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| Sixth Grade
Required Courses |
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LANGUAGE ARTS
Emphasis is placed on mastering
the skills necessary for effective written communication. Using writing
as a process, the student will continually develop creativity purpose,
and fluency through standard English usage. Word Master, a national competition,
will introduce challenging vocabulary in the form of analogies throughout
the year. Students will be exposed to classical poetry and participate
in Poetry Café.
Text: Literature & Language
(McDougal, Littell) The Writers Craft (McDougal, Littell)
READING
Sixth grade reading is interactive
reading in both formal and informal situations using Newberry Award winning
novels, accelerated reader and a basal reading series to teach comprehension
and vocabulary skills, students will become more proficient in reading
skills needed to succeed in other studies. Students will learn necessary
skills for researching, speaking, and presenting information they have
read. A research paper along with involvement in either a Shakespearean
play or Wax Museum will be required of each student. An accelerated reading
class will be provided for advanced students.
Text: I Touched the Sun (Heath
Publishing)
MATH
Students will develop computational
and problem solving skills with respect to whole numbers, decimals, and
fractions. They will also explore areas involving geometry, measurement,
ratio, percentages and story problems. Opportunities for manipulatives
will be provided to allow growth from concrete thinking to abstract thinking.
An accelerated math class will be provided to include algebra and math
competitions.
Text: Math Advantage (Harcourt/Brace)
SCIENCE
This course deals with selected
topics in the areas of plant and animal life, environment, chemical, physical,
and space science. Students will be introduced to laboratory work as well
as study skills and test taking skills. Science projects will integrate
more than one subject.
Text: Science Plus, Level Green
Technology and Society (Holt, Rhineheart and Winston)
SOCIAL STUDIES
This course is designed to acquaint
students with ancient civilizations through modern times. Students will
be involved in activities that will help them understand the values, priorities,
and accomplishments of the many cultures studied. Students will be encouraged
to develop projects that incorporate social skills and creative thinking.
Map skills will be an integral part of this course study.
Text: World Cultures (Silver,
Burdett)
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Seventh |
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SCIENCE PLUS
Science Plus is a program which
utilizes guided and open-ended investigations, small-group discussions,
exploratory writing and related reading tasks, game, picture and word
puzzles, and independent long-range projects to promote understanding
of:
- The interrelationships that exist between science,
technology and society.
- Important science concepts, processes and ideas.
- Higher-order thinking skills.
- Problem solving and application of scientific principles.
- Environmental protection.
- Independent study of scientific topics.
- Social and communication skills.
LANGUAGE ARTS
The purpose of this course is
to encourage development of reading, writing, listening and speaking skills.
Emphasis will be placed on writing as a way of thinking and communicating.
Grammar, spelling and vocabulary are taught as part of the writing process.
Reading is taught based on the Michigan definition of reading, prior
knowledge, knowledge of reading material and application beyond text to
real life situations. Class novels, reading groups and individual pleasure
reading as well as literature circles are utilized in the classroom. Listening
and speaking skills are addressed through writing workshop and reading
circles.
Text: Literature & Language
(McDougal, Littell) The Writers Craft (McDougal, Littell)
SOCIAL STUDIES/GEOGRAPHY
Seventh grade social studies
concentrates study on the Eastern Hemisphere. They will study countries
of Europe, Asia, Africa, and the South Pacific. Included in the study
will be geographic terms, land forms, climate, people, and food. Various
materials will be used during the school year.
Text: World Geography, A Global
Perspective (Prentice Hall)
TRANSITIONAL MATH
This course will apply math skills
to problem solving while continuing to emphasize the basic skills of math.
Additional areas that will be taught include patterns, calculator usage,
variables, notation, geometric properties, shapes, and integers. These
additional areas will help prepare students for algebra and geometry.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
This coed physical education curriculum is taught by a certified
instructor. Students receive an average of 110 minutes of physical
education instruction each week. Areas of emphasis include progressive
game skill development, fitness and physical activities, including annual
fitness testing, relevant content and knowledge review and assessment, and
personal and social skill development.
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| Exploratories |
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All
of the nine week exploratory courses are designed to allow students to
try new areas of interest. Exploratory courses are divided into sixth
grade, seventh grade and eighth grade levels. Some exploratory courses
are required while others allow the student to pick classes that interest
them. A few classes will require a prerequisite. If a prerequisite is
required, it will be stated in the description for that particular course.
With the exception of the few classes that require a prerequisite, these
exploratory classes are designed for students with little or no previous
experience in the content area of the class. The intent of these classes
is not to teach a student all there is to know about a subject, but instead,
to allow a student to test uncharted water and see if this is an area
that he/she might want to pursue further. Your child should not be frightened
away from selecting a course simply because he/she has no knowledge in
that area. Please encourage your child to explore and stretch.
