Eighth Grade: Eighth grade is a graduation year. Students will get a case of senioritis towards the end of the year so its important to cover important topics early and wrap up major projects towards the beginning of the fourth quarter. It is important to work these students hard and keep them engaged otherwise the prospect of high school and adulthood will lead these brand new teenagers astray.
Math: Algebra 1: Expressions and equations, linear equations, graphing linear equations, linear inequalities, systems of linear equations, polynomials, factoring and quadratics, rational equations, radical equations, algebraic functions,converting word problems into multi-variable equations.
Science: Physical Science: Students will cover and review topics such as: Earth’s structure, geologic processes, plate tectonics, the oceans, physical and chemical changes, mixtures and solutions, reactants and products, the periodic table, motion, gravity, density and buoyancy, mass and weight, magnetic fields, energy, heat, the properties of waves, sound and light.
Computer Science: Review of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Introduction to Ruby, Python, Java, C++, and SQL. Modular units for most popular coding languages of the moment.
History/Social Science: Students will do an in-depth study of American history, with an emphasis on the political, cultural, and technological innovations that drove the country forward. Extra emphasis on the U.S, Constitution, the issues of slavery and displacement of indigenous peoples as America’s original sins, and the supreme court cases that shaped America
Human Studies: Civics 2: Get to know your elected officials, public policy, the government and the economy, civil rights, civil liberties, the fourth estate, contemporary political issues, political parties, responsibilities and duties of a citizen, how to get involved, international governance. Plan, organize and execute a plan to help improve the community.
English: Weekly grammar quiz. Students will read and analyze popular pieces of fiction such as . Journey to the Center of the Earth; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court; Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad; etc.. Students will write a research paper each term and perform in depth breakdowns of the historical contexts in which the selected readings were written.
Foreign Languages: Spanish 2: students will cover antonyms and synonyms; sentence and question structure; present tense indicative, past tenses preterit and imperfect; conditional tense; future tense; perfect tenses, past participle; subjunctive mood; the imperative and commands; prepositions, pronouns; adjectives and comparisons; past subjunctive; and passive voice.
Music: Students will be expected to sight-read accurately and expressively. Students will be able to perform a selection of pieces from a varied background of genre, styles, and cultures. They will create pieces using chords and harmonic progressions, composing pieces in duple, triple, mixed, and compound meters. Students will be asked to compare and contrast the same story told through different mediums.
Art: Students will study advanced photography and video editing. They will be asked to produce mixed media projects, quarterly exhibit reports, and a research project outlining the life and work of a significant artist. Students will create and defend a thesis project and learn how to properly participate in peer evaluations of their work.