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Academics
The Core Knowledge curriculum offered at Ave Maria Catholic School "provides a coherent plan for teaching language arts, literature, math, science, history, geography, music, and the visual arts. The Core Knowledge sequence provides a solid foundation of learning that promotes academic excellence for all learners". The literacy program at Ave Maria Catholic School includes comprehensive phonics and vocabulary; the reading and math programs provide our teachers with the tools for differentiated instruction. Our science, history, and geography programs build on prior knowledge making all learning relevant to students. And finally, music and the visual arts tie together subject content using a cross-curricular approach. Rosetta Stone is used to support our foreign language enrichment program and technology is incorporated in the classroom instruction, as well as, offered in the computer lab.
COGATS (Cognitive Abilities Tests) is administered annually to students in third, fifth, and seventh grade.
ITBS (Iowa Tests of Basic Skills) is administered annually to students in first through eighth grade. The table below shows grade level performance through grade equivalent; Example 2.6 represents Second Grade/Sixth Month. The Composite score represents the total average of all subject areas tested.
Average Grade Level Performance for 2010-2011 School Year
| Grade Levels |
1st
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2nd
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3rd
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4th
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5th
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6th
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7th
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8th
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| Reading |
2.3
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3.8
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5.0
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6.1
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7.4
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8.4
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10.1
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11.7
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| Language |
2.0
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3.3
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5.4
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6.5
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9.4
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10.0
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11.6
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13+
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| Math |
1.9
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3.3
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4.3
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5.9
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6.9
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8.6
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10.1
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11.6
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| Composite (Total Average) |
2.1
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3.4
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5.0
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6.2
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7.7
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8.9
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11.1
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13+
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The results demonstrate that Ave Maria Catholic School students, at a minimum, perform at the grade equivalent of one grade level higher than other students nationally and at the grade equivalent of up to five grade levels higher than other students nationally.
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