Middle School Curriculum

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Department

English

English Literature is a window into new ideas, cultures, and the experiences of others, as well as an opportunity to see our own experiences reflected on the printed page. Students read literary works from an array of authors and genres, including nonfiction. We teach reading as an active process that includes annotations, written responses, and class discussions. Writing is employed as a thinking tool as well as a means of self-expression. Students continually revise their writing to improve their content, organization, word choice, sentence fluency, voice, and mechanics, with the support of one-on-one student-teacher writing conferences, written feedback from the teacher, and peer reaction. Outside of class, students participate in an independent reading program that includes visits to our Middle School Library, literature circles, book talks, and journaling. Our visiting author program gives students the chance to meet and hear from authors whose works they have read.

English 6

Sixth-grade English focuses on empowering student voices and developing independent and confident readers, writers, and public speakers. Throughout the year, 6th-grade English explores the theme of “diverse perspectives.” Assignments ask students to read and analyze a diverse collection of novels, plays, memoirs, short stories, and poems. Through class discussions, written responses, and presentations to the class, students consider the ways that literature can act as a window into the perspectives of others, and as a mirror to better explore our own identities. Class texts include poetry by Nikki Giovanni, N. Scott Momaday, Langston Hughes, Mekeel Mcbride, and Warsan Shire; The Crossover by Kwame Alexander; The Friends Series, a graphic memoir series written by our 2022 visiting authors, Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham; Refugee by Alan Gratz; selections from We Are Displaced by Malala Yousafzai; The Giver by Lois Lowry; Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson; Almost American Girl, a graphic memoir by our 2023 visiting author Robin Ha; The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton; and A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare.

To foster a community of readers, students are also asked to complete independent reading throughout the year and periodically present booktalks to recommend books to their classmates. Writing projects complement each text and require students to practice various forms of writing: analytical, expository, editorial, persuasive, autobiographical, narrative, and poetic. Vocabulary lessons and grammar mini-units enhance reading comprehension and writing skills.
English 7

The theme of 7th-grade English is emerging adulthood. Students read, discuss, and write about a variety of texts that explore what it means to become a “grown-up,” and how adolescence is marked by a growing understanding of one’s own identity, agency, and values. Class texts include Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes, King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender, Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk, The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, and Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri, along with additional essays, short stories, and poetry. The ultimate goal for 7th grade English is that students become more critical, confident, and sophisticated readers and writers. In the domain of writing, students will study and compose in multiple genres, including narratives and literary analysis, with a workshop approach that equally values self-reflection, peer feedback, and coaching from the teacher. In the domain of reading, students will engage in mature text discussions of class novels and develop strong literary thinking skills — how to make literal, inferential, and critical observations about the text and how to recognize authorial craft in fiction — that they’ll apply in their personal reading lives. Throughout the year, students should also be reading books of their own choosing, with regular independent reading cycles taking place in class. The goal is to become confident, independent readers who seek and find new books/authors/genres, reread old ones, abandon boring ones, and read equally for learning, pleasure, and the experience of being enrapt by a book.
English 8

In 8th grade, students explore a timeless question: Are human beings fundamentally good or evil? Through a study of canonical and contemporary texts, students will consider how access to power influences human behavior, and how people respond in the face of unjust leadership and oppression. A common theme of revolution runs through all of the texts. Students will examine these patterns in history and in literature and contemplate their power to make change for a better world. English texts include: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Animal Farm by George Orwell, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Night by Elie Wiesel, Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare, and Internment by Samira Ahmed, among others. English classes are a mix of discussion and debates, group activities, writing activities, and mini-lessons. Writing assignments demand abstract thinking, inferential reasoning, and the incorporation of textual evidence. Vocabulary work derives from the study of Greek and Latin roots. Students continue to hone grammar and punctuation skills through exercises and frequent writing activities.

Faculty

Tiffany Amin Javaheri

Middle School English Teacher and Advisor

tamin@trevor.org
Bio
Tiffany holds a BA from Brown University. She comes to Trevor from The School at Columbia University, where she taught 7th-grade English for four years. Prior to working at The School at Columbia University, Tiffany taught 3rd and 4th grade at the Packer Collegiate Institute. She chose Trevor first as a parent—her daughter starts Nursery in fall 2023—and, in the process of learning about the school, felt inspired to serve Trevor in an even greater capacity as a teacher. Above all, Tiffany is struck by the harmony that exists between the mission and lived practice at Trevor, which makes for a rich and authentic learning environment.
Sarah Paton

Middle School English Teacher and Advisor, 6th Grade Dean

spaton@trevor.org
Bio
Sarah earned her BA from Princeton University and her MFA from Harvard University. Previously, Sarah taught middle school drama at The Pingry School and worked as a tutor and mentor with Arete Educational Consulting. Sarah joined the Trevor team last April, just at the beginning of distance learning, as a maternity leave replacement in the performing arts department; she soon joined the English department as support for the 7th-grade English classes. Last spring, Sarah was impressed with the faculty’s dedication to Trevor’s students and families. She feels incredibly lucky to be in a school that prioritizes building strong connections between students and faculty. She is looking forward to meeting all of the 6th grade soon!
Anna Rekate

Middle School English Teacher and Advisor

arekate@trevor.org
Bio
Anna holds a BA from Cornell University, an MS in Educational Policy from Columbia University, and an Ed.M. in Supervision and Leadership from Bank Street College of Education. Anna came to Trevor from the American School in Japan, where she taught 8th-grade humanities. She and her family just returned to New York after 14 years living and working in Paris, Zurich, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. This is Anna's 23rd year as an educator; she has taught all subjects and grades 3 through 12 in New York public and independent schools and in international schools. She has also worked as an educational consultant for PBS and WNET, and has written teaching guides for children’s books. She is currently an educational consultant through The Author Village, a collective of authors and educators. This will be Anna's second tenure at Trevor--this time her 11th grader will join us as a student. Prior to moving overseas, Anna taught Upper School English at Trevor for six years. "For me, coming back to New York and coming back to Trevor is like coming home."