Preschool

Preschoolers (ages 3-4) are exposed to several topics throughout the year including poetry, pre-literacy games, math manipulatives, social studies and science concepts, folk dancing, art, drama, cooking, and Spanish. The preschool journey takes into consideration each individual child’s attention span and readiness for a given activity. All classes use experiential and manipulative materials like matching words and pictures, elastic bands for shape-building, wooden puzzles, origami, and more. Rhythmic writing is also a critical part of our program, supporting the development of hand strength and hand-eye coordination.

Lower Elementary

Lower elementary students (ages 5-8) are exposed to Language Arts, Writing, Poetry, Social Studies, Math, Science, Folk Dancing, Art, Drama, Cooking and Spanish. One classical book (such as The Wizard of Oz, Mary Poppins, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) takes the main stage of the program each year, and elementary students use the story for discussions, projects, and to write the script for a play presented to the TCS community. Fables and poems are also explored throughout the year, inspiring students to express themselves through art and storytelling. Math topics include addition, subtraction, place value, multiplication, division, fractions, and more. Learning through research is also introduced at this stage, fostered by a series of presentations that students make to their classmates throughout the year.

Upper Elementary

The upper elementary class (ages 9-12) is the newest addition to TCS Co-op for the 2025-2026 school year and will introduce project-based learning to our students. Students will remain a part of our core multi-age community while also having space for their own projects. Core topics in Language Arts, Writing, Math, Social Studies, Art, Drama, and Spanish will remain part of the program through an individualized plan for each student.

In addition, students will put the theory of academic subjects into practice in one group project per year using the “Odyssey of the Mind” approach (2-3hrs weekly dedicated time) that incorporates innovation skills, data analysis, research, science & engineering, technology & arts, public speaking, budgeting, and other real-world skills.

The “Odyssey of the Mind” program, which is currently present in over 15 countries around the world, challenges students with navigating problems requiring original solutions. With this program and the oversight of theme-specific coaches, students will develop their natural ability to become creative problem-solvers. The goal here is to have the learner navigate problems requiring original solutions. For example, how do we enable equitable access to clean water worldwide? How can we utilize advances in AI for cybersecurity? Students will learn not to be overwhelmed by such big challenges and build self-confidence that carries over into all areas of their lives.