The Upper Elementary classroom is generally made up of students who are in grades fourth through sixth. The students are not limited by the work for a particular grade level. The teachers assess the students’ abilities and challenge them with work accordingly. We also encourage collaborative learning where the children, of various learning levels, work together to complete assigned projects or reports. This allows the children the opportunity to learn teamwork skills and to embrace students of all levels and to value all contributions.

The students work following a monthly work plan. It has assignments from all subject areas - language arts, writing, math and cultural studies which includes history, geography, science and Bible. Through the monthly work plan, the students learn time management skills and accountability. Their goal is to have the work plan completed by the end of the month. The teachers strive to reinforce and teach the students independence through the Montessori curriculum.

Math
The math curriculum utilizes the Montessori math materials in conjunction with the Albanseni math assessment tests that build upon one another in a sequential pattern starting at a fifth grade level and going through an eighth grade level. Each of these assessments cover a variety of math concepts. The teacher, then uses these assessments to individualize the students’ work plans. Once all of the concepts have been introduced or retaught if necessary, the students are given the assessment test again to see if the concepts are now mastered. On each of the assessments, the concepts are repeated and built upon from the previous level. We also focus on critical thinking skills through story problems and other word problems.

Language
The language curriculum is comprised of several different topic areas. We complete an in-depth study of each part of speech, going further in depth each year. We also study the structure of sentences. The students learn about the subject, predicate, direct and indirect objects and other modifiers. In addition, we have work each month that discuss the mechanics of language, which includes the concepts of punctuation, spelling, and word usage. This may be in prepared works dealing with a particular concept or in their own writings. Each month the students also study a different type of writing style from poetry to research papers to creative free choice writing. As the year progresses, the students will complete more of their own editing, as well as peer editing.

Cultural
The cultural studies area is centered around a three year plan where the students study each of the topic areas at least once. They will complete a variety of different projects. These could include research oriented ones where they are required to write several paragraphs, a detailed report, a poster presentation, or a verbal presentation. Other projects take a more creative approach and are more student generated, where individual students pick the topic and select their own method of reporting what they have learned from the selected study.

Geography
Each year the continent of North America is studied along with two additional continents. The two additional continents rotate through the three year cycle. We complete studies of the countries within each continent, the biomes of that region, the animals and plants, the people, and culture of that region. Each year we also study the states and capitals of the United States.

History
To coincide with the geography studies, we study the ancient history of the continents that are being discussed at that time. The fourth grade students go through a study of Indiana History with a culminating project at the end of the year. The fifth grade students discuss the history of the United States from its early beginnings up to the Industrial Revolution. The sixth grade students focus primarily on World History and its influence upon the history of our country. They continue chronologically within the American History curriculum at the Industrial Revolution, pursuing historical events to present day.

Science
The Science curriculum, like the other cultural areas, is based around a three year cycle. One year the focus is on zoology where the students study the animal kingdom and its classification. This unit ends with a study of the human body and its systems. The following year the focus is a study of plants, how they are classified, and the parts of a plant. The third year in the cycle is a study of the Earth. We explore geology and basic Earth Sciences with in depth studies of space, weather, and various land forms.
The topics studied in class are followed up with a weekly lab. The students meet with a separate Science teacher where they dissect and look more closely at the topics discussed in the classroom. Each year the students also complete a Science Fair project. The students compete in a Science Fair here at MCMS and then have the opportunity to participate in the Elkhart City Science Fair.