Students in sixth, seventh and eighth grade make up our middle school where
we strive to help them lead responsible, productive and rewarding lives.
Our curriculum ensures that all of our students are engaged in higher level
thinking skills throughout our three year rotating curriculum. While many
of our subjects are separated according to ability and grade level, there
are some classes that require our working together.
Our social studies class is one area where we all meet for discussion and
action! In order to help our students understand their responsibility in
society, we invite the students to create their own community service
plans. Although we value the use of textbooks, students can also learn
through hands on experiences. While at FRA, our students are encouraged to
identify a problem in our society and develop a community service action
plan to change that problem. Ideally, our students will walk away with an
experience that makes an impact on their own education, if not many others’
lives.
Student productivity is also an important component to our middle school.
When it comes to language arts, our staff wants to help students to produce
quality projects and assignments that are valued by the students
themselves. In addition to various units that we study together, we also
guide the students in choosing their own novels of various genres. Once the
students have completed reading, they create a project for each book. For
example, students who read from the nonfiction genre about sports are
required to perform what they have learned from that novel. Another genre
project might be creating a bio-poem for the biography that the students
read. Walking away from middle school with a portfolio of novels helps give
the students the foundation for a lifetime love of reading.
When our students enter middle school, they are equipped with a laptop.
This computer is an integral component of our curriculum as they are
utilized often. Technology is incorporated into many of our lessons, and
our students find these assignments to be very interesting and rewarding.
During social studies, for example, students are required to create, record,
and deliver news broadcasts. Other assignments might include creating
outlines in Inspiration or web pages.
Cross-curricular Units of Study
Sample Unit Objectives and Projects
I. Hunger, Poverty, and Overpopulation
A. Recognize how humans can have an impact on the environment
B. Develop an appreciation of science fiction and summarize the
sections of the book The Giver
C. Understand the concept of carrying capacity and how it might apply
to world population growth, then relate this to The Giver
D. Understand that there are many causes of poverty
E. Prepare an oral presentation (news broadcast) of current events that
students have collected from newspaper, magazines, internet clips, etc.
F. Practice and develop public speaking skills by presenting (see
letter E)
G. Describe how land use decisions may affect future generations
H. Develop and practice research skills by investigating related topics
i. Students researched a water well in Africa and its resources
ii. Students raised money for this well by working with a local
McDonald’s.
II. Japan
A. Explain how Japan’s geography influenced its early development as a
nation
B. Identify the effects of cramped space upon the Japanese
C. Identify the factors that caused the rise of the samurai and explain
the effect of the samurai on Japanese government,
i. create a comic strip with this as your focus
D. Identify characteristics and compose an haiku poem as a wall hanging
E. Evaluate how the emphasis on poetry in Japan provides and insight
into their culture
F. Compare and contrast requirements for Japanese students with those
of American student and write from a different point of view
G. Give specific examples of the importance of presentation and
aesthetics in Japanese culture
H. Strengthen listening skills by answering questions and completing
activities after having Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes read to them.
III. The Industrial Revolution
A. Explain the agricultural and industrial revolutions
B. Learn about industrialization
C. Discuss how the agricultural and industrial revolutions affected the
lives of people in the 1800’s
D. Learn about Charles Dickens and the dialect used by him
E. Create a character drawing based on the description of Dickens’
Oliver Twist
F. Contrast the differences between assembly line work and craftsmanship
G. Identify the three early labor unions and their leaders
H. Research and present a PowerPoint as an inventor, scientist, union
leader, or industrialist from this time period
