Early Childhood

Curriculum Updates

Pre-Primary
Primary

Pre-Primary

As we dive into May, Pre-Primary 1 is excited to explore the wonderful world of animal habitats before making a splash with an in-depth journey into ocean life! Our classroom will come alive with engaging stories like Over in the Ocean: In a Coral Reef by Marianne Berkes, Mr. Seahorse by Eric Carle, The Pout-Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen, and What Might You See Down By the Sea? by Sara Biavano. We’ll keep the energy high with fun, interactive songs such as “Slippery Fish” by Charlotte Diamond, “The Goldfish” by The Laurie Berkner Band, and “The Animals in the Ocean” by The Kiboomers. In our dramatic play area, children will step into a sunny beach adventure, complete with everything they need for a perfect day by the sea. Students will be able to pack picnic lunches, cast fishing poles, and enjoy beach essentials like sunscreen, towels, and boogie boards for endless imaginative fun.

In Pre-Primary 2 this month, we are excited to explore life cycles, insects, and pollinators. As part of this unit, we will welcome live frogs, butterflies, and ladybugs into our classroom, giving the children a chance to observe these fascinating creatures as they undergo metamorphosis. Some of the stories we will enjoy include Jump, Frog, Jump!, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Grouchy Ladybug, and The Itsy Bitsy Spider. You may also hear your children singing songs such as "Five Little Speckled Frogs", "Ladybug Ladybug," "Mosquito," and "The Ants Go Marching." This is always one of the most exciting months as we watch our caterpillars grow and enjoy the plants we nurtured in April. Through these experiences, the children will also learn the importance of caring for our environment and taking responsibility for the world around them.

The Pre-Primary 3 classroom this May will transition into exploring the farm and gardening, introducing children to farm life and the exciting process of growing plants through a variety of hands-on experiences. We will include a few engaging stories, such as Pop-Up Peekaboo! Farm and If You Plant a Seed by Kadir Nelson, along with familiar finger plays like “Five Green and Speckled Frogs” and “Five Little Ducks Went Swimming One Day” to support early literacy and counting skills. Beyond stories and songs, the classroom will offer many interactive opportunities for learning and play. Children will plant seeds and observe their growth, explore thematic sensory bins, and participate in simple gardening tasks like watering and caring for plants. Art activities will include creating flowers, insects, and farm animals, while math and sorting games will incorporate garden and farm themes. Outdoor exploration will further connect children to nature, helping them build curiosity, responsibility, and an understanding of how plants grow and how farms play an important role in our daily lives.

Pre-Primary Special Events

Friday, May 8: Pre-Primary Flag Assembly from 8:45-9:15 a.m.

Pre-Primary Specials Spotlight

P.E.:
This month in our Pre‑Primary P.E. program, our youngest learners have been busy building more than just towers – they're constructing crucial skills! Through playful exploration with building blocks, students are:

Unleashing their creativity: Imaginations are soaring as they design and construct unique structures.
Developing teamwork and collaboration: Sharing ideas, negotiating roles, and working together to bring their visions to life.
Enhancing problem-solving abilities: Figuring out how to make their structures stable and achieve their design goals.
Improving fine motor skills: Manipulating blocks helps strengthen little hands and coordination.

Music:

This is such an exciting time of year in music class. The students’ verbal skills have grown tremendously since the start of the year, and their confidence has truly blossomed. This month, we are learning fun and engaging songs about spring and the ocean—one of our favorite ocean songs will even be featured at Flag Assembly on Friday, May 8. We continue to move and dance along to music while exploring a variety of instruments, making each lesson lively and interactive. It truly is a special time of year filled with growth, joy, and creativity.

Primary

In May, our classrooms will be swapping themes, with Primary 101 and 102 transitioning into an Ocean Unit and Primary 103 and 104 transitioning into Life Cycles. Both classrooms are excited to explore through sensory play, creative art projects, and hands-on experiences. Through simple discussions and connections to their own lives, children begin to build early science skills while developing a greater appreciation for the natural world during this lively time of year. All classrooms recently planted milkweed plants in the Primary garden and are waiting anxiously for caterpillars to appear. Be sure to check in with your child for updates!

In our final math module, Math Stories, students will explore early addition and subtraction through hands-on, developmentally appropriate activities. They will use tools like fingers, number lines, and manipulatives to understand “1 more” and “1 less,” connecting counting to addition and subtraction. Students will solve story problems by joining and separating groups using objects, drawings, and number sentences (e.g., “4 and 1 make 5,” “6 take away 2 is 4”), gradually moving toward written equations. They will also explore composing and decomposing numbers in different ways, such as showing 5 as 1 and 4. In addition, students will build and extend patterns using movement, music, materials, and drawings, while using ordinal language to describe order and sequence.

In language arts, students will head into a final review of all letters and sounds. Throughout the last semester, they have continued to develop phonemic awareness through a variety of listening and speaking activities. Students will continue to enjoy recognizing and producing rhyming words, identifying words that begin with the same sound, and generating additional words with a given initial sound. They will also practice breaking words into two sounds and working with the first sound in a word by adding it, taking it away, and changing it to a new sound.

