Academics
Middle Years (Grades 6-8)

Middle Years Curriculum

English

  • English 6/7

    The English program at High Meadows integrates both practical and humanistic aspects, viewing English as a tool for communication and personal development. The curriculum encompasses reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, spelling, listening, speaking, and literary appreciation. Through a literature-based approach, students explore various genres and literary elements, progressing from basic identification to in-depth analysis and thematic exploration. They engage in parallel reading outside of class and complete book reports to reinforce skills and encourage independent reading habits. Writing skills evolve from basic essays to more complex analytical and creative writing tasks, with a focus on grammar, punctuation, and mechanics. The curriculum also integrates with social studies and science, fostering interdisciplinary connections and research skills. Listening and speaking skills are honed through discussions, presentations, role-play, and other interactive activities, bringing literature and language to life. The program includes multiple literature-based units each term, covering a range of genres and fostering a deep appreciation for literature and language over a two-year cycle.

  • English 8

    The 8th-grade English program at High Meadows builds upon the integrated approach of the curriculum, emphasizing reading, writing, and analytical skills. Students engage with a heavier volume of reading both in and out of class, focusing on prescribed texts that complement in-class studies. Written assignments become more complex, challenging students to deepen their analysis and synthesis of literary concepts. This advanced level of the program further cultivates communication skills through discussions, presentations, and interactive activities, fostering a comprehensive understanding of literature and language.

Department Faculty

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Middle Years Academics

Our Middle Years curriculum is organized by essential questions that help students develop a better understanding of the connections between ideas and concepts within and between disciplines and between each year of the curriculum. They provide a framework for our overall curriculum approach. The current umbrella (over-arching) question for grades 6-8 is:

“How do disciplines of study help us understand our world?”

Each year we have a cross-disciplinary question as well. The 6th and 7th grade question rotates each year to account for the two-year curriculum sequence. Additionally, each core discipline connects topics of study to subject-appropriate, essential questions. Some disciplines use the same questions for both the 6th-grade and 7th-grade experiences. In Spanish and science, students engage in the same questions as these questions tend to be broader and often process-oriented.

Essential Questions

List of 3 items.

  • 6th and 7th Grade: Year A

    How do we become citizens of the world?

    English
    • How do writers communicate effectively?
    • How do our lives inform our writing?
    • How does literature help us understand the large world and human experience?

    Social Studies
    • How do societies balance the needs of the community with the needs of the individual?
    Spanish
    • How can we expand our knowledge of ourselves and others through language?
    • How can we put language together to create meaning?
    • How can we take language apart to create meaning?
    6/7 Mathematics
    • How do we use numbers and mathematical thinking to better understand our world?
    Prealgebra
    • How do we use mathematics to organize ourselves?
    Algebra
    • How do we use algebra to generalize arithmetic?
    • How do we use algebra to explain/model/represent natural phenomena?
    Science
    • How do we apply our knowledge of physical, chemical and biological systems to live in harmony on Earth?
    • How do we use cycles of scientific thinking to explain and gain a better understanding of the universe?

  • 6th and 7th Grade: Year B

    How do we become global critical thinkers?

    English
    • How do writers communicate effectively?
    • How do our lives inform our writing?
    • How does literature help us understand the larger world and human experience?
    Social Studies
    • How are societies created, organized and changed?
    Spanish
    • How can we expand our knowledge of ourselves and others through language?
    • How can we put language together to create meaning?
    • How can we take language apart to create meaning?
    6/7 Mathematics
    • How do we use numbers and mathematical thinking to better understand our world?
    Prealgebra
    • How do we use mathematics to organize ourselves?
    Algebra
    • How do we use algebra to generalize arithmetic?
    • How do we use algebra to explain/model/represent natural phenomena?
    Science
    • How do we apply our knowledge of physical, chemical and biological systems to live in harmony on Earth?
    • How do we use cycles of scientific thinking to explain and gain a better understanding of the universe?

  • 8th Grade

    What does it mean to be human?

    English
    • How do we use language to construct meaning and value?
    Social Studies
    • How are humans unique?
    • How do social scientists study human behavior?
    Spanish
    • How can we expand our knowledge of ourselves and others through language?
    • How can we put language together to create meaning?
    • How can we take language apart to create meaning?
    Science
    • How do we investigate and understand the biological, chemical, and physical universe?
    Algebra
    • How do we use algebra to generalize arithmetic?
    • How do we use algebra to explain/model/represent natural phenomena?
    • Honors HA and AHA
    • How do we use algebra to explain/model/represent natural phenomena?
    Capstone Project
    • As the culmination of student studies at High Meadows, 8th-grade students will complete an 8th-grade Capstone project. Students will conduct research on a topic of their choice under the direction of a faculty advisor who will help students formulate their research question, compose a project proposal, carry out their research, write their formal paper, and present their final projects in the spring.

    • A few middle schoolers built bridges for our school-wide Emphasis project on Rivers.

The High Meadows community celebrates and perpetuates each individual’s quest for knowledge and skill, sense of wonder, and connection to the natural environment. We empower each to be a compassionate, responsible, and active global citizen.
Age 3 through Grade 8 | Authorized IB PYP World School
1055 Willeo Road, Roswell, Georgia 30075 | (770) 993-2940 | info@highmeadows.org