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SIXTH GRADE NINE
WEEK REQUIRED EXPLORATORY COURSES
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DESK TOP PUBLISHING
6
This exploratory
class examines the realm of desktop publishing skills on a basic level
from creating a finished manuscript using the word processor, to manipulating
a photo using Adobe Photo Deluxe. This course will prove to be both intellectually
and creatively stimulating for the student.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
6
This coed
physical education curriculum is taught by a certified instructor.
Students receive an average of 110 minutes of physical education
instruction each week. Areas of emphasis include progressive game skill
development, fitness and physical activities, including annual fitness
testing, relevant content and knowledge review and assessment, and
personal and social skill development.
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NINE WEEK EXPLORATORY
COURSES
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COMMUNICATIONS
6
This nine-week course
offers the student a brief look into the world of journalism and news/broadcasting.
Students will learn the components of good news writing as well as learn
simple techniques in video production and how the two work together. Communications
is also a wonderful introduction for those who wish to continue by enrolling
in the News/Broadcasting exploratory, entitled, "Friday Afternoon
Live".
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SEVENTH GRADE
NINE WEEK REQUIRED EXPLORATORY COURSES
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INTRODUCTION
TO KEY BOARDING 7
Keyboard familiarization,
basic word processing with emphasis placed on page setup for reports,
business letters, resumes, and other related topics. Typing skills will
include composing, saving, retrieval and correction of a document.
MICHIGAN HEALTH
MODEL
The Michigan Health
Model is comprised of six modules consisting of such topics as: thinking
seriously about health, finding out about health risks, reaching out to
others (family, friends,) watching out for health threats, stress and
looking ahead to high school, future dreams and a healthy future.
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SEVENTH GRADE
NINE WEEK EXPLORATORY COURSES
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SPANISH 7
This exploratory
Spanish course emphasizes elementary conversational skills based on familiar
topics such as school, family, and home. Pronunciation, vocabulary building,
and presentation of simplified grammatical concepts are the areas of concentration.
To enrich the student’s appreciation of Spanish as a functioning language,
the course includes a study of various Spanish speaking countries.
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SEVENTH GRADE
FULL YEAR EXPLORATORY
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SEVENTH GRADE
BAND
Open to all seventh
grade students by audition only. This musical organization will be composed
of only the most skilled performers on their particular instrument. A
variety of musical literature is studied and performed at a high level
of proficiency. Practice at home and participation in all performances
are required including district and state music festivals and solo and
ensemble festival.
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EIGHTH GRADE NINE
WEEK REQUIRED EXPLORATORY COURSES
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MICHIGAN HEALTH
MODEL
The Michigan Health
Model is comprised of five modules consisting of such topics as:
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Thinking seriously about health.
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Finding out about health risks.
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Reaching out to others (family, friends,)
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Watching out for me (health threats, stress,)
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Looking ahead (to high school, future dreams, a health
future)
Explore possible
careers in your future. Consider your values, what is your top priority
in selecting a career? Is it money, prestige or enjoyment of what you
are doing? Can you find a career that covers it all? We will look at different
occupation clusters and do some interesting surveys. Speakers and possible
field trip will round out this class.
SPANISH 8
This exploratory
Spanish course emphasizes elementary conversational skills based on familiar
topics such as school, family, and home. Pronunciation, vocabulary building,
and the presentation of simplified grammatical concepts are the areas
of concentration.
To enrich the student's
appreciation of Spanish as a functioning language, the course includes
a study of various Spanish speaking countries.
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EIGHTH GRADE FULL
YEAR EXPLORATORY
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SPANISH
I
Students will become knowledgeable about the culture of
several Spanish speaking countries. They will be able to
conjugate all regular and some irregular verbs in the
present tense. Also, they will use adjectives correctly
(placement, noun-agreement, and comparative forms), be able
to form adverbs, be aware of cognates, and learn that world
languages do not follow English word order. They will be
able to have simple conversations about general topics and
be able to cope in travel situations such as restaurants,
hotels, and transportation. Students will be exposed to
light readings, listen to authentic speakers, and perform
basic writing tasks.
*High School credits earned by a
middle school student in a World Language course will be
recorded on the students’ transcript, but will not be
counted into the students’ high school Grade Point Average
(GPA). The cumulative high school GPA will begin when a
student enters the ninth grade. Credits earned during middle
school will count toward the rigorous curriculum
requirements; however, students will still be required to
earn 25 credits during high school.
EIGHTH GRADE
BAND
Open to all students
who have successfully participated in seventh grade band or by permission
of the instructor. This band will perform middle school literature at
a high level of proficiency. Practice at home and participation in all
performances is required. A variety of musical styles are studied and
student's experience varied instrumental groupings. Students will perform
formal concerts, marching events, and MSBOA events such as district and
state band festivals, honors band festival, and solo/ensemble festivals.
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EIGHTH GRADE NINE
WEEK EXPLORATORY CLASSES
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FRIDAY AFTERNOON
LIVE
This course explores
a variety of "media productions" from newspaper publishing to
simple video productions such as broadcasting and commercials. Professional
editing techniques will be introduced.
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Testing Out Information
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