7th & 8th Grade Curriculum and High School Credit Night

Middle School Elective Courses


  • Technology: Students take a different course each quarter. Students work to learn material and then take a certification test at the end of the quarter. Skills taught throughout the year include: basic computing, word processing, presentation software, graphics editing, video editing, and game coding.

    PE: Physical Education (PE) is designed to enhance students' physical, social, and emotional development. It includes a diverse range of activities like team sports, individual sports, and fitness exercises. Physical Education also educates students about the importance of leading an active lifestyle and maintaining overall health. Additionally, PE aims to cultivate skills such as teamwork, sportsmanship, and leadership, fostering a well-rounded educational experience. Students in PE are required to dress out into athletic clothes. Middle School Students are required to take one semester of PE each year. A PE waiver is included on the course request form for those who do not wish to take PE. 

    Art 1/2/3: Studio Art is designed to help students develop a better understanding of the Elements and Principles of Design. Students will develop a variety of skills and techniques. Our journey through class will explore many activities that will include: exploring art History, today's influences, hands on art production and understanding art processes. Students will focus on how to use tools, Basic Drawing Basics, Art of seeing, Elements and Principles of Design, art history, Art Criticism and Composition. Students will have exposure to many different art media, as well as opportunities to develop their own artistic style.

    Chorus 1: This year-long course serves as an introduction and development space for choral-style singing and the necessary pre-requisite and requisite skills for choral ensemble performance. These skills include sight-reading, performing simple two- and three-part songs, and developing proper performance etiquette.

    Chorus 2: This year-long course serves as a refinement and improvement space for choral-style singing and the necessary skills for choral ensemble performance. Students will be tasked with learning more difficult literature and will be expected to regularly demonstrate independent mastery of materials as listed in the Chorus 1 description. (Available

    Chorus 3: This year-long course serves as the highest refinement point for choral-style singing at Fairview Middle School. Students will further develop a cappella, aural response, and music theory skills necessary to sight-read and perform at the highest level. They are expected to regularly demonstrate independent mastery of materials and will attend choral events in the area.

    Guitar 1 & 2: These year-long courses are offered during the same period, and are only available to students in the 7th and 8th grade. Guitar 1 serves as an introductory course for students interested in learning the guitar; they will learn how to properly tune and maintain instruments, chord progressions, simple melodies, major scales, and proper technique required for classical guitar. Students in Guitar 2 MUST have at least one credit of guitar on their transcripts either from Fairview or another school, and can expect to learn the following: more difficult chords and progressions, major/minor/blues scales, electric guitar, bass guitar, complex melodies, and small ensemble literature. (Available to 7th and 8th grade only)

    Band 1 (Beginning Band): This class is for students who are new to band. No prior musical experience required. At the beginning of the school year, we introduce the instruments and help students decide which one they will play. By the end of the year, students perform a full-length concert! At-home practice and regular playing tests are required. Parents rent their child's instrument from local music stores. Financial aid, and a limited number of school instruments, are available for families who need assistance.

    Band 2 (Intermediate Band): This class is for students who have completed Beginning Band, focused on development of musical skills. At-home practice and regular playing tests are required. This ensemble gives multiple concerts throughout the school year and represents Fairview at Music Performance Assessments. Students who are in the Advanced Band class may also take Intermediate Band if they wish to learn an additional instrument.

    Band 3 (Advanced Band): This class is for students who desire to perform at the highest level in middle school! Students must pass an audition to join the class. At-home practice and regular playing tests are required. This ensemble gives multiple concerts throughout the school year and represents Fairview at Music Performance Assessments. Advanced Band may require extra rehearsals outside the school day; a detailed schedule will be provided.

    Mythology: This class focuses on mythology of Greek and Roman civilizations as well as various other ancient civilizations and their mythology. The course works to develop students understanding and application of ancient myths. 

    Middle School Spanish:  Middle School spanish introduces students to the basics of the Spanish language. Students will also be introduced to Spanish speaking countries, cultures, and civilizations. This course is great for students who are interested in taking more advanced Spanish language courses in the future. 

    Health:  This course is a health course with an emphasis on anatomy and physiology type content. It will be an introduction into the field of medicine and health based careers. This course is open to 7th & 8th graders only.  

    Odyssey of the Mind: Odyssey of the Mind is an international organization that challenges students to work together to solve complex problems in a competitive format. In this homeroom class, students will form a team to take on a long-term creative critical thinking challenge. The organization provides the detailed requirements and students use their imagination to make it come to life! We  can compete against other schools at the regional competition to see how well we think outside the box!  

