Focus on First
About Focus on First (Grade 1)
In the revised Focus on First (Fo1) curriculum, children and teachers work together to develop understandings and communicate meaningfully through various media across six broad topics. Focus on First is designed to take advantage of, build upon, and expand children's established understandings and skills. With text at the core of classroom experiences, children ask questions about the world around them and consolidate ideas about their place in it as learners and contributors.
Resources
Focus on First is aligned to Grade 1 FOSS: BPS Science Department Website
Children Discovering Justice First Grade curriculum and Focus-CDJ alignment map
Assessments
New! Early Childhood Assessment Guidance - Toolbox for all recommended and required assessments for all subjects pre-k through 2nd grade.
District Supported Reading Screener
Content by Unit
Unit 1: Building Strong Communities
Unit 1, Building Strong Communities, experiences emphasize the building blocks of a strong, inclusive classroom community—establishing routines and building relationships. In reading and discussing texts, children explore identity and belonging, and are invited to reflect on their own roles as community members while learning about leadership, responsibility, and working together. With the project, children collaborate to advocate for ways to increase everyone’s access to books. In addition to the four distinct units of study, a thread of Observing the Sky (emphasizing weather and seasonal patterns) begins in Unit 1 and continues throughout the year.
Unit 2: Animals Surviving and Thriving
In Unit 2, Animals Surviving and Thriving, children will explore how animals’ body parts, behaviors, and habitats help them survive. Over eight weeks, children will observe local animals, make terrariums, watch videos, and read informational texts to learn about animal life. They'll also study how animals protect their young, face dangers, and how people can affect their survival.
Unit 3: Resources in Our Communities
In Unit 3, Resources in Our Communities, first graders explore how goods and services are made, sold, and used in different kinds of markets. They learn to think like consumers-deciding between wants and needs-and discover how these choices shape our communities. Children investigate where resources come from, follow their journey through supply chains, and grow plants to learn how they provide food, clothing, and materials we use every day.
Unit 4: Communicating with Sound and Light
In Unit 4, Communicating with Sound and Light, children explore how sound and light work and how they help us communicate and understand the world around us. Through stories, poems, informational texts, and hands-on experiences, children investigate how sounds are made, how light behaves, and how people and animals use sound and light in everyday life.