The Middle School English/Language Arts Program stresses the crucial skills of reading, writing, and speaking. Appreciation of literature and enjoyment of creative writing are viewed as central. Basic skills such as spelling, grammar, and vocabulary are taught throughout the Middle School years. In fourth and fifth grades, students read independently and have opportunities to write daily using a variety of literary formats to develop fluency. Because writing is integral to learning, fourth and fifth graders are encouraged and directly instructed in how to rethink, rearrange, and polish their words. They learn strategies for good writing during the writing, revising, and editing stages of their work. Spelling and grammar are taught in a meaningful context.

In the sixth through eighth grades, students read and experience a variety of literary genres. At the same time, all students are taught how to write cogent, clear, and precise prose and how to revise and edit their writing, using correct usage, punctuation, grammar, and spelling.

The English/Language Arts Program has assumed exciting new dimensions by integrating technology into the study of language and literature. The Shakespearean plays A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo and Juliet are explored in the seventh and eighth grades though the use of computer programs designed to teach literature through textual analysis. Learn more about curricular technology initiatives.