High School Credit Elective Courses

  • Chinese 1: Chinese 1 uses Integrated Chinese Level 1 Part 1 (Simplified Characters) as our textbooks. Students learn listening, speaking, reading and writing at the same time. By the end of course, students will be able to properly engage in conversations related self identity, family, friends, hobbies, time and dates. Students will also be able to read and write on these topics. In addition, students will be able to recite four poems and write calligraphy.

    Latin 1: This course is designed to introduce students to the Latin language primarily through the use of Cambridge Latin Course, Unit 1 (Fifth Edition). Your main objective in this course will be to gain a working knowledge of the fundamentals of Latin grammar, syntax, and vocabulary, as well as Roman culture and history. You will learn this by learning Latin paradigms, translating sentences, and reading passages adapted from and inspired by ancient Roman orators, historians, poets, and playwrights. At the end of this year, the successful student will be able to identify the basic morphology of nouns and verbs and will have begun the process of understanding Latin syntax. Students in Latin 1 will take the National Latin exam in the spring.

    Latin 2: Latin II: This course is designed to continue building on the foundation started in Latin I. Students will continue learning more Latin vocabulary, new grammatical concepts, and more advanced Latin syntax. Throughout the course, there will also be comparisons made with other languages, such as Ancient Greek and the Romance Languages. Students in Latin 2 will take the National Latin exam in the spring.  Latin 1 is a pre-requisite course

    Spanish 1: Spanish 1 develops all language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing while introducing you to the culture and diversity of the Spanish-speaking world. You will learn to engage in meaningful conversations, read passages, short stories and authentic resources for comprehension. You will be able to produce your own short stories in present tense. You will be able to explain cultural topics.

    Spanish 2: Spanish 2 advances all the language skills learned in Spanish 1. You will be able to read and write more complex stories and texts in Spanish and learn new tenses. You will improve your listening skills and expand your vocabulary. Spanish 1 is a pre-requisite course.

    Digital Photography: The purpose of this program is to prepare students for careers in the photography industry. This program offers a sequence of courses that provides coherent and rigorous content aligned with challenging academic standards and relevant technical knowledge and skills needed to prepare for further education and career in the Arts, A/V Technology and Communication career cluster; provides technical skill proficiency and includes competency-based applied learning that contributes to the academic knowledge, higher order reasoning and problem solving skills, work attitudes, general employability skills, technical skills, and occupation-specific skills, and knowledge of all aspects of the Arts, A/V Technology and Communication careers clusters . Students will use Adobe Express, Adobe Photoshop, Edublog, Gemetrix, Adobe Premiere as a part of this class.

    Junior Classics: This class will focus on the classics of ancient civilizations, their language, culture, etc. This class is taught at the Classics level in high school. This course is open to 7th & 8th graders only. 

    Agriculture: Agriscience Foundations is a course and certification program that teaches students about agriculture and prepares them for further Ag education and careers in agriculture, food, and natural resources. The course is offered as part of a Career and Technical Education (CTE) program. It covers topics such as agricultural history, environmental principles, and agribusiness, which is delivered through instructional and laboratory activities like scientific testing and observation, and field experience during which our students actively participate in gardening in our school garden.


Specialty Homerooms

  • Orchestra Homeroom: The orchestra homeroom is open to all students with prior experience playing the violin, viola, cello, and bass. The class is led by the Lead Teaching Artist from the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra. In this class, students will learn to collaborate as an ensemble while also developing their independence, as they are responsible for mastering their specific parts. Students must perform in concerts at the end of the fall and spring semesters. Additional performance opportunities may be available throughout the year via the TSO Kids program. 

    Yearbook Homeroom: Students in this homeroom course will design the yearbook, taking pictures of events on campus and at sporting events after school. This homeroom requires an application for 7th & 8th graders.

    Morning News Homeroom: Students in the news homeroom are responsible for creating the morning news, and news slides for display in the cafeteria and front office. This homeroom requires an application for 7th & 8th graders.

    “Falcon Singers”: This year-long course serves as the highest refinement point for choral-style singing at Fairview Middle School. Students will further develop acappella, aural response, and music theory skills necessary to sight-read and perform at the highest level. They are expected to regularly demonstrate independent mastery of materials and will attend all choral events in the area. The “Falcon Singers” serve as musical ambassadors for Fairview Middle School and will be expected to act as such. (Available to auditioned 7th and 8th graders)

    Creative Writing: A fun elective choice for any rising 8th grader with a vivid imagination! This class will be high-school credit, so please make sure you are dedicated to the story writing process. We spend time reading examples from various genres and using tips on author's craft to create your own stories. We also pair some of your stories with poetry to bring your characters to life! 

    Health:  This course is a health course with an emphasis on anatomy and physiology type content. It will be an introduction into the field of medicine and health based careers. This course is open to 7th & 8th graders only.