Elementary — K5 through 5th Grade
Self-contained classrooms, phonics-first reading, and one teacher who knows your child's whole day.
The shape of an elementary day
Elementary classes are self-contained. One teacher carries a class through Bible, reading, English, math, science and history, which means that teacher sees the whole child — the reader who is flying and the same child stuck on subtraction — rather than a forty-minute slice. Music and fine arts are taught by specialists.
Because the school is small, grades are paired in some classrooms. This is a feature more often than a compromise: younger students hear the material a year early, older ones consolidate it by hearing it again, and the teacher carries the same students for two years and loses no time in September getting to know them.
Reading
Reading instruction is phonics-first and explicit. Children are taught the code, then given real books.
Homework
Elementary homework goes home on a weekly schedule sheet, one per grade, listing each day's work. Depending on the grade the sheet also carries a memory verse, a spelling list, a place for parent initials, and a note from the teacher.
Parents can view or print the current week's sheet without signing in.
This week's homework schedules →
Grading
Elementary grading follows the same structure as junior and senior high, with two differences suited to younger students: teachers may include an Effort and Participation category, and Art and PE are marked E / S / NI / U rather than given numeric grades.
Supplies and book lists
Supply lists and book lists are published each summer for the coming year.
Starting kindergarten
K5 students must be five years old by October 1. Exceptions are made on a case-by-case basis — call the office if your child's birthday falls close to the line.
All new students undergo assessment testing during enrollment.
Come see the Academy
The best way to understand Westside Baptist Academy is to walk the halls while school is in session. Tours take about an hour.