American History

 

Students use their previous study of American history and expand their understanding of U.S. history beginning with the creation of the new nation, analyze the development of the Constitution, and examine the challenges the governent faced. Also, examine the role of political and social leaders.

 

1st quarter - Creating a new government and constitution

 

·       birth of an independent republican government

·       creation of Articles of Confederation

·       constitutional convention

·       ratification of constitution and bill of rights

·       challenges facing new nation

 

2nd quarter - Regional and economic growth

 

·       comparing northeast and the south

·       institution of slavery

·       westward expansion and consequences

·       reform movements

·       the coming of the civil war

·       Civil War and reconstruction

 

3rd quarter - Development of an industrial, urban, and global United States

 

·       major changes in communication and transportation

·       industrialization

·       urban growth and development

·       immigration and cities

·       America as a world power

 

4th quarter - The changing nation

 

·       world war I

·       the roaring twenties

·       the great depression

·       the depression at home and abroad

·       world war II

 

 

Life Science

 

Students strengthen their ability to think like scientists in their pursuit of understanding new concepts through structured, guided, and student-initiated inquiry. Life science concepts are all investigated through hands-on projects, experiments, research, and readings.

 

1st quarter - Microorganisms, fungi, and plants

 

·       characteristics of living things

·       bacteria and viruses

·       protists and fungi

·       introduction to plants

·       plant processes

 

2nd quarter - Cells, heredity, and classification

 

·       cells: the basic units of life

·       the cell in action

·       heredity

·       genes and gene technology

·       the evolution of living things

·       classification

 

3rd quarter - Animals

 

·       animals and behavior

·       invertebrates

·       fishes, amphibians, and reptiles

·       birds and mammals

 

4th quarter - Human body systems and health

 

·       body organization and structure

·       circulation and respiration

·       the digestive and urinary systems

·       communication and control

·       body defenses, disease, and staying healthy

 

 

Literature

 

·       Comprehension questions: literal, inferential, and evaluative

·       Literary elements: character, conflict, foreshadowing, plot, point of

        view, prediction, outlining, webbing, setting, and theme.

·       Unit themes:  Mystery and Imagination, community, challenges and

        achievements, and identity

·       Genres: fiction, nonfiction, biography, autobiography, poetry, short

        stories, and novels. 

                                                               

 

 

Religion

 

Through shared study, reflection, prayer, and action in response to God's word, students experience themselves as a small faith community of the parish and the Church itself.

 

1st quarter -

 

·       Catholic symbols and rituals

·       characteristics of liturgy

·       portrayal of the Holy Spirit in the old testament

·       portrayal of the Holy Spirit in the new testament

 

2nd quarter -

 

·       definition of sacraments

·       sacraments of initiation

·       celebrations of the sacraments

 

3rd quarter -

 

·       the liturgical year

·       preparations and new beginnings

·       advent and Christmas

·       lent and the liturgies of the Triduum

 

4th quarter -

 

·       the meaning of and need for prayer in the Christian life

·       kinds of prayer

·       celebrating the saints

·       the meaning of holiness

 

 

Preparation for confirmation

 

·       Service Hours (20 hours)

·       Learning Prayers, Bible Study

·       Interviews

·       understanding fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit

·       understanding corporal works of mercy

 

 

Grammar

 

1st quarter: verbs, capitalization, and punctuation

2nd quarter: nouns, pronouns, adjectives and adverbs

3rd quarter: prepositions, conjunctions, interjections, and verbals

4th quarter: sentence structure, subject-verb agreement, diagramming

      **In 8th grade we review and master many of the same topics learned in 7th grade

 

 

 

Vocabulary

 

·       20 new words introduced every 2 weeks.

·       Definition

·       Synonym/antonym

·       Spelling

·       Part of Speech

·       Accented syllable

 

 

 

Math

 

1st quarter: integers, number theory, rational number operations, variables, expressions, and functions

2nd quarter: linear equations, and linear inequalities

3rd quarter: roots, exponents, ratios, proportions, and percents

4th quarter: statistics, graphs, right triangles, and polynomials