Middle School Curriculum Night
Socrates Academy
September, 2015
Mission Statement
The mission of the Socrates Academy is to work in
partnership with parents and community to encourage
our students to reach their full potential by developing
critical, analytical thinking skills and becoming selfconfident in a high achievement, multicultural,
disciplined environment. Particular emphasis will be
placed on developing proficiency in reading, writing,
and mathematics both in English and Greek through
the use of the Socratic Method.
School
Report Card
What is on the Report Card?
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School Performance Grade
Teacher Quality Percentages
Attendance
Class Size
Influential Economic Factors
How SPG is determined
 EOG/EOC Scores (80%)
 Student Growth (20%)
In Relation to the Past
 These grades give us some information about
school performance
 With different grade structures (K—5, K—8,
6—9, K—12), it is difficult to compare
schools as “apples to apples”
 More rigorous standards were implemented
in 2012 with an expected decrease in
performance across the state for the first 2—
3 years
Socrates
Academy
Curriculum
Public School Components
 As a public charter school, Socrates follows
the North Carolina Standard Course of Study
 Common Core Standards were rolled out in
the fall of 2012 for literacy and mathematics
 Essential Standards remain in other content
areas
Additional Charter Components
 Socratic Method
 Socrates students receive one period of daily
Greek Language instruction and one period
of daily math instruction in Greek.
English Language Arts
Mrs. Galanis, Mrs. Rivera & Ms. Hovan
Continuum of Instruction
• ELA instruction at Socrates Academy supports Common
Core standards using the Socratic Method of instruction.
• Reading informational text
• Reading foundational skills (literature)
• Writing
• Speaking and Listening
• Language
• Improvement of range, quality and complexity of text
• Greater complexity and higher expectations
Literature Novels & Workbook Selections
6th Grade: Novels
The View from Saturday by E.L.Konigsburg
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
7th Grade: Novels
Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli
Tangerine by Edward Bloor
Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O’Brien
6th & 7th Grade: Workbooks
Wordly Wise
Crosswalk Coach
• Also including but not limited to Short Stories, Poems, Folk
Tales, Biographies, Autobiographies, & Informational Text
Literary Skills-(6th & 7th)
 Plot, Conflict & Setting
 Analyze Character & Point
of View
 Theme/Central Idea
 Mood & Tone
 Summarizing
 Author’s Purpose
 Comparing and Contrasting
 Figurative Language
 Textual Evidence
 Context Clues
 Vocabulary
Additional 7th Grade Skills:
Interaction of elements of a story
or drama
Form/Structure of drama &
poems
Style
Grammar Skills
6th & 7th Grades
 Nouns & Pronouns
 Capitalization
 Subject-Verb Agreement
 Punctuation
 Adjectives & Adverbs
 Prepositions
 Fact and Opinion
 Spelling
Also in 7th Grade
 Phrases
 Clauses
 Infinitives
 Participles
 Gerunds
 Active Voice/Passive Voice
 Analogies
 Dialogue
Writing
 Students will work with different parts of speech, sentence structure,
grammar, and paragraph development
 Grade level appropriate vocabulary will be integrated into their writing
 Attention will be on structure and formatting multi-paragraph essays
 Edit (peer & self) for improvements in sentence formation, usage, mechanics
and spelling
 Variety of writing styles
 persuasive
 informative/explanatory
 narrative
 short research
ELA—8th Grade
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Reference, inference and their role in text analysis
Writing well organized responses to literature
Conversation and dialogue in Socratic seminars
Making connections, formatting comments and creating
questions within the framework of the Socratic Method
 Argument and persuasive techniques
 Revision and self analysis in the writing process
 Improved vocabulary using Greek and Latin roots
Communication
 Teacher Websites- updated regularly,
assignments & due dates, upcoming events
 Galanis-galanisela.weebly.com
 Rivera- briveraela.weebly.com
 Hovan- hovanela.weebly.com
 Homework Agenda
 Phone
 Email
 Galanis- [email protected]
 Rivera- [email protected]
 Hovan- [email protected]
Mathematics
(English & Greek)
Mrs. Harris, Mrs. Taft, Mrs. Karatzina,
Kyrios Nikos Theotokis, Kyria Theano
Fasouli
Mathematics Core Standards Continuum
A Note About HS Courses
• Math I provides students the opportunity to study concepts of algebra,
geometry, functions, number and operations, statistics and
modeling implemented throughout the course. At the conclusion of the
course, students will take the Math 1 EOC assessment and it will count as
25% of their final yearly grade. This grade will not impact their high
school GPA. Successfully passing the EOC will determine whether or not
the state will give credit for the course.
