Eighth-grade students presenting a skit about the Quadratic Equation during a Wednesday morning meeting.
About three years ago, we adopted a new kindergarten through eighth-grade math scope and sequence based on the Illustrative Math curriculum. One unanticipated and wonderful outcome has been the creation of an eighth-grade math seminar.
Sixth and seventh-grade students work through an accelerated middle school math curriculum, and then all eighth-grade students take a yearlong high school Algebra 1 course with Pete Nowak. Eighth-grade math has become a time of bonding, deep intellectual + mathematical exploration, and goofy math-inspired hilarity in equal measure.
Earlier this year, the whole school community was treated to a window into the experience when the 8th graders, who had just entered the world of quadratics, presented a word problem-turned-dramatic reimagining in the form of a skit, complete with costumed farm animal characters, memorable one-liners, and sound effects.
In many ways, this eighth-grade math course has become a capstone experience that embodies FSP’s culture of joyful rigor– an exploration of challenging mathematical concepts in a learning environment that encourages inquiry, student voice, community, and creativity.