the major social studies strands prepares them to become active, responsible, and informed citizens.
StudyIsland
Francis McClure Intermediate School students use STUDYISLAND that is a knowledge-based interactive multimedia computer course designed to develop and maintain Reading and Mathematics skills. During each individualized session, students are exposed to a variety of exercises. All exercises include the use of color illustrations and audio as a basis for highly interactive instruction. Students receive a mixture of instructional exercises, based on their previous performance on each of the skill objectives included in the course. The program distributes exercises appropriate to the student's level.
English as a Second Language
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