• Math II and III continue a progression of standards established in Math
I. At the conclusion of these courses, students will take the Math I & II
NCDPI Common Exams.
Resources
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Grade 6 Common Core Coach
Grade 7 Common Core Coach
Grade 8 Common Core Coach
NC ABC Ready Algebra 1
Greek Language
Kyria Maria Kotrotsios
Kyria Rania Tsopanas
Kyria Sophia Veitch
Expectations & Future Plans
• Standards
– The NC World Language Standards
– Ellinomatheia (The European Council of the Teacher of
Foreign Language standards)
– ACTFL (American Council of the Teaching of Foreign
Language)
• If a student starts at Socrates in Kindergarten, they are expected
to be at the A2 (Intermediate Mid) level of proficiency when they
graduate from Socrates Academy after grade 8. Adjustments are
made based on later entry.
• Currently we are able to offer 3 high school World Language
credits if students successfully pass each middle school Greek
language class.
Social Studies
Ms. Linker & Mrs. Salema
6th Grade: The Ancient World
• Ancient History from the beginning of man to
the Age of Exploration
• Focus on 5 themes of geography and how
they affected the development of
civilizations, societies, and regions over
time.
• Includes an examination of the development
of economic , political, and social systems.
7th Grade: World Geography,
History & Culture
• Students study the Age of Exploration through
contemporary times
• Focus on the effects of increased global interactions
among various societies across each continent
• Students examine the roles of conflict and
cooperation in the development of economic and
political systems and how these impact the cultural
values of societies
• Major topics of study include imperialism, democratic
revolutions, both world wars, and the Cold War
8th grade: NC & US
History
Students examine the development of North
Carolina and the United States through
contemporary times
Survey course which serves as a stepping
stone for more intensive study in high
school
Students examine major events, people,
issues, and the development of economic
and political structures that left the legacy
for our state and country today
Participation in National History Day
Tools We Use to Study
• Informational text combined
with consumable Reading
Essentials & Study Guide to
help students practice
Common Core Anchor
Standards for college
readiness
• Various Primary and
secondary sources including
learnnc.org, Scholastic Junior,
and CNN Student News
Middle School Science
Curriculum
Mary Jo Linker 6th grade
Lisa Cochran 7th and 8th grade
6th Grade Topics
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Force and Motion
Energy: Conservation and Transfer
Earth in the Universe
Earth Systems, Structures, and Processes
Structure and Function of Living Organisms
Ecosystems
7th Grade Topics
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Scientific Inquiry
Weather and Atmosphere
Cells and Heredity
Human Biology
Force and Motion
7th Grade Resources
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Hands-on Inquiry
Teacher Demos
Scientific Research
Debate/Socratic Seminar
8th Grade Topics
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Hydrosphere
Microbiology
Intro to Chemistry
Biotechnology
Earth Over Time
8th Grade Resources
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Debate/ Socratic Seminars
Hands-on Inquiry
Teacher Demos
Scientific Research
The Role of
the Parents
How You Can Support SA
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Communicate with your child’s teacher
Read communications that come home
Ask your child about their learning
Focus on the positive and offer solutions for
challenges
 Volunteer
Parent Volunteer Opportunities
 Hospitality Committee—Angela Connell
 New PFI Incorporation/Representation
 Dances (one grade level for each)
 Ceremonies/Inductions
Upcoming Events
 Coffee with Kristen
October 8th (8:30—10:00 a.m.)
 Bingo Night
October 28th (evening, time TBA)
 Parent-Teacher Conferences
November 9th—10th
Thank You
Thank you for attending this evening.
Tonight is a celebration of what your children
will learn this year. There will be time to
discuss specifics about your child at
conferences in November.