Ethel Walker SchoolGrade 7
The 7th grade Wellness seminar meets weekly for one trimester. This seminar is a discussion-based class where students focus on emotional well-being and social emotional learning with a particular emphasis on relationship skills. With identity as their primary focus during this period of development, students are in search of solid and meaningful relationships. Each class will begin with a brief meditation and a check-in. Students are given writing or discussion prompts to help begin conversations related to their developing social awareness and the skills involved in forming and maintaining healthy relationships.
Grade 7
The 7th grade Study Skills seminar meets weekly for one trimester. Students focus on study skills and learn strategies that strengthen executive function skills, such as sustained attention, task initiation, working memory, planning, and organization. Students also work toward more advanced skills such as time management, goal-directed persistence, and metacognition.
Open to Grades 6-8
This ensemble is for Middle School students who are interested in preparing and performing orchestral music. The Middle School Orchestra performs at Middle School concerts. This experience will prepare the musician for the Upper School Orchestra. All musicians at any level are welcome.
This course explores the basic modes of visual expression, which may include drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography, animation, textile arts, and ceramics. Coursework is designed to help each student develop their own identity through art, as well as self-confidence and independence. The curriculum connects with the Middle School program of study whenever possible and provides a well-rounded artistic basis for Upper School-level visual art courses.
Grades 6-8
Middle School music classes meet once per week within grade levels, and once per week as a full Middle School. The grade level class includes singing and choral activities, folk dancing, rhythm training, music theory, musical theater/theater exercises, sight-singing, and audition preparation. There is continued emphasis on listening and skill development, as well as music appreciation. The full Middle School music meeting is called Choristers. All Middle School students participate in this choral group, which performs in the Holiday and Spring Concerts, as well as all-school Chapels.
The Middle School theater classes will focus on the fundamentals of dramatic performance. The classes will build the necessary skills for character development and stage presence through scene work, theater history, and improvisational exercises. Theater studies help students to hone public speaking skills, teach them to listen and respond effectively, foster their spontaneity and problem-solving skills, help them to grow as collaborators, and give them the confidence to take risks on stage and in life.
The Middle School dance program concentrates on the development of technical skills, and the appreciation of the art form. An annual dance performance is included in the yearly activities.
Have you ever wondered how chemicals interact in the body, how ecosystems are affected by local interactions with people and industry, or how Connecticut was formed? We will explore questions like these in STEAM 7. STEAM is an integration of science, technology, engineering, art, and math. This class allows our students to practice the science and engineering skills that professionals use every day, engage in hands-on exploration, and design projects as they explore the natural world. Students in STEAM 7 will use real-world phenomena such as the effects of energy drinks, the Farmington River, rock formations, and Talcott Mountain to focus on the topics of the properties of matter, dynamic interactions within an ecosystem, and geologic changes in the Earth. This course builds upon the inquiry mindset developed in STEAM 6 to build competency in developing, using, and revising models to describe more abstract phenomena and design systems. Beyond just following procedures for experiments, students will build skills in planning and carrying out investigations that use multiple variables and provide evidence to support explanations or solutions.
This course is for students who have completed Foundations of Mathematics or an equivalent course. Topics include further exploration of decimals, factors, fractions, integers, exponents, ratios, proportions, and percents, as well as graphing on the coordinate plane, linear equations, algebraic expressions, and solving algebraic equations and inequalities.
Prerequisite: Foundations of Math or department placement
Basic computational skills are reviewed, and problem-solving, patterns, estimating, and mental math skills are emphasized. Topics introduced include decimals, fractions, exponents, scientific notation, ratios, rates, proportions, percents, measurement, graphing in the coordinate plane, and an introduction to variables and solving algebraic equations.
Prerequisite: Department placement
In Spanish 1B, learners will continue to expand their vocabulary and build upon the structures they acquired in Spanish 1A. By the end of the year, not only will they be able to talk about themselves and the familiar topics covered during the previous year with greater confidence and in greater complexity, they will also begin to develop narrative competency in multiple time frames as they talk about what they did in the past and what they will do in the future.
In French 1B, learners will continue to expand their vocabulary and build upon the structures they acquired in French 1A. By the end of the year, not only will they be able to talk about themselves and the familiar topics covered during the previous year with greater confidence and in greater complexity, they will also begin to develop narrative competency in multiple time frames as they talk about what they did in the past and what they will do in the future.
This course serves as an introduction to the Spanish language through reading, writing, speaking, and listening. By the end of the year, learners will be able to talk about very familiar topics: themselves; the weather; their likes, dislikes, and preferences; their families and homes; and their favorite pastimes and hobbies. Learners will also discover the many places in the world where Spanish is spoken through music, video, artifacts, and projects.
This course serves as an introduction to the French language through reading, writing, speaking, and listening. By the end of the year, learners will be able to talk about very familiar topics, including: themselves; the weather; their likes, dislikes, and preferences; their families and homes; and their favorite pastimes and hobbies. Learners will also discover the many places in the world where French is spoken through music, video, artifacts, and projects.
Open to Grades 6-12
This course provides students with an opportunity to learn and improve vocal technique and to experience a repertoire of various styles. Enrollment in Choir is not required. Voce Felice, a fine vocal ensemble, is formed from members of this class. Individual singers have the opportunity to perform as soloists at the end of the school year concert. All singers are welcome.
Open to Grades 7-12
The Gospel Choir is a lively vocal ensemble that incorporates musical styles from the spiritual, blues, and gospel genres. This ensemble demands a willingness to participate in the appropriate style that this music commands. All singers are welcome.
Private lessons are offered for many instruments. Numerous recitals and assemblies involve the music program, and public performance opportunities continue to expand the musical experience here on campus.
Financial Commitment: Private lessons are billed through the Business Office. The Music Instruction Agreement must be signed by a parent/guardian and returned before lessons can begin. Please contact the Business Office for additional details.
This course focuses on allowing our students to see how our world looks today. With the purpose of allowing our students to understand the way that geography impacts our lives, students will undertake a unit on reading and understanding maps as well as a unit on important geography terms, including the study of geography itself, climate, and vegetation. They will then study various regions, focusing on themes of geography, including themes of place, location, and the movement of people and ideas.
At the 7th grade level, students maintain their momentum and build new skills by continuing an exploration of the various genres of literature. We read a challenging collection of texts that may include: Cast Away; Howl’s Moving Castle; Poetry Speaks Who I Am; Romeo and Juliet; Good Master, Sweet Ladies; and The Outsiders. Other texts, including individual poems, myths, fairy tales, short stories, and essays, are carefully selected to be appropriate to the age and developmental level of seventh grade students. Teachers strive to help students truly love to read. Students will learn to present their work to an audience — aloud and in writing. Students continue to enhance their composition skills through a study of analytical writing, with an emphasis on the process of writing, not just the final product. Language mechanics, also taught in English 7, concentrates on understanding the passive voice, parallel structure, audience engagement, and logical flow. Students will read beyond the curriculum in this course. They will also have many opportunities for creative writing in a wide variety of genres.
