Middle School Scheduling

Class Descriptions:

• Introduction to Spanish 6th grade: the course is light on actual formal language instruction, though there is certainly some basic language learning in the course, and, instead, emphasizes developing an understanding of multilingualism, the names, locations, and multiculturalism of the Spanish-speaking nations of the world, and aspects of the culture, history, and diversity of the Spanish-speaking world as well as the influence of such on the United States.

• Creative Thinking 6th grade: Go beyond everyday thinking and use your imagination to explore new experiences and activities

• Discover Ohio 6th grade: The course will take a deep dive into the history of the state of Ohio. We will explore the road to statehood, important events/people, and all things Ohio. Everything from Neil Armstrong landing the moon to LeBron James' rise to stardom. Students will learn by taking an interactive approach to better understand the evolution of our great state.

• United States Geography 6th Grade: This course will take a look at the United States' geography. We will analyze the formation of different regions in our country and how where you live impacts how you live. Students will be able to identify regional geography, important landmarks, and cultural differences.

• Fine Arts 6th, 7th, 8th grade: We introduce the Elements of Art and work through multiple projects that directly relate to certain elements. I pair artists and styles with certain elements and artistic concepts so the students get a historical perspective also. We spend a lot of time on concepts that move students' abilities to be able to create optical illusions and in short make things look as though they have 3 dimensions while being on a 2 dimensional surface.

• Art Math 7th grade: a project based course that investigates the artistic side of mathematics. Students learn basic geometric constructions using a compass and straightedge, build models of the Platonic Solids and Archimedean Solids, investigate fractals, Golden Ratio, mandalas, transformations, patterns, and more!

• Coding/ Computer Science Discoveries (CS Discoveries) 7th grade: is an introductory computer science course that empowers students to create authentic artifacts and engage with computer science as a medium for creativity, communication, problem solving, and fun. Unit One: Problem Solving and Computing is a highly interactive and collaborative introduction to the field of computer science, as framed within the broader pursuit of solving problems. You’ll practice using a problem solving process to address a series of puzzles, challenges, and real world scenarios. Next, you’ll learn how computers input, output, store, and process information to help humans solve problems. The unit concludes with a project in which you design an application that helps solve a problem of your choosing. Unit Two: Web Development - In Unit 2, you’ll learn how to create and share the content on your own web pages. After deciding what content you want to share with the world, you’ll learn how to structure and style your pages using HTML and CSS. You’ll also practice valuable programming skills such as debugging and commenting. By the end of the unit, you’ll have a personal website that you can publish to the Internet. Unit Three: Animations and Games - In Unit 3, you’ll build on your coding experience as you program animations, interactive art, and games in Game Lab. The unit starts off with simple shapes and builds up to more sophisticated sprite-based games, using the same programming concepts and the design process computer scientists use daily. In the final project, you’ll develop a personalized, interactive program.

• Around the World in 90 Days 7th: Experience various countries, foods, and traditions through projects and literature.

• Agriculture, Foods, and Natural Resources 7th and 8th grade: explore careers and opportunities in agriculture, horticulture and natural resources. We also learn principles of growing micro greens, as well as problem based learning. Every semester is slightly different, they can take the class both in seventh grade and in eighth grade.

• Family Consumer Sciences 8th grade: This course is intended to provide students with knowledge and skills which will aid them in managing work and family responsibilities for the well-being of self and others. This course will provide students with an overview of four major content areas of Family and Consumer Sciences. Students will be introduced to child development, family relationship concepts and how they relate to family dynamics. Additionally, students will learn communication skills, personal hygiene and clothing care, basic hand sewing skills, clothing care, conflict management, improving family relationships, making healthy food decisions and babysitting and career exploration.

• American History in Film 8th grade: American History in Film is a semester-long course during which we will watch historical films that focus on an era, event or person in American history. Prior to watching the films, students will learn about all the factors, both geographic and political, that create the historical topic of the film. They will use primary and secondary sources, maps, and other resources to create a framework for understanding. After watching the film, activities involving research, writing and presentation skills will be used for comparison to actual events.

• World History in Film 8th grade: World History in Film is a semester-long course during which we will watch historical films that focus on an era, event or person in World history. Prior to watching the films, students will learn about all the factors, both geographic and political, that create the historical topic of the film. They will use primary and secondary sources, maps, and other resources to create a framework for understanding. After watching the film, activities involving research, writing and presentation skills will be used for comparison to actual events.