Elementary K-5

Kindergarten is a full-day program, five days a week. Kindergarten students receive the full complement of course offerings. A partnership program with older students helps kindergartners in their transition to the primary grades.

Click here to download/view Kindergarten brochure PDF

A strong Catholic presence permeates St. Joseph School. The values and traditions of our Catholic Faith are seen as an integral part of daily life. Every day, St. Joseph School students say an Honor Pledge and say a special prayer to St. Joseph.

Students are challenged to live out the actions reflected in the Honor Pledge. Children in grades K - 8 attend weekly all-school Mass throughout the year. Living Stations of the Cross is one example of making religious traditions come alive. Students share their time, talent and treasure through individual service projects and various collections. They respond to social justice needs with prayer, sacrifice, and giving to shape a more peaceful and faith-filled world.  Our curriculum is Word of Life from the Augustine Institute.  

St. Joseph School uses the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis Religion Standards to guide instruction.

Students will develop the necessary skills for effective communication through interactive reading, writing, listening, and speaking. These lifelong skills will enable students to function as literate adults. St. Joseph School uses the Minnesota State standards for English Language Arts to guide instruction.

SUPERKIDS Reading Curriculum (Grades K-1-2)
St Joseph School is a Super School! What is a Super School? A Super School implements the SuperKids Reading Program from Kindergarten through second grade. A Super School gathers the entire community - parents, teachers, volunteers - around a common purpose: teaching every child to read by the second grade. 

Starting in 2026-2027, our school will partner with the Catholic Schools Center of Excellence to launch a program to improve the implementation of Superkids in Catholic schools which will be used in other schools around the state.  This program brings professional literacy coaches into our building on a regular basis to work with our teachers, ongoing professional development opportunities, and progress monitoring for our K-3 students to ensure they have the most important literacy grade level skills to demonstrate high achievement.  

Literacy Intervention
In 2026 we added a full time reading intervention staff role to assist with our K-3 students.  Our fulltime intervention teacher pulls students who are missing key literacy skills and ensures that all of our students are prepared to work on and above grade level.  This also allows our classroom teachers to focus core instruction on more advanced skills for the whole group and small groups within their room.  

Literature & Informational Text, Writing, & Grammar (Grades 3-4-5)
In grades 3, 4, & 5 students are immersed in novel studies, exposed to a variety of informational text selections, utilize the writing process, and engage in a rigorous grammar curriculum.

At St. Joseph School, critical thinking and problem solving through conceptual understanding is emphasized throughout our math curriculum.  Our program deepens students' abilities to think mathematically and connect ideas.  Students learn to see relationships, ask questions, and try different approaches. Problem-based learning drives students to engage in productive struggle. Visit the Pearson Envision Math website for more information.  St. Joseph School uses the Minnesota State Standards in Math to guide instruction.