Middle School

Computer Science:

Sixth Grade Computers

This course focuses on essential digital literacy skills such as keyboarding and basic computer applications. Students explore the internet, computational thinking and basic coding. They understand the use of Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint presentations, internet usage and online communication, multimedia, hardware and software fundamentals, and online safety.
 
Seventh Grade Computers

The digital literacy course continues to build on the skills and experiences of the previous course.  Students continue learn keyboarding and basic computer applications as well as advance exploration of the internet, computational thinking and basic coding. Focus is placed on Microsoft Office Word, Excel, Power Point, internet usage multimedia, hardware and software fundamentals, online communication and online safety.

Eighth Grade Computers

This course,’ Introduction to Computer Applications’ provides an introduction to business computer applications. Students receive hands-on practice in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) software.  Projects include Word announcements, an MLA formatted research paper, and a business letter. Students develop Excel workbooks using formulas, functions, charts, absolute cell references and formatting.  Students are expected to create PowerPoint slide shows with bulleted lists, themes, clip art, and slide transitions.

English Language Arts

Grade 6  

This course, based on SpringBoard curriculum develops and refines skills in critical thinking, close reading, writing in various genres, and research. Students are introduced to multiple genres to widen their understanding and scope of the literary world. Students focus on writing narrative, explanatory, and argumentative essays. Emphasis is placed on specific strategies for planning, drafting, revising, and editing.  Students explore the fundamentals of research, such as citations and evaluating the credibility of sources. They also deepen their understanding of news media. Students understand and analyze the elements of a novel, short stories and poems.  The course exposes students to grammar and sentence-composing tools, which includes four sentence manipulation activities: unscrambling, combining, imitating, and expanding.

Grade 7

This course, based on SpringBoard curriculum, refines and builds on the skills taught the previous year.  Focus is placed on Close Reading strategies to discover the explicit and implicit content of texts. Students specifically focus on writing argumentative, explanatory, and narrative modes, along with essays and personal narratives. The course examines print texts as portrayed in film. Students complete print advertisement as a project and become familiar with the various strategies used in the world of advertisement. The students also explore the world of mythology across the globe and see its effects throughout history. Students read selected novels, short stories and poems. To build on the sentence-composing skills students work in detail on the different types of phrases and their construction. Basic grammar skills continue to be taught throughout the year.
 

Grade 8 English Language Arts:

This course, based on Spring Board curriculum, enhances and deepens the skills covered in Grades 6 & 7 and prepares the students for high school College Board curriculum. Students read and analyze a wide range of texts in different genres. They learn to write in various forms; essays, personal narratives, argumentative texts, editorials, and research papers. They learn about the hero archetype and the hero's journey narrative in literature. Students explore the world history of genocide across the globe. They research an issue and create a multimedia presentation. They explore and analyze how the adaptation in a film differs from the actual source, the novel.  To complete the tools of sentence-composing, the students focus on the different types of clause and how to employ them effectively. Basic grammar skills continue to be taught throughout the year.

 
Middle School Mathematics

Pre-AP Math 6 Course 2

This course introduces students to algebraic reasoning, integers, and rational numbers. Students learn to apply rational numbers, find patterns, and create functions, and solve multi-step equations and inequalities. In additions, students cover proportional relationships, percent, probability, collecting, displaying, and analyzing data, and end with the introduction to geometric figures and the measurement of two-dimensional and three-dimensional figures. 

Pre-AP Math 7 Course 3

This course examines and reviews all the concepts taught in middle school and prepares them for Algebra I. The topics studies include principles of algebra, rational numbers, graphs and functions, sequences, exponents and roots, ratios, proportions, similarity, percent, foundations of geometry, perimeter, area, volume, data, statistics, and probability, multi-step equations and inequalities, graphing lines, and polynomials.

 
Middle School Science:

Sixth Grade Pre- AP Science

Students enrolled in this accelerated course begin to use the scientific methods to increase their understanding of earth, physical, and life science. Students study the classification of living things; the human body; cell structure and function; sexual and asexual reproduction; genetics; microbes, algae, and fungi; and plant reproduction.  Physical science enhances students understanding of sound, light, and heat; elements and compounds; electricity and its uses; electric and magnetic interaction; potential and kinetic energy; simple machines; inventions; and nuclear power.  In Earth science students understand climate and weather; conservation; space and the universe; oceans, geology; and recycling.

 
Seventh Grade Pre- AP Science

This accelerated course allows students tomove onto more complex components supported by math skills and a more in-depth study of previously-learned concepts in addition to the introduction of new skills and topics.  Students continue to further explore general life, earth, and physical science topics using the scientific method. This  course provides  common life science topics include scientific classification; cells and cell structure; heredity and genetics; and human organ systems and their function.  Earth science includes an in depth study of the effects of weather and climate; properties and uses of water; atmosphere; air pressure; rocks, soil, and minerals; eclipses; phases of the moon; tides; and conservation; ecology and environment.  Physical science exposes students to Newton's laws of motion; the structure of atoms and molecules; heat and energy; the Periodic Table; the chemical and physical changes of matter; elements and compounds; mixtures and solutions; and the properties of waves. 

Social Studies

Grade 6 Social Studies:

Grade six students study contemporary world cultures. They are provided with the tools to create a richer understanding of the world today and the people and societies that populate it. They students explore world geography and develop skills such as map reading, research, and civic participation are integrated throughout the lessons.

Grade 7 Social Studies:

Grade seven students cover the history of Texas comprehensively. They learn about the early human civilization in the area and how various civilizations have had a significant impact on what it is today. The students learn the history of the slogan “Six Flags over Texas”. They are provided with the tools to create a richer understanding of Texas's past and its impact today.

Physical Education:

MIDDLE SCHOOL PHYSICAL EDUCATION

At Middle School level, Physical education instructions is addressed through active participation in a sequence of activity units. Fitness is addressed through a specific fitness unit as well as through fitness activities imbedded in each activity unit. Muscular Strength and Endurance, Flexibility and Cardiovascular fitness is tested through games such as basketball, soccer, volleyball, badminton etc.