K for ME

The Maine DOE is pleased to provide an open-source instructional program for Kindergarten classrooms.

This interdisciplinary, whole child-focused instructional program is adapted from Boston Public Schools’ Focus on K2 curriculum.  K for ME supports Kindergarten students’ learning and development in literacy and language, science and engineering, social studies, the arts, and social-emotional realms.  The program integrates research-based instructional practices aligned to Maine’s Learning Results while it builds children’s agency as learners and citizens. Through its intentional and connected design, K for ME engages students in thinking and doing around various topics utilizing developmentally appropriate practices.

K for ME Supporting Documents

If you’re considering implementing K for ME in your classroom, it is important to first review the guiding documents. These resources provide information about the program components and help teachers identify the various environmental, scheduling, and material requirements necessary for program implementation. To fully implement K for ME, schools must incorporate a systematic and explicit phonics program that includes a clear scope and sequence. Additionally, a stand-alone math program is needed to address this content area.

Go to Supporting Documents

Unit 1 - Our Community

The lens of community and the concept of citizenship are introduced in this unit and permeate the year, with children first learning what it means to be a citizen in their own classroom community and gradually applying this idea to broader contexts.

Go To Unit 1

Unit 2 - Animals and Habitats

This unit focuses on caring for living things and learning about animals through investigation and research, including three distinct studies: fish and frogs, owls, and wolves. Children also engage in an author study and collaborative projects.

Go To Unit 2

Unit 3 - Construction

This unit invites children to make physical science connections through construction of structures, measurement and comparison, and experimentation with materials. Children are introduced to a design process and the definition of construction expands to include constructing buildings, songs, dances, plays, and stories.

Go To Unit 3

Unit 4 - Our Earth

This unit explores the natural world through investigations and research of the earth’s properties and systems. Concepts of sustainability, urban renewal, economics, healthy lifestyles, respect, responsibility, and stewardship frame discussions and projects.

Go To Unit 4

K For ME Training Videos and Materials

• K for ME and 1st Grade for ME Informational Session 2023
• Training Slidedeck 

Special attribution to:

K for ME would not have been possible without funding from Maine’s Preschool Expansion Grant, Preschool Development Grant, and Title II/IV State Activities Funds.

Boston Public Schools Early Childhood Director, Dr. Jason Sachs, and the teachers, staff and coaches who created and shared this instructional program with the Maine DOE.  

Melissa Luc, Boston Public Schools coach and curriculum writer, who led the training and adaptation process for Maine. 

Teachers and administrators in the following Maine school systems who piloted the program during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years: SAD 11, SAD 17, RSU 23, SAD 49, and RSU 57.

Instructional coaches Kim Desjardins, Rebecca Schaff, Catherine Marchant, Heidi Goodwin, Danielle Saucier, Melissa Roberts, and Julie Wright who supported teachers with implementation and assisted with program adaptation.

Kindergarten teachers Samantha Rodriguez, Karli Ellis, Caitlyn Flaherty, Tiffany Lerette, Eleanor Luken, Meredith Bolduc, Meghan Hiltner, and Jennifer Sweat for support with program adaptation and professional learning design//delivery.