Middle School Curriculum Guide 2017-2018 This registration and course description booklet has been prepared to furnish you and your parents with information that will help you plan and select the appropriate courses for grades 6-8.
It is important that you read this entire booklet before you complete any registration forms. Many questions will be answered through the information offered here; however, additional information may be obtained through talking with your school counselor. Please remember that the requirements set by the North Union Board of Education and those established by the State of Ohio Department of Education must be fulfilled. North Union Middle School follows a policy of nondiscrimination in terms of age, race, color, sex, creed, religious affiliation, or ethnic origin in all programs. Course Load Requirements Every North Union Middle School student must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 classes per semester. This means a student can only have one Study hall per semester. Choice of Subjects Every student should choose encore classes after consultation with parents and reading the course descriptions. Per Board Policy and the Ohio Department of Education, all students must be enrolled and pass their enrolled grade level English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies courses to be promoted to the next grade level. In addition; 6 th Graders are required to take Physical Education and Health. 7 th graders are required to take Digital Literacy and Art. 8 th graders are required to take Physical Education and Health. Suggestions for Scheduling Students are encouraged to review with strengths and weaknesses when considering encore classes, middle school is a time for exploration. Students are encouraged to pursue classes out of their comfort zone. Students should use the encore classes to explore new areas of interests Review courses available and that are required Be realistic about your ability and aptitude when selecting classes for high school credit Discuss courses with parents, teachers and school counselor prior to submitting registration form The more planning and thought given to registration, the more rewarding and successful you middle school and high school experience will be. Schedule Changes Planning a schedule for the next school year is a difficult task and situations may occur requiring a change in student schedules. Students will register for classes in the spring and receive their new school year schedules at open. Students will have 2 weeks to make changes to their 1 st semester schedule, and 1 school week to make changes to their 2 nd semester schedule. Please understand not all changes will be granted due to master schedule and class size of existing classes. EDUCATIONAL OPTIONS College Credit Plus (CCP, CC+) and Advanced Placement College Credit Plus and accelerated learning are the major means for high school students to earn college credit, while attending high school. College Credit Plus is offered to students in grades 7-12 to earn college and high school credit through the successful completion college course work at the college or university level. Any student admitted to a course by an institution of high education will be expected to perform at the same level as the institution s regular
students. College courses should either contribute of supplement the broad academic preparation needed by school students. In order to be considered for the CCP program, the following criteria must be met 1. Receive counseling from the Middle School guidance counselor and sign the waiver mandated by legislations ( students and parents) 2. Be accepted by a college that have been approved to participate in the program by the Ohio Department of Education NUMS does not currently offer CCP classes, if a student chooses to participate in such classes and is accepted, classes will have to be completed through distance learning or off campus. Transportation is not provided by the school. Advanced Placement: Advanced Placement classes are offered in the areas of Math and ELA. Students are invited into these classes based on group IQ testing done in the 3 rd grade, MAP scores and State testing data. Students can be moved in and out of these advanced class at any time if the teacher, parent or student feels they are not being successful. NUMS also offers Spanish and Japanese to 8 th graders for High School credit. This class is also considered advanced placement. Students can express interest in this class, then after counselor, teacher and grade review students can be accepted. This is high school course, taught by the High school Spanish teacher. Students are expected to perform and adhere to all high school standards. REQUIRED Ohio Testing The Ohio Department of Education is currently using American Institute for Research (AIR) for state tests. State tests occur during the spring and are assigned as follows: 6 th Grade: ELA, Math and Social Studies 7 th Grade: ELA and Math 8 th Grade: ELA, Math and Science
Encore Course Descriptions 6 th Grade Band: Band is a YEAR LONG course, students may drop this course only during the first two weeks of school. Class time is used to develop and reinforce fundamental skills required to play a band instrument. Although the majority of time in class is spent working on unison play there are times where the students are working on independent skills. Most students in this class have been enrolled in 5 th Grade Band; however, it is still possible for students without any prior knowledge of how to play an instrument being able to participate in this class. Owning an instrument is also necessary to participate in this class. There are a few school owned instruments that are available to students who wish to be a part but cannot afford an instrument. Contact Mr. Leavitt if you have any other questions. 