7th grade core courses

The English 7 course uses the StudySync Grade 7 Curriculum.  Each of the six units (Conflicts and Clashes, Highs and Lows, Chasing the Impossible, Moment of Truth, Test of Time, and The Power of One) include lesson sequences and materials structured to meet the Common Core State Standards in meaningful ways and to provide flexibility for a range of learners.  Formative assessments in each unit are designed to measure student progress towards mastering focus indicators for the processes and content of English. StudySync is a comprehensive English Language Arts curriculum that is designed for all 21st century learners.  StudySync combines print books with a digital platform for reading and writing. Students will have their own online digital binder where they will receive their assignments, store their writing, and receive teacher and peer reviews. 

The English for Emergent Multilingual courses use a version of the StudySync Grade 7 Curriculum that is slightly modified for students who are learning English. Each of the six units (Conflicts and Clashes, Highs and Lows, Chasing the Impossible, Moment of Truth, Test of Time, and The Power of One) include lesson sequences and materials structured to meet the Common Core State Standards in meaningful ways and to provide flexibility for a range of learners. Formative assessments in each unit are designed to measure student progress towards mastering focus indicators for the processes and content of English. StudySync is a comprehensive English Language Arts curriculum that is designed for all 21st century learners. StudySync combines print books with a digital platform for reading and writing. Students will have their own online digital binder where they will receive their assignments, store their writing, and receive teacher and peer reviews. Student will be scheduled in to one of two classes based on their language needs.

English 7 for ELs 1 & 2

Double period class that focuses on StudySync 7th grade curriculum coupled with English Language development in order to meet the Common Core State Standards. .

English 7 for ELs 3

Single period class that uses the StudySync 7th grade curriculum and language supports in order to meet the Common Core State Standards.

ENG1004 Adv English 7

ESL1015 ESOL English 7 for Eng  Learners I (double period)

ESL1018 ESOL English 7 for Eng  Learners II (double period)

ESL1021 ESOL English 7 for Eng  Learners III 

As in Math 6, students start Math 7 by studying scale drawings, an engaging geometric topic that supports the subsequent work on proportional relationships in the second and fourth units. It also makes use of Math 6 arithmetic understanding and skill, without arithmetic becoming the major focus of attention at this point. Geometry and proportional relationships are also interwoven in the third unit on circles, where the important proportional relationship between a circle's circumference and its diameter is studied. By the time students reach the fifth unit on operations with rational numbers, both positive and negative, students have had time to brush up on and solidify their understanding and skill in Math 6 arithmetic. The work on operations on rational numbers, with its emphasis on the role of the properties of operations in determining the rules for operating with negative numbers, is a natural lead-in to the work on expressions and equations in the next unit. Students then put their arithmetical and algebraic skills to work in the last two units, on angles, triangles, and prisms, and on probability and sampling. 

This advanced course follows Accelerated Math 6 by including the remaining grade 7 standards and all grade 8 standards. In this course, students will study rigid transformations and congruence, scale drawings, similarity, and slope. Students will build upon their understanding of expressions and equations by learning how to represent relationships in different algebraic forms, writing equivalent expressions, solving one variable equations and inequalities, and begin the study of linear relationships. Students will also explore topics related to functions, volume, exponents and scientific notation, the Pythagorean Theorem, and irrational numbers.

Curriculum 2.0 (C2.0) Algebra 1 is designed to analyze and model real-world phenomena. Exploration of linear, exponential, and quadratic functions forms the foundation of the course. Key characteristics and representations of functions – graphic, numeric, symbolic, and verbal – are analyzed and compared. Students develop fluency in solving equations and inequalities. One- and two-variable data sets are interpreted using mathematical models. 

In seventh grade science, students will investigate the topics of Hydroponics, Body Systems, Genetics, and Biological History.  The focus on the creation of a Hydroponic growing system will allow students to investigate a variety of different systems and growing mediums for raising plants. Plants will be used to introduce the structure and function of living organisms, and students will learn about the characteristics of living things, parts of the cell, and cellular processes.  Unit 2’s focus on body systems will allow students to explore how the interactions of each system affect the overall performance of an organism. Students will explore how matter and energy are processed by organisms to build, maintain, and repair themselves and relate structure and function of body systems to nutritional requirements and disease prevention. 

During Unit 3 students will study the principles of heredity and genetics. They will learn how organisms reproduce and transfer their genetic information to their offspring. Students will use biotechnical processes to explore the genetic characteristics of organisms and will conduct a DNA extraction. A microarray will be performed as a way of checking the genotypes of the offspring.  For the final unit of the year, 7th graders will study Earth’s history and explore how organisms have changed over time.  Students will examine the fossil record and construct explanations from mass extinctions.  They will explore the concepts of natural selection and adaptation and will learn that traits of an organism can change as a result of environmental conditions or a need for survival.  Students will explore the similarities between organisms and use biotechnical processes, such as DNA fingerprinting, as a means of identification.

Through the study of world civilizations and global interactions from 1000 CE to 1450 CE, students learn about political, cultural, geographic and economic systems today and in the past.  They study the rise of empires and nation-states in Europe, Africa, and Latin America and the impacts of their interactions still felt today.  Building on historical thinking skills learned in Grade 6, students continue to engage in sourcing, close reading, corroboration, investigation, contextualization, and historical interpretation as they examine primary and secondary sources.  

This course is built around the core Grade  7 social studies curriculum, Historical Inquiry in World Studies 7, that includes historical content from civilizations of Latin America, Africa, and medieval Europe as well as global interactions following Columbian Exchange.  Cohort students will go beyond this core as they learn additional content, explore deeper connections to today, engage in investigative inquiry to strengthen their writing through Document Based Questions, and enhance their learning through relevant literature connections. They will also participate in the National History Day (NHD) competition to research historical topics related to a NHD annual theme. Students will be enrolled in this course based on teacher recommendation and/or assessment data. 

The daily physical education program offers a comprehensive and well-balanced series of instructional activities.  At each grade level there are six focus areas: Exercise Physiology, Biomechanics, Personal and Social Responsibility, Fitness, Physical Activity and Motor Learning.  The six focus areas are taught throughout the year through the following units: net games, invasion games, striking activities, conditioning and physical fitness, and dance.  Individual and team game tactics as well as fundamental skills are taught throughout the units. Each student is expected to change into approved P.E. attire, i.e., shorts, t-shirts, sweats/warm-ups, and proper shoes. Students are assigned a locker with a lock for their clothes. 

Comprehensive health education is taught for a term of 9-weeks during Grade 7. Knowledge, concepts, skills, and strategies essential to making healthful decisions are presented promoting lifelong health and well-being. Certified Health Education teachers implement a variety of learning activities to promote and practice wellness skills and health literacy. The development of lifelong positive health-related attitudes and behaviors are emphasized to promote self-reliance and self-regulation. Skills include accessing information, decision-making, goal setting, communication skills, analyzing influences, and advocacy.