Third Year Curriculum

Students will explore and develop various forms of the written word, including letters, poetry, short stories and essays. Students will practice the writing process (pre-writing, drafting, editing, rewriting) as well as peer, self and teacher editing as they learn how to create powerful, organized pieces of writing. Students will also take part in formal literary discussions, study parts of speech and sentence mechanics, and learn new vocabulary. All Writing Quest classes will read The Giver and a variety of other novels and short stories. Elements will vary between the classes.

Picking up where Math 6 left off, Pre-Algebra will begin with a reflection of where we’ve come from in our past-math-lives which will include a review of fractions, decimals, percentages, signed numbers, and exponents. Then, hold on tight as we move to deepen our understanding of mathematics as we journey toward the land of Algebra. We will start with making sure we’ve got our ducks in a row (order of operations), continue on to experience formulas and plug-it-in, plug-it-in and head out to surf the coordinate plane with graphing and geometry. We’ll also spend some time with the Jacobs text including some hands-on math and also stretching our brains around our problem-solving skills and mathematical / logical reasoning. Sound boring? Wrong!! We’re gonna rock-n-roll!

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 year. 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 inquiry-focused class is based on the belief that we are all scientists, and that science is a way of seeing the world rather than a collection of facts. Throughout the year we will emphasize observing and understanding the changing natural world and our place in it. The curriculum includes study of weather and climate; biological evolution, natural selection and adaptation; the interdependence of life; chemical change and the structure of matter; and other topics that may arise from current events and student interests. Students have opportunities for hands-on discovery and experimentation throughout the year, both in the laboratory and in the environment of the school grounds. They will gather data, analyze it, and learn how it helps us better understand the world. Studies draw on skills learned in third year math classes and integrate writing and art as well. Students are encouraged to ask questions and discover answers.

This class introduces students to civics, government, and the history and geography of the United States. We will ask the questions “Who is a person?” and “What rights do we have and what limits do we want to put on them?” We will consider how we are similar to other countries and how we are different. We will look at how our government is set up, and learn about the Constitution and Declaration of Independence. Students will also learn the location and capitals of the fifty states and investigate significant events, past and present, which have challenged our nation.

This class will offer students the opportunity to thoughtfully consider and reflect on issues of their own identity, where our perspectives and stereotypes come from, and the lens through which we see the world. With developmentally appropriate actives, videos, and discussions, students will be encouraged to think about topics such as race, class, gender, religion, culture, power, and privilege. We will explore our similarities and differences, ultimately gaining a better understanding of who we all are. Taught in conjunction with Drawing and Painting Techniques.

¡Hola! ¿Cómo estás? This rotation class gives us the chance to practice Spanish conversation in lots of different ways, explore Hispanic culture, celebrate the Hispanic heritage month and día de los muertos. We'll focus on “survival Spanish” that we can use on a field trip to a tienda (Mexican store) and for ordering a meal.