7 th and 8 th Grade Band High School Credit: 1 8 th grade students who participate in High School Marching Band only Band is YEAR LONG course, students may only drop this course during the first two weeks of school. The students will use a second level method book. The title of the book will be listed in the school supplies list that all students receive in preparation for classes for the new school year. Other music will be used to supplement the concepts learned. Class time is used to develop and reinforce fundamental required to play a band instrument. Class time is spent working on unison play and working on independent skills. Although most students in this class participated in 6 th grade band, it is still possible for students without any prior knowledge of how to play an instrument being able to participate in this class. Owning an instrument is also necessary to participate in this class, however, there are a few school owned instruments that are available to students who wish to be a part but cannot afford an instrument. Contact Mr. Leavitt if you have any other questions. 8 th grade students can earn 1 High School credit if they participate in marching band with the High School band. Participating in High School Marching band requires attending summer and after school rehearsals, football games and additional performances. 6 th Grade Choir: Choir is a YEAR LONG course, students may drop this course only during the first two weeks of school. Choir is a class that lasts all year, students may drop this course only during the first two weeks of school. Students will learn the basics for singing various vocal styles. Students will sing songs from various genres and with different vocal parts, as well as learning the basics of good vocal technique, and sight-singing. 7 th Grade Choir: Choir is a YEAR LONG course, students may drop this course only during the first two weeks of school. Choir is a class that lasts all year, students may drop this course only during the first two weeks of school. Students will learn the basics for singing various vocal styles. Students will sing songs from various genres and with different vocal parts, as well as learning the basics of good vocal technique, and sight-singing. 8 th Grade Choir: Choir is a YEAR LONG course, students may only drop this course during the first 2 weeks of school. Daily participation, attendance at all performances, and completing any class work that may be assigned is crucial to class success. Students will learn choral selections of various styles, folk songs from various countries, the National Anthem, songs in foreign languages, and music for the Winter and Spring concerts.
Music Technology 1: This class is an exploration into the study of music and technology, this is a Semester course. The students will be learning some ways to create their own musical selection, using the sound editing program Audacity, learn music notes on the treble and bass staff, basic music keyboard skills, and understanding of rhythms. All class time is spent in the computer lab. Students should have an understanding of basic computer usage. Music Technology 2 will be offered to students who have completed this course with a passing grade. Music Technology 2: This is a Semester course, should be selected only if the student has completed Music Technology 1 (with a passing grade) and would like to take the next level of Music Technology. This class is an exploration into the study of music and technology. The students will be learning more uses of the sound editing program Audacity, apply knowledge of music notes on the treble and bass staff, key signatures, intermediate music keyboard skills, learning to play along with a music track using the music program Band-in-a-Box, and understanding of rhythms. All class time is spent in the computer lab. (If you sign up for Both MT 1 & 2 and do not pass MT 1 I will remove you from MT 2 for the following quarter) COMPUTER & TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT Digital Literacy/Coding: Required course for 7 th grade students This is a semester course and can be taken in the 7 th grade. This class is REQUIRED for 7 th grade students. At NUMS our goal is to provide the best technology instruction in order to have our students identifiable as digitally literate. Digital literacy encompasses the ability to find, navigate, evaluate, and participate in digital environments for a variety of purposes. Chunks of digital literacty include Netiquette, Copyright/Wrong & Creative Commons, Cyber Bullying, Stereotypes/Propaganda, Digi Health & Wellness, Safety & Security. In the coding portion of the semester students to discover computer science concepts and skills by creating personally relevant, tangible, and shareable projects. Throughout the unit, students will learn about programming for the physical world by blending hardware design and software development. They will design and develop a physical computing device, interactive art installation, or wearable, and plan and develop code for microcontrollers that bring their physical designs to life. Microsoft Applications: This is a semester course. The Class Lab course teaches the MS Office Suite 2013 applications, which include Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Access. Students also work on building their individual keyboarding skill levels. The goal of the course is for students to become proficient in their ability and knowledge in creating quality documents, basic work/spreadsheets, basic databases, and presentations. The course is for a semester and is recommended for 2nd semester of 6th grade as well as 7th grade and 8th grade. Desktop Publishing: Pre-Requiste: Microsoft Apps High School Credit:.5 This is SEMESTER COURSE and is for.5 high school credit. Desktop publishing combines computer use and graphic design in order to create printed documents in a classlab setting. The hands-on course will focus on using desktop publishing software to effectively communicate messages in printed and/or digital form. The goal of this course is to use the combination of type, color, shapes, illustrations and images to produce professional printed materials. The software
