Ethel Walker SchoolWhat is Ancient Rome, and why do we care? In this first-year course, students will learn about the ancient world through geography, mythology, history, archaeology, and, of course, language. Through short readings, plays, and cartoons, students will become comfortable interacting with Latin prose. Special attention will also be given to the context of the ancient world.
The Speak Out: Prepping for Upper School seminar allows 8th grade students the opportunity to work together as they become comfortable and confident with using their voice through public speaking. Throughout the trimester, students engage in intentional games to experiment with persuasive language, crowd engagement, peer support, and learning how to balance anxiety with energy. Members of the Upper School faculty and staff join students in class as guest stars to help build community. Guest stars partake in conversations with students regarding leadership opportunities, equity and inclusion on campus, Upper School public speaking classes, and college counseling. The goal for the 8th grade in this seminar is to prepare students to present their 8th grade speeches and help students gain a sense of independence through the power of their voices.
Grade 8
Students will expand their knowledge of literary forms and describe their characteristics as they read and interpret works of literature for curricular and leisure reading. Students will also identify the criteria of literary genres and award-winning books with a focus on diversity and cross-cultural literature. In terms of research, students will learn to identify, evaluate, refine, and ethically integrate a variety of research media into curricular projects. With an emphasis on the creation of bibliographic citations, students will also begin to develop an understanding of citation formatting and development.
Grade 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.
Grade 6
The 6th grade Wellness seminar meets weekly for one trimester. This seminar is a discussion-based class where students focus on social emotional learning and emotional well-being. Adolescence is a time when emotions can be confusing and overwhelming. The goal of this class is to help students recognize, understand, and manage their emotions (emotion regulation). We practice mindfulness and learn to apply its lessons to a variety of situations. Prompts are provided for journaling and discussion.
Grade 6
Walker’s History is an introductory course about the history of The Ethel Walker School. It gives students an in-depth look at the origins of the campus and surrounding area, including Ms. Ethel Walker herself. Collaborating with archivists, students will be able to comb through the archives, looking at photographs, mementos, letters, etc. Each student will then create their own scrapbook that shows the history of their lives that they would like to share, thereby getting hands-on experience in creating a history of themselves.
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.
Grade 6
The 6th grade Study Skills seminar meets weekly for one trimester. Students focus on study skills and executive function strategies, such as sustained attention, task initiation, working memory, planning, and organization. Students work on skill-building activities from the SMARTS Executive Function Curriculum developed by the Research Institute for Learning and Development.
Have you ever wondered how and why the planets move, how energy is transferred in ocean waves, or where all the different species in Connecticut have come from? We will explore questions like these in STEAM 8. 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 8 will use real-world phenomena such as car collisions, tidal waves, fossils and dinosaurs, and space exploration to focus on the topics of forces and energy, energy in waves, mechanisms of diversity, and the changing Earth. This course builds upon the problem-solving mindset developed in STEAM 7 to build skills in extending quantitative analysis to investigations, distinguishing between causation and correlation, and using basic statistical analysis to construct explanations and design solutions supported by multiple sources of evidence.
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.
Have you ever wondered how your body systems are affected by participating in sports, how the honey bee populations are affecting our food supply, or why we get storms in New England? We will explore questions like these in STEAM 6. STEAM is an integration of science, technology, engineering, art, and math. This course 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 6 will use real-world phenomena such as athletic concussions, Lyme disease, honey bee populations, animal habitats, and destructive weather to deeply explore the topics of human body systems, reproduction and growth, energy transfer and weather, and climates and human impacts. Students will learn how to develop scientific and engineering questions that can be investigated within the scope of the classroom, outdoor environment, and museums and other public facilities with available resources. They will also learn how to frame a hypothesis based on observations and scientific principles, specify relationships between variables, clarify arguments, and begin to make models that lead into basic experimentation.
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.
Students entering this class are expected to have studied positive and negative numbers, the basic properties of numbers, and simple equations. The course covers all topics of elementary algebra, including verbal problems, factoring, graphing of linear equations, radicals, solving linear and quadratic equations, and linear systems.
Prerequisite: Pre-Algebra or department placement
This course is a continuation of French 1. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in French 1 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves in complete sentences on a variety of familiar topics. Specific structures that learners will acquire include: what they were doing or used to do and what they will do.
Prerequisite: French 1
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: themselves; the weather; their likes, dislikes, and preferences; their families and homes; their favorite pastimes and hobbies; what they did over the past weekend as well as what they are going to do over the next weekend; and what they want to do versus what they can or must do. Learners will develop the ability to negotiate meaning in unfamiliar contexts.
This course is a continuation of Spanish 1. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in Spanish 1 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves in complete sentences on a variety of familiar topics. Specific structures that learners will acquire include what they were doing or used to do and what they will do. Learners will continue to develop the ability to negotiate meaning in unfamiliar contexts.
Prerequisite: Spanish 1
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; their favorite pastimes and hobbies; what they did over the past weekend as well as what they are going to do over the next weekend; what they want to do versus what they can or must do, as well as developing the ability to negotiate meaning in unfamiliar contexts.
In English at the eighth grade level, independent thinking and writing play major roles, as every student is encouraged to further develop their creative and critical skills in response to literature and in preparation for secondary school. Through discussion and writing, which include analytical and personal essays designed to promote mastery of essay writing, each student is supported as they learn to express herself clearly, accurately, and fluently. In this way, student voice is at the heart of English 8. We read short fiction, novels, narrative nonfiction, poetry, and drama. Texts may include Macbeth, The Poet X, The House on Mango Street, and One Last Word, among others.
This course takes as its basic question, “What does it mean to be American?” Students explore the foundation of American democracy, examining the ways in which the American government functions, and how citizens engage in that process. Students dig deeper into the experiences of three groups who have been influential in the development of this country: Indigenous Peoples, Black Americans, and the Latinx community. Students also have the opportunity to explore groups that resonate with their own American experience. Students use a variety of sources ranging from primary documents to academic articles to help them improve their ability to think like historians.
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.
The theme for sixth grade is “Laying Foundations,” and there is no better way for students to grapple with this theme than by learning about the foundations of humankind. Sixth Grade Humanities is an investigation into ancient civilizations through the lenses of history, geography, literature, the arts, belief systems, technology, architecture, and customs and traditions. Cultural sensitivity and ethical exploration are core principles of this hands-on, project-based class. Among other activities, students participate in an archaeological dig; create a mini-museum; design a 21st-century version of Babylon’s legendary hanging gardens; and prepare a Greek feast fit for the gods of Mount Olympus. Field trips to local historical societies and museums, coupled with outdoor excursions for native materials for projects, bring the research aspect of this class to life. Reading global mythologies and identifying the stories around which they have shaped their own lives helps students to connect with children of long ago and with those who live throughout the world today — including their own classmates.
