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Academics
| We are committed to preparing our children
for a lifetime of learning and spiritual growth.
Holy Trinity Catholic School offers a strong traditional and
faith based curriculum. In the "Continuous Growth
Program" of the Diocese of Pittsburgh students
advance through a defined curriculum according to their
individual needs and abilities. In addition to meeting
all the requirements of the Pennsylvania Department
of Education, the curriculum gives special attention
to the integration of Gospel values.
Our school is located within the Diocese of Pittsburgh
and is committed to a program of education that seeks
knowledge and practice of the Catholic faith, academic
excellence, moral courage and the learning of the faith
in the light of social teachings of the Church.
Curriculum Guidelines for all subject areas are utilized
by the Catholic elementary schools and provided through
the Department for Catholic Schools. The guidelines
give continuity to the teaching/learning process, and
are geared to meet the individual needs of students.
All textbooks have been selected from the list of recommended
texts devised by the Curriculum Coordinators of the
Diocese. They are approved because the philosophy is
consistent with the Catholic philosophy of education,
the subject matter is adaptable to the Continuous Growth
Program, and there is sequential, consistent development
of material.
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Click
on any topic below to jump straight to that subject.
Catechetics/Religious Formation
Language
Arts
Mathematics
Social
Studies
World
Languages
Science
Physical
Education and Health
Fine
Arts
Library
Computer
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Catechetics/Religious Formation
The Catholic Church recognizes parents/guardians as the primary
educators of their children. The
role of the parish school is to supplement and complement
the role of the parent. In the school, a
formal catechetical program is taught daily. The Diocesan
Catechetical Curriculum Guidelines,
“Growing in God’s Covenant” contain a balance
of doctrinal content, scriptural understanding, faith
formation, prayer and worship experiences.
Goals and objectives are constant and consistent to enhance
the spiritual formation and moral
development of all students. The Catholic Vision of Love is
the Diocesan mandated Sexuality
Program.
Language Arts
The philosophy inherent in the Language Arts curriculum is
one of continuous growth which
recognizes and nurtures the God-given potential and learning
style of the individual. Language as
communication enables one to become more perceptive through
listening, observing and feeling.
Language, as a skill, provides one with the important tools
to speak fluently, to read and
comprehend, to compose, to write legibly and to spell correctly.
An awareness of the history of
language and the continuous development of vocabulary also
are important phases of skill
development. An appreciation of literature enriches the student
through the experience of skillful
authors who vicariously open new worlds to the student.
Mathematics
The mathematics curriculum is based on the progression from
the concrete to the abstract at all
levels. Our curriculum is designed to help students meet their
mathematical needs of present and
future.
It is our mission to enable all students to learn the skills,
acquire the knowledge, and develop the
attitudes in mathematics necessary for them to become morally
and socially responsible citizens.
The challenge is not only to meet and to exceed grade level
expectations but to excite students to
explore topics on their own, to develop proof for answers
and to learn from one another.
Social Studies
In the Catholic School Social Studies provides many opportunities
for teachers to help students
understand, appreciate and learn how to live Christian social
values.
The scope of the social studies curriculum includes elements
of anthropology, economics, geography, history, political
science, sociology with emphasis on global awareness and values.
An integrated interdisciplinary approach helps students develop
a sense of relationship among the various social studies disciplines.
A clear understanding of current events helps students to
integrate the past with the present and prepares them for
the future.
The Social Studies curriculum begins in kindergarten with
an introduction to community helpers. It
progresses in the primary grades to the study of family and
friends, and later encompasses a more
in-depth study of the community. Beginning in fourth grade,
the curriculum focuses on the study of
the United States land regions and Pennsylvania history. At
the fifth grade level, both United States history through
the Civil War and United States geographical regions are studied.
Sixth grade students study World Cultures and World Geography
with an emphasis on the countries
of the Eastern Hemisphere. Seventh grade studies United States
history to the Reconstruction and
eighth grade studies United States history beginning with
the Reconstruction to the modern day.
Map and geography skills are taught at all levels. Social
Studies prepares students for the future by
instilling the importance of a value-oriented life perspective.
World Languages
Because the Church is universal and embraces all peoples regardless
of race, nationality and financial
status, the Catholic school encourages the study of world
languages and other cultures. Language
students learn the sounds and syntax of the language and work
toward proficiency in listening, speaking,
reading and writing. A variety of materials and methods are
used for instruction. Enhancement of
communication, expanding career opportunities, and community
building are some of the outcomes of the
world language program. Holy Trinity Catholic School offers Spanish
in grades K-8.
Science
A respect for the sacredness of all life, the pursuit of peace
and order in the world, an awareness of
the responsibility to be co-creators of life-giving designs
and protectors of the environment are
primary goals of the teaching of science in the Catholic schools
in the Diocese of Pittsburgh.
The science curriculum focuses on an inquiry-based process
and fosters collaborative learning.
Science education strengthens life skills such as creative
problem solving, critical thinking, team
cooperation, use of technology, and the value of life-long
learning.
Physical Education and Health
The health and physical education curriculums strive to establish
healthy, active students so that
each child can develop to his or her full potential. Students
learn to respect the rights of others and
to follow rules through games and physical activity. Learning
to channel energies constructively
helps students to develop a good self image and to perform
successfully in life.
Fine Arts
The Fine Arts program is vital to all students. Students have
the opportunity to deepen their
awareness of God's gift of creation and to respond creatively
to the beauty and goodness of the
world through music, art and drama. Instruction in the Arts
contributes to the development of the
whole person; promotes individual expression; allows experimentation
with diverse materials and
elements; enables exploration and appreciation of the works
of other students, major artists; and
musicians; develops an awareness and sensitivity toward the
environment and finally promotes a
deeper understanding of heritage and culture.
Library
The school library exists primarily to support and enrich
the curriculum. It is a service and teaching
agency as well as a place of purposeful learning where the
use of all resources, print and non-print,
correlates with the school curriculum to intensify and individualize
a child's educational experiences.
The Library/Media/Technology Center is an integrated part
of the total curriculum and is an essential
element in the development of lifelong learning skills for
students.
Computer
Computer instruction is essential in today's educational process.
This instruction includes computer
awareness and computer literacy. When this instruction and
awareness are mastered, the computer
becomes a basic tool for teaching logical thinking and problem-solving,
creative writing,
communication, the handling of information, and many other
aspects of the curriculum.
Since the Continuous Growth Philosophy guides instruction
in schools of the Diocese, students are
led into phases of computer instruction according to needs
and abilities. Teachers of computer
literacy look beyond hardware and develop an awareness of
values such as relationships,
collaboration, ethical conduct, responsibility and creative
expression. As in all other areas of the
curriculum, the integration of the Gospel values is a part
of the teaching/learning process in the
computer lab and classroom.
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