8th Grade Curriculum NightJanuary 8, 2013

Ms. JoAnn DiGiandomenico Foreign Language Department Head

Ms. Margaret HagemeisterEnglish Department Head

Spanish CourseSequence

French CourseSequence

German and Latin Course Sequences

Mandarin Chinese

•Mandarin Chinese 1 (grades 9-12)•Mandarin Chinese 2 (grades 10-12)

Honors Traits for Foreign Language

• Recycle information from Spanish 1 with little or no review

• Apply previously learned material to produce a new product

Honors Traits for Foreign Language

• Spanish 20 (Honors)• Four grammatical structures from Spanish 1• Four new grammatical structures• Vocab quizzes are definitions with word bank, current and recycled

vocab

• Spanish 21 (CP)• Recycled vocabulary from Spanish 1• One new grammatical structure• Vocab quizzes include visuals and prompts

Honors Traits For All Students

• Highly organized and excellent time management• Able to take adequate notes and access information

quickly• Confident that they can do challenging work• Self-directed• Willing to acknowledge and tolerate risk• Willing to accept constructive criticism• Critical thinker. Able to make abstract connections.• Can construct new patterns from existing ideas

English - Literature

• Classic and Contemporary Works:• Primary Works: Romeo and Juliet, To Kill a Mockingbird, The

Odyssey, selected short stories, poetry from Literature and Language (text).

• Additional Selections may include Bad Boy: A Memoir of Walter Dean Myers, When I Was Puerto Rican, The Gospel According to Larry, Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Forgotten Fire, Witness, Homecoming, A Christmas Carol, The Chocolate War

• CCSS and MA ELA Framework Standards emphasize fiction and informational texts (non-fiction).

English - Writing

• All students at each grade level complete core writing assignments, which follow the writing process.• Prewriting (brainstorming, graphic organizer, prewriting,

freewriting, etc.)• Drafting• Feedback/reflection (teacher, peer, self – may be formal or

informal)• Revision• Final Draft (graded using rubric)

• Teachers differentiate and scaffold assignments, depending on the needs of the students.

Writing to be College and Career Ready

• Argumentative: Literary criticism, theme explication, “Shades of meaning” exercise

• Informational: Articles of the week, teen urban issue project, issues tracking, research connection to literature, analysis of rhetorical strategies

• Narrative: Add new scene to book, POV paper, write a modern tragedy, God/Goddess project, sonnet writing

Writing Skills by Grade Level (Grade 9)

English - Other Experiences

• In addition the the core writing assignments, students engage in a number of additional writing experiences, both formal and informal, throughout the year.

• A few examples: • Argumentative/Persuasive pieces• Open Response • Timed Writings• Blogs and Journals• Discussion Forums• Responding to Texts (literary and informational)• Quick write (reading quiz, ticket to leave, etc.)• Projects