Class 7

List of 11 items.

• English 7

  • Examining and discussing the realistic fiction text House Arrest
  • Brainstorming, drafting, revising, and editing realistic fiction stories
  • Building on knowledge of various sentence structures
  • Refining use of punctuation, particularly the comma

• Math 7

  • Reviewing the coordinate system
  • Finding the midpoint between two coordinates
  • Creating tables of solutions to graph equations in two variables
  • Learning about x-intercepts and y-intercepts and how to use them to graph a linear function
  • Introducing slope of a line
  • Writing linear equations in standard form and slope-intercept form
  • Using the slope and the y-intercept to graph a linear function
  • Investigating slopes of parallel lines, perpendicular lines, horizontal lines, and vertical lines
  • Introducing graphs of quadratic, cubic, and absolute value functions
  • Solving systems of linear equations by graphing
  • Investigating statistical questions and types of data
  • Expanding our knowledge of graphs to include dot plots, bar graphs, and histograms

• Math 7 Accelerated

  • Factoring polynomials
  • Solving equations by factoring
  • Finding domains of rational functions
  • Multiplying and dividing rational expressions
  • Adding and subtracting rational expressions
  • Simplifying complex fractions
  • Solving fractional equations
  • Solving work problems and uniform motion problems
  • Solving literal equations
  • Simplifying expressions with rational exponents
  • Simplifying radical expressions
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing radical expressions
  • Finding domains of radical expressions
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing complex numbers
  • Solving quadratic equations by factoring

• World Cultures II-7

  • Exploring the geography of Latin America and its impact on how people live
  • Examining the ancient civilizations of the Americas including the Olmec, Maya, Aztec, and Inca, focusing on their achievements, government, and religion
  • Investigating the unique cultural characteristics of these civilizations through hands-on stations
  • Continue refining thesis statements and practicing expository writing

• Earth Science 7

  • Collaborating with weather balloon partners to develop testable questions and hypotheses in preparation for the weather balloon launch in March
  • Identifying the causes and characteristics of seismic activity throughout the world
  • Identifying the properties of different seismic waves and describing how they are recorded
  • Learning how to determine the magnitude and location of earthquakes
  • Recognizing hazards associated with earthquakes and ways to mitigate those effects in earthquake prone areas
  • Understanding how seismic waves help us to learn about the physical and chemical properties of Earth’s interior
  • Understanding how the theory of plate tectonics explains the geological activity that takes place on the planet

• French I-B

  • Exploring the importance of food in the francophone world
  • Enriching our vocabulary while reading recipes from other cultures
  • Working on new verbs related to the “cuisine” as well as the partitive articles used with nouns
  • Creating a shopping list and going shopping on an online supermarket

• Latin I-B

  • Beginning our JCL topic area exploration
  • Reading about King Cogidubnus and his place in Roman Britain 
  • Learning about the social upheavals in the early Roman Republic
  • Mastering the pluperfect tense and two new ways of asking questions in Latin

• Spanish I-B

  • Finish reading the book Felipe Alou and concluding discussions about themes and locations in the book (Dominican Republic, Southern states in the US during the 1950s/1960s, discrimination, racism)
  • Discovering how a house becomes a home
  • Expressing actions happening in the present using the present progressive
  • Expressing affirmative commands for tú using the imperative
  • Writing and performing dialogues in Spanish

• Spanish I-C

  • Reading Agentes Secretos y el Mural de Picasso and learning cultural and historical lessons tied to the book’s story about France and Spain -- completely in Spanish
  • Writing and presenting an additional chapter to Agentes Secretos
  • Gaining a stronger understanding and using effectively regular and irregular verb ending in the preterite tense - in particular:  ir, ser, hacer, tener, estar, y poder
  • Understanding and practicing the use of direct object pronouns
  • Enriching our knowledge of the popularity of open-air markets in the Spanish-speaking world through articles and authentic videos

• Fine Arts Rotation 7

  Art 7

  • Practicing manual control of pencils and pens
  • Practicing use of lights and darks, curves and straight lines, and shapes and forms
  • Completing the still life drawings with watercolor utilizing analogous color theory and watercolor textures
  • Beginning 3D sculptures of Gulf Coast beach houses created with armature wire, plaster cloth, acrylic paints, and pens that include elements of space, form, and unity

  Dance 7

  • Reviewing basic ballet, jazz, musical theatre, tap, and hip hop terminology and continuing to learn more advanced movement and dance verbiage
  • Understanding expectations of dance studio etiquette
  • Executing the principles of stretching and strengthening in the daily warm up
  • Continuing the knowledge of dance through instructed choreography will be revisited
  • Enhancing choreographic and retention skills by learning specific combinations given by the teacher with the expectation that skills will be more refined based on work done in Dance 6
  • Exploring their skills further by creating their own short pieces through group choreography

  Music 7

  • Reviewing basic music terminology: Note names, duration, pitch, meter, leger lines
  • Learning the fundamentals of a D.A.W. (Digital Audio Workstation)
  • Composing a radio intro and a folk song using Garageband
  • Composing and improvising a 12-bar blues progression
  • Learning basic harmonic progressions

  Theatre 7

  • Practicing public speaking skills by writing and delivering a speech about themselves
  • Building vocal skills - memorization, posture, tempo, projection, enunciation, inflection, and overall delivery
  • Collaborating with a group on a radio show
  • Understanding the creative process
  • Understanding how concentration, collaboration, communication, cooperation, compromise, connection, and creativity are necessary to the process. 
  • Exploring different characters, voices, and intentions 
  • Creating content and exploring the use of sound effects, costumes, and props
  • Incorporating advanced memorization, casting, directing and producing with the play “The Wolf’s Tales”
  • Practicing improvisation, including on-the-spot

• Instrumental Music 7

  Beginning Band

  • Continuing to learn and read the 5-note pattern for the 1st Major Scale
  • Developing music-reading skills with songs from the book “Best In Class”
  • Practicing fingerings for the notes on the instrument
  • Developing a strong embouchure for the instrument
  • Listening to each other and fitting their sound into the entire ensemble.

  Intermediate Band

  • Using the Major scale in various rhythmic patterns
  • Practicing music-reading skills by sight-reading different pieces of music suitable for middle school band
  • Working on selections for the Fall Band Concert in November

  Beginning Strings

  • Expanding note reading skills as they are presented in Essential Elements
  • Refining bow hold and left hand position
  • Building bow distribution skills and tone production using the Open String Cycle
  • Continuing work on precise intonation skills through Finger Patterns 1 & 2

  Sinfonietta

  • Building tone production and bow use skills as they apply to scales and repertoire
  • Refining bow holds and left hand position
  • Beginning shifting to third position with violins and violas
  • Refining fourth and second  position shifting with cellos
  • Working on intonation using Finger Patterns 1, 2 & 3
  • Starting preparation for learning vibrato
  • Working on repertoire for Holiday Chapel performance

  Camerata

  • Working on upper positions (fifth position and above) and shifting through three octave scales
  • Refining intonation in less common keys using Finger Patterns 3, 4, & 5
  • Practicing left hand facility using increasingly fast tempos on scales
  • Working on repertoire for Holiday Chapel performance