Exploratory Syllabus 2011-2012 School Year - 7th & 8th Grades
1st Trimester – Civics, 2nd Trimester – Economics, 3rd Trimester – Engineering
Liz Branter branterli@whitepinecharterschool.org
Week of August 24th
 First Day of School – August 24th
 Introductions, review of class rules
 Civics, Chapter 1 – Introduction
Week of August 29th
 Chapter 1 – The American People
 Chapter 2 – Roots of American Democracy
Week of September 5th
 No School September 5th – Labor Day
 Chapter 3 – The Constitution
Week of September 12th
 Chapter 4 – The Bill of Rights
 Chapter 5 – Citizenship and Government in
a Democracy
 Unit 1 Test (Chapters 1-5)
Week of September 19th
 Chapter 6 – The Legislative Branch
 Chapter 7 – The Executive Branch
Week of September 26th
 Chapter 8 – The Judicial Branch
 Unit 2 Test (Chapters 6-8)
Week of October 3rd
 No School October 6th & 7th – State Inservice
 Chapter 9 – Political Parties and Politics
Week of October 10th
 Chapter 10 – Voting and Elections
 Chapter 11 – Influencing Government
Week of October 17th
 Unit 3 Test (Chapters 9-11)
 Chapter 12 – State Government
Week of October 24th
 No School October 24th & 25th –
Parent/Teacher Conferences
 Chapter 13 – Local Government
 Chapter 14 – Dealing with Community
Issues
Week of October 31st
 Chapter 15 – Legal Rights and
Responsibilities
 Chapter 16 – Civil and Criminal Law
 Chapter 17 – Citizenship and the Internet
Week of November 7th
 No School November 11th – Teacher Inservice
 Civics Final Exam
 Economics, Chapter 1 – What is
Economics?
Week of November 14th
 November 16th – End of First Trimester
 Chapter 2 – Economic Systems and
Economic Tools
 Chapter 3 – US Private and Public Sectors
 Unit 1 Test (Chapters 1-3)
Week of November 21st
 No School – Thanksgiving Break
Week of November 28th
 Chapter 4 – Demand
 Chapter 5 – Supply
 Chapter 6 – Market Forces
Week of December 5th
 Chapter 7 – Market Structure
 Unit 2 Test (Chapters 4-6)
 Chapter 8 – Businesses
Week of December 12th
 Chapter 9 – Labor Markets
 Chapter 10 – Financial Markets and
Business Growth
 Unit 3 Test (Chapters 8-10)
Week of December 19th
 No School – Christmas Break
Week of December 26th
 No School – Christmas Break
Week of January 2nd
 Chapter 11 – Economic Performance
 Chapter 12 - Economic Growth
Week of January 9th
 Chapter 13 – Economic Challenges
 Unit 4 Test (Chapters 11-13)
 Chapter 14 – Government Spending and the
National Economy
Week of January 16th
 No School January 16th – MLK Day
 Chapter 15 – Fiscal Policy, Deficits and
Debts
 Chapter 16 – Money and Banking
Week of January 23rd
 Chapter 17 – Money Creation, the Federal
Reserve System and Monetary Policy
 Unit 5 Test (Chapters 14-17)
th
Week of January 30
 Chapter 18 – International Trade and
Finance
 Chapter 19 – Economic Development
th
Week of February 6
 No School February 6th & 7th –
Parent/Teacher Conferences
 Unit 6 Test (Chapters 18-19)
Week of February 13th
 Chapter 20 – Consumer Responsibilities and
Protections
 Chapter 21 – Managing your Money
Week of February 20th
 No School February 24th – Teacher Work
Day
 Economics Final Exam
Week of February 27th
 February 28th – End of Second Trimester
 Engineering Chapter 1 – Engineering and
Technology
 Chapter 2 – Technological Resources and
Systems
Week of March 5th
 No School March 9th – Teacher In-service
 Unit 1 Test (Chapters 1-2)
 Chapter 3 – The Engineering Design Process
 Chapter 4 – Freehand Technical Sketching
Week of March 12th
 Chapter 5 – Pictorial Sketching
 Chapter 6 - Reverse Engineering
Week of March 19th
 Unit 2 Test (Chapters 3-6)
 Chapter 7 – Parametric Modeling
 Chapter 8 – Prototyping
 Unit 3 Test (Chapters 7-8)
Week of March 26th
 No School – Mid-Winter Break
Week of April 2nd
 Chapter 9 - Energy
 Chapter 10 – Transfer of Energy
 Chapter 11 – Fluid Power
Week of April 9th
 Chapter 12 – Flight and Space
 Unit 4 Test (Chapters 9-12)
Week of April 16th
 Chapter 13 – Electrical Theory
 Chapter 14 – Electrical Circuits
Week of April 23rd
 Chapter 15 - Electronics
 Unit 5 Exam (Chapters 13-15)
Week of April 30th
 Chapter 16 – Manufacturing
 Chapter 17 – Robotics
Week of May 7th
 Chapter 18 - Automation
 Chapter 19 – Civil Engineering and
Architecture
Week of May 14th
 Chapter 20 – Emerging Technologies
 Engineering Final Exam
Week of May 21st
 May 25th – Half Day/Last Day of School
*This is a tentative syllabus and is subject to change. Please check my class website often as it will contain the
most up to date information.