Resource Specialists

List of 8 items.

• Art

  Students  explore different artistic techniques and methods. They are encouraged in personal expression, creativity, and the development of skills in our well-equipped art studios. Children draw, sculpt and paint. They make collages and pottery. The art program is integrated with many other disciplines. For example, 6th graders make African masks to reinforce what they learn in their global studies class about the continent, and 3rd graders make robots out of recycled parts as they study engineering.
  
  Artistic themes include nature studies, portraiture, still life, abstraction, design and composition, and color theory.

• Library

  The Fletcher Library at Jacksonville Country Day School contains over 16,000 books, ranging from pre-readers to upper grade novels. The comprehensive collection includes classic and modern fiction, picture books and nonfiction collections. There are also separate collections containing Spanish books, reference materials, award-winning literature, and parent and professional resources.
  
  The library includes the elevated seating area dubbed the "treehouse" for storytelling, as well as areas for instruction and research.
  
  All Jacksonville Country Day School parents are welcome to check out library materials, visit during story time, or volunteer to help with library shelving.
  
  

  Early Learning students visit the library once per cycle for a story where they move their bodies and get excited about books. At this age, we instill a love of reading into our Sharks. Starting in grade 1, students visit the library in small groups for individual attention. This programming allows our literacy specialist the opportunity to differentiate classroom instruction in reading and writing for each child. We pride ourselves on offering this personal coaching to every reader and writer.

• Music

  The Pre-K 3 through 6th grade music program at Jacksonville Country Day School includes singing, speaking, movement, drama, and instruments. Students play and create music on Orff instruments, guitars, drums, ukuleles, and piano keyboards. The program also includes ear training and reading music, beginning in kindergarten.

  
  

  Individual lessons are also available in piano, violin, guitar, voice, and brass and woodwind instruments.

   

  All grade levels present a musical production during the year. Students grow in their awareness of the importance of the fine arts through visiting artists, school performances, curriculum-related field trips, and service projects.

  
  

  Students also learn American folk songs, seasonal songs, music from other cultures, literature from classical and contemporary composers, and music that relates to other units of study, such as Spanish, math, and global studies.

  
  

  There are also three performance ensembles: the Jazzy J's, the JCDS Band, and the JCDS Chorus.

• Physical Education

  The physical education program at Jacksonville Country Day focuses on fitness, skill acquisition, team building, social development, and character education. These daily physical education activities are designed to motivate the students intrinsically, so that exercise becomes its own reward. One of the unique offerings of our physical education curriculum is our swimming program that is taught the first six weeks and the last six weeks of the school year.
  
  

  Physical education coaches create an environment where students feel valued, safe, and involved in activities that are meaningful to them, regardless of ability. The program guides students to develop their motor, social, and cognitive skills, and sets the stage for healthy living.

• School Counselor

  The School Counseling program at Jacksonville Country Day School is an extension of the overall mission of the school - to prepare students for a healthy and productive lifetime of intellectual exploration, character development, and social responsibility.
  
  It is comprehensive in nature, supporting all students from Pre-K 3 - 6th Grade. The school counselor collaborates with administration, teachers, and staff to effectively and efficiently deliver the foundational social emotional learning strategies that include "Conscious Discipline" and "The 7 Mindsets".
  
  At the individual grade level, the school counselor provides classroom counseling for students that includes the Monique Burr Child/Teen Safety Matters Program. Additional lessons to support the students' academic, social, and emotional development are provided throughout the school year. Small group and short term individual counseling are available to students.

• Science Lab

  In addition to basic scientific concepts, students learn about specific disciplines, including earth, life, marine, and physical sciences. In science lab, students are encouraged to seek scientific explanations about the natural world using the inquiry method. Learning takes place in a hands-on laboratory environment, where students acquire the scientific skills their futures require.
  
  Throughout their science lab experiences, students are provided with the strategies, methods, and materials necessary for scientific investigation. They are guided in developing and strengthening their powers of observation and learn to communicate scientific ideas.

• Spanish

  Jacksonville Country Day School students receive a continuous and developing sequence of Spanish language instruction from Pre-K 3 through 6th grade. In addition to building Spanish vocabulary, the program encourages students awareness and appreciation for different cultures.

  
  

  The program helps students internalize Spanish through physical movement and actively responding to verbal cues. A focus on stories helps to build fluency in speaking and writing Spanish.

• STEM: Shark Lab and Tech Studio

  The STEM Shark Lab and Tech Studio is a multi-purpose learning environment that provides not only science and technology instruction but also a makerspace where students can inquire, create, and solve problems.  
  
  

  Students learn about specific disciplines, including earth, life, marine, and physical sciences. In the STEM Shark Lab and Tech Studio, students are encouraged to seek scientific explanations about the natural world using the inquiry method. Learning takes place in a hands-on laboratory and makerspace environment where students acquire the scientific skills their futures require.

  
  

  Throughout their STEM experiences, students are provided with the strategies, methods, and materials necessary for scientific investigation. They are guided in developing and strengthening their powers of observation and learn to communicate scientific ideas.

   

  The Jacksonville Country Day School STEM Shark Lab and Tech Studio is equipped with computers, projectors, a Smartboard, and 12 3D printers. Children in kindergarten through 6th grade attend regularly scheduled classes. They learn to use technology as a productivity, communication, and research tool. They also program and create robots in 2nd through 6th grades; many students join after school LEGO League teams.
  
  

  The makerspace enables students to be problem solvers, design thinkers, tinkerers and collaborators.  The makerspace curriculum integrates global studies, project-based learning, and service learning into the science units of study.