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7th Grade Language Arts and Social Studies
In middle school the study of Language Arts and Social Studies are thoroughly integrated. It is impossible to reflect upon primary documents and write a reflection piece without employing grammar, punctuation and composition skills. Likewise, language arts are crucial to the understanding and analysis of current events. Last year's 7th grade class wrote to State Senator Daylin Leach and presented their well-researched thoughts on capital punishment. Senator Leach responded with a letter that stated in part "Thank you again for your impressive letters; I will be sure to take them into consideration when dealing with death-penalty-related issues in the future." This year's class will do a similar project to demonstrate the importance of letting your views be known to elected representatives.
In Social Studies the seventh grade focuses on colonial America from the Revolution through the Civil War. The year begins with the study of America's whaling industry and proceeds thorough the impact of the 1793 yellow fever epidemic on Philadelphia through the novel Fever 1793 and the text American Plague. Slavery and the Underground Railroad are examined with the year culminating in a study of the Civil War in fiction and non-fiction text. All year long learning is enhanced through news magazines and films. Cooperative work in the technology lab is also essential.
Daily reading is crucial to creating lifelong readers. To this end, every 7th grade reader is required to read independently for a minimum of twenty minutes daily.
7th and 8th Grade Math
Instruction in our 7th and 8th grade math class is differentiated based on where the students are at the time. Math groups are fluid. Students practice critical thinking skills in both a whole-group and small-group instructional setting allowing them to work collaboratively to solve problems. Our goal is for all of our students to feel confident and yet challenged. Pre-Algebra Math instruction involves the study of a range of concepts from Equations and Inequalities to Set Theory and Discrete Math. The completion of the topics will vary with each of the student groups. Students in Algebra 1 utilize different forms of technology to learn the standards-based scope and sequence of Algebra 1. Topics explored in this class will range from Patterns in Algebra to Transformations of Functions. In Technology class, through the use of interactive websites, our students get to apply math concepts while also enhancing their technology skills.
7th Grade: Life Science
7th Grade begins the year by learning about something big: whales. This is our springboard into the units for the rest of the year: even the largest whale is made of tiny cells; cells of multicellular organisms are specialized; whales pass on their traits through heredity, genetics and DNA; whales belong to the animal kingdom; the less familiar kingdoms contain fascinating organisms; diseases and parasites can and do attack whales; whales became whales through an extremely interesting process of evolution; the ecosystem of most whale species is the ocean; we can compare whale anatomy to our own. |