being taught is Adobe InDesign CC, and Adobe Photoshop Elements 12. Students will learn how to design and publish products such as newsletters, posters, logos, signs, books, flyers, magazine covers, coupons, invitations and more. It is for high school credit as an 8th grader. 6th Grade Gateway to Technology: This is a Semester course. All Gateway To Technology (GTT) classes are part of a national pre-engineering education program called Project Lead the Way (PLTW). PLTW s programs emphasize critical thinking, creativity, innovation and real-world problem solving. GTT is designed to expose students to technology and the field of engineering through activities, projects and problem solving and spark an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math). In 6 th grade the focus is Automation and Robotics Students trace the history, development, and influence of automation and robotics. Students use robotics equipment to design, build and program a solution to solve an existing robotics problem. This is a semester long course. 7th Grade Gateway to Technology: This is SEMESTER COURSE. All Gateway to Technology (GTT) classes are part of a national pre-engineering education program called Project Lead the Way (PLTW). PLTW s programs emphasize critical thinking, creativity, innovation and real-world problem solving. GTT is designed to expose students to technology and the field of engineering through activities, and to spark an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) subjects and prepare students for further study in high school PLTW courses. In 7 th grade GTT the focus is Design and Modeling students are introduced to and use the design process to solve problems and understand the influence that creative and innovative design has on our lives. Students learn about important elements of design, measurement and sketching techniques and use industry standard 3D modeling computer. This is a semester long course. 8th Grade Gateway to Technology: GTT is a SEMESTER course. All GTT classes are part of a national pre-engineering education program called Project Lead the Way (PLTW). PLTW s programs emphasize critical thinking, creativity, innovation and real-world problem solving and expose students to technology and the field of engineering through activities, projects and problem solving. GTT is also designed to spark an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math). This unit will expose students to computer science and app creation by computationally analyzing and developing solutions to authentic problems through mobile app development, and will convey the positive impact of the application of computer science to other disciplines and to society. Health & PE 6 th Grade Health: Required for 6 th grade students This is a semester course which will cover topics such as Swine Flu/Types of Infections, Health and Wellness, The Skeletal System, Nutrition, and Physical Fitness. Students are also given the opportunity to engage in Power Point Assignments, hands-on-activities, listen to guest speakers, and view educational videos. 8 th Grade Health: High School Credit:.5 Required course for 8 th grade students In 8th grade health is a semester course. Topics that are taught and discussed include The Circulatory System, The Digestive System, The Nervous System, First Aid/CPR Growth/Development/Teen Pregnancy Unit, Healthy Relationships, Stress Management, and
Safety/Environment. Students are also given the opportunity to complete Power Point Assignments, hands-on-activities, listen to guest speakers, and view educational videos. This class is one semester long and is for high school credit. 6 th Grade Physical Education: Required course for 6 th grade students This is a semester course in which students will learn a variety of sports and games while incorporating the components of fitness into every lesson. Each student will demonstrate and perform skills as part of weekly assessments. Sportsmanship and teamwork are two of the primary focuses for this class and students will be required to use each of these every day. Students are required to change into gym clothes everyday and lockers will be assigned to each student at the beginning of the course. 8 th Grade Physical Education: High School Credit:.25 Required course for 8 th grade students This class is semester long course. Students will earn high school credit for this course. Students gain exposure to a variety of team and individual sports. Each student will demonstrate and perform skills as part of weekly assessments. Sportsmanship and teamwork are two of the primary focuses for this class and students will be required to use each of these every day. Students are required to change into gym clothes everyday and lockers will be assigned to each student at the beginning of the course. FINE ARTS Art 6: This is a Semester course. Students learn some basic right brain art techniques to improve their drawing skills. They are introduced to several media used to create art and have a chance to develop an interest in art as a life-long activity. Art 7: Required for 7 th grade students This is a Semester course. Students learn some basic right brain art techniques to improve their drawing skills. They are introduced to several media used to create art and have a chance to develop an interest in art as a life-long activity. Foundations of Art (8 th grade): High School Credit:.5 Eighth grade students can take this class for a semester and may get high school credit. Students learn various skills involved in careers in art. Projects give students a broad overview of the art world and offer a chance to try different techniques that they might want to explore as a future profession.
