Academics

At DaVinci Academy, we believe our school plays a prominent role, in partnership with our parents, in the development of their child(ren).

As a faculty, we commit ourselves to helping our students develop a set of skills and attitudes that will guide and prepare them through their educational journey towards higher learning. We also strive to promote in our students an appreciation for diversity, a commitment to excellence and a sense of self-reliance and overall responsibility.

We encourage and support parent participation and appreciate that parental support and involvement in a child’s education can make a significant difference in how a child views learning, gets along with others, and contributes to his/her community.

• Accelerated Reader: The Accelerated Reader program is used in first through ninth grade. Students read and take quizzes on books they read throughout the school year. Our students read an average of 350,000 words last year and took an average of 16 quizzes per student. This accomplishment earned us a nomination for a national award from Renaissance Learning.
• Small Class Sizes: We continue to cap each class at 26 students in first through sixth, 25 in grades 7 through 9 and 18 in kindergarten. This small class size ensures that students are able to receive more individualized attention from the teachers.
• Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) Curriculum: The CKLA program is used in grades Kindergarten through fifth grade and is based on decades of cognitive science research that shows that reading requires two key “strands” of focus in order for students to achieve proficiency. The first key is decoding skills, which are addressed in the Skills strand of the CKLA program. The second key is oral language, vocabulary, and background knowledge sufficient to understand what is decoded. These are covered in the Listening and Learning strand. Together, these two strands unlock a lifetime of reading for all children. Using this approach, the CKLA program not only meets the Common Core State Standards, it exceeds them. We were the first school in Minnesota to adopt the CKLA program. We are thrilled with the results as students continue to show success and growth in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
• Math and Reading Groupings: In the areas of math and reading in grades one through five, students are placed in ability groups rather than homeroom groups. This ensures that students who need extra help are able to receive that assistance and that students who need more of a challenge are at a level equivalent to their abilities. Groups for reading and math are kept as small as possible to allow for maximum academic growth in these areas.
• Data-driven Assessments in Math: Friends of Education provided training on data-driven instruction and we then implemented interim assessments in math and reading. These assessments help to ensure the student performance is at the same level of rigor required by state standards. Teachers are also able to see where students are struggling and reteach topics as needed.
• IXL Math: IXL assesses students’ understanding as they practice, and generates detailed performance reports to give valuable insight about students’ abilities. Reports can be generated which include data on grade-level proficiency, trouble spots, and even progress toward meeting state standards.
• Homework Club: Homework Club is offered after school several days per week. Homework Club is staffed by DaVinci teachers and is a time for 3rd through 9th grade students to get extra help in specific academic areas. Homework Club is only for those students who need to use it and, therefore, students must be invited to attend by teachers or they may request an invitation to attend Homework Club from a teacher.