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7th Grade GATE Language Arts and Social Studies/Humanities

Mrs. Caroline Haagenstad

c.haagenstad@laschools.net

505-663-2424

     Welcome to Los Alamos Middle School!  I am looking forward to a wonderful and exciting 2010-2011 school-year!  In 7th grade GATE Language Arts and Social Studies, we will integrate content from both subjects as much as possible.  Along with integrating Language Arts and Social Studies we will focus on themes such as justice and equality, and we will discuss literature, geography and history from multiple viewpoints.  We will identify themes and patterns in both Social Studies and Language Arts and recognize how one inspires the other.  With this integrated approach, our class functions as a study of the "Humanities".  There are many varied definitions of "Humanities", but the following from The Ohio Humanities Council and makes a useful working definition for our curriculum:

"As fields of study, the humanities emphasize analysis and exchange of ideas rather than the creative expression of the arts or the quantitative explanation of the sciences.

  1. History, Anthropology, and Archaeology study human social, political, and cultural development.
  2. Literature, Languages, and Linguistics explore how we communicate with each other, and how our ideas and thoughts on the human experience are expressed and interpreted.
  3. Philosophy, Ethics, and Comparative Religion consider ideas about the meaning of life and the reasons for our thoughts and actions.
  4. Jurisprudence examines the values and principles which inform our laws.
  5. Historical, Critical, and Theoretical Approaches to the Arts reflect upon and analyze the creative process."

We have a tremendous amount of potential among the students in our classroom, and I look forward to the creative and critical thinking, exchanging of ideas, and creative quality projects that will be shared throughout the year.

Click to see a copy of the LA and SS curriculums:  LA Curriculum Outline     SS Curriculum Outline

Week of August 23-27:

In class students took the grammar final exam as  "pre-test".  The exam was graded together and does not count towards the semester grade.  Students set goals for the end of the year. Students also completed the pre-test for Unit 1. We are reading "Rikki-tikki-tavi", and we are discussing conflict, setting, and elements of plot.  Students have set up accounts at www.classzone.com.  This account will give them access to the online textbook as well as many other useful features including games, templates, lessons etc. 

Monday Homework:  Students are to finish the first reading of Rikki-tikki-tavi by Tuesday.

Wednesday Homework:  Students were to finish the 2nd reading of the story complete with responses to prompts in the margins.

Thursday Homework:  Finish purple questionnaire.