Middle School Curriculum Overview
ENGLISH/LANGUAGE ARTS
In the Middle School, students are immersed deeper into literature, writing, grammar and research. To meet the individual needs of our students, we provide direct instruction of skills and strategies to improve comprehension and writing. Application of the skills occurs in literature groups, individual book conferences and writing assignments. Our flexible curriculum continuously evolves as we learn about the needs and interests of our students.
The broad program goals for all students are to:
- Acquire and develop reading skills.
- Acquire and develop writing skills and techniques in narrative, descriptive, persuasive, creative and expository modes.
- Study and apply standard English grammar in speaking and writing.
- Develop a strong and varied vocabulary.
- Explore diverse literary works that allow students to recognize universal themes and to compare styles and ideas across the curriculum.
- Develop oral communication skills.
- Develop strong study habits and skills.
- Acquire and use a variety of technology applications for research and writing.
Challenging and enriching assignments engage students at every level, leaving them well-prepared to meet the demands of the most rigorous secondary school curriculum and helping them to develop into critical thinkers and life-long learners. (top)
FINE ARTS
The art curriculum for the students at Next Generation integrates the visual arts with history, social sciences, literature, math and science. Each art lesson is intended to enhance curricular learning objectives through a creative, hands-on approach. Students will explore different media, including, but not limited to: sculpture, textiles, watercolor, acrylic paint, printmaking, drawing and collage.
The focus of the art program is to concentrate on creative expression more than the actual art product. We will encourage the students to find their ideas in the world around them and to interpret those ideas through experimentation with media and tools in the classroom. (top)
FRENCH: LEVELS I, II, and III
The goals and objectives of the program are to develop proficiency skills in reading, writing, listening and speaking in French, as well as to develop cultural sensitivity. Students will also explore different aspects of French culture through various activities such as cooking, watching French movies and going to the museum.
In each level of the program, we will work through each lesson in the book at a varied pace, depending on the material presented in the lesson.
Students of French will:
- Develop proficiency through listening, reading, speaking and writing.
- Develop an understanding of the culture—its daily life, history, literature and arts.
- Develop insights into languages and cultures through comparison and contrast.
- Make connections with other disciplines such as the arts, English and history.
- Develop critical and creative thinking abilities, as well as organizational, cooperative and study skills. (top)
HISTORY
Students will learn about people and explore events that helped shaped our world into what it is today, while engaging in critical thinking activities and inquiry exercises designed to help them learn how to form opinions about important issues and apply their understanding of the past to modern-day topics.
Within the courses, units will be centered on a series of essential questions so students may learn how to organize their thinking and decide what is important to understand about an era.
6th Grade: World History
The goal of this course is to explore the history of the world from the time of Rome until the discovery of the New World by European explorers.
In addition to the unit questions, the course is framed around the questions “How does geography affect how people live?” and “What are the cultural legacies of the civilizations/time periods that we are studying?”
7th Grade: United States History: Beginnings – 1876
8th Grade: United States History: Modern America – 1876 to the Present
The 7th grade curriculum explores the history of the United States from pre-Columbian times to the end of the Civil War and Reconstruction. The 8th grade curriculum explores the history of the United States from the end of Reconstruction to the modern day. In addition to the unit questions, both grade level curricula are framed around the question “How does America’s past affect its present?” (top)
MATHEMATICS
The goals of the Next Generation School mathematics curriculum are to empower our students to think logically about solving problems, to develop their organization and communication skills and to prepare them for higher-level mathematics. Toward these ends, our curriculum meets and exceeds state and national content standards, while also being largely process-oriented and focused on problem-solving strategies.
The program is organized around the following sequence of courses: Foundations Math, Pre-Algebra, Algebra and Advanced Mathematics.
Middle school mathematics should help students learn to value mathematics as well as become more confident in their ability to do mathematics. It should also help foster better problem solvers and provide students with the tools to be able to communicate mathematically and to reason mathematically. Emphasis is placed on developing a solid understanding of concepts and applying them. We recognize that students differ in terms of their conceptual development and that development is not an even process for all individuals. To meet all students where they are, we incorporate a variety of methods, including hands-on activities, cooperative learning tasks, problem solving, projects and technology. (top)
PERFORMING ARTS
The goals of the performing arts curriculum embody the Next Generation School philosophy that education in music and dance is essential to nurturing the cognitive, physical, social and emotional growth of children. Through musical and movement activity, students are empowered with a sense of joy, creative independence, self-worth, openness and confidence.
The Upper Middle School curriculum builds upon Lower Middle School skills learned and assumes a higher level of involvement in the culture of music and movement.
Our yearly goals meet and significantly exceed Illinois state curricular goals. Students learn the elements of music and music theory; they also develop an understanding of rhythm, coordination and melody by participating in percussion/drumming, dance and voice. Our curriculum also emphasizes movement, with detailed, regular studies of Irish dance, as well as creative choreography and proper performance etiquette. Music-making, by definition, is interactive; our program offers many performance opportunities throughout the school year.
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
The physical education program provides a kinesthetic learning environment in which students can develop their physical, social and cognitive skills. For the benefits of exercise and physical activity to be fully realized, students have daily Physical Education classes. Students are introduced to a range of physical activities that include both team and individual sports and lifetime physical activities.
Our program is based on the Illinois State Standards and National Standards for physical development, emphasizing three learning areas: fitness and wellness, basic movement skills and concepts, and movement forms. Fitness concepts are presented in each unit, with fitness tests conducted at the beginning and end of the school year. These concepts are presented through both physical activity and classroom projects. Movement skills/concepts and forms are presented simultaneously and through a variety of teaching styles. We also emphasize the importance of life-long fitness and wellness. Our curricular goals include teaching students the components of fitness and their relationship to physical activity and wellness. (top)
SCIENCE
Middle School students have daily science classes. The content covered is tied to state and national standards. The standards call for science to be investigative and problem-solving, integrating science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
The Department of Education recently reviewed curriculum materials and identified seven as exemplary or promising. At Next Generation School, we pull from this set of materials. These materials situate the content in a context of investigating and solving some real-world problem.
This emphasis, coupled with the caliber and maturity of the students, enables us to cover a school-year worth of material in about half a year. This leaves time to explore several topics in greater depth. For example, after completing a unit on electricity that covered the topics found in a typical middle school class, students had time to explore electronics and created an autonomous robot, which involved soldering a circuit board, programming an EPROM chip using a BASIC compiler and cutting, bending and fabricating a metal chassis. (top)
SPANISH: Levels I and II
The Spanish curriculum emphasizes developing fluency in conversation, reading and writing. By the end of the three-year sequence, students will have the skills required to carry on and understand intermediate-level conversations, read intermediate-level texts (stories, novels, newspaper articles) and write correspondence, term papers and short stories in the Spanish language.
Practice in speaking and listening is essential to skill development. Fluency is achieved through an emphasis on reading and listening comprehension, such as dictations, journals and free-writes. During the course of the school year, students also have an opportunity to complete several long-term projects that focus on the cultures of Spanish-speaking countries. Projects may involve research, writing, presentations and activities such as preparing traditional foods. (top)
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