Grade 8

The Kennett Middle School curriculum challenges a student’s intellectual potential, prepares for high school, and provides each student an opportunity for growth and success. Core curriculum offerings include Mathematics, Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies. Advanced, honors, and support classes are offered to those who qualify.

Cycles courses are available in all grade levels and include Physical Education, Health, Music, Chorus, Band, Orchestra, Computers, Art, Sewing, Cooking, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.). In 8th Grade, students choose from 19 cycles courses. These courses rotate every 3 days.

8th grade students experience more “choice” in their school day.

Core Courses

Cycle Courses

World Languages

Grade 8 Courses at KMS

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Recommendation Process

Mathematics

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The placement process involves the following data points: Math Course Grade, Teacher Input, iReady diagnostic scores, and an Algebra Readiness Exam

*Algebra I, Geometry, & World Language courses taken at the middle school are considered high school level courses. While KHS credits cannot be earned in middle school, the final grades in these courses are part of the high school GPA and include midterm and final exam grades.

Science

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Social Studies

Homeroom

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Specialized Cycles

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8th Graders have 2 periods of Cycles Courses and each period is 45 minutes. To make the scheduling process as smooth as possible, courses are labeled as 1, 2, and 3 credit courses.

As students choose their courses, we will follow a “pick 6” strategy in which 45-minute courses count as “1” credit, a 90-minute block course counts as “2” credits, and World Languages count as 3 credits.

Intervention Courses

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Grade 8 Specialized Courses

A Chance to Choose
Important Details to Consider

A Chance to Choose

Our Cycles teachers have expanded their content and empowered OUR STUDENTS to choose their specialized courses based on what is most appealing and relevant. While all grade 6 and 7 students take all cycles courses, grade 8 students will take cycles courses primarily by choice. We are so excited about these expanded learning opportunities for our students!

We encourage all students and families to read through our courses offerings together and discuss which courses will be best the new grade 8 student.

All grade 8 students will take 6 cycles credits total. To make this process as simple as possible, cycles courses are labeled as 1, 2, or 3 credit courses. It is important that you know what each credit means:

1-credit courses: 45-minute "skinny periods"
2-credit courses: 90-minute "block periods"
Hybrid courses: Offered as either 1-credit or 2-credits to fit student’s schedules.
World Languages: We offer Latin 1, French 1, and Spanish 1.
World Language courses are listed as 3-credit courses to provide flexibility in scheduling.

Important Details to Consider

Any student who qualifies for an intervention course will have that course in place of 1 cycles course. These students will not be eligible for any 2 credit or 3 credit courses.
Students may take as many music courses as they would like.
Every World Language comes with an alternate language in the event that we are unable to schedule your child due to class capacity.
- Take Spanish (With Latin as the alternate language)
- Take Spanish (With French as the alternate language).
We will be able to accommodate about 50 students in each World Language since we will have 2 sections of each. If more than 50 students request a specific language, decisions on which students will be enrolled will be based on your child’s academic success as demonstrated in 6th and 7th grade.
Students may take up to two (2) Health & PE courses. However, students may not take Wellness & Fitness AND Foundations of Health as these courses have some overlapping content.
All students will be scheduled for at least 4 of the 6 credits they choose. If students are unable to get all 6 credits due to course availability, we will utilize alternate course requests when applicable.
Some students may be administratively enrolled in Computers 8.
Schedule changes will not be honored after the first week of school except for extenuating circumstances.

1-Credit Courses

App Creator (STEM)

Seventh graders focus on App Creator, and this course is an extension of that learning. This course will expose students to computer science by computationally analyzing and developing solutions to authentic problems through mobile app development. It will convey the positive impact of the application of computer science to other disciplines and society. Students will customize their experience by choosing a problem that interests them from health, environment, emergency preparedness, education, community service, and school culture. Because problems in the real world involve multiple disciplines, the unit will introduce students to biomedical science concepts as they work on solutions for the specific problems they choose to tackle.

