A group of St. Victor School students sitting on the floor, attentively listening to a classmate who is standing and reading from a large sheet of paper in a classroom setting.

FIRST GRADE

Meet Your 1st Grade Teacher

Ms. Carolyn D'Cruz

I have a Masters in Biochemistry and a Masters in Education. This is my fifth year of teaching at St. Victor. What keeps me passionate about teaching kids is their innate curiosity, sense of wonder, and kindness. No two days are the same, there is always something happening! With teaching, I am always inspired to give them my very best each day.

Portrait of Carolyn D'Cruz, the first-grade teacher at St. Victor School, smiling and wearing a dark top, set against a gray background.

1st Grade Highlights

My learning expectations for all my students are :

Read and understand all grade level books
Count, write, compare numbers up to 120
Be responsible, respectful and kind to all

Each year we work on 2 projects: Solar System and Parts of the Brain (including making a model).

Father Mark, pastor of St. Victor School, administering communion to a young girl in a white dress during a church service. Other children in white attire are kneeling in the pews, with stained glass windows in the background.

Religion

Students form an image of God from the important people in their lives. Students experience God’s love through prayer and interaction with others. The students also attend one morning Mass each week. Afterwards, students reflect on the Homily and Gospel in order to achieve a deeper connection to their faith.

An older St. Victor School student reading a book to a younger student outside at a blue metal picnic table, with more students in the background sitting on a bench near a grassy area.

Language Arts

First graders practice reading comprehension and fluency, learn to find key details, understand central messages, and identify characters. Lucy Calkins' Writer's Workshop program is used to develop their writing skills, encouraging personal connections and phonemic strategies for spelling unfamiliar words.

A young St. Victor School student sitting at his desk in a classroom, working with colorful counting cubes during a lesson, with other students engaged in similar activities in the background.

Math

Students learn how to represent and solve problems involving addition and subtraction. They will also apply their understanding of place value in order to add and subtract. Students extend their knowledge of the counting sequence. Measurement and data skills are further developed as students measure lengths and represent and interpret data.

A group of St. Victor School students collaborating on a STEAM project, building a structure out of cardboard and blue tape in a classroom setting.

Science

The First Grade science curriculum explores life science and physical science. They study weather, states of matter, and living things. The students learn about the scientific method and work together with the teacher to perform hands-on experiments.

A smiling St. Victor School student sitting at her desk in the classroom, with a tablet in front of her, surrounded by other students who are engaged in their own activities.

Social Studies

Students learn about rights and responsibilities of citizens in the contemporary world. All concepts learned, especially the Golden Rule, are applied in the classroom. Students examine geographic and economic aspects of life as well as explore the varied backgrounds of American citizens while reflecting on a common heritage.

St. Victor School students participating in a music and movement enrichment class in the library, waving colorful scarves while smiling and moving around the room.

STEAM

Students engage in diverse projects involving various media, guided drawing, and origami. They are encouraged to express their personality through art.

Students practice their typing skills while using programs and apps such as Raz-Kids and Mathletics in order to routinely practice Reading and Math skills.

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FIRST GRADE

Meet Your 1st Grade Teacher

1st Grade Highlights

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