RELATED ARTS 

ART APPRECIATION 6: The curriculum is designed to widen student awareness of the artistic process and to expose students to activities and projects fostering creative thinking through various media and technology.  It is also geared to reinforce respect between use of tools, techniques, and materials.  Students develop an “art” vocabulary and learn to apply integration of shapes, lines and colors into objects.  Projects challenge students with a variety of situations relating to styles, movements, artists, and cultures.  

FULL STEAM AHEAD 6:  In this course, students will discover that STEAM principles can be applied to most aspects of their lives.  They will learn about the engineering design process and how to apply these steps to problems of varying difficulties.  To effectively complete the engineering process, students will learn how to conduct online research.  Full Steam Ahead is aligned with the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Science, Technology, and 21st Century Life and Careers.  It focuses on incorporating the professional use of resources and encouraging collaboration to enhance problem solving and to ensure cross content and interdisciplinary activities particularly in the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) subjects. 

STAGE AND SOUND 6:  The Stage and Sound course is a required course in the sixth grade cycles program.  It is composed of two units that use project-based learning and public speaking skills to create engaging lessons that promote critical thinking and provide real-world connections.  The goal is to provide worthwhile musical and theatrical experiences for students in which they will learn a variety of musical concepts and acting/rehearsal techniques to use in their everyday lives.  Stage and Sound exposes students to the fundamentals of music and theatre in various genres.  It includes (1) Elements of Music and (2) Elements of Theatre.  

1. Elements of Music: This will help students gain an understanding of how music is put together by listening, analyzing, and creating examples of the different musical elements and various instruments in instrument families.  

2. Elements of Theatre: Students will learn the importance and connections of public speaking and entertainment through short theatrical performances.  Students will study rehearsal and acting techniques, monologues, stage directions, character development, and parts of storytelling. 

WORLD LANGUAGE 6: Is a cycle course listed in the Languages section of this book.   

ART APPRECIATION 7: Creative art activities and projects are an integral part of this course.  The discipline and creativity involved in the production of artwork is supplemented by art history as well as learning how to evaluate and analyze the art of self and of others.  Through the awareness of cross content and the application of the various disciplines, students begin to appreciate and strengthen their perceptual awareness of the aesthetics of art and the influence of differing cultures. 

EXPLORING FOOD AND NUTRITION 7:  Students will learn their way around a kitchen and how to make healthy food choices.  Safety and sanitation are the building blocks upon which the exploration begins.  The students then leverage the USDA resource MyPlate, to learn about nutrition and that everything they eat and drink matters.  The students maintain daily food journals to ensure they're eating a well balanced diet and are meeting their calorie needs which they will have calculated.  They also design electronic "cookbooks" with healthy recipes that they've researched and identified as foods they would like to cook.  Students also study the other "NFL",  the nutrition facts label, and the wealth of information it provides for making healthy food choices.  Students will have the opportunity to cook a variety of items from the five food groups including eggs, pasta, vegetables, and even some sweet treats from different parts of the world.  Students will put all of these skills into use as they explore what it means to be an educated consumer and a productive part of the community.   

FINANCIAL FITNESS 7:  The Financial Fitness course is a required course in the seventh grade cycles program.  The instructional time will focus on four critical areas of financial fitness: (1) career exploration; (2) saving and credit, (3) budgeting; (4) investing. 

1. Students will learn to search for careers available to meet their interests and personal strengths. 

2. Students will develop strong saving habits.

3. Students will create budgets based on career and goals. 

4. Students will learn about the importance of investing for the future.  

The skills taught during the course will help students build core personal finance skills and real-world strategies they can use in the future.  Through engaging resources and activities, students will practice these skills so they can get started on the right track to effectively manage their personal finances!  Financial Fitness is aligned with the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for the 21st Century Life and Career Skills. 

STEAM 7:  Steam 7 is a required course in the seventh grade cycles program and has been developed from the New Jersey Student Learning Standards.  Full Steam Ahead is aligned with the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Science, Computer Science/Design Thinking, and 21st Century Life and Careers.  Students will discover that STEAM principles of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics can be applied to most aspects of their lives.  Throughout this course students will learn about the engineering design process and how to apply these steps to problems of varying difficulties.  Students will be provided with a challenge in each unit including engineering a cavern to survive an asteroid impact, engineering an eco-house focusing on sustainability, and solving a problem of their choosing. 

ART APPRECIATION 8:  In this course, students will build on their previous knowledge and skills to achieve new levels of creativity, skills, and understanding.  Activities emphasize art as self-expression, structure and the language of art, history of art, influences of art on culture as well as multicultural aspects and impact of art on society.  Attention is directed towards encouraging awareness of art and encouraging creativity and sound judgement in the production of art by using various media and relevant technology.  It also stresses the importance of art in our daily lives and allows for the sharing and expression of ideas.  

CREATIVE CODING 8: The goal of this curriculum is to adapt Code.org’s Computer Science Discoveries course entitled Introduction to Computer Science to empower students to create authentic artifacts and engage with computer science as a medium of creativity, communication, problem solving, and fun.  It is aligned with the Computer Science Teacher Association (CSTA) K-12 Computer Science Standards, 21st Career and Life Skills, and Technology.  Creative Coding is designed to be accessible for all students, regardless of background or prior experience.  It provides opportunities to interact with culturally and personally relevant topics in a wide variety of contexts and aims to show all students that Computer Science is for them.  We know that giving students agency in their learning is a powerful tool for creating fun, problem-solving, and lasting learning experiences.  Creative Coding focuses on the skills that enable students to create and express themselves in a variety of contexts and media.  Whether they are developing their own website, designing an app, or building a game, students will be empowered to bring their ideas to life.  

TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION 8:  This course will provide background knowledge in Technology Education by exploring the history, evolution and social impacts that technologies have on society.  After establishing this foundation, students will discover how to engineer prototype solutions for society using a “research and develop" approach.  As a hands-on course, students learn how to follow a step by step Engineering Design Loop to create prototypes as an excellent way to collaborate in interdisciplinary STEAM activities. 

TV PRODUCTION 8: The goal of this curriculum is to give students the opportunity to learn about the process and elements of TV Production.  They are introduced to filming, scripting, editing and critiquing.  As such, students produce a quality program of their own.  In this way, they complete many problem-solving tasks.  Students also learn the importance of media/visual literacy, news analysis, and ethical issues. 

21ST CENTURY SKILLS: The 21st Century Skills course for middle school students aims to provide a solid foundation for essential skills and knowledge necessary to navigate various aspects of life.  The course is designed to empower students with practical skills that promote personal growth, enhance social interactions, and foster a positive mindset.  Through interactive activities, discussions, and real-world applications, students will develop critical life skills to succeed both inside and outside the classroom.