Middle School Education

Students develop foundational literacy skills through a mix of novels, nonfiction, short stories, and poetry. Instruction emphasizes strategic reading skills, the writing process, grammar, vocabulary, and research. In Honors ELA, students are challenged with a faster pace, enrichment opportunities, and deeper literary analysis.

Seventh grade takes a historical literary perspective, exploring how culture and time shape literature. Students read across genres to examine themes of identity, justice, friendship, survival, and heroism. Writing instruction includes literary analysis, narrative, and argumentative essays. Honors sections extend these experiences with increased rigor, independent reading, and advanced writing and research opportunities.

In 8th grade, students refine their reading, writing, and critical thinking skills through complex texts that raise essential questions about justice, identity, and society. Instruction emphasizes argumentative, narrative, and research-based writing, as well as multimedia presentations and authentic projects. Honors students move at an accelerated pace and engage with additional texts and enrichment projects to prepare them for advanced coursework in high school.

By the end of middle school, students—whether in Core or Honors—are well-prepared to enter high school with strong comprehension, analytical, and communication skills, ready to engage with complex texts and express their ideas with clarity and confidence.

Students explore ratios and proportional reasoning, the number system (fractions, decimals, and integers), expressions and equations, geometry, and statistics and probability

Focus areas include rational numbers, algebraic expressions and equations, inequalities, ratios and proportions, percents, probability and statistics, geometry, and angle relationships.

Prepares students for high school algebra through in-depth study of linear functions, systems of equations, transformations, and geometry concepts.

In 6th grade, students explore world geography and cultures across major global regions, including North America, Latin America, Russia, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Through the lens of geography, culture, government, and economics, students study how people interact with their environment, how cultures develop, and how traditions, religions, and resources shape societies. Students use maps, research, and project-based learning to deepen their understanding of diverse world regions and to recognize the interconnectedness of today’s world.

Seventh grade students study ancient and medieval world history, beginning with the tools historians use to study the past and extending through the Renaissance and the Age of Exploration. Units focus on Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and the Middle Ages, highlighting cultural, political, and scientific achievements that continue to influence the modern world. Students also explore the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation, and the global changes brought by exploration. The course emphasizes the six themes of history- Geography, Culture, Economics, Government, Belief Systems, and Science/Technology, while encouraging students to think critically about how past civilizations shape the present.

In 8th grade, students explore American history from the Revolutionary era through the Progressive Era (1760–1914). The course covers the American Revolution, the Constitution, westward expansion, slavery, sectional conflict, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. Students also examine immigration, urbanization, and reform during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. Instruction emphasizes analyzing primary sources, engaging in debates, and connecting past struggles for freedom, justice, and equality to issues in the modern world.

As required by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, all 8th grade students also take the Civics Assessment, which measures understanding of the U.S. Constitution, government, and civic responsibilities. This ensures students leave middle school with a strong foundation in American democracy and citizenship.

Students learn about emotional health, safety, nutrition, and body systems (integumentary, muscular, urinary, and endocrine). Instruction emphasizes decision-making, resisting risky behaviors, and understanding changes during adolescence.

Students study the circulatory, digestive, and respiratory systems along with units on nutrition, substance use, safety, and growth and development. The course focuses on healthy lifestyle choices, relationships, and resisting peer pressure.

Students examine the nervous, skeletal, and muscular systems, as well as nutrition, substance use, safety, and growth and development. Lessons highlight internet safety, resisting unhealthy pressures, and developing strong communication and leadership skills.

Students rotate through CAD & 3D printing, robotics & programming, vinyl cutting & laser engraving, and fabrication projects. They learn the design process, prototype solutions, and practice teamwork while applying safe tool use.

Students tackle intermediate-level CAD, robotics, and fabrication challenges. They build and program robots, refine 3D designs, and create prototypes, while documenting their process and practicing design iteration.

Students work on enhanced design challenges that include CNC and laser engraving, robotics, 3D printing, and choice design projects. Emphasis is placed on client-focused problem-solving, intellectual property, and advanced fabrication techniques

Students explore coding, app making, artificial intelligence, and digital citizenship, while developing skills in Google Workspace and Microsoft Office. Lessons emphasize online safety, collaboration, and managing a positive digital footprint.

Students advance to block and Python coding, robotics, app design, and machine learning. They create digital projects, practice teamwork in design challenges, and strengthen media literacy and cybersecurity skills.

Students expand their skills through game design, wearable technology, app building, and artificial intelligence. They also explore digital media (video, podcasting, social media), cybersecurity, and practical applications such as personal finance and entrepreneurship.

Students study the elements of art—line, shape, form, color, value, space, texture, and composition—through drawing, painting, sculpture, and mixed-media projects. Influences from artists and cultures around the world help students make connections between personal identity, cultural traditions, and artistic expression.

Students expand their skills by exploring form, color theory, and compositional design. Projects may include batik, copper relief, illuminated manuscripts, and still-life drawing. Emphasis is placed on art as cultural expression, drawing inspiration from architecture, Egyptian art, and artists such as Picasso and Rembrandt.

Students take a deeper dive into 2D and 3D design, exploring how technology influences modern art-making. Projects may include pastels, relief sculpture, printmaking, and digital-infused works. Students study artists such as Georgia O’Keeffe, Andy Warhol, and the Impressionists while applying design principles to create both traditional and digital artworks.

Students are introduced to illustration, photography, and animation using iPads, laser engravers, and color printers. Projects integrate personal expression, communication, and collaboration while preparing students for future coursework.

Students continue exploring illustration, photography, and animation, now incorporating DSLR camera techniques. They learn how photography and digital editing expand creative expression, while continuing to build skills in communication, teamwork, and innovation.

Students refine their skills in illustration, photography, and animation with the addition of Photoshop and photo editing tools. They explore advanced digital art processes, combining traditional and digital techniques to express ideas in personal, cultural, and social contexts.