Foreign Language Spanish I: Pre-Requiste: Teacher recommendation and B or better in English Language Arts High School Credit: 1.0 This is an all year course that will teach the fundamentals and gain an appreciation of the culture of Spanish speaking people. An emphasis is placed on pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, idioms and reading comprehension. Students will receive high school credit for this course. This is an all year course. In order to sign up for this class; you MUST have earned a B or higher in 7 th grade Language Arts. 6 th Grade ELA: 6 Th Grade Advanced ELA: Core Course Descriptions English Language Arts include, but are not limited to citing textual evidence, determine theme or central idea of a text and to describe how a particular story s plot unfolds. Students should also continue to learn the meaning of words, sentence structure. Students will learn to compare and contrast the experience of reading the story to listening or viewing a video. Pre-Requiste: Teacher recommendation and Advanced scores on state tests and MAP testing. 6 th Grade Gifted ELA: include, but are not limited to citing textual evidence, determine theme or central idea of a text and to describe how a particular story s plot unfolds. Students should also continue to learn the meaning of words, sentence structure. Students will learn to compare and contrast the experience of reading the story to listening or viewing a video. Students will do this at a faster pace, with more challenging pieces of text, and a higher level of questions on assignments. Pre-Requiste: Identified Gifted, teacher recommendation, advanced placements from previous grades and/or advanced or accelerated score from state tests. 7 th Grade ELA: include, but are not limited to citing textual evidence, determine theme or central idea of a text and to describe how a particular story s plot unfolds. Students should also continue to learn the meaning of words, sentence structure. Students will learn to compare and contrast the experience of reading the story to listening or viewing a video. Students will do this at a faster pace, with more challenging pieces of text, and a higher level of questions on assignments. include, but are not limited to citing several pieces of textual evidence, determine theme or central idea of a text and to describe how a particular story s plot unfolds. Students should also continue to learn the meaning of words, sentence structure. Students will learn to compare and contrast the experience of reading the story to listening or viewing a video.