Band 8

Band instruction will be very similar to 6th, and 7th grade in that students will be continuing to improve and perform on their selected wind or percussion instruments. With the additional time, the Wind Ensemble will be preparing for more performing opportunities while continuing to progress through our primary text, Measures of Success: A Comprehensive Music Learning Method.

The students that select band MUST be continuing students. Students in this course will gain more Band in their schedule! We will prepare for fun performing opportunities and focus on concert preparation. More options may include:

Play music in the stands (not marching) with the KHS Marching Band in the Fall
Play holiday music at Longwood, the market in downtown Kennett, or the Christiana Mall.
Possible performance at a “Wilmington Blue Rocks” game or adjudicated festival (field trip)
Winter and Spring Concert Performance

Chorus 8

Chorus welcomes all students who would like to sing music from various time periods, genres, and cultures. All skill levels are welcome; no experience is necessary. Concert attendance in December and May is a graded and required component of the course. There may also be volunteer opportunities for extracurricular singing.

This 40-minute course is structured similarly to 6th and 7th Grade Chorus classes. Students will have more input on the music selected for performance as 8th Graders. We will develop general singing skills and enhance musicianship in preparation for high school choral ensembles. If you’d like to develop your vocal skills while singing with your friends, sign up for Chorus!

Computers 8

This course will provide students with tools to be proficient computer users and better prepared for the rigor of high school technology demands. Students will learn and practice using computers for school work and beyond. Course topics include word processing, spreadsheets, slide shows, keyboarding, Internet search, cyber safety, careers, and financial literacy basics.

Financial Literacy

This course will empower grade 8 students to take steps to prepare for their future. Students will integrate information technology tools throughout the course while learning about college, careers, financial literacy, and entrepreneurship topics.

Examples include: college and career exploration, budgeting, money management, credit, savings, investing, consumer skills, and marketing. It is a great opportunity for real world, practical knowledge and for students to explore their money values, learn the basics of banking, saving, and budgeting, and start thinking ahead to their financial futures.

Foundations of Health

If you are interested in the human body and may want to explore a career in the health sciences, this is the class for you. We will discuss disease, substance abuse, and nutrition's impact on the body and society. Throughout the year, we will learn about diseases from the past, present and future as well as nutrition and its link to disease. In addition, we will take a look at substance abuse and its influence on the population. This course will occur in a classroom setting.

Guitar

Learn how to play guitar and/or continue developing your skill! New and experienced guitar players are welcome. Guitar fundamentals covered in this course include knowledge of the guitar parts, tuning strings, and reading and playing guitar chords for beginning students. Students with previous guitar experience will review the fundamentals and dive deeper into strumming patterns and overall musicianship. Students will also learn about notable guitar players throughout history.

Popular Music

Learn about popular music from yesterday and today. The popular music trends covered will begin with early American music in the 1800s and move chronologically to the 2000s. Specific topics covered within each smaller time period (i.e. 1940s Jazz & Crooners or 1980s Rock & Pop) include major historical events, musical genres, noteworthy artists and their music contributions, and more.

Orchestra 8

The eighth-grade orchestra is an exciting opportunity for continuing string students to improve their musical skills, learn new repertoire, and be part of a top-notch ensemble. We will learn and perform music from a variety of genres, including classical, pop, and movie music. Students will gain the musical experience necessary to continue in high school ensembles and beyond. This group will have the opportunity to perform at various community events.

Sport and Fitness

Wellness and Fitness

2-Credit Choices

Automation and Rebotics

Students explore mechanical systems, energy transfer, automation, and computer control through the VEX Robotics platform. They design, program, and build projects like traffic lights, robotic arms, race cars, and elevators, making connections to STEM careers.

The culminating project is a class-wide assembly line challenge. Student groups construct sections that must work together to autonomously transfer an object across the classroom. The class competes against a neighboring STEM class to see whose assembly line can successfully complete the full transfer.

