Electives

Table of Contents

FULL YEAR - ELECTIVES

PERFORMING ARTS

Required concert attire for music ensembles:

Uniform concert dress is required for all ensemble performances. Concert dress consists of solid white shirts with long sleeves and man-tailored collars (no ties) and black slacks or long skirts (legs must be covered). Shirts/blouses are to be tucked in. Dark dress shoes should be worn. 

674 BAND 7

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

YEAR COURSE 

PREREQUISITE: BAND 6 or the equivalent; Instructor approval required. Band 7 is designed for students continuing their instrumental studies on a brass, woodwind, or percussion instrument. Private lessons are strongly recommended for all students.  Band 7 performs music from the traditional band repertoire as well as popular music and show tunes. Attendance and participation at performances are a required part of this course. A limited number of advanced grade band 7th members have the opportunity to audition for the Eastern Massachusetts Junior District Festival Band in January.  Continuous membership is strongly recommended for those planning to play in High School band ensembles. 

672 CHORUS 7

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

YEAR COURSE 

Chorus is designed for male and female students who wish to refine their singing abilities while exploring a broad range of music ranging from traditional to popular genres. As they continue to develop their skills in the areas of tone production, breath support, phrasing, music reading, blend, and rhythmic accuracy, students also grow in confidence, pride, and group spirit. Students are challenged to learn music in two and three part harmony and to continue to develop skills in unison and round singing. Attendance and participation at performances are a required part of this course.  A limited number of advanced grade chorus 8th members have the opportunity to audition for the Eastern Massachusetts Junior District Festival Choruses in January.  Continuous membership is strongly recommended for those planning to sing in High School vocal ensembles. 

612 JAZZ BAND 7

(Admission by Audition only) 

MEETS BEFORE SCHOOL 

YEAR COURSE 

The Jazz Band is designed to provide an opportunity for technically advanced wind, percussion, guitar, bass instrumentalists and pianists in grades 7 and 8.  Students learn to perform jazz and contemporary music styles and are introduced to jazz improvisation. Members of the Jazz Band who play wind and percussion instruments are required to perform in their grade level Bands. Guitar, bass players, and pianists should be enrolled in orchestra or chorus.  Jazz band students perform in concerts where their participation is required.

610 ORCHESTRA 7

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

YEAR COURSE 

Seventh graders who play violin, viola, cello, and string bass participate in this orchestra. This ensemble is designed to provide string players with a substantive performance experience and to prepare them for advanced playing.  Repertoire for the Orchestra is primarily drawn from the Baroque and Classical periods, as well as music from later stylistic periods. Orchestra students perform in regularly scheduled concerts throughout the year. Attendance and participation at performances are a required part of this course.  Technically advanced orchestra members have the opportunity to audition for the Eastern Massachusetts Junior District Festival Orchestra. Private lessons are strongly recommended for all students. Continuous membership is strongly recommended for those planning to play in High School orchestral ensembles. 

SEMESTER - ELECTIVES

PERFORMING ARTS

676 DRAMA 7

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

SEMESTER COURSE (Can be taken twice for a full year)

Drama for 7th grade builds on existing theatre skills while adding new and challenging elements of improvisation.  The highlights of the curriculum involve working with scripts to help with character development, stage business and scene study.  In addition, students explore character backstories and perspective through monologue work. Blending improvisation with text work helps the students discover that the work of an actor involves being observant, perceptive and empathetic.

TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING

890/1 - COMPUTER SCIENCE I 7/8

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

SEMESTER COURSE 

This semester-long, three-times-a-cycle course will be offered to 7th and 8th grade students. Through the Codesters platform and curriculum, it introduces the principles of computer science at a middle-school-appropriate level and links these principles to algebraic thinking.  In this course, students will complete a series of lessons designed to teach the basic syntax, structure, and process of writing programs in Python. These projects will tackle the following concepts: data types, variables, conditionals, loops, lists, algorithms, and debugging. Students create coding projects throughout the course and at course completion.

SUPPORT CLASSES

READING / WRITING

070 READING 7

THREE OR SIX BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

The grade 7 Reading courses target word recognition, vocabulary and comprehension skills and strategies for students with needs in those areas. Students have opportunities to build fluency through reading appropriately leveled texts. Placement in the Reading course is a result of recommendations from literacy specialists in consultations with school counselors. 

MATHEMATICS

370 MATH WORKSHOP 7

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

YEAR COURSE 

The Grade 7 Math Workshop provides extra support to students who are enrolled in a regular (everyday) mathematics course.  It targets computational skills and foundational concepts in math for students with significant needs in those areas. Students have opportunities to build skills proficiency and strong conceptual understanding of fundamental mathematical ideas through a variety of classroom and computer-based activities.  The workshop teacher may also provide some support for the students' regular mathematics work, as time permits. Placement in this course is by recommendation of the classroom teacher in consultation with specialists, the school counselor, and parents.

ENGLISH LEARNERS

198 ENGLISH LEARNERS (EL) 7

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE 

YEAR COURSE 

The English Language Development course is designed to provide support services to our English Language Learners.  The course targets essential academic reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills needed for academic success.  Students have the opportunity to practice and develop language-based academic skills so they can participate meaningfully in their content area classrooms.  Participation is determined by an English language proficiency assessment.

ACADEMIC AND SEL ENRICHMENT

889 SCHOLARS 7 

THREE BLOCKS PER CYCLE

SEMESTER COURSE (Can be taken twice for full year)

A support class for seventh graders that allows for the previewing of selected academic content, as it relates to important skills needed for work in specific subject areas. Additionally, social and emotional skills are taught that support students with identity, race/ethnicity and affinity with classmates.