Middle School Grades 6-8 With American International Academy

Our *middle school courses* can be used to supplement the curriculum of private, public, or charter schools or for enrichment purposes, remediation, or instead of summer school.  All of our middle school courses are written by certified teachers, and each one is equivalent to a semester of traditional coursework. Students can take advantage of the availability of both core subjects and selected elective courses. It is our mission to effectively utilize Web 2.0 tools and methodologies to help students acquire modern skills and a strong educational foundation. Our online element is designed for students who want to take nontraditional classes or have schedules that are limited in time.  Our highly qualified and caring teachers support parents and students through the use of phone, email, threaded discussions and a live online learning environment.

Math:

Grade 6: The sixth grade math curriculum is designed for students to master addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of whole numbers, decimals and fractions; graphing and statistics; measurement and geometry; ratio, proportion and probability; percent; area and volume; and integers.

Grade 7: The seventh grade curriculum contains strong mathematical content with real-life connections. This course includes the basic study of: exponents, rounding, place value, metrics, order of operations, using various graphs, adding, subtracting, multiplication, and division of decimals and fractions. It also includes lowest common multiples, greatest common factors and probability. The course will involve integrate algebra throughout.

Grade 8 (Pre-Algebra): This course includes the basic study of percent applications, exponents, scientific notation, metrics, multi-step problems, lowest common multiples, greatest common factors, fractions, decimals, graphing, geometry, probability and statistics, and two variable equations in algebra.

English:

Language Arts Grade 6: Students will work to further develop their skills in writing, reading, and speaking. They will use the six traits of writing to improve their writing and editing skills while being introduced to informative, persuasive, narrative, and descriptive writing styles. Emphasis will be placed on writing a clear and well developed paragraph. Students will undertake a detailed study of grammar learning and applying the eight parts of speech to their writing. Students will gain appreciate for various genres of literature as they read the novels for this course. Through those novels, they will study vocabulary, spelling, and the elements of literature.

Language Arts Grade 7: This course focuses on writing and literature. Students will review the eight parts of speech focusing on usage and applying the rules of grammar to their writing. As students work with functional, narrative, informative, and persuasive styles of writing, emphasis will be put on writing and editing a paper with an introduction, thesis, appropriate transitions, and a conclusion. In literature, students will study the elements of short stories as well as novels. They will further develop their vocabulary and spelling skills through these works of literature as well as use the themes presented to practice critical thinking skills and make real life applications.

Language Arts Grade 8: In these classes, the students will study vocabulary, literature, grammar, research, Internet usage, speech, and writing. The students will read novels in class for literary study; they will also read books and take tests to develop comprehension skills. The speeches and writings will be research based with appropriate documentation.

Science:

Grade 6 (General Science): This course covers a variety of scientific areas including life's structure and function, diversity of life, life and the environment, Earth's air and water, earth and space, matter, forces, and energy, electricity and magnetism.

Grade 7 (Life Science): The seventh grade Life Science covers livings things around us serve as the subjects of study for this course, including ecology, cell life and structure, life processes, classification, genetics, and organisms.

Grade 8 (Physical Science): The eighth grade program looks at the Physical Sciences of chemistry and physics. Here, the major topics are matter and energy, and how they can be changed for the good of man. Subjects covered include the structure of matter, the atom, motion, energy, simple machines, magnetism, waves, light, sound, and energy resources.

Social Studies:

Grade 6 (Geography): Students are introduced to basic geography skills, the land, and its people. Students study of the world’s regions using the Five Themes of Geography. The regions include: Location (both absolute and relative), place (the physical and human characteristics), human/environment interaction (the relationships within places) movement (the mobility of people, goods and ideas) and region (how they form and change).

Grade 7 (U.S. History): The seventh grade social studies course is the beginning of a two-year survey of United States history. It focuses on the period from the development of the first Native American cultures to the rise of sectional division in the 1850's. Basic geography skills, current events, and research projects are used to enhance student learning.

Grade 8 (U.S. History): The eighth grade social studies course is the second part of a two-year survey of United States history. It focuses on the period from 1860 to the present. The changing economic and social structure of the United States in the twentieth century is explored and evaluated. Special emphasis is placed on the evolving role of America as a global military and economic power and the effect of this development on our domestic political agenda. Effort is made to create interdisciplinary lesson plans that coincide with literature concurrently studied in English classes.