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Director of Curriculum and Instruction - Humanities, K-12Dr. Andrew KuhnLocation: Administrative BuildingEmail: akuhn@umasd.orgDesk: 610.205.6425Cell: 610.291.1763
Hello Upper Merion Area School District,
Welcome to our wonderful school district! Working with Dr. Silver, Assistant Superintendent, and Dr. Gardiner, Director of STEM Education, I am the K-12 Director of Humanities. My curricular areas are English Language Arts, Social Studies, Art, Music and World Language. For a brief overview of the Humanities, please check out this 9-minute video for a broad view of how the Humanities progress from Kindergarten through twelfth grade.
Here is the gist of that video by content area:
English Language Arts -- Our K-2 focus is on the principles of Structured Literacy with emphasis on phonics skills, learning what letter combinations work to generate the 44 phonemes of the English language. FUNdations instruction is fundamental to our primary curriculum in K-2. When students develop strong word-attack skills through phonics, they are well-positioned to grow as readers and learners. Grade 3-5 greatest emphasis is on "The Reading Principle:" The more you read, the better you read. Strong students read at least 25 books each calendar year. In Grades 6-8, we stress literary analysis in both non-fiction (particularly text features) and fiction (plot mountain). Students are expected to read short texts more than once with a different purpose during each read and cite textual evidence to establish their claims. In High School, students develop both their voice in writing and their choices in reading selections as they continue to build literary skills expressively in both speaking and writing.
Social Studies -- K-2 emphasis is close-to-home focusing on "me, my family, my school, my community" while learning about basic civics and diverse holidays. In Grades 3-5, we begin to integrate geography, history, and government with special attention to Pennsylvania and regions within the United States. Middle School Grades 6-8 curricula are developed through a complex study of world geography and American History, with 8th grade featuring "deep dives" in the Constitution, Civil War and Reconstruction, World War II, and Civil Rights. The High School sequence begins with World Cultures, progresses to World History, and completes with our capstone American Cultures course in 11th grade. In their senior year, students choose from among Government, Economics, Psychology, African American Studies, and Women's Studies.
Art -- has expanded in instructional minutes and emphasis in our elementary schools over the past several years. Beginning with basic ideas of shape, color, and composition, students develop through to High School electives in drawing, painting, photography, and ceramics. We also ensure that students view seminal works of art history over the course of their studies in visual arts, which then informs their own artistic production.
Music -- has also expanded in our elementary schools. General music emphasizes beat, rhythm, and singing. Strings instruction is available beginning in Grade 3 and band instrumental instruction is available beginning in Grade 4. Our general music, choir, strings, and band instruction continues through Middle School. In High School, students can join one or all: choir, orchestra, marching band, and jazz band.
World Language -- after an exploration of our world languages in Grade 6, students can choose between Spanish, French, and German beginning in Grade 7 and progress through Advanced Placement courses in Grade 12. As students progress in their studies, they participate in increased opportunities to listen to native speakers and speak in the target language.
I am proud to work in Upper Merion with a very talented and dedicated group of administrators, faculty, and support staff. If you have any questions related to curriculum and instruction in Humanities, please send me an email and we will schedule a conversation. Thank you students for your hard work, and parents, we appreciate your partnership with our teachers to help your students maximize their learning.