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Learning

LITERACY:

All students in grades K–6 receive a minimum of 120 minutes of daily literacy instruction.

Curriculum Used:

Stone Mountain uses Wonders by McGraw Hill as our core Tier 1 literacy curriculum. Wonders is designed to foster a love of reading in all children. Through the exploration of rich texts and the daily development of skills in reading, writing, speaking, and listening, students experience the power of literacy. Our focus on teaching the whole child – and every child – prepares students to be lifelong learners and critical thinkers.

In addition to Wonders, our school uses ThinkSRSD (Self-Regulated Strategy Development) to provide structured, research-based writing instruction. This approach supports students in developing clear, confident writing skills by explicitly teaching strategies for planning, organizing, and revising their work across genres.

To ensure strong foundational skills in phonics and decoding, we also implement UFLI Foundations as a targeted phonics program and Tier 2 intervention. This evidence-based resource supports students who need additional practice and reinforcement, aligned with the Science of Reading.

Important at Stone Mountain:

  • Literacy instruction is grounded in the Science of Reading, with explicit and systematic instruction in foundational and language comprehension skills.

  • All literacy teachers use Wonders as their Tier 1 resource.

  • All literacy teachers use the Colorado Academic Standards and DCSD Priority Learning Outcomes to guide instruction.

  • All teachers differentiate instruction based on ongoing assessment data to meet the needs of every learner. We recognize that one size doesn’t fit all, and our instructional practices reflect this commitment.

Literacy

MATH:

All students in grades K–6 receive a minimum of 70 minutes of daily math instruction.

Curriculum Used:

Stone Mountain uses enVision Mathematics by Savvas as our core math curriculum. enVision is designed to build deep conceptual understanding through visual models, hands-on learning, and real-world problem-solving. With opportunities for personalized learning and engaging tasks like 3-Act Math, students are supported in becoming flexible, confident mathematical thinkers.

Important at Stone Mountain:

  • Teachers introduce key mathematical concepts using concrete, real-life examples that are meaningful and memorable for students.

  • Students receive multiple exposures to concepts and skills to support deep understanding and long-term retention.

  • Daily practice of foundational computation skills helps students develop procedural fluency and automaticity, often reinforced through games and verbal activities.

  • Instruction incorporates multiple strategies and problem-solving approaches to promote true mathematical proficiency and meet the diverse needs of learners.

SCIENCE:

Science Curriculum Used: Stone Mountain uses STEMScopes. Teachers will provide the most effective and widely used digital STEM curricula and resources that empower teachers and enable students to develop problem-solving, innovation, and critical thinking skills necessary to be successful in the future. 

Important at Stone Mountain

  1. Authentic, hands-on experiences for students
  2. Connection to 21st-Century Skills
  3. Inquiry-based

SOCIAL STUDIES:


All K-6 teacher access the Colorado Academic Standards to determine units for social studies.

Important at Stone Mountain

  1. Authentic, hands-on experiences for students
  2. Connection to 21st-Century Skills
  3. Inquiry-based

Differentiation

Differentiation is at the heart of what we believe at Stone Mountain. It ensures that all of our students receive the best education possible.

What is differentiation at SME?

Differentiation is how each and every one of our teachers meets the needs of ALL of our students. Every child is greeted with teachers who believe in helping each child to reach their fullest potential through instruction that is tailored to each student's need. Every child at Stone Mountain is expected to show at least a year's growth. Every teacher embraces each child and their current level of instruction and plans specific and individualized lessons to match and enrich the current level. This process helps all of our students to be successful, show growth and mastery, and set goals for improvement.

What does differentiation look like at Stone Mountain?

Differentiation begins at the very beginning of the school year. In order to meet the need of every child at Stone Mountain, teachers use a variety of assessments to determine both current strengths and areas for growth. We use a variety of assessments to accurately identify each student's needs. 

Once the assessments have been scored and strengths and areas for growth are identified, our teachers and students go to work. Our teachers work collaboratively together and with our students to create pathways for learning that are purposeful and meaningful to each individual. At SME, students are a part of the process.

How do we differentiate?

  • Small group instruction based on students' needs: These groups are flexible and change throughout the year as students progress through their own learning path. Once a skill or concept is mastered, students move on to the next skill in their learning path. This occurs in literacy and mathematics.
  • RTI: We also have two literacy specialists and one math interventionist. They collaboratively work with teachers to provide extra support for students who have lagging skills.     
  • GT: In addition to the regular classroom instruction, we also have a GT facilitator who works collaboratively with teachers to extend the curriculum and challenge our learners who fall under the Gifted and Talented criteria.  
  • Pre and Post Testing: Teachers at SME utilize pre-tests to determine which skills/lessons are already known by each student in the class. Teachers can then group kids for instruction based on their needs. Students may be given extra support or enriched and extended based on the pre-tests. Post-tests help our students to see the growth and progress that has been made within a unit of instruction.

Differentiation for our students helps each child to reach their fullest potential. It is best practice in instruction. We strive to meet all of our kids' needs in these meaningful and purposeful lessons and units of instruction.