Humanities

This course immerses students in the rich local history, cultures, and geography of the state and teaches them to celebrate our diversity. Students learn about the first humans who lived here 10,000 years ago through a chronological survey of eras, including pre-Columbian Indian days, Spanish colonization, the territorial period, statehood, and modern day. We end the academic year with a unit on current events, including such topics as our water crisis. We examine patterns in human behavior and the roots of many of today's cultural and political conflicts. We challenge students to take a leadership role in the school and local community by creating positive social change and by speaking out against injustice. As young historians they are encouraged to discuss these issues and topics at home with their families. Students are expected to participate actively in Socratic discussions, group and hands-on projects, field trips, readings, oral presentations, writings, art projects, debates, and dramatic performances.

This year-long course is divided into four major thematic units. Each unit is approximately nine weeks long and includes a number of sub-themes that help to clarify the major theme. The four units are: Building a More Perfect Union, The Civil War, The Holocaust, The Great Depression. Readings from novels, articles, and textbooks, movies, skits; drawings, rigorous written and visually artistic projects and other assorted assignments are employed in this hands-on and participatory curriculum.

The content of English 7 is devoted to New Mexico and Southwest Literature. Readings include Cuentos; Rio Grande Stories; The Way to Rainy Mountain; People of Darkness; Bless Me Ultima; and selected readings, essays, poetry by local, regional and national Hispanic, Native American, African American and Anglo authors.

In addition to the content above, students read and write often, be it essays, letters, journals, fiction or non-fiction. Grammar, spelling and vocabulary are critical components of the course. Monte del Sol utilizes Word Power as its grammar text.

English 8 explores US Literature through a variety of themes including: Honoring Diversity, The Art of Expression, Exploring the Self, and Building Community. In each unit the essential question of "Where/I do fit into this world?" is the framework upon which exploration of those themes occurs. Students will learn to assume different personas through creative writing, and stories and poems from different viewpoints. As they review their own writings and listen to the writings of their peers, students will begin to see the ways in which their beliefs compare and contrast with the belief systems of other people from different cultures and background. Students will recognize how they can use language to better understand themselves. Skill development such as reading comprehension, writing, grammar usage, and vocabulary development are critical components of the course and woven through the curriculum. Readings include: Coming of Age in America, I am the Darker Brother, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Poetry Anthologies, student selected literature, The Art of the Personal Essay, A Separate Piece, A Raisin in the Sun, Night, Of Mice and Men, Civil Disobedience.

Based on Nancie Atwell's innovative approach, the 7 & 8 Reading and Writing Workshop class challenges students to find personal connection and meaning in their work. Guided by their peers and the teacher, students self-select literature from the extensive classroom library (currently over 300 titles) or from outside school and read a half hour every night. Their reading comprehension and responses are recorded in their reading journals, in which students exchange commentary on literature with their teacher and peers in a written "book club." The class as a whole also reads books aloud, including Of Mice and Men, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and others, depending on class interest.

Time is devoted every class period to writing workshop, in which students compose drafts of writing pieces in various genres, including the personal essay, the persuasive essay, short story and the interview. Each of these pieces is edited by the student, reviewed in peer conferences, edited by the teacher, put into final form, and kept in a portfolio. Publication is encouraged.

Grammar, spelling, word attack skills, reading skills, genre studies, and many other topics are covered in ten to fifteen minute "mini-lessons." Independent journal writing and a poem of the day are also covered in each class period.

This is an English class devoted to students whose primary language is not English. It carries English credit and is designed to further students' English language development.