Curriculum

The Core Knowledge Sequence, written & edited by E. D. Hirsch, author of Cultural Literacy and The Schools We Need and Why We Dont Have Them, is the curriculum we use here at Challenge.  When we started in 1996 we were the first Official Core Knowledge School in Arizona and there were about 250 schools across the country using the Core Knowledge Sequence. Today there are over 2200 schools nationwide that are using some level of the Core Curriculum, but there are still less than 200 that have obtained the Official level of recognition from the Core Knowledge Foundation.

Core Knowledge is a content rich sequential approach to learning.  Thematic units are rich in content, integrated in subject matter, and designed to make learning fun.  We have added another dimension to CK by overlaying a science and technology emphasis to the units.  The significant increases by our students in the three tested areas on the Norm Referenced test (SAT-10) and the high percentage of students here at Challenge that have met or exceeded the state standards (AIMS) demonstrates the impact Core Knowledge has had.

Our teachers have been selected nearly 60 times to receive national recognition by the Core Knowledge Foundation. They have been selected as presenters at many annual CK Conferences. Read more about Core Knowledge on our web page or the Foundations Web Page at www.coreknowledge.org.