7 th Grade Advanced ELA: Pre-Requiste: Teacher recommendation and Advanced scores on state tests and MAP testing. 7 th Grade Gifted ELA: include, but are not limited to citing textual evidence, determine theme or central idea of a text and to describe how a particular story s plot unfolds. Students should also continue to learn the meaning of words, sentence structure. Students will learn to compare and contrast the experience of reading the story to listening or viewing a video. Students will do this at a faster pace, with more challenging pieces of text, and high level of questioning on assignments. Pre-Requiste: Identified Gifted, teacher recommendation, advanced placements from previous grades and/or advanced or accelerated score from state tests. 8 th Grade ELA: 8 th Grade Advanced: include, but are not limited to citing textual evidence, determine theme or central idea of a text and to describe how a particular story s plot unfolds. Students should also continue to learn the meaning of words, sentence structure. Students will learn to compare and contrast the experience of reading the story to listening or viewing a video. Students will do this at a faster pace, with more challenging pieces of text, and high level of questioning on assignments. include, but are not limited to reading (both Literary and Nonfiction texts), writing, speaking and listening skills, and language/grammar. By the end of the course, students will be expected to read and analyze a variety of texts, clearly express themselves in writing, and give short speeches and presentations in a coherent manner. Pre-Requiste: Teacher recommendation and Advanced scores on state tests and MAP testing. 8 th Grade Gifted: include, but are not limited to reading (both Literary and Nonfiction texts), writing, speaking and listening skills, and language/grammar. By the end of the course, students will be expected to read and analyze a variety of texts, clearly express themselves in writing, and give short speeches and presentations in a coherent manner. This class will move at a faster pace, read and analyze more challenge text for assignments. Pre-Requiste: Identified Gifted, teacher recommendation, advanced placements from previous grades and/or advanced or accelerated score from state tests. include, but are not limited to reading (both Literary and Nonfiction texts), writing, speaking and listening skills, and language/grammar. By the end of the course, students will be expected to read and analyze a variety of texts, clearly express themselves in writing, and give short speeches and presentations in a coherent manner. This class will move at a faster pace, read and analyze more challenge text for assignments, and require a high level of thinking to complete assignments and projects.
Mathematics 6 th Grade Math: include, but are not limited to, connecting ratio and rate to whole number multiplication and division and using concepts of ratio and rate to solve problems; completing understanding of division of fractions and extending the notion of number to the system of rational numbers, which includes negative numbers; writing, interpreting, and using expressions and equations; and developing understanding of statistical thinking. 6 Th Grade Advanced Math (Math 6/7): Pre-Requiste: Advanced math placement from previous grades, Advanced or Accelerated scores on State Test and/or MAP testing. 7 th Grade Math include, but are not limited to, Ratios and Proportional Relationships, The Number System, Expressions and Equations, Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. include, but are not limited to, Ratios and Proportional Relationships, The Number System, Expressions and Equations, Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. 7 th Grade Advanced Math (Math 7/8): Pre-Requiste: Advanced math placement from previous grades, Advanced or Accelerated scores on State Test and/or MAP testing. 8 th Grade Math: Algebra: include, but are not limited to working with algebraic expressions, properties of real numbers; solving, graphing and writing linear and systems of linear equations; exponents, transformations, Pythagorean Theorem, Surface Area, probability and data analysis. include, but are not limited to working with algebraic expressions, properties of real numbers; solving, graphing and writing linear and systems of linear equations; exponents, transformations, Pythagorean Theorem, Surface Area, probability and data analysis. Pre-Requiste: Advanced math placement from previous grades, Advanced or Accelerated scores on State Test and/or MAP testing. High School Credit: 1.0 This course is designed to meet the objectives as laid out in the common core state standards. These include, but are not limited to working with algebraic expressions, properties
