Fourth Year Curriculum

This language arts course for fourth year students will integrate writing with the study of literature. The study and review of grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure will be incorporated into the writing process as students refine and improve their compositions through multiple drafts. Students will have regular opportunities to apply their skills as they craft essays, editorials, short stories, poetry, and research reports. All four sections will read To Kill a Mockingbird and complete an in-depth research project on the 1930's. Additional novels and short stories will be assigned in each of the different sections. Some elements will vary based on instructor.

In this course we will use the text, Beginning Algebra with Applications, by Aufmann, Barker and Lockwood. The goal of the class is to begin at the beginning of the text and work our way through as far as we can in order to best prepare students for a full year of Algebra I in the future. The text is a college level text with vocabulary that can be challenging, yet necessary to learn. All students are expected to have a basic calculator available to them at home and in class. Students will have homework generally four nights a week.

In Algebra 1, students will make connections between concrete and abstract concepts. Some of the major topics covered will include solving equations, polynomials, factoring, algebraic fractions, linear equations, the quadratic formula, functions and inequalities. Students will be required to keep a binder dedicated to this class only, which will house class work, homework, and notes. We will be using the text, Beginning Algebra with Applications, by Aufmann, Barker and Lockwood. It is expected that students have a calculator available for both home and school use.

The objects studied include lines and angles, triangles, quadrilaterals, general and regular polygons, circles and solid figures. Topics of study include constructions with straightedge and compass, measurement (angular, linear, area and volume), congruency, similarity and proofs. There is also an introduction to right triangle Trigonometry.

Using the text, Mathematics: A Human Endeavor, by Harold Jacobs, this class is an exciting opportunity for mathematical enrichment. Basic skills are reinforced as the students apply what they know to new concepts that are completely different from those they have seen before. In addition to the math skills used in all text exercises, review in basic skills is interspersed throughout the years. Students should expect homework at least four nights a week. All students are expected to have a calculator available to them for both class and homework.

This rigorous course will study the story of America from the French and Indian War to the present day. Many perspectives on our country's history will be considered. As the class takes up particular units of study (such as the Constitution, Native Americans, Civil Rights, the Civil War), students will have the opportunity to choose topics for individual research and to share what they learn by producing projects, reports, and creative writing and displays. Students will both participate in and lead class discussions. Weekly readings will be assigned. Each student will also complete several major projects during the course of the year, and time will be devoted toward developing important social studies skills such as reading, research, recognition of historical trends and patterns, summarization, and both creative and narrative writing. Students will have regular reading assignments and homework, including six required historical novels, and optional "extra recognition" readings and projects.

This course will focus on environmental issues. In the fall as we study ecology we will be investigating topics like land use, waste disposal, ecosystems, invasive species, and the impacts of population growth both here in the Triangle and globally. During the winter trimester our focus will be on chemistry as we learn more about water, pollution (acid rain and air pollution in particular), and greenhouse gases. In the spring we will investigate the physics of energy and energy use in our society (oil, coal, solar, wind, and other emerging technologies). Class time will consist of a variety of activities including note taking, discussions, experiments and laboratory exercises, research, and student presentations. There will be several student projects and presentations during each trimester. There will also be periodic quizzes and tests throughout each trimester and ample opportunities to practice test taking skills and strategies. We will be reading material from a variety of sources and learning ways to examine and understand scientific concepts and vocabulary.