Kindergarten
Other academic areas are introduced in a similar fashion. Music, games and finger plays develop rhythm and counting skills. The hands-on activities of gardening, cooking, nature walks, seasonal activities, etc., introduce science, math and geography skills, concepts and vocabulary. The foreign language program, along with multicultural stories, gives the child an introduction to social studies.
Social development and cooperative learning are also emphasized in kindergarten. In particular, acquiring the skills of concentration, courtesy, social habits, classroom habits and spatial awareness are important goals.
Story, song, activities and celebrations carry us through the cycle of the year. Within the rhythm of each week the children engage in these activities: painting, baking, sewing, drawing, and beeswax modeling.
One and Two-Year Programs
Transitional Kindergarten:
Students turning five (5) between September 2nd (of their enrolling school year) and September 1st (of the following school year). For the 2025-2026 school year, students will have been born between 9/9/2020 and 9/1/2021 to be enrolled in our TK program.
Kindergarten:
Students turning 5 years old on or before September 1st. For the 2025-2026 school year, students will have been born between 9/2/2019 and 9/1/2020 to be enrolled in our kindergarten program.
Monterey Bay Charter School fosters academic excellence, artistic expression, and social-emotional growth through a holistic, arts-integrated approach, nurturing a deep respect for nature and humanity.
Points of Interest
- Students remain with the same teacher from first through fourth grade, and again with another teacher from fifth through eighth grade.
- Foreign language instruction begins in first grade.
- Standardized tests are administered in grades 3–8, in accordance with state laws for charter schools.
- The Waldorf methods and curriculum foster a deeper understanding of the material, enhancing students’ critical thinking skills.
“The arts connect learning experiences to the world of real work. Ideas are what matter, and the ability to generate ideas, to bring ideas to life and to communicate them is what matters to workplace success.”
– Fiske, E. B. (Ed.) (1999). Champions of Change: The Impact of the Arts on Learning. Washington, D.C.: President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities.
Grades 1 – 8
The school day begins with the Main Lesson, a two-hour period of concentrated activity focused on a particular academic subject. Each subject, which includes language arts, math, history, geography, and science, is studied for three to five weeks and then a new topic is taken up. This uninterrupted time allows the students’ intellectual understanding to merge with their experience, while also permitting the class teacher to cover a subject in depth, using a variety of approaches. The Main Lesson begins with movement and rhythmic activities such as speech, singing, and/ or playing recorder followed by a review of the previous day’s work and a presentation of new material. Textbooks are not used as primary information sources. Rather, the work is presented and received in a personal exchange between the teacher and child. Each pupil creates his/her own “Main Lesson” book for each subject.
A snack and recess, and shorter periods in subjects such as Spanish, mathematics, and English, which require regular practice and repetition, follow the Main Lesson. Later in the day, after lunch and recess, children devote themselves to instrumental and choral music, drama, painting, handwork, woodwork, gardening, clay, and physical education. Thus, the rhythm of the day starts with the work that requires intellectual focus and ends with the physical activities that engage the body and hands.
Grades 1 – 3
First Grade
Fairy tales, folk tales and nature stories; pictorial and phonetic introduction to letters; reading approached through writing; form (i.e., freehand geometric) drawing; qualities of numbers; introduction of the four processes in arithmetic; lower multiplication tables.
Second Grade
Legends and fables, reading, writing, arithmetic (whole numbers and number patterns, multiplication tables, column addition, mental math problems), elements of grammar.
Third Grade
Hebrew mythology and history; study of practical life: farming, housing, clothing; the calendar and time; reading, spelling, writing, original compositions; grammar, punctuation and parts of speech, cursive writing; higher multiplication tables; weight, measure and money. The culmination of the Third Grade year is a two night and three day field trip to a biodynamic working farm in April.
Monterey Bay Charter School’s grades 1–3 program builds foundational skills through storytelling, hands-on learning, and creative exploration.
Monterey Bay Charter School’s grades 4–6 curriculum deepens students’ academic and creative development through storytelling, history, and hands-on learning.
Grades 4 – 6
Fourth Grade
Norse mythology and sagas; Native American history and culture; composition, letter writing; local and state geography, history, and map-making; study of the animal kingdom; fractions.
Fifth Grade
Norse mythology and sagas; Native American history and culture; composition, letter writing; local and state geography, history, and map-making; study of the animal kingdom; fractions. The culmination of the Fourth Grade year is a three night and four day field trip to Gold Country in Northern California, in April.
Sixth Grade
Roman and medieval history; European and African geography; mineralogy; physics (acoustics, electricity, magnetism, optics and heat); composition, grammar, spelling, biographies; introduction to algebra, geometric drawing with instruments; botany, astronomy. The sixth grade school year begins with a four night and five day field trip to Lassen Volcanic National Park in August.
Grades 7 – 8
Seventh Grade
Arthurian legends; voyages of discovery; the Renaissance and Reformation, world geography; physics (mechanics); physiology (blood and muscles), astronomy, inorganic chemistry; composition, grammar, spelling, literature; arithmetic. The culmination of the Seventh Grade year is a four night and five day field trip to Joshua Tree in Southern California.
Eighth Grade
Literature (short story, letters, dramatic contrast in Shakespearean drama), composition, grammar, spelling; arithmetic (review of solids and measurement), algebra, geometry; world economic geography, American history from the Revolution through the Civil War and into modem times; physics (hydraulics), organic chemistry, physiology. The class participates in the 8th Grade Waldorf Track Meet. The culmination of the Eighth Grade year is a four night and five day backpacking trip to Point Reyes with Field Guides.
Monterey Bay Charter School’s grades 7–8 curriculum fosters critical thinking, historical understanding, and scientific exploration.
Teaching Methods
- Teacher-led explicit instruction.
- Student discovery.
- Group work and independent practice.
- Peer study groups.
- Structured and guided practice.
- Regular assessment and re-teaching as necessary.
Assessment Tools
- Standardized tests
- In class tests and quizzes
- Portfolios
- Observation and/or evaluation
- Self-evaluation
- Group projects
- Community service
Subscribe Section
Subscribe to
Special Event Notices
Subscribe to MBCS special event notices (5-6 flyers per school year). Each flyer contains an unsubscribe link so you may opt out easily at any time.