of real numbers, solving, graphing, and writing linear equations; Solving, graphing, and writing linear inequalities, solving systems of equations, exponents, quadratic equations and factoring quadratics, radical rational equations, probability and data analysis. 6 Th Grade Science: 7 th Grade Science: 8 th Grade Science: Science Sixth grade science reviews basic scientific skills like measurement, analyzing data, and using the scientific method. The class focuses on physical science topics of atoms, matter, kinetic and potential energy and motion. Earth science topics of study include minerals, rocks, and soil. Life science topics centered around learning about cell parts and the function of cells. 7th Grade Science covers a variety of topics in Life, Physical, Earth and Space Sciences. Life Science delves into ever changing ecosystems and how organisms interact with one another to survive. Physical Science involves the flow and transformation of energy that powers our lives. Earth and Space science describes how water drives all of the daily weather and climate of our planet. We follow water through the entire cycle from oceans to atmosphere and back again. We will also explore Earth s moon in orbit, phases, eclipses along with effects it has on Earth s tides. Eighth grade science introduces students to concepts and theories that provide a foundation for future studies in higher level science courses as well as elaborates on concepts introduced in the lower grades. Eighth grade science students will build on their understanding of the physical world through inquiry and research based studies in the disciplines of life, physical and earth sciences. Students will be asked to think critically to interpret and analyze data as well as design their own scientific investigations to develop an understanding of the concepts identified in the Ohio Core science curriculum for eighth grade. Social Studies 6 th Grade Social Studies: In grade six social studies, students study the Eastern Hemisphere (Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe), its geographic features, early history, cultural development and economic change. In addition, students learn about the development of river civilizations in Africa and Asia, including their governments, cultures and economic systems. The geographic focus includes the study of contemporary regional characteristics, the movement of people, products and ideas, and cultural diversity. Students also develop their understanding of the role of consumers and the interaction of markets, resources and competition. 7 th Grade Social Studies: Students will use materials drawn from the diversity of human experiences to analyze, and interpret significant events, themes and patterns in the history of ancient China, Greece, Rome and Medieval Europe. Students will also use knowledge of geographic locations, patterns and processes to show the
interrelationship between the physical environment and human activity. Students use knowledge of perspectives, practices and products of cultural, ethnic and social groups to analyze the impact of their commonality and diversity within local, national, regional and global settings. 8 th Grade Social Studies: Students will study early American history, from the Native Americans who already lived in North America to the first explorers who landed on North and South American shores. Students will learn about the European colonization of North America, the American Revolution, beginning democracy and about the Constitution, including how our government works. Students will also learn about the time period known as Westward Expansion which includes the Lewis and Clark expedition, the Oregon Trail, the Gold Rush, the Mexican- American War, the Texas Revolution and several other events from that era. Finally students will analyze events leading to the American Civil War, the presidency of Abraham Lincoln, the Reconstruction of America following the Civil War and the abolition of Slavery.
6 th Grade Course offerings: Students are allowed to choose up to 4 encore classes REQUIRED COURSES: Students will be automatically be registered for these courses. English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies ENCORE CLASSES: X 850 Physical Education X 801 Health Music Department: 610 Choir Full year 600 Band Full Year 605 Music Tech 1 - Semester 608 Music Tech 2 - Semester Computer Department 502 Microsoft Apps - Semester 250 Gateway to Technology - Semester Other: Study hall 700 Art Semester 0 Advisory/Excel Advisory/Excel 1 ELA ELA 2 SS SS 3 SCI SCI 4 Math Math 5 PE Health 6 7 7 th Grade Course Offerings
Students are allowed to choose up to 4 encore classes REQUIRED COURSES: Students will be automatically be registered for these courses. English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies Required Encore Courses: Digital Literacy/Coding and Art X 501 Dig. Lit/Coding X 701 Art Music Department: 612 Choir 601 Band 605 Music Tech 1 608 Music Tech 2 Computer Department 502 Microsoft Apps 503 Desktop Publishing* opportunity to earn High School credit 251 Gateway to Technology Other: Study hall 0 Advisory/Excel Advisory/Excel 1 ELA ELA 2 SS SS 3 SCI SCI 4 Math Math 5 Dig. Lit Art 6 7 8 th Grade Course Offerings
Students are allowed to choose up to 4 encore classes REQUIRED COURSES: Students will be automatically be registered for these courses. English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies *denotes opportunity to earn High School credit Required Encore Courses: X 852 PE* X 802 Health* Music Department: 614 Choir* 602 Band* 605 Music Tech 1 608 Music Tech 2 Computer Department 502 Microsoft Apps 503 Desktop Publisher* 252 Gateway to Technology Other: Study Hall Foreign Language 111 Spanish* 0 Advisory/Excel Advisory/Excel 1 ELA ELA 2 SS SS 3 SCI SCI 4 Math Math 5 PE Health 6 7