Primary Specials Spotlight

P.E.:

Our Primary students are continuing to work on their throwing and tossing skills with fun and engaging activities! Using foam balls and buckets, they are developing:

Accuracy and precision: Learning to aim and control their throws to land in the target.
Hand-eye coordination: Strengthening the connection between what they see and how their bodies move.
Spatial awareness: Understanding distance and trajectory.
Gross motor skills: Engaging larger muscle groups for controlled movements.

Music:

In our Music and Movement classes in Primary, we have been having a wonderful time exploring creativity through sound, song, and imaginative play. The children have especially enjoyed singing a variety of songs and discovering new instruments, which has helped build their confidence and curiosity. A highlight of our sessions has been bringing classic children’s stories to life by becoming the characters ourselves. Acting out stories like The Three Little Pigs and Little Red Riding Hood has been a favorite, allowing students to express themselves through movement, voice, and role-play. We look forward to continuing this journey by exploring even more stories and incorporating music and movement to make each experience even more engaging and memorable.

Summer Camp

PBDA is thrilled to present a dynamic and enriching Summer Camp program running from June 15 through September 3. Designed to keep students entertained, inspired, and learning all summer long, our camps offer an exciting variety of activities for children entering Pre-Primary through Grade 8.

View the full Summer Camp schedule

Student Success

A Message from the Lower School Counselor, Kayleigh Winters

This month, our Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) focus is on mindfulness. Mindfulness is the practice of paying attention to the present moment and having self-awareness. Through activities such as breathing and grounding exercises, body scans, and nature walks, students are learning to slow down, tune into their senses, notice their thoughts and feelings, and respond rather than react.

Mindfulness has many benefits for children and adults alike! These benefits include improved focus, reduced anxiety, better emotional regulation, and stronger problem-solving skills. Practice at home together by taking the time to notice what’s around you. Take a walk together! What do you see, hear, smell? In a heated moment, take a deep breath and notice what you are feeling before reacting. Modeling this for your child goes a long way in helping them co-regulate and learning these skills for themselves. By working together to instill mindfulness in their everyday lives, we can help children build lifelong skills for managing their emotions, staying focused, and feeling confident and competent.

School-Wide Events & Important Dates

Friday, May 8: Spirit Shop Open

Stock up on PBDA and team spirit items at the Spirit Shop from 8:00-10:00 AM; Store located at the end of the Flagler Campus parking lot.

Thursday, May 14: Lower School Create & Innovate Night

Kindergarten through Third Grade families are invited to an engaging evening showcasing technology, innovation, art, and hands-on science. The evening will be held from 5:00-7:00 PM on the Flagler campus.

Friday, May 15: Early Dismissal - Professional Development Day

Lower School dismissal will take place from 12:30-1:00 PM. Upper School dismissal will begin at 1:00 PM. Students will eat lunch prior to dismissal.

Friday, May 15 and Saturday, May 16: PBDA Rummage Sale
241 Seaview Avenue
Join us as we revive one of PBDA’s most cherished community traditions. The Rummage Sale was founded in 1959 and ran for decades, becoming a Palm Beach institution that attracted thousands of bargain hunters to the annual event. After a nearly thirty-year hiatus, the Sale will return this month! Proceeds will support the PBDA’s Faculty Grant for Summer Study, and unsold items will be donated to Place of Hope.

Friday, May 15: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM (open ONLY to current PBDA parents and faculty)
Saturday, May 16: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM (open to the community)

Monday, May 25: No School - Memorial Day

Tuesday, May 26: Final PSC Town Hall (*rescheduled date*)

All PBDA parents are invited to join us for the final PSC meeting of the 2025-26 school year. Help us celebrate the achievements of our dedicated parent volunteers, and hear updates from PSC leadership and the School's administrative team. Coffee and light breakfast bites will be provided starting at 8 AM. The meeting will begin at 8:30 AM in the Discovery Area.

Tuesday, May 26: Spirit Shop Open (*rescheduled date*)

Stock up on PBDA and team spirit items at the Spirit Shop from 8:00-10:00 AM; Store located at the end of the Flagler Campus parking lot.

Friday, May 29: Spirit Shop Open

Stock up on PBDA and team spirit items at the Spirit Shop from 8:00-10:00 AM; Store located at the end of the Flagler Campus parking lot.

Monday, June 1- Friday, June 5: Lower School Scholastic Book Fair

Celebrate the end of the school year and get ready for summer adventures with our Book Fair! This is the perfect chance to stock up on books for summer reading, from exciting chapter books to fun picture books, there’s something for every reader. Parents are strongly encouraged to accompany their child to enhance their Book Fair experience. Class visit times will be shared in the coming days.

Friday, June 12: Early Dismissal for the last day of school

The Lower School will dismiss from 11:30 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. The Upper School will dismiss at 12:00 P.M. Lunch will not be served prior to dismissal. Happy summer, Bulldogs!

In This Section

Early Childhood

Pre-Primary

Pre-Primary Special Events

Pre-Primary Specials Spotlight

Primary

Primary Specials Spotlight

PreK2 - Grade 3

Grades 4-8

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