THE FOUR C’S

For our 4th- and 5th-grade students, we have recently added “The Four C’s” to the fine arts rotation. Students continue to enjoy weekly classes in art, music, library, P.E., Bible, Spanish, and time in our STEM lab, but now they also have opportunities to explore coding, cooking, chess, and carpentry.

Research shows that these experiences support the development of critical thinking skills and help students apply problem-solving and creativity in practical ways. By integrating The Four C’s into our curriculum, we are preparing students for success both academically and in real-world problem solving.

  • Our Commerce unit gives students an exciting, hands-on introduction to the world of money, business, and entrepreneurship, through engaging activities and real-world experiences, students will learn how money works, how goods and services are exchanged, and how businesses operate within our local and global economy.

    Students will explore the basics of earning, spending, saving, and making wise financial decisions while discovering what it takes to start and run a business.

    This practical unit is designed to equip students with foundational financial literacy and entrepreneurial skills that they can carry with them throughout their lives.

  • “Teachers and principals are seeing how the classroom cooking experience helps support critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving skills,” says Leslie Cunningham-Sabo, a nutrition researcher at Colorado State University.

  • Chess can improve children’s critical thinking and problem solving skills. The America’s Foundation for Chess (AF4C) cites chess’s ability to improve visual memory, attention span, spatial reasoning, the capacity to predict and anticipate consequences, and the ability to use criteria to drive decision making and to evaluate alternatives.

  • Carpentry allows children another avenue for creativity; when provided with materials and limits, they can experiment and be creative. It also allows for the children to explore with tools and wood, using large and small muscle coordination. Problem solving skills are learned when children make decisions about the design and shapes to use specific projects. By working together in groups, children will practice social skills and can gain self-esteem.