Culinary and Home Living

In this elective, students engage in individual and group problem-solving, emphasizing effective use of resources to meet current needs. They refine culinary skills, learning safe food handling, preparation techniques, and kitchen safety.

The consumerism unit covers the relationship between spending plans, income, expenses, and savings. Students also explore advertising's impact on teen spending, budgeting, banking, online shopping, and evaluating ads.

Additionally, students have the opportunity to create sewing projects using machines and hand stitches. This elective allows students to further develop their Family and Consumer Sciences experience.

Family Development and Safety

Students will gain knowledge of various stages across the human lifespan (infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and later adulthood) and how they impact culture and families. Students will obtain certifications in babysitting and First Aid & CPR through the Health and Safety Institute (HSI).

This class benefits job-related skills for career paths such as education, childcare, parks and recreation, counseling, family consumer sciences, and health-related fields of study. Students will gain knowledge in the diversity of families and the community and obtain career skills. Students can learn first aid skills associated with many first jobs such as babysitting, lifeguarding, coaching, and camp counselor.

This course will occur in 3 parts: Human Development & Family Studies, Babysitting, First Aid & Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR). You’ll receive a 2-year certification in both First Aid and CPR/AED through (HSI) and be prepared to respond to various emergencies involving infants, children, and adults.

Hybrid Courses (Available as a 1 or 2 Credit Course)

Ceramic Studio
Studio Drawing and Painting

Ceramic Studio

Building on foundational hand-building skills, this course empowers students to expand their individual craft, style, and form. Explore advanced hand-building and glazing techniques, while also introducing basic pottery wheel throwing. Prepare for high school ceramics and enhance your 3D art abilities.

Possible projects and activities for this course include thrown and hand-built pieces such as ceramic shoes, birdhouses and planters, self-portrait tiles, seasonal projects, and much more! This course will also participate in community outreach projects. Our focus will be on:

Creative Problem Solving
Exploration of ceramic design and expanded hand-building construction techniques
Basic wheel throwing and advanced glazing techniques
Emphasis on aesthetics and art criticism
Developing a digital portfolio to show growth and develop aesthetic choices

Studio Drawing and Painting

3-Credit Courses

French 1

The French I course utilizes the Bien Dit! program, an integrated learning system that is based on a communicative approach to language learning. The ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines serve as the under-pinning of the curriculum and students learn to function as accurately as possible in situations they are likely to encounter in a French-speaking country or with French speakers in the U.S.A.

The four skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), cultural activities, and literary readings reinforce each other in this proficiency-oriented, content-based program and are aligned with both the National Standards for Foreign Language and the proposed Pennsylvania standards. During this first-year course, particular emphasis is placed on listening, speaking and correct 41 pronunciation and students are immersed in the French language.

Latin 1

The main text used for Latin I is the Cambridge Latin Course, which promotes an intuitive approach in understanding the Latin language. The students learn the basic forms and structures of the language through reading a connected story based on the daily life of a real Roman family in Ancient Pompeii in the days and weeks leading up to the historical destruction of this city by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius.

A second storyline investigates the lives of people in the far-off province of Roman Britain. Cultural and historical topics include Roman daily life, religion, slavery, entertainment, roads, government, science, and history. Through a study of Latin vocabulary, students learn English derivatives and cognates. Throughout, the course strives to develop a basic appreciation and understanding of the Latin language and increase the student’s knowledge of the history and culture of the ancient Romans and how they influence us today.

Spanish I

The program is based on the five national standards of foreign language education: communication, cultures, connections, comparisons, and communities. The program Auténtico is an interdisciplinary multimedia program utilizing text, video, audio and other resources that complement a variety of learning styles. The textbook used is Auténtico Uno.

Classes are taught partly in the target language, emphasizing speaking and listening skills. Active class participation is essential to the development of basic speaking, listening, writing and reading skills.

Middle school student in t-shirt smiling

Course placements for core classes are determined by data. If you have any questions or concerns about your student’s class placement, please use the following contact information: