Eighth GradeMiddle School - A8

Welcome!!

• Emily Barry Marston, Cultural Studies & Language Arts, High School Advisor

• Jim Bumbulsky, Mathematics

• Wendy Furry, Science

• Matt Eskin, Associate Head and High School Admission

Overview• Theme - We, the People

• Content: Community and Citizenship and the Agreements That Shape Them.

Essential Questions• Who am I and what is my place in the world? • What does it mean to be a responsible and active citizen? • What are my roles and responsibilities to myself and others? • How do individuals, groups, and institutions change society? • How do we engage fully in civic discussion consistent with the ideals of citizens in a democratic republic? • What forms of citizen action can influence public policy? • What are the unique challenges and responsibilities of American citizenship in a 21st century global context? • Where am I going next? What's my journey? • How do I understand and seek multiple perspectives?

Organization of the Year

• Fall: Community

• Winter: Connections

• Spring: Choices

Fall: CommunityBuilding a Democratic Community: Constitutions Worldwide; Greco-Roman Roots; the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights !Natural Relationships in Science !Building an Eighth-Grade Community of Leaders

!!!

Fall, continued...!!Sample Projects and Activities:

Monthly Constitutional Debates Essay writing Experiential labs Family Groups

!Beyond TPS:

Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education The Philadelphia Museum of Art National Constitution Center Free Library of Philadelphia

!Essential Texts:

A Message of Ancient Days The Words We Live By (Linda R. Monk) Plain, Honest Men (Richard Beeman) Warriors Don’t Cry (Melba Pattillo Beals)

Winter: Connections• Connecting the Past to the Present

• Constitutional Issues in the 21st Century

Winter, continued...!

• Identify an issue that you feel most pressing today.

• Problem-centered research paper, including interviews and documentary evidence (text, images, and media)

• Presentation of research to school community.

Spring: Choices!

!

• Case Study in Civic Responsibility: Choices in Little Rock

• TPS and Beyond: Yearbook, Digital Citizenship, Mini Courses, and Puerto Rico

!

!

Spring, continued...• Focus: Efforts to desegregate Central

High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957

• Exploration of civic choices--decisions people make as citizens of a democracy.

• Interactive activities based on a variety of primary sources including photographs, archival film footage, eyewitness accounts (Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pettillo Beals), telegrams, speeches, and diaries.

• Spring trip to Washington, D.C.

Field Trips: 2013 - 2014

• Friends’ Central Science Lab: Genetics workshop with FC students on their Emerald Moth Project

• Philadelphia Museum of Art: How We Present Ourselves as Americans: Tuesday, Dec.3, Dec. 10, and Dec. 17.

• National Constitution Center: Workshop on the Bill of Rights: Tuesday, Jan. 7

• Central Library: Research: Thurs. and Fri., January 9 and 10. Library cards needed.

• Washington, D.C.: Newseum, Senator Casey’s office, and White House Conference Center: Thursday, April 24.

Puerto Rico• Case study: community,

connection, choices • History, culture, science, and

language study in preparation for the trip in the spring.

ScienceFall:

Chemistry: Properties of Matter - Atoms and the universal forces - Elements and the Periodic table

- Chemical Reactions - Chemical Bonds

!Winter: Motion

-Newton’s Laws of motion !

Ecology of Puerto Rico -Background preparation for our science explorations on the

island of Puerto Rico !

Spring: Ecology: Living Systems perspective

-Properties of a living system -Ecology focused on waste, water and energy

-Researching Environmental Issues

Reading, Writing, and Drama • Reading important works of literature that are

connected to our thematic study, such as Olivia Coolidge’s Greek Myths, Homer’s Iliad, Twain’s Huckleberry Finn, and Hentoff ’s The Day They Came to Arrest the Book.

• Regular writing in classes (scientific, expository, narrative, persuasive) as well as a formal research report

• Study of grammatical rules through an introduction to Latin; vocabulary building through Mini Myths and Maxi Words.

• Personal journal completed weekly

• Class discussions and activities centered on assigned literature, as well as writing skills and mechanics

• SSR notebooks

• Keeping track of assignments and being accountable for daily and long-term assignments; poetry anthology

• Shakespeare Festival in February (week of the 23rd; evening performances 26th and 27th)

Mathematics!Patterns

•different relationships between variables • linear, exponential, quadratic functions

in tables, graphs and equations !

• exploring the way numbers tell the story of the world around us • Predictions, data, analysis

!Rules

• derived from explorations, represent a pattern in variables that can be applied to all numbers

!• rules can be used be applied to simplify

problems and solve for unknowns !

Algebra is about finding patterns and deriving and using rules.

Mathematics

Units of Study !1. Patterns and Problem Solving 2. Linear Functions 3. Systems of Equations 4. Inequalities and Absolute Values 5. Exponential Relationships 6. Polynomials 7. Factoring 8. Radicals 9. Quadratics 10. Rational Expressions and Equations

!!Primary Text: Prentice Hall Classics

!!

Spanish: !

Benchmarks, Texts, Homework, Support, Puerto Rico,

High School Transition

High School Applications:

Communication!

We are committed to supporting your students through the process of applying to high schools,

including independent, charter, and public choices. !

In addition to High School Night, we offer a series of lunches with admission officers from various private and public schools. Check our Google

calendar and Friday notes for details. !

Emily Marston and Matt Eskin are the primary contacts about all high school

applications.

Decisions and Community

•Weekly meetings to talk about 8th grade leadership opportunities

•Tackle big issues related to adolescent development and diversity

• Cross grade activities •Digital citizenship

• Yearbook • Gender and affinity groups

Advisories

• We meet twice daily in advisory groups; write weekly journals

• Your child has an advisor who is your child’s primary contact person.

CommunicationWe value an ongoing

connection with parents. Ways you can learn about what your child is doing

include: !

checking Student Central conferences Friday notes

emails meetings

To Do List:

• Sign up for ERB conferences in September with either Matt or Emily.

• Summer work and supply list will be posted soon on our website. All Middle School students will read Laurie Halse Anderson’s Forge which focuses on the events at Valley Forge during the Revolutionary War from an escaped slave’s point of view.

• Visit the websites of high schools in which you are interested to get a sense of the variety of options available.

• Sign up for SSAT’s or ISEE’s for either October or November dates.

• Students living in Philadelphia should have a current library card (adult) before January.

We look forward to working with you!