Seventh Grade

Following the district-wide ELA Learning curriculum, we spend 7th grade wrestling with the essential questions: How do individuals survive in challenging environments? How do individuals define themselves? These questions coordinate with our two, primary texts for the year: A Long Walk to Water and Pygmalion. In addition to these books, we launch our year establishing our independent reading program, which requires that students read at least 20 books outside of school over the course of the year. Our curriculum also places an emphasis on developing our students as analytical readers and writers. To this end we focus on students constructing arguments that are supported by sufficient and relevant evidence and that demonstrate reasoning.

Following the district-wide Illustrative Math (Open Up Resources) curriculum, 7th graders will explore solutions to real-life situations and persist in solving complex problems. Topics covered include: scale drawings; ratios and proportions; rational numbers; expressions, equations, and inequalities; angles and geometry; probability. At Putnam Ave. we are focused on exploring and bolstering students’ mathematical reasoning skills and employ instructional strategies such as number talks to promote equity of voice and elicit students’ thinking.

Following the district-wide curriculum, the goal of 7th Grade Science is to engage in scientific inquiry by: analyzing and interpreting data; using mathematics and computational thinking; asking questions and defining problems; planning and carrying out investigations and developing and using models in order to make an argument about the value of scientific knowledge as a tool to both understand and manipulate our world. Our units of study will focus on: Introduction to Chemistry (How can I make new stuff from old stuff?); Physical Science (Why do some things stop and others keep going?); Life Science (What is going on inside of me?); Earth Science (What makes the weather change?).

Following the district-wide curriculum, seventh graders will explore world history through the lense of philosophy and religion. The goal of this course is for students to develop their historical thinking skills while engaging in a diverse range of cultural content. In this course students will be working with primary and secondary sources which they will use as evidence to support their thinking. Beyond our study of world civilizations students will also engage in a research paper where they will exhibit their ability to write a clear argument supported by historical evidence. Students will investigate the following year-long essential questions: What do we believe and why? Why should we learn people’s stories? How do our beliefs shape our actions? Units include: Identity; Islam to 1500; West Africa; Ancient India; Ancient China; Ancient Israel; Ancient Rome.

Learning Objectives

• Appreciation of language and culture of another land – Spanish, French, and Chinese;
• Phrases and short dialogues about: introductions, health, common classroom expressions, parts of the body, days of the week, months, seasons, weather expressions;
• Simple vocabulary about the home, family, and school situations;
• Developmental Design activities in the second language;
• Cultural differences/similarities between the United States and other cultures.
• Oral and written communication skills in the target language

Students will:

• Collaborate and communicate with classmates and the teacher in the target language;
• Create projects that integrate the study of grammar & vocabulary into oral presentations;
• Work in groups and in pairs to practice the language structures and vocabulary;
• Prepare dialogues and make oral presentations with the content provided by the teacher;
• Play games and use computer websites to practice the language;
• Access and use proficiently computer technology to research data about oral and written projects.