Seedlings learn through play, read-aloud, wonder, and doing things alongside older learners. Every lesson is 10–15 minutes of focused time, then activity. This month, your Seedling enters the Belonging + Voice unit through three joyful, identity-centered picture books. The learning happens in conversation, listening, art, and movement — not at a desk. This guide gives you everything you need to follow along with confidence.
Seedlings explore who they are, the stories they carry, and how their words shape their world. Through joyful, identity-centered picture books, children learn about belonging, kindness, names, feelings, and what it means to use their voices with confidence. Month 1 covers Weeks 1 and 2 of this 8-week unit.
| Word | Simple Definition | Spanish / Cognate | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| word | A sound or group of letters with meaning | palabra | The Word Collector |
| collect | To gather and save things you love | coleccionar | The Word Collector |
| belong | To feel like you're part of something | pertenecer | The Day You Begin |
| different | Not the same — and that's okay | diferente (cognate) | The Day You Begin |
| enough | You are exactly what you need to be | suficiente | I Am Enough |
| courage | Being brave even when it's hard | valentía | Q1 Virtue |
| beautiful | Something that makes you feel something good | hermoso / hermosa | Unit theme |
Sprouts are building foundational reading, writing, and number skills alongside growing emotional maturity. This band spans Kindergarten through 2nd grade. The curriculum holds all three together through a shared text set and differentiated expectations. This month, Sprouts explore belonging and voice through four carefully chosen picture books. Annotation begins here: K marks with symbols, 2nd grade writes marginal notes.
Sprouts explore who they are, the stories they carry, and how their words shape their world. Through picture books, children learn about belonging, kindness, names, feelings, and what it means to use their voices with confidence. Month 1 covers Weeks 1–2 of the 8-week unit.
| Word | Definition | Spanish / Cognate | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| word | A sound or letters with meaning that we can collect and love | palabra | The Word Collector |
| belonging | Feeling accepted and part of something bigger than yourself | pertenencia | The Day You Begin |
| kindness | Choosing to do good for someone, even when it's hard | amabilidad | Each Kindness |
| identity | Who you are — name, culture, family, story | identidad (cognate) | Unit theme |
| courage | Being brave enough to act even when you're scared | valentía / coraje | Q1 Virtue |
| voice | Your opinion, your words, your way of being heard | voz | Unit theme |
| different | Not the same as others — and that is powerful, not a problem | diferente (cognate) | Unit theme |
Buds are moving into scholarly habits — annotation, evidence-based writing, research, and independent thinking. This band spans 3rd through 5th grade. The curriculum holds all three through multi-age modifications (MAM callouts) built into every subject. All Buds study the same theme, read the same anchor text, and work in the same community — with expectations differentiated by readiness. Month 1 is a foundation month: establishing rhythms, building annotation habits, and entering the unit with full curiosity.
Buds go inward before they go outward. Who am I? Where do I come from? What do my words do in the world? Through three texts by women of color, students build the habits of a scholar: annotation, text-marking, evidence-based discussion, and reflective writing. Month 1 covers Weeks 1 and 2 of this 8-week unit.
Symbol annotation. Written responses are 1–3 sentences with a sentence starter. Science illustrated + labeled. Math in Dimensions 3B–4A range. Identity writing oral or single paragraph. Faith reflection drawn + short paragraph.
Annotation with margin notes. Written responses are 1 full paragraph with a claim and detail. Science written analysis with diagram. Math in Dimensions 4B range. Identity writing 1–2 paragraphs. Faith reflection is a journal entry.
Full annotation with evidence-marking. Written responses include a claim, two pieces of evidence, and a closing thought. Science written analysis + prediction. Math in Dimensions 5A range. Identity writing 3–5 paragraph draft. Faith reflection includes a personal application statement.
| Word | Definition (student-facing) | Spanish / Cognate | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| belonging | The feeling of being accepted and part of something | pertenencia | Each Kindness |
| kindness | Doing something good for someone, especially when it's hard | amabilidad | Each Kindness |
| regret | Wishing you had done something differently | arrepentimiento | Each Kindness |
| identity | Who you are — your name, culture, values, story | identidad (cognate) | Unit theme |
| courage | Doing the right or brave thing even when it's scary | valentía / coraje | Q1 Virtue |
| bilingual | Able to use two languages | bilingüe (cognate) | Stella Díaz |
| ecosystem | A community of living things interacting with their environment | ecosistema (cognate) | Science |
| interdependence | When living things depend on each other to survive | interdependencia (cognate) | Science |
| tikkun olam | Hebrew: "repair of the world" — working toward justice | — | Faith & Formation |
| voice | Your perspective, opinion, and way of being heard in the world | voz | Unit theme |
Blossoms are developing as independent scholars — reading for argument, writing with evidence, and engaging with the world's complexity from a grounded place. This band spans 6th through 8th grade. Work is rigorous, text-based, and discussion-heavy. Month 1 is about establishing the scholarly habit of the year: sit with a hard question, mark the text, build an argument from what you find. The entry point is always identity — who you are and who you're becoming.
Blossoms engage with belonging and voice at the level of rhetoric, argument, and personal reckoning. New Kid asks what it costs to code-switch. Woodson's poetry asks what it means to carry history in a body. The Undefeated demands students sit with the weight of who came before them. Month 1 covers Weeks 1 and 2 of this 8-week unit.
| Word | Definition (scholar-level) | Spanish / Cognate | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| code-switching | Adjusting language, behavior, or appearance based on social context or audience | cambio de código | New Kid |
| belonging | The experience of being accepted and valued as one's full self | pertenencia | Unit theme |
| assimilation | The process of adopting a dominant culture's norms, often at the cost of one's own | asimilación (cognate) | RiS / New Kid |
| rhetoric | The use of language to persuade, argue, or claim a position | retórica (cognate) | ELA craft study |
| tikkun olam | Hebrew: "repair of the world" — the obligation to work toward justice | — | Faith & Formation |
| resilience | The capacity to adapt and recover from disruption or adversity | resiliencia (cognate) | Science / Unit theme |
| undefeated | Not overcome — despite violence, erasure, or systemic resistance | invicto / invencible | The Undefeated |
| courage | Taking purposeful action in the face of fear, cost, or opposition | valentía / coraje | Q1 Virtue |