Units of Study

SEVENTH-GRADE MATH CURRICULUM
Seventh-grade math includes three programs: Regular, Accelerated, and the New Trier Township Math Program. Students are carefully screened and evaluated in order to ensure that their placements are accurately made.

Math 7:

The 7th grade math curriculum’s focus is to teach students how to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. As mathematicians, we use abstract and quantitative reasoning in order to construct and defend arguments and critique the reasoning of others. Additionally, we practice modeling with mathematics, using appropriate tools strategically, and attending to precision in our calculations and vocabulary. On a daily basis, we look for patterns in our problem-solving and apply those patterns in different situations. We utilize these mathematical practices while focusing on four critical areas: (1) developing understanding of and applying proportional relationships; (2) developing understanding of operations with rational numbers and working with expressions and linear equations; (3) solving problems involving scale drawings and informal geometric constructions, and working with two- and three-dimensional shapes to solve problems involving area, surface area, and volume; and (4) drawing inferences about populations based on samples.

The units of study in Math 7 include the following:

  • Unit 1: Introduction and Probability
  • Unit 2: Fractions and Integer Addition
  • Unit 3: Arithmetic Properties
  • Unit 4: Proportions and Expressions
  • Unit 5: Probability and Solving Word Problems
  • Unit 6: Solving Inequalities and Equations
  • Unit 7: Proportions and Percents
  • Unit 8: Statistics and Angle Relationships
  • Unit 9: Circles and Volume 

Accelerated Math 7:

The 7th grade accelerated math curriculum’s focus is to teach students how to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. This course is taught at faster pace than the regular course and covers approximately one-and-one-half of the middle school common core state standards (the remaining half of the seventh grade standards followed by all of the eighth grade standards). As mathematicians, we use abstract and quantitative reasoning in order to construct and defend arguments and critique the reasoning of others. Additionally, we practice modeling with mathematics, using appropriate tools strategically, and attending to precision in our calculations and vocabulary. On a daily basis, we look for patterns in our problem-solving and apply those patterns in different situations.

We utilize these mathematical practices while focusing on four critical areas throughout the seventh grade standards: (1) developing understanding of and applying proportional relationships; (2) developing understanding of operations with rational numbers and working with expressions and linear equations; (3) solving problems involving scale drawings and informal geometric constructions, and working with two- and three-dimensional shapes to solve problems involving area, surface area, and volume; and (4) drawing inferences about populations based on samples. The eighth grade standards focus on the following three critical areas: (1) formulating and reasoning about expressions and equations, including modeling an association in bivariate data with a linear equation, and solving linear equations and systems of linear equations; (2) grasping the concept of a function and using functions to describe quantitative relationships; (3) analyzing two- and three-dimensional space and figures using distance, angle, similarity, and congruence, and understanding and applying the Pythagorean Theorem.

The units of study in accelerated math include the following:

  • Unit 1: Expressions, Inequalities, and Equations
  • Unit 2: Graphs and Equations
  • Unit 3: Systems of Equations
  • Unit 4: Proportions and Percents
  • Unit 5: Statistics and Angle Relationships
  • Unit 6: Circles and Volume
  • Unit 7: Transformations and Similarity
  • Unit 8: Slope and Association
  • Unit 9: Exponents and Functions
  • Unit 10: Angles and the Pythagorean Theorem
  • Unit 11: Surface Area and Volume

New Trier Township Math Program:

This is a two-year program where qualifying sixth-grade students take Algebra as seventh-graders and Geometry as eighth-graders. Classes are held at New Trier High School.