Based on the latest research and theories, this junior high school curriculum guide was prepared for teachers of language arts. Following a statement of the philosophy of the program, teaching objectives are stated for writing, literature, and related skill areas. Other sections include a scope and sequence chart, evaluation and testing…

This book contains a 14-lesson module for grades 5-8, focusing on giving students a solid understanding of disease transmission and prevention. It opens with a curriculum overview which stresses the sophistication level of today's adolescents and their inquisitiveness. The overview describes the importance of teaching students how to prevent…

An outline of the knowledge and skills to be taught at grade eight in order to meet the Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS) social studies objectives is provided. Material is divided into three parts. Following an introduction, a one page description overviews the curriculum topic for grade eight, United States history, and specifies…

Student activity pages, teacher background information, and lesson ideas for teaching about law in social studies classrooms are presented in this supplementary packet. Section I provides suggestions for using community resource persons and lists Alabama resources for teaching about law. Activities in Section II focus on the need for laws and…

Describes a project that involved an eighth-grade advanced English class in learning about banned books and censorship with the hope that students would learn enough about a highly controversial subject to be able to form intelligent options. (EL)

Students play the roles of delegates to the U.S. Constitutional convention in this grade 8 interdisciplinary history and language arts unit. After reviewing the activities of the men involved in the convention (Patrick Henry, George Mason, Luther Martin, Richard Henry Lee, John Jay, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton), participants prepare…

This unit intends for students to explore various literary devices such as theme, characterization, and vocabulary while they read Jack London's "The Call of the Wild." While reading this text, students will explore the relationship of these devices in connection to the unit's overall theme: survival. Students will be exposed to history,…

The report, entirely in French, describes Alberta's curriculum for eighth-year French native language instruction, as revised in 1998. An introductory section offers background information on the curriculum's design, links between the core curriculum and French native language instruction, underlying principles of language instruction, the…

Reports on a study of eighth-grade mathematical performance of 77,000 students in 19 countries, data from 1964 and 1982 studies in 9 countries, and data on gender stratification and its impact on mathematics performance. Finds that a cross-national variation exists and that it is related to gender stratification. (CFR)

Describes an extra credit science project in which students compete to see who can build the most efficient water rocket out of a two-liter pop bottle. Provides instructions on how to build a demonstration rocket and launching pad. (MDH)

Reports on a study of the impact of attending restructured schools on the achievement and engagement of 8,845 eighth graders from public, Catholic, and independent schools. Finds modest, but consistently positive, effects on both achievement and engagement. Also finds that students attending smaller schools demonstrated more academic achievement.…

This document summarizes the results of a national survey that tested 4th, 8th, and 12th graders' ability to analyze geographic data in a variety of formats; explain complex geographic phenomena and processes; and show knowledge of relationships between human and geographic events. The survey tested three content dimensions: space and place,…

A middle school student helper teacher program based on some cooperative learning tenants provided alternative instruction to sixth grade instrumental students in music lessons that would have been severely curtailed due to budget reductions and increasing enrollment. Students were grouped on like instruments and divided into subgroups by ability.…

This unit is one of a series that presents specific moments in history from which students focus on the meanings of landmark events. Columbus's momentous arrival in 1492 in the Caribbean ended the mutual isolation of two regions of the globe. From this moment on, the future of the Americas has been inextricably linked to those of Europe, Asia, and…

This study is part of an on-going research project to assess differences in educational attainment when controlling for race, sex, and socioeconomic status. The National Educational Longitudinal Survey (NELS) 1988 of 8th graders and a survey of 10th graders, High School and Beyond 1980-82 (HSB), were utilized to obtain data that were then…