The AVID Excel Elective provided explicit instruction in English language development and academic language through reading, writing, oral language, academic vocabulary, and college readiness skills..

The AVID Excel Elective provides explicit instruction in English language development and academic language through reading, writing, oral language, academic vocabulary, and college readiness skills. This course is a continuation of the AVID Excel Year 1 course.

This course is offered to identified students to reinforce organizational and study skills; critical thinking; inquiry; and collaboration. Students receive academic help from peers and college tutors; and participate in enrichment and motivational activities that make college access possible.

NFTE’s Entrepreneurship Essentials is a flexible, modular approach to NFTE’s year-long Entrepreneurship 1 course for semester and infused courses. By taking a flexible approach to entrepreneurship, students can learn about thinking and acting entrepreneurially within any other career field. This course is aligned to the Common Career Technical Core Standards for Business Management Administration and the National Content Standards for Entrepreneurship