Quick Click: What to Expect, Grade by Grade

Watch for these academic milestones as your child makes her way through middle school.

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During early adolescence, your child will be undergoing significant physical and emotional change, and the middle school curriculum will be sure to keep pace. In 5th grade, she will be asked to take responsibility for the timeliness and organization of her schoolwork. By the time she’s in 8th grade, these skills will come naturally. Evaluations and grades will carry more import, and in turn, students will take school more seriously.

 

Middle school is a crucial point in a lifetime of learning. While elementary school focuses on the student, and high school solidifies his skills, middle school is when your child will decide how important education is to him. Middle school lessons will not simply teach facts — they will also teach how these facts carry over into real life. Long-term interdisciplinary units will call for creative, agile thinking. Block scheduling (a series of longer class sessions spread over a one- or two-week period) will let your child immerse himself in complex, multi-dimensional topics. 

Depending on your district, middle school will begin and end at different grades. Read on for more specific outlines of what to expect in 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grades.

Grade 5

Calmer, more receptive, and ready for learning, 5th graders will be assigned book reports, lab reports, and other projects that demand concentration, concrete organizational skills, and sustained effort. The 5th grade mind will also seek and retain more information. Many of the facts she learns today will stay with her for the rest of his life. Here’s what to expect in each subject area:

In language arts, she will:

1. Express and explain through group activities and cooperative learning
2. Use increased memory capacity to strengthen spelling skills
3. Engage in independent, often voracious reading
4. Write rudimentary research papers
5. Read and memorize poetry

In math and science, she will:

1. Familiarize herself with the human body
2. Learn about classification systems such as the periodic table
3. Strategically analyze through repeat experiments and controlled variables
4. Work with decimals and double-digit division
5. Collect data using various measurement tools

In history and social studies, she will:

1. Memorize state capitals, presidents, and other facts
2. Focus on geography and world’s natural resources

Grade 6

Suddenly, nothing is sacred. To the 6th grader, the world is meant to be picked apart and questioned. Worksheets will be replaced by more challenging and open-ended assignments. Tasks will focus more on interpretation rather than rote memorization. This is the time for your 6th grader to pursue activities like foreign language, music, and art, which will later shape his character.

In language arts, he will:

1. Read non-fiction history books, especially biographies
2. Conduct interviews for research
3. Learn how to read and compose footnotes and bibliographies

In math and science, he will:

1. Format numbers through scientific notation
2. Use computers for calculations, graphing, etc.
3. Untangle complicated word problems
4. Learn about probability, statistics, and percentages

In history and social studies, he will:

1. Engage more closely with ideas by using primary documents
2. Consider world events through various perspectives
3. Complete current events assignments
4. Look beyond himself by performing community service

Grade 7

Adolescence has truly arrived, and with that, mood swings, identity crises, and social drama. Seventh grade schoolwork will help your child transition into adulthood through tasks that demand reaching out and connecting with society. Although your 7th grader may act unpredictably, she will also begin to show patience and maturity through collaborations inside and outside the classroom.

In language arts, she will:

1. Read longer books, many involving issues of fairness
2. Learn to appreciate the merits of essay revision and polishing
3. Discuss literary elements of books like setting, character, plot, and themes
4. Acquire a rich and varied vocabulary

In math and science, she will:

1. Interpret charts and graphs
2. Explore the microscopic world
3. Solve problems involving decimals, fractions, percentage, and geometry
4. Study patterns and sequences
5. Utilize geometrical tools like the compass and protractor
6. Begin learning algebra, the concept of zero, and negative numbers

In history and social studies, she will:

1. Increase her interest in politics and social justice through lessons on the environment, historical conflicts, and ethics
2. Exhibit early stages of abstract reasoning

Grade 8

No getting around it — the 8th grader will rebel passionately and frequently. Teachers will try to channel this teenage discontent into assignments that let your child make decisions about his own life and identity. More than ever, your 8th grader will grapple with what makes him unique. Assignments will focus on establishing competence and mastery. Though he may insist that school bores him or even purport to “know everything,” he is also open to a great amount of academic challenge and variety.

In language arts, he will:

1. Construct lengthier, more structured research reports
2. Experiment with wordplay and the different purposes of writing
3. Use literature and writing to express and understand himself
4. Explore aesthetic techniques in literature

In math and science, he will:

1. Become interested in psychology and questions of the self
2. Interpret a greater range of graphical representations
3. Solve basic algebra equations with one unknown variable
4. Inquire about technology and how things work

In history and social studies, he will:

1. Discuss how current events relate to various studies
2. Investigate solutions for the world’s problems
3. Demonstrate an interest in or devotion to customs and cultural traditions

What to Expect of the 1st Grade Curriculum
The skills your child should have at the beginning, and by the end, of first grade. What to expect of your kid's first grade curriculum, including homework assignments.

What to Expect of a 5th Grade Curriculum
Describes the skills your child should have at the beginning and the end of the fifth grade school year. Covers reading, writing, communication skills, math, social studies, and history.

3rd Grade Curriculum: What to Expect
Skills your child needs to start 3rd grade, and the skills he'll learn during the school year. What you can expect in terms of 3rd grade homework and tests.