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Language Arts

            PI+ students on the Panther team are in a two year cycle. The cycles are named “7^th Grade” and “8^th Grade” Cycles, but they are not necessarily taught to the students during their 7^th grade and 8^th grade years. Students will rotate through the two cycles during their time on the Panthers Team, receiving instruction in all of the language arts objectives before moving on to high school.

            Our goal is to develop in students the skills necessary to be able to read with fluency and accuracy in a variety of materials and who will be able to select and use appropriate reading strategies to construct meaning. They will be able to identify literary elements and techniques and understand their influence on a text’s meaning, as well as to be able to interpret both fiction and nonfiction texts.  They will be able to write in a variety of modes for a variety of audiences. Students will also gain the skills necessary to organize ideas, establish focus, provide relevant details and use language effectively in order to achieve clarity of thought and expression in both written and oral language.

7^th Grade Cycle—LA

•         6+1 Traits Writing

•         Writer’s Craft

•         Write Source

•          The Language of Literature text

•         Science Fiction

•         Creative Drama

•         Great Books

•         Personal Narrative writing

•         Short story writing

•         Essay writing

8^th Grade Cycle--LA

•         6+1 Traits Writing

•         Writer’s Craft

•         Write Source

•         The Language of Literature text

•         Research – Science focus

•         Watership Down & Johnny Tremain

•         Westward Expansion

–        Roots, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Giants in the Earth, Shane, Nothing But the Truth

•         Novel Study – Conflicts in U.S. History

•         Picture books/short stories

•         Multi-genre writing/20th century U.S. History

GEOGRAPHY

PANTHERS

• Our textbook for the course is The World and Its People by McGraw Hill publishers.
• The course is taught in four eight-week rotations between four teachers.
• The units of study include

ü      The United States and Canada

ü      Latin America

ü      Europe

ü      Russia and the Eurasian Republics

ü      North Africa and Southwest Asia

ü      Africa South of the Sahara

ü      Asia

ü      Australia, Oceania, and Antarctica

• The points of focus for our geographic study include

Ø      The World in Spatial Terms

This area involves studying the relationships between people, places and environments by mapping information about them into spatial terms.

Ø    Places and Regions

The identities and lives of individuals and peoples are rooted in particular places and in those human constructs called regions.

Ø    Physical Systems

Physical processes shape the Earth’s surface and interact with

Plant and animal life to create, sustain, and modify ecosystems.

Ø    Human Systems

People are central to the study of geography because human activities are a significant factor in shaping the Earth’s surface.

In addition, human settlements and constructions are part of the Earth’s surface, and humans compete for control of the Earth’s surface.

Ø    Environment and Society

The physical environment is modified by human activities, largely as a consequence of the ways in which human societies value and use Earth’s natural resources.  Human activities are also influenced by Earth’s physical features and processes.

Ø    The Uses of Geography

The knowledge of geography facilitates an understanding of the relationships between people, places, and environments over time.  Through geographic knowledge we acquire a more nuanced picture of Earth as it has been and as it might be.

• Our geographic study is complemented by the inclusion of a weekly magazine entitled Upfront.  This publication contains insightful articles dealing with issues of global importance.
• In conjunction with our examination of Upfront, we consistently explore current events affecting individual nations and the world at large.
• At the conclusion of the school year, our study of geography closes with a cumulative student project that involves a review and a fresh application of the key points of information we have learned.

Panther United States History

The United States History instruction conducted by the Panther team involves a thorough examination of the American story within four distinct yet interweaving categories.  These categories are designed to acquaint students with the key events, movements, and people of American history, while providing a solid context for each element.  An integral unity pervades this instructional model by virtue of the fact that all of the topics to be considered overlap in a variety of ways.  For example, a president might be studied in terms of the characteristics of his administration or the part he played in a major political movement or his role in a war.

The four quarters of Panther United States History instruction are

described below.

 Additional topics are also covered through novel study units in language arts.  Students will be reading selections that address: Exploration and Leadership, Colonial Life, Westward Expansion, Courage and Conflict, and Biographies from the 20^th Century.  Some novels will be studied in the whole-class instructional format, i.e. Johnny Tremain and All Quiet on the Western Front; others will be discussed in small group literature circles, i.e. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee; while still others will be read independently.

Last Updated 03/19/2008