Muriel Stark 7th and 8th Grade P: 952-474-5181 x43 E: muriel.stark@oslcs.org Read Full Profile »

Grades 5-8 at Our Savior Lutheran School are departmentalized. Grade 5 is the transition year into the middle school. This means that students will have several teachers during their school day that are specialists in a particular field of study. In order to maintain a family-like atmosphere, each class also has a home-room teacher charged with monitoring the overall academic, social, and spiritual progress of individual students as well as the class as a whole.

Religion

Religion is taught through a creative combination of course work that includes instruction from Voyages: Church History, CPH, 2001, Contemporary Issues, CHP, 2001, Luther’s Small Catechism, CPH, 1991, The Holy Bible, NIV.

Through the daily study of God’s Word, students in the eighth grade express joy in worship through weekly Chapel services. On a rotating basis, students also lead their classmates in daily devotions using materials provided by the homeroom teacher.

Through the above mentioned worship opportunities, weekly Church History/Contemporary Issue lessons, and Confirmation Class with the pastor, students develop a deeper relationship with God. They continue to develop a personal relationship as brothers and sisters in Christ, as well as develop a caring world view.

Through the Catechism students develop a deeper understanding of Biblical doctrines as they prepare themselves for possible confirmation of their faith in ninth grade. Memory work includes the review of the six chief parts of Luther’s Small Catechism along with supportive Bible passages.

Language Arts

Literature
Middle school students in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade continue their course of study in reading through an in depth study of literature. Through the use of a carefully selected anthology, students study various forms of essay writing including persuasive and informational essays. Students study biographies and autobiographies. Various forms of genre include short story, novellas, poetry, and drama. Students discuss author’s view points, biases, the use of facts verses opinion, and first – person narratives in contrast to third – person narratives.
As students work through the anthology they also study the author’s development of the plot. They study the elements of exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. They also look at character motives and characteristics. Students explore the use of literary tools such as foreshadowing and flashback.Students develop skills in short answer and essay writing while organizing information in story maps, Venn diagrams, and charts of various forms and purposes.Each lesson introduces students to new vocabulary words and definitions. Students work many activities to develop their knowledge of synonyms, antonyms, word analogies, word roots, and word origin.

English
The eighth grade will communicate proficiently in writing through using: general skills, including grammar, parts of speech, usage, mechanics, punctuation, spelling and vocabulary. They will also work on speaking and listening skills, study skills, thinking skills, and writing skills in the areas of opinion writing, narrative writing, and research projects.

Algebra

The eighth graders will compute with integers, fractions, decimals, percents, markups and discounts, and they will work with simple and compound interest. Time will be spent working with formulas including perimeters, areas, surfaces areas, and volume. The students will use the Pythagorean Theorem and work with geometric figures. Additional learning will occur with graphing, ratios, rates, and proportions. Students will graph linear and nonlinear functions and determine slopes of lines. In addition, they will work with measures of central tendency – mean, median, and mode. Data analysis will also be an area of focus.

Science

Wow! Even the tiniest organisms of life can be so complex. 8th grade science is a life science course in which we explore the intricate workings of God’s creation in nature. We learn about cells and how they function and reproduce. We study the basics of genetics and how God put into motion a process that makes each of us a unique and special person. God’s creativity is on display as we study everything from plant and animal life to the workings of the human body. One of the class goals is to prepare them for high school by taking notes, using homework to prepare for tests, working together in cooperative groups and becoming creative, scientific thinkers. The Class is interactive and cooperative. Activities and technology are a part of the learning process.

Art

The students are exposed to a wide variety of art media and techniques. Art allows students to express their creativity. The students will be exposed to various art forms including drawing, painting, collage, sculpture, and design.

U.S. History

World Geography provides a unique step-by-step way to help students learn where the world’s countries, major cities, and major landforms are located. The curriculum also teaches students about the world’s regions, global issues, and differing cultures. The goal is to motivate students by making them more aware of the world around them.

Technology

Students continue to develop an appreciation for the variety of programs and information available through computers as they work with the following activities: Internet research, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint.