6th Grade Electives and Support Classes

In addition to the core classes of Math, Science, English Language Arts, and Social Studies, you will also be taking two elective classes. You will have the opportunity to engage in a variety of elective classes offered at every grade level. In the 6th grade, you may take year long classes like Band and Orchestra or semester long classes like AVID and Coding. You will also be on the elective wheel, which are nine-week courses that rotate through the school year. They include: Health, Computer Science, Art, and Multimedia. Some of you may be enrolled in support classes such as Accelerated Reading, ELD, or Study Skills.

Elective Classes

Art

Explore your creative side while sharpening your artistic skills. Create original works of art using a variety of different materials and techniques.

Taught by Mr. Drobot

AVID

This class provides support and instruction to help students prepare for college. Students learn strategies for studying and test taking and how to plan and organize their schoolwork through the use of calendars, assignments logs and binder checks.

Taught by Ms. Brown, Ms. Liu, and Ms. Steneck

Coding

Students will learn how to be productive digital citizens and learn to code programs and websites using Blockly, HTML and CSS.

Taught by Ms. Gin

Computer Science

Students will learn the foundational concepts and skills of computer science (CS). Students will build their understanding through creative projects in the Scratch programming language, where they will make animations, music, games, stories, and art.

Taught by Mr. Cervantes

Music: Band or Orchestra

James Denman is proud to be able to offer Band (Woodwinds, Brass, and Percussion) and Orchestra (Violin, Viola, Cello, and Bass) classes. You will learn how to read music, play an instrument, and have fun making music with others.

Taught by Mr. deFuniak

Digital Media Arts

The course covers graphic design, fundamentals of digital photography, video production and editing. In graphic design and digital photography, students will be using Adobe Photoshop and other Creative Cloud Apps and Sumopaint. Students will be using iMovie for video production. Students will also learn digital citizenship, computer and internet literacy and safety.

Taught by Mr. Francisco

Health

Students learn and practice the protective skills to make good choices and stay engaged in school despite the pitfalls of substance abuse, bullying, cyber-bullying, unhealthy foods, and peer pressure. They learn how their brain and body changes during their teen years, as well as how to care for and nurture them. Additionally, Puberty and Anatomy classes teach students about reproductive health, body development, positive body image, and healthy relationships while promoting values of diversity and inclusion.

Taught by Ms. Ortega

Support Classes

Accelerated Reading

The Accelerated Literacy elective class is designed to excite and engage all middle schoolers in the world of reading. This semester long class provides an opportunity to receive small group interactive support and instruction from highly trained literacy teachers. Accelerated Literacy is designed to better strengthen and expand the literacy skills and strategies our middle schoolers need to ignite a deeper love of reading.

Taught by Ms. Steneck

English Language Development (ELD)

Students in ELD classes focus on skills needed to succeed in all their classes. ELD Standards include (1) Interacting in Meaningful Ways, (2) Learning About How English Works and (3) Using Foundational Literacy Skills. ELD lessons incorporate the ELD Standards by supporting students in four major skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing and are designed to give students more practice in each area. Skills are taught through protocols including, but not limited to, Academic Conversations, Structured Language Practice and Collaborative and Guided Reading strategies.

Taught by Ms. Kim, Ms. Pengosro, and Ms. Schwartz

Math Acceleration

The Math Acceleration Course is designed to give students the time and support they need to develop their mathematical understanding and confidence. The emphasis of the course is to develop strategies for tackling and solving problems, to communicate mathematical reasoning, and to deepen conceptual understanding of prior standards.

Taught by Ms. Poulos

Study Skills

In Study Skills we will focus on organization, self advocacy, and foundational skills that are necessary for academic success. Classwork will be in the areas of reading, writing, and math. Students may also have opportunities to work on assignments from their general education classes. All classwork will be designed to help students build their academic skills and meet their IEP goals.

Taught by Ms. Min and Mr. Crnich