Curriculum Overview
By Grade
At South Bay Classical Academy, we believe every child deserves an education that nurtures both mind and character. Our classical curriculum is thoughtfully designed around the natural stages of learning—Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric—ensuring each lesson works in harmony with your child’s development.
Through great books, Latin, rigorous mathematics and science, and integrated history and arts, our students learn how to think, reason, and communicate with confidence.This time-tested approach cultivates curious minds, strong character, and the intellectual tools necessary for lifelong learning and leadership.
New to Classical Education? Click here to learn about the benefits for your child.
K
Kindergarten
The Kindergarten program provides a rich foundation across all core subjects, blending high expectations with age appropriate exploration.
History: Students journey through maps and global exploration, learning about Native American cultures, North American settlement, and key American symbols and Presidents.
Science: Lessons nurture curiosity through hands-on discovery of the five senses, plant and animal life, motion, and weather.
Mathematics: Children build strong number sense up to 100 while exploring shapes, patterns, measurement, and basic addition and subtraction.
English and Language Arts: Phonograms, parts of speech, punctuation, and reading comprehension through nursery rhymes, narration, and poetry.
1
First Grade
The 1st grade program offers a dynamic curriculum that builds strong foundations in core subjects.
History: Students explore geography through continents, countries, and maps, study California’s heritage and history, discover the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt, and learn about major world religions.
Science: Students investigate the sun and moon, plant and animal survival needs, light and sound basics, and simple machines.
Mathematics: Fluency with number bonds, addition and subtraction within 100, word problems, measurement, data interpretation, and telling time.
English and Language Arts: Reviews phonograms, parts of speech, and punctuation, while students enjoy rich literary experiences through classic fairy tales such as Winnie the Pooh & Rapunzel.
2
Second Grade
Our 2nd Grade program offers deeper engagement through a rich, integrated curriculum.
History: Students explore world geography and major ancient civilizations including India, China, Greece, and Japan, while learning about the Americas’ geography and the U.S. Constitution.
Science: Lessons inspire inquiry as students investigate matter properties, habitats and ecosystems, land formations and bodies of water, electricity, magnetism, and the human body.
Mathematics: Instruction expands to numbers up to 1000, focusing on addition and subtraction using bar models, money, multiplication, time, and 2D and 3D shapes.
English and Language Arts: Students develop writing skills through structured paragraphs, review grammar and punctuation, and engage with classic fairy tales such as The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, plus American poetry by Robert Louis Stevenson and Emma Lazarus.
3
Third Grade
The 3rd grade program offers a thoughtfully designed curriculum that fosters intellectual curiosity and deeper academic growth.
History: Students study rivers and landforms while tracing civilizations like Ancient Rome, exploring the Vikings, and learning about early Americans, North American exploration, and the Thirteen Colonies.
Science: Lessons include forces like friction, life cycles, animal classification, ear and eye anatomy, and properties of matter, energy, light, and sound.
Mathematics: Students work with numbers up to 10,000, mastering multi-digit operations, multiplication and division, area, perimeter, fractions, mass, liquid volume, and geometric shapes.
English and Language Arts: Focuses on fluency through cursive handwriting, phonics, and spelling. Students engage with classical literature including GrecoRoman and Norse myths, fairy tales like Pinocchio, and celebrated works such as The Chronicles of Narnia and The Little Prince.
4
Fourth Grade
The 4th Grade program builds foundational knowledge while expanding students’ global awareness, scientific inquiry, mathematical reasoning, and literary appreciation.
History: Students study major world mountain ranges and journey through Medieval Europe, Islamic Empires, and early African and Chinese kingdoms, while exploring the American Revolution, U.S. Constitution, and early Presidents.
Science: Students investigate energy transfer, wave motion, living structures and functions, Earth science, natural resources, and the human respiratory and circulatory systems.
Mathematics: A focus on multi-digit whole numbers, double-digit multiplication and long division, operations using bar models, and fractions including mixed numbers, improper fractions, and decimals.
English and Language Arts: Students study Greek and Latin roots, continue phonics and spelling emphasis, and learn grammar focused on parts of speech. Literature study includes a deeper analysis of Greco-Roman and Norse mythology, classic fairy tales, and beloved works like The Wizard of Oz, Prince Caspian, and Robin Hood.
5
Fifth Grade
5th Grade at SBCA offers a robust curriculum that deepens students’ understanding of the world.
History: Students explore world maps and topography while studying Mesoamerican civilizations, the Renaissance and Reformation, Age of Exploration, England’s Golden Age, early Russia, feudal Japan, and U.S. geography.
Science: Students investigate astronomy, matter properties, the periodic table, ecosystems, and Earth’s systems and resources.
Mathematics: Challenging multidigit operations, fraction and decimal operations, word problems, coordinate planes, geometry, and algebraic expressions.
English and Language Arts: An emphasis on literary analysis, outlining, and expressive writing through letters and poetry. Students explore poems like The Road Not Taken and Jabberwocky while studying grammar including indirect objects and linking verbs. Their literary journey includes classic novels such as Where the Red Fern Grows and The Secret Garden.