Lower School Academics

The Quarry Lane School is proud to announce that we have been voted Best Elementary School in the East Bay!

The Quarry Lane Lower School follows a curriculum carefully crafted to nurture the spirit and to stimulate the mind. We believe in educating the whole child. Our driving mission is to create an atmosphere that inspires a lifelong love of learning and nurtures each student to reach his or her fullest potential emotionally, socially, academically, and physically, in order to assume responsibility as a future citizen of the world.

Students maintain a rigorous schedule of core academics; literature, language arts, mathematics, science and social studies in conjunction with "special" courses such as music, physical education, foreign language, computer, art and library.

In the subject areas of mathematics and reading, students are "grouped" with peers that share similar learning styles and levels so that instructors can accurately assess and assist each student. The correct placement of each student is integral to their individual success.

To enhance the educational experience all grade levels participate in field trips as a part of the core curriculum. These trips vary from day trips to 5 night overnights. All outings provide students an opportunity to make a stronger connection to their studies. For example, the fourth grade overnight trip to Coloma allows students to experience life in a gold mining camp. Fifth grade students venture to Sempervirens Outdoor Education School in the Santa Cruz Mountains for five days to explore the great outdoors, learn about environmental conservation and make a connection to their life science curriculum. We believe strongly that presenting material in a variety of ways allows for a more concrete connection to the content and allows students to engage in their learning at a much deeper level of understanding.

Students at every grade level participate in a community service project during the academic year. Some examples of these projects are: Pennies for Patients benefiting The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Passionately Pink for The Cure Day, Jump Rope for Heart with the American Heart Association, Math-A-Thon benefiting St. Jude’s Children’s hospital, Trick or Treat for UNICEF and Toys for Tots. In the past academic year, elementary students raised over $8,000 for the American Heart Association in the Jump for Heart campaign. We believe that giving back to the community is a vital component of The Quarry Lane School experience.

Through the Cougars of Distinction program, students learn to embody the characteristics of honesty, responsibility, compassion, courage and respect. The traits are reinforced by the faculty and administration through reference to the Cougar ideals in the classrooms through a monthly acknowledgement program by which students are chosen by faculty for displaying exemplary behaviors in the above identified areas.