Curriculum Overview – Grade 7
This is a broad overview of the
curriculum that will be taught in the seventh grade at the Franconian
International School.
A FIS curriculum
is being developed and organized to incorporate components from a variety of
concepts and institutions. The FIS Curriculum will consist of central elements
of an inquiry based curriculum, The National Curriculum from Great Britain,
concepts of curriculum from the United States and the official Bavarian
Curriculum for public elementary schools. An important basis is the former FIS
Curriculum, which was approved by the government of Middle-Franconia some years
ago.
We have listed the major topics
or themes that will be covered during the year for each subject. This is a
guide and it is our goal to teach our curriculum as comprehensively and
consistently as possible. In the Middle School, many of the topics will not be
taught in isolation as separate subjects, but will be integrated as meaningful
topical experiences which will be covered in numerous subject areas as an in
depth unit.
Language Arts
¨
Exploring, explaining, planning, predicting, investigating and sharing
ideas, insights and opinions
¨
Reading aloud, dramatization of stories and poems
¨
Reporting, interviewing and presenting
¨
Persuasive speaking activities
¨
Retell important points of a summary
¨
Developing listening skills in areas such as note-taking, debate, book
report evaluation and cooperative learning
¨
Group discussion
¨
Defend a point of view in a discussion
¨
Develop reading strategies – ongoing outside reading required
¨
Increased reading comprehension
¨
Understanding specialized vocabulary
¨
Improving fluency, understanding and enjoyment
¨
Deepen understanding of plot, ideas, characters, vocabulary and use of
language, point of view
¨
Inferencing – drawing conclusions, sequencing
¨
Study skills
¨
Various text: Fiction, non-fiction, novels, poetry, short stories, plays,
etc.
For a variety of purposes – narrative, descriptive,
persuasive, creative, comparisons, summaries, newspaper articles, reports,
representing data in written form, informal letters, note taking, etc.
¨
Features of layout and presentation
¨
Planning and drafting processes
¨
Paragraphing
¨
Types of sentences
¨
Develop larger and varied vocabulary
¨
Spelling, use of dictionary
¨
Punctuation, grammar and sentence structure
¨
Develop legible handwriting
¨
Library skills
¨ Compare the values of positive
and negative integers
¨ Inequalities
¨ Roman numerals
¨ Percentages, ratios and
proportions
¨ Fractions – addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division
¨ Fractional conversions to
decimals
¨ Operations using decimals
¨ Scientific Notation and
exponents
¨ Algebraic calculations using
variables
¨ Rounding of decimals
¨ Pythagorean Theorem
¨ Word problems using addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division
¨ Problems involving "real
life", money and measures
¨ Two step word problems
¨ Extracting relevant information
¨ Identifying the variable
¨ Using ratios and proportions
¨ Problems dealing with interest,
discounts and sale price
¨ Organising and interpreting
data
¨ Coordinate Graphing
¨ Probability and Statistics
¨ Graphing Inequalities (one
dimension)
¨
Measures: Length, mass, capacity in metric and standard units
¨
Conversion of metric and standard measures
¨
Advanced concepts related to angles, circles and lines
¨
2-D and 3-D shapes
¨
Perimeter, area and volume of advanced geometric shapes in 2-D and 3-D
¨
Advanced work with protractor and compass
¨
Food and Digestion
¨
Magnetism
¨
Light, Sound & Music
¨
Chemical reactions & Mixtures
¨
Micro organisms & Disease
¨
Energy Transfer
¨
Respiration
¨
Weathering & Erosion
¨
Ecological Relationships
¨
Building Blocks – Atoms, Elements
& Compounds
¨ Geography of the World
¨ Mapping Skills
¨ The Medieval Period
¨ Industrial Revolution
¨ Renaissance
¨ The Reformation – a study of
Protestant and Catholic religions
¨ World Explorers
¨ French Revolution
¨ Byzantine & Ottoman Empires
¨ Feudal Europe & Japan
¨ Scientific Revolution
German
¨
Oral language
and presentations
¨
Group
discussions
¨
Reading with
expression
¨
Stress on
reading of German literature, novels, poems, stories, magazine articles, etc
¨
Grammar
¨
Writing of
personal and business letters
¨
Writing for a
variety of purposes and audiences – essays
¨
Language
development.
¨
Oral language
¨
Expansion of
vocabulary through games, text work, films, books
¨
Vocabulary and
spelling exercises
¨
Grammatical
structure
¨
Intermediate
composition
¨
Reading and
comprehension skills
¨
Basic vocabulary
¨
Foundation for
oral communication
¨
Basic German
grammar and sentence structure
¨
Comprehension
skills
¨
Basic German
texts
¨
Basic
composition
¨
Fair
play/sportsmanship
¨
Theoretical
sports knowledge
¨
Practice and
competitions in the following sports: athletics, cross country running,
gymnastics, dance, soccer, basketball, handball, volleyball, indoor hockey,
badminton, swimming, orienteering, winter sports
¨
Competition
Art
¨
Continued work in the use of pattern, texture, colour, line, tone, shape
¨
Specific topics: color theory, portraits, gargoyles, Gothic style,
perspective, tonal recession, printing, composition, form, sketching
¨
Care and use of tools and materials
¨
Study of the work of chosen artists
¨
Art History
Information
Technology
¨ Internet Research
¨ Storage Devices and how to use
them
¨ File Management
¨ Word Processing skills
¨ Database and Spreadsheet skills
¨ Desktop publishing and basic
graphics
¨ Introduction to programming
¨ HTML basics
¨
Elements of Music: pitch, rhythm, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture,
structure
¨
Studies of instruments
¨
Note reading and composition
¨
History of Music
¨
Performances
¨ Teamwork and relationships
¨ Personal development and peer
interaction
¨ Problem solving and making
decisions
¨ Standards and rules for ethics
orientation
¨ Children in difficult
situations
¨ Alcohol, tobacco, solvents
Spanish
¨
Basic vocabulary
¨
Foundation for
oral communication
¨
Basic Spanish
grammar and sentence structure
¨
Comprehension
skills
¨
Basic Spanish
texts
¨
Oral language
¨
Reading and
comprehension skills
¨
Expansion of
vocabulary through songs, rhymes, games, text work, films, books
¨
Vocabulary
exercises
¨
Grammatical
structure
¨
Composition and
reading
¨
Culture in Spain
– Latin America