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Eighth Grade Curriculum

 
Holy Spirit School students in Eighth Grade will: 
RELIGION
  • Describe the meaning of "Church" including the purpose of belonging to a community
  • Explain the major liturgical seasons and the purpose of each season
  • Describe the history of the early Church including how the Apostles started the Church and the connection between the Church and royalty
  • Analyze the recent history of the Church including the Second Vatican Council, the division of the Catholic Church including the history of Martin Luther
  • Incorporate the faith, liturgy and moral teachings of the Church into everyday life 
  • Compare and contrast religious movies and documentaries to better understand how to live a Christian life
  • Participate in a four day leadership camp Tuolumne Trails – 8th Grade Trip where they learn communication skills and bond with each other as they begin their final year at Holy Spirit
  • Participate in 8th grade activities to prepare for graduation including an 8th grade trip to San Francisco, buddy program with 1st grade, and an offsite 8th grade retreat
ALGEBRA
  • Analyze and explain the process of solving an equation and justify the process used in solving a system of equations  
  • Develop fluency in writing, interpreting, and translating among various forms of linear equations and inequalities and use them to solve problems  
  • Solve linear equations and apply related solution techniques and the laws of exponents to the creation and solution of simple exponential equations
  • Explain function notation and develop the concepts of domain and range while focusing on linear, quadratic, and exponential functions, including sequences, and also explore absolute value, step, and piecewise-defined functions  
  • Construct and compare linear, quadratic, and exponential models and solve problems.  
  • Explore systems of equations and inequalities, and interpret their solutions
  • Interpret arithmetic sequences as linear functions and geometric sequences as exponential functions  
  • Utilize algebraic manipulation, including rearranging and collecting terms, and factoring, identifying, and canceling common factors in rational expressions 
  • Perform regression techniques to describe approximately linear relationships between quantities while using graphical representations and knowledge of context to make judgments about the appropriateness of linear models
LITERATURE/READING
  • Participate in literature circles, to discuss literature and non-fiction texts with peers 
  • Describe the theme, main/central idea, author’s purpose and literary devices of grade-level texts
  • Draw conclusions/inferences about a text using textual evidence, backstory and background information about the text and/or author
  • Analyze characters in a text to determine the author’s intentions
  • Describe connections that can be made with the text including to self, to the world, and to other texts
  • Participate in Socratic Seminars and collegial discussions about a text 
WRITING
  • Participate in Writer’s Workshop using the Lucy Calkins curriculum  
  • Create outlines and other forms of pre-writing to prepare for writing an essay
  • Write multiple personal statements to prepare for the high school application process
  • Write a non-fiction narrative that includes research
  • Write multiple literary analysis that analyze the theme of a text, compare and contrast themes of multiple texts, and analyze the literary techniques an author uses
  • Write  an argumentative essay that includes factual information on both sides of an issue, a well-developed claim and thesis statement, and a well-constructed counter claim
  • Participate in quick writes throughout the year to help build writing momentum and learning to write faster
CONVENTIONS OF LANGUAGE
  • Review vocabulary from middle school and continue to attain new vocabulary through literature
  • Prepare for the high school placement test by learning key vocabulary
  • Describe the purpose of a verbal exchange and use it correctly in writing
  • Review comma rules as well as other punctuation and apply them correctly to eighth grade writing
  • Describe commonly misused words, phrases, and grammar mistakes
  • Identify parts of speech within a sentence or paragraph
  • Format titles and publications correctly when writing including the use of MLA to cite sources
SOCIAL STUDIES - U.S. HISTORY
  • Analyze the geographic, political, economic, religious, and social structures of the United States throughout the years
    Includes
        • Revolutionary War 
        • Early Republic- presidencies of Washington-Monroe
        • Age of Jackson and Westward Expansion
        • Society and Culture before the Civil War
        • Sectionalism and the Civil War
        • Reconstruction Era
        • Industrial and Economic Growth
        • The Progressive Era

  • Study current events, geography and mapping throughout the course
  • Use a combination of reading and writing activities, STEAM projects, group and individual class work and homework, and various iPad apps to enrich their learning experience
  • Visit the DeYoung Art Museum in San Francisco and the California state capital building in Sacramento
SCIENCE
  • Explore electric and magnetic forces
  • Build rockets to test their speed, velocity, and acceleration
  • Engineer devices to display how elements and compounds work together
  • Discover the aspects of space and observe them through a telescope
ART
 
PHYSICAL EDUCATION (PE)