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Eighth
Grade Student Profile
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Every
day our world becomes more complex and demanding. To succeed beyond high school, students must
be better prepared than at any time in the history of our state. Our expectations for our students and our schools
are higher than they have ever been.
To
meet these expectations, the State Board of Education has adopted
a curriculum for all Texas
schools – the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
The
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills identify what Texas
students should know and be able to do at every grade and in every
course in the foundation and enrichment areas as they move successfully
through our public schools.
The
following information summarizes the TEKS at your child’s grade level
in the four foundation areas of English Language Arts and Reading,
Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies.
If
you would like to see all of the TEKS that your child will learn,
ask a teacher or principal to show you a copy; or order the TEKS from
the Texas Education Agency; or, see http://www.tea.state.tx.us/resources/curric.html.
LANGUAGE
ARTS
Children in Medina
Valley ISD will be prepared to master standards necessary to be successful
in the next grade level. By
the end of the school year, a Medina Valley Eighth Grader will:
READING
COMPONENT.
- Read at or above grade level
- identify word meaning using strategies
- identify words across curricular content areas
- monitor, adjust and modify own reading and purpose
- use own knowledge of skills and experiences to comprehend
- analyze characteristics of various types of texts
(genres)
- have a basic understanding of culturally diverse
texts
- read silently with increasing ease for longer periods
of time
WRITING COMPONENT.
- Composes and edits texts applying the conventions
of standard grammar and usage (capitalization, punctuation, handwriting,
penmanship and spelling) to communicate clearly and effectively
- evaluates texts of self and others for a variety
of purposes
LISTENING
AND SPEAKING COMPONENT.
- Listens actively to gain knowledge, and analyze
and evaluate messages, and for enjoyment
- prepares, organizes and presents oral messages
- evaluate and critiques oral presentations and performances
VIEWING
AND REPRESENTATIONS.
- Interpret how author’s/illustrator’s style, elements,
and media represent and extend meaning/purpose/message
SCIENCE
Children in Medina
Valley ISD will be prepared to master standards necessary to be successful
in the next grade level. By
the end of the school year, a Medina Valley Eighth Grader will:
- gather and interpret data using safe, ethical practices
and appropriate tools and technologies to increase their understanding
of how the world works.
- Analyze information critically in order to distinguish
fact from non-fact and evidence from conclusion.
- Solve, communicate, generate, and extend problems
using an array of strategies, materials, and methods, working either
independently or cooperatively
- identify patterns, explain relationships, and interpret
data to solve problems and justify predictions
- connect and apply concepts to personal interests,
career goals, local and global issues, and ethical dilemmas
- produce products that communicate an understanding
of current issues and applications
SOCIAL
STUDIES
Children in Medina
Valley ISD will be prepared to master standards necessary to be successful
in the next grade level. By
the end of the school year, a Medina Valley Eighth Grader will:
HISTORY.
- Apply absolute and relative chronology; identify
major eras, and dates in US history through 1877
- identify reasons for European exploration and colonization
of North America
- describe and analyze documents related to and reasons
for the growth of a representative government in the United States
- explain the policies, events, issues, and individuals
related to the Revolutionary Era
- analyze foreign and domestic issues during the early
years of the Republic
- trace the roots of westward expansion and its effects
on national development
- analyze political, economic, and social factors
that led to sectionalism and the Civil War
- explain the role of individuals, events, and issues
of the civil War
- analyze reconstruction
GEOGRAPHY.
- Create/use geographic tools to collect, analyze
and interpret data
- analyze the impact of human adaptations and modifications
to the environment
ECONOMICS.
- Explain reasons for the differences n development across
the US
- analyze how various economic forces brought about
rapid industrialization and urbanization in the 19th
century
GOVERNMENT.
- Identify historical documents and explain how they
reflect American beliefs and principles
- summarize/evaluate the impact of landmark US Supreme
Court cases
CITIZENSHIP.
- Identify the rights and responsibilities granted
to US citizens
- explain the importance of freedom to express differing
points of view in a democratic society
CULTURE.
- Identify diverse groups that settle in the United States; trace the contributions and conflicts these groups
experienced
- describe/evaluate the major reform movements of
the 19th Century
- trace the development of religious freedom, describe
its influence on the American way of life
- describe developments in the arts and cultural activities
that reflect the times in which they were created or convey universal
themes
SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY
AND SOCIETY.
- Explain the ways technology and scientific innovation
affect US economic development
- Describe how scientific discoveries and technological
innovations influence daily life
SOCIAL STUDIES SKILLS.
- Locate, identify and use primary and secondary sources;
analyze, organize, and interpret information; identify points of
view and frame of reference; identify bias; evaluate the validity
of a source; use appropriate math skills to interpret social studies
information
- use social studies terms correctly; use standard
grammar; transfer information
from one medium to another; communicate social studies information
in oral, written and visual forms
- Use problem solving and decision-making processes
MATHEMATICS
Children in Medina
Valley ISD will be prepared to master standards necessary to be successful
in the next grade level. By
the end of the school year, a Medina Valley Eighth Grader will:
NUMBERS, OPERATIONS, AND QUANTITATIVE REASONING.
- Compare rational numbers
- select appropriate form of rational numbers to solve
problems
- approximate irrational numbers
- use scientific notation
- select appropriate operations to solve problems
- add, subtract, divide and multiply rational numbers
to solve problems
- proportional relationships (using multiplication
by unit rate)
- evaluate solutions for reasonableness
PATTERNS, RELATIONSHIPS, AND ALGEBRAIC THINKING.
- Compare and contracts proportional and non-proportional
relationships
- estimation involving percents and proportions
- different representations of date (table, graph,
equation)
- use and algebraic expression to find any term in
a sequence
GEOMETRY AND SPATIAL REASONING.
- Generate similar shapes using dilations
- graph dilations, reflections, and translations on
coordinate plane
- draw solids from different perspectives
- use pictures or models to demonstrate Pythagorean
theorem
- locate and name points on a coordinate plane
MEASUREMENT.
- Surface area of prisms and cylinders using models
and nets
- use formulas to estimate and solve problems (surface
area, volume)
- use the Pythagorean theorem
- use proportional relationships to find measures
in similar shapes
- describe results of proportional changes of shapes
(perimeter, area, volume)
PROBABILITY AND STATISTICS.
- Probability of simple and compound events
- theoretical probabilities and experimental results
- select appropriate measures of central tendency
- draw conclusions from scatterplots
- construct circle graphs, bar graphs and histograms
- recognize misuse of date and graphical information
MATHEMATICAL PROCESSES AND TOOLS.
- Understand the problem, make and carry out a plan,
and evaluate
- develop a variety of problem solving strategies
- make conjectures from patterns
- validate conclusions using mathematical properties
and relationships
