The Cresskill Public Schools mission statement states, "The Cresskill Schools will utilize the core curriculum content standards to promote academic excellence and foster self-esteem in a dynamic, caring environment and will prepare students to be life-long learners and contributors in an evolving and ever-changing world."

At Merritt Memorial School, we consider the whole child and balance the different aspects of learning in pursuit of this mission. The learning that takes place in Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies classes is an integral part of this work. Please read below for more information on the curriculum in each of these core content areas.

Reading & Writing

The Reading and Writing curriculum at the elementary level uses a balanced literacy approach and the Reading and Writing Workshop structures to help students develop their reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. An emphasis is placed on thinking about texts in a variety of ways and embodying the work of an author, with students receiving instruction in whole class mini-lessons, targeted small groups, and one-on-one conferences.

In grades 1 and 2, the Fundations program is used to help develop students phonemic awareness and build the foundational skills necessary for reading, spelling, and handwriting using engaging and multisensory techniques.

Mathematics

The Mathematics curriculum at the elementary level follows the Everyday Mathematics program. Everyday Mathematics helps students achieve deep mastery of the standards by continually reinforcing math concepts through concrete real-world applications and carefully constructed learning progressions. The curriculum focuses on counting and cardinality, operations and algebraic thinking, number and operations in base ten, measurement and data, number and operation - fractions, and geometry. An emphasis is placed on mathematical practice, providing students with many opportunities to make sense of problems and to persevere in solving them, reason abstractly, construct arguments, and model appropriately.

Science

The Science curriculum at the elementary level focuses on three overarching topics: Life Science, Physical Science, and Earth and Space Science. Throughout the curriculum, students incorporate science skills such as asking questions and analyzing data with the content.  Through a variety of activities and experiments, students make observations and draw conclusions about how and why things occur, walking away from these experiences with a sense of wonder about the world around them.  

Social Studies

The Social Studies curriculum at the elementary level is structured to help students make sense of the world around them in developmentally appropriate ways. Beginning in the younger grades with discussions of wants and needs, families, and community, this work expands in older grades in both time and space, studying and considering questions about New Jersey's, America's, and the world's past, present, and future.