Special Subjects

Annunciation art students participate in a wide variety of two and three dimensional visual art activities on a weekly basis, utilizing a broad spectrum of materials, tools, and techniques suited to their age and developmental level.

Early childhood art activities will focus on developing basic skills that enhance their creativity, imagination, and self-expression.  Early elementary art students (Grades 1 – 4) will develop creative thinking and problem solving skills through the integration of art with other curriculum areas, and will be able to communicate their ideas through their artwork.  These activities will focus on the elements of art and principles of design. The upper grade elementary students (Grades 5 – 8) will continue to develop these skills with a concentration on art appreciation and art criticism. They will also participate in hands on projects with a focus on enhancing knowledge of the elements of art and principles of design. Student artwork is showcased throughout the school building, and at an annual art show held in conjunction with the Spring Concert for Grades 4 – 6.

Students’ love of reading is encouraged through a weekly library class in Grades PreK through 2.  They explore various authors and illustrators through author / illustrator studies, listen to stories, borrow books, and develop early library skills.

Music at Annunciation covers a wide variety of topics. Our goal is to give students a good background in music so they will have the tools to succeed in whatever aspect of music they plan to pursue later in life as well as a large repertoire of hymns. In our early childhood program, students have movement-based activities where they are encouraged to explore music through singing, playing instruments, and moving to music to demonstrate understanding of various music concepts. In Grades 1 – 3, students learn ear-training for both pitch and rhythm, the music of various cultures, and begin to learn to sing songs in two parts. In Grades 4 – 6, students learn to play the recorder, learn to read music, continue singing in two parts, and start basic music theory. They showcase their knowledge in our annual Spring Concert. Finally, in Grades 7 – 8, music history is emphasized. Students of this age also learn music composition, the basics of the science of sound, and music history from the Baroque Era to the 1950s.

Students participate in weekly gym classes where they exercise, learn rules of various sports, and learn to work as a team.  During warmer months, gym classes are conducted outside. The gym teacher coordinates our traditional Faculty vs. Grade 8 volleyball game during Catholic Schools Week, as well as our annual Field Days in June.

The goal of the Spanish program at Annunciation is to expose, enrich, and teach the Spanish language and its various cultures to all the students in our school.  In our early childhood classes, students are exposed to Spanish songs, vocabulary, and fun activities, thus engaging the students in this new and different way of talking with others.  In Grades 1 – 4, we continue this process while concentrating on conversational skills, vocabulary accumulation, and basic reading and writing skills.  In Grades 5 – 8, we continue in the work above with more emphasis on grammar to reenforce all the skills needed to effectively communicate in the Spanish language. In Grades 7 and 8 we also use a foreign language magazine to further expose our students to the rich cultures of the Hispanic world and improve their reading comprehension skills.

Students acquire technology skills and become comfortable with various applications such as Word, Power Point, Prezi, iMovie, and Garage Band. Students also use Scratch, which serves as an introduction to coding as well as a tool for thinking creatively and systematically.  Students have access to iPads in the early childhood classrooms, and then to carts of MacBook computers located throughout the school building in Grades 1-8.