Core Academics
Theology
All students at Holy Name participate in daily theology lessons. Student learning in kindergarten and first grade is guided by Finding God, a comprehensive curriculum, while student learning in second through fifth grade is guided by Word of Life.
Theological learning at Holy Name begins in kindergarten when students engage with biblical tales, recite prayers, sing hymns, and study the miracles of Jesus and the examples of Saints. Theology lessons are scaffolded through fifth grade when student learning of the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, the liturgical year, Saints and the Seven Sacraments of our Catholic Faith is solidified.
We prioritize community service in our daily lives as we grow in our faith, fostering a deep connection with God through listening and applying His teachings. Weekly Mass attendance provides students with a deeper understanding of God and His works, enabling them to integrate their faith into every aspect of their lives. This holistic approach helps students develop into virtuous, fulfilled, and devout Christians.
Handwriting
Students receive handwriting instruction in print and cursive. Every weekly lesson in A Reason For Handwriting is built around one carefully-selected Scripture verse. The chosen verses offer proper letter combinations and inspirational content. Students spend a week developing handwriting skills with a specific verse, reinforcing their Catholic identity and theological underpinnings.
Spelling
Determined to combine the latest insights on spelling instruction with traditional teaching approaches, Holy Name implements A Reason For Spelling, an innovative learning experience that solidifies Catholic values through Scripture stories while making spelling fun and engaging.
Grammar and Writing
Social Studies
IMPACT Social Studies provides students the tools and resources they need to investigate our complex and interconnected world. These tools and resources enable students to become globally competent citizens who understand events and issues, both past and present, that shape our world. Through reading, writing, speaking and listening, students are provided myriad opportunities to explore the meaning of citizenship and the qualities of engaged citizens at the local, national, and global levels. Through rich content, IMPACT Social Studies provides instruction and practice in essential ELA skills and strategies in all lessons. Students analyze information and arguments, think critically, support opinions with text-based evidence, and make connections through reading, writing, speaking, and listening in response to compelling questions.
Science
Discovery Education’s Science Techbook invites students to explore the marvels of our world with an immersive, phenomena-based core science curriculum designed to bring the excitement of science to life! Students engage in action-packed journeys to make sense of phenomena all year long. By following real-world storylines with an intentional sequencing of activities, students are motivated to ask important questions, plan investigations and use evidence-based reasoning to support their claims and solve problems.
Science Techbook provides students with immersive, interactive, and creative ways to explore through hands-on activities and labs, virtual interactives, literacy lessons, and STEM projects. These three-dimensional learning experiences deepen student understanding by giving them more opportunities to do science!
Liberal Arts Academics
Library
Our library provides a rich literary environment that fosters critical thinking and creativity, allowing students to explore a diverse range of genres and topics.
Music
Music education improves and develops language skills in children. Music stimulates the brain, and with its varied sounds and lyrics, students are exposed to a large amount of vocabulary in a short amount of time. Music also provides exposure to other languages, which creates a foundation for the student’s ability to understand and communicate in a different language. Students also increase their mental capabilities when participating in music education. Music fosters memorization skills. In addition to song lyrics, students must memorize all aspects of music when preparing for a performance. Students must recall rhythms, pitches, dynamics, and other elements all at once. Students can then transfer those memory skills to the academic classroom and employ those skills in their studies.
Holy Name students explore music and how it relates to our world. Students begin to examine music from the foundational levels and, using a spiral curriculum, continue to build their knowledge toward more advanced concepts, such as creating, listening to, and evaluating performances.The incorporation of musical instruments also students to build their knowledge toward more advanced concepts, such as creating, listening to, and evaluating performances.
All students at Holy Name have an opportunity to explore music through multi-sensory approaches: moving, singing, playing, writing, visualizing, and others. The goal is that as a student progresses through the Elementary Music Arts, they begin to develop a love for music and how to appreciate music in the world around them.
Visual Arts
Visual Art instruction exposes students to art forms that are primarily visual in nature. Such art forms include ceramics, drawing, painting, printmaking, crafts, photography, video, and architecture. Art helps children to learn to observe the world around them while also developing a balance between accurate representation and self-expression. Students develop a creative process using technical skills and by drawing on the work of significant artists. By offering art, students stimulate their imaginations, as well as their cognitive and problem-solving skills.
Holy Name’s visual art program follows the Wyoming State Standards for arts. Individually and collaboratively, students create art using varied techniques and materials while learning about modern artists and historical artists who have left a lasting impact on the art world. As students develop foundational art skills, they will begin to connect knowledge of artwork throughout history and different cultures to personal experiences. At Holy Name, Visual Arts is an integrated part of our curriculum. We weave the arts into our core classroom curricula as well as teach specific artistic skills and abilities.
Piano
The inclusion of a piano program in an elementary school is multi-purposeful. Studying piano improves memory and helps the musician build good habits such as focus, perseverance, diligence and creativity. Piano practice boosts cognitive and intellectual abilities by activating parts of the brain used in spatial reasoning and math, while simultaneously sharpening fine motor skills and improving hand-eye coordination in the young students. Playing piano has also been shown to be a great source of stress relief, and provides ample opportunities to bolster self-esteem.
Piano classes at Holy Name provide instruction for beginning, intermediate and advanced pianists. Students learn basic technique, theory and playing skills from a standard piano curriculum. As students advance in their skills and artistry, opportunities to perform are available throughout the year in the theater program and spring concert.
Theater
Theater encourages reading, fosters a love of literature, increases attention span and helps build confidence. Theater is often a jumping off point for stories that would otherwise be lost in a book. Because it jumps off the pages, a play encourages the reluctant reader to read. Students develop a conceptual understanding of religious events and history by reenacting the events in a stage performance.
The youngest students at Holy Name begin their theater experience with Reader’s Theater, an instructional strategy that combines reading practice and performance. Reader’s Theater enhances students’ fluency (the ability to read with accuracy, speed, and expression), reading comprehension and confidence through repeated practice and reading with a purpose. Reader’s theater gives students a real reason to read aloud. As students develop their fluency, reading comprehension, and confidence, they participate in the development of their own script writing, music selection, theater production, stage management, technical support and stage performances, culminating in their own musical theater performance.
Bi-Lingual Choir
Choir offers students an introduction to singing in English and Spanish. Students learn basic musicianship, healthy vocal technique, and sight-reading skills. Students develop the fundamentals of good singing including correct posture, breath management, vowel/consonant production, vocal flexibility and musical expression. Students work on solo and small ensemble singing, sight-reading and musicianship skills. The bi-lingual choral program provides many opportunities for singers to perform high caliber choral music, study proper vocal techniques and musical skills. Discipline, dedication, and professionalism are fostered to encourage students to reach the highest degree of musical success.
A select group of students are chosen for Holy Name’s traveling Bi-Lingual Choir. Our vision is for the Bi-lingual Choir to serve as proud ambassadors of the Holy Name community while championing bilingual programming that fosters fellowship among diverse communities. We maintain a robust schedule of performances at community and city-wide events, Wyoming and surrounding state Cathedrals, and educational conferences. Through performances, the Bi-lingual Choir evangelizes our Catholic faith and raises awareness for the importance of arts and culture education and representation.