Curriculum
General curriculum
The curriculum of Las Cruces Academy is designed around the needs and abilities of gifted and academically advanced students. These students need stimulation and presentation of materials that challenge them. At the Academy the students are in small classes, so their needs can be easily be assessed and then met. If they are capable of doing work in any topic at a level higher than that of their classmates, the materials provided to them can be easily changed so that it is at an appropriate level. Our faculty members teach in their area of expertise, so they are able to progress rapidly with the students. For instance, our elementary students are taught English by a teacher with a graduate degree in English; the students are taught science by teachers with Ph.D.s. When the Academy has students at the high school level, we will be recruiting the majority of our faculty members from the people with graduate degrees who are teaching at the university. These people love their subjects and teaching, the two passions necessary for great teaching.
Not all gifted students are gifted in all academic areas. When students are gifted in one subject but not in others it is essential that they receive an appropriate level of instruction in each topic. Because the Academy is small we frequently assess individual student progress and whether the current placement in each subject is the best for the student. While we want each student to feel challenged, we do not want them to feel overwhelmed. One major consideration when working with gifted students is that they are often extremely sensitive. They are very aware of any shortcoming in their performance, and too easily assume that a poor performance proves that they are stupid or less capable than the other students. A major advantage for those of us teaching at the Academy is that we deal only with academically advanced students so we are keenly aware of the challenges that these students face. If a student refuses to attempt something, we know that this may be due to fear that the task can’t be done perfectly the first time, not to a lack of talent or ability.
While the Academy is a school emphasizing science, math, & languages we are passionate that the students need a strong foundation in the social studies: government, geography & cultures of nations, and history –local, national, and world wide. We are also committed to providing a strong arts program to promote the growth of their creative talents. Lastly, we believe that physical health is critical for both mental and physical well being, so we have daily PE and encourage activity during the three daily recess periods.
The Academy is also committed to producing well-rounded, secure, socially aware and adept citizens. We encourage social interactions between students, within their age level and with students of other ages. The students are encouraged to discuss social and behavioral issues at our weekly all-school meetings or with individual faculty members. Even the youngest students may, and do, voice concerns. When the students interact with the public, as on our outings around the community or with in the Academy we stress proper behavior and politeness; we even take the students to public restaurants several time a year, so they can become comfortable in this type of situation.
Languages
When we say languages, we really do mean the plural version of the word. Out of the 9 to 10 classes our students have on a daily basis, two are reading (primarily English), one is writing (again, primarily English), one is Spanish, and one is Chinese, so at least half the day is devoted to learning those three languages.
Why we teach all three languages
English may be the lingua franca (ironically, the literal translation is "French language") of the world right now, but Spanish and Chinese are already both quite important on the international scale and increasingly prevalent every day. Even just in Las Cruces, it's a coin flip as to whether or not the next person you meet will speak Spanish, and the label of just about every consumer good you purchase will have the word "China" on it.
More information: English | Spanish | Chinese
Math
Math is only one class a day, but besides slipping math into our other classes, we're borrowing curriculum from Singapore. The Singapore math curriculum, which essentially has the philosophy of "teach it right the first time so you don't have to go back", has proved itself by consistently placing Singapore at the top of the world in international tests and competitions. (more info)
Science
Like math, science is the main topic for just one class per day, but we're going to make the most of our time by doing something really unusual in science class. Instead of just talking about scientific discoveries people have already made, we talk about how what science really is: questioning the world around you. (more info)
The Arts, Social Studies, & More
Communicating, calculating, and questioning are all important things to learn how to do, but there's much more to life. Social studies and the arts (both classes at LCA) are good examples. So are current events, which are part of the last class. (more info)
Physical Education
Not only do we have a physical education class every day, we've placed breaks all throughout the day so students can get up, run around, and generally be kids. Giving them these frequent breaks serves two purposes at once by both giving them the exercise healthy kids need and refreshing their focus for the next class.