Milton M. Somers Middle School
Departments
Related Arts - Sciences
Computer education is offered to students in grades 6,7 and 8. In this course, students learn about the history of technology, how a computer works, correct keyboarding techniques and how to utilize the power of search engines. Students learn how to set up computer accounts, make power point presentations, and integrate attachments into their work. Career possibilities are addressed, and real life applications provide opportunities for students to produce professional documents. Many of the assignments given re-enforce cross curricular objectives as well as provide access for students to technology for reports and the various fairs required during the school year.
Pre-engineering is a new course offered at Somers that will progress and change each year. Students must be both interested and dedicated to this class. They will learn the process of planning, through testing, of designs for various challenges. Some projects that the students completed last year were the balloon-powered carts, constructing electrically powered magnetic levitation carts, and also building and testing a cardboard boat! As the class continues, new missions will be added to the course. Students must learn to draw thumbnail sketches, and other two dimensional representations of their blueprints. They also learn computer-aided design (CAD) that they use to make isometric drawings of their plans.
It is a necessity to the success of the pre-engineering student to have good mathematical and logical thinking skills because of the requirements to create to scale and produce three dimensional objects. These skills are also needed for other computer projects that require "outside the box" thinking.
This course is open first to all upcoming eighth grade students who are registered to take Algebra 2. Our students are expected to be able to conduct themselves properly in a technological environment. Some fees are required to take this class. We are not able to provide all materials that are needed for the assortment of projects: therefore, students may be obligated to provide some of their own materials particular to their project needs.
This one semester course is designed to further develop advanced study skills that prepare middle school students for challenging reading in enrichment level classes and for advanced assessments that require critical thinking. Vocabulary lessons focus on analogies and concept relationships. Lessons in critical reading, mathematical reasoning and problem solving, and critical thinking focus on the synthesis, analysis, and evaluation of information from a variety of appropriate verbal and mathematical sources Instructional strategies promote student questioning, discussion, and inductive and deductive reasoning.
Topics include:
| Verbal analogy strategies | Identification of author attitude and tone |
| Synonym and antonym study | Drawing conclusions |
| Connotation and denotation | SAT sentence completion strategies |
| Effective word choice | SAT reading comprehension strategies |
| Main idea/author's purpose | SAT math strategies |
| Propaganda techniques | Critical thinking |
| Drawing inferences | Logic |
| Political cartoons | Problem solving strategies |
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