Upcoming Events: Spotlight on Our Instructional Programs at Hausner

We will be holding our next Curriculum Night on Wednesday, November 29, the Wednesday after Thanksgiving. Curriculum Night is one of three programs we will be offering this year to provide information about our instructional program. This year curriculum night will focus on our humanities program, but there will also be opportunities for parents to learn about our math and science programs later in the year. 

Similar to last year, we will offer 2-3 mini workshops during Curriculum Night, and parents will be able to attend whichever sessions most interest them. The mini-workshops are described below.

Later in the year, on January 28, 2024, we will be holding a combination Code and Math Fest. Parents and their children will choose among several hands-on, interactive math, coding and AI-related activities including various math games, logic problems, and puzzles. Teachers will demonstrate how they teach particular concepts in their classrooms. In addition, the upper school math team will provide an overview of the course pathways offered in 6th-8th grade and how these pathways map to the typical high school course progression. 

Rounding out our curriculum presentations for the year will be our STEM Fair which will take place on Thursday, February 29, 2024. The STEM Fair will feature student science, technology, and engineering projects. In addition to student work displays, teachers will offer interactive science lessons for parents and students to participate in during the evening.

The tentative session descriptions for curriculum night follow. Please, after reading the descriptions, indicate which sessions you will likely attend. This will help us plan the evening. We would like to have your input no later than this Friday, October 27. 

Curriculum Night Session Descriptions:

Hausner Reading Program
In this hands-on session parents will learn about Hausner's reading program including how we determine student reading levels, the role of phonics instruction in the primary grades, how we structure reading lessons, and how we support students through small group instruction and the role literature and nonfiction reading plays in the upper school humanities program. 

Hausner Writing Program
In this session, parents will learn about Hausner's writing program and experience part of a writing lesson. Student work samples showing how student writing develops over the years will also be shared.  

Hausner Hebrew and Jewish Studies Program
Hebrew and Jewish Studies teachers will share specific elements of their curriculum and how learning their content helps students develop their literacy and critical thinking skills. Parents will experience parts of a Hebrew lesson and hear about how learning a second language helps students develop important literacy skills. They will also experience parts of a Jewish Studies lesson and learn how text study and exploring stories in Jewish Studies supports literacy development.

Hausner SEL/Responsive Classroom/Advisory Program
Parents will learn about/experience how we support students' social-emotional/executive functioning needs with morning meetings, responsive classroom strategies, communications labs, the upper school advisory program, and more.

Hausner Social Studies Program
Parents will learn about the content covered in social studies/history from primary through upper grades and how these lessons provide a structure for students to improve their communication and research skills, critical thinking, and understanding of what makes a culture, the role of civics, and government.  

Hausner Ethics/Philosophy Program
This year Hausner is offering philosophy lessons in all grades taught by a group of specially trained Hausner teachers. Some of these Hausner Philosophy Fellows will provide examples of the lessons they are teaching in primary and upper-grade classrooms. They will also share information about Hausner's Ethics Bowl, a competition that started last year and will be an annual event. Parents will have an opportunity to grapple with an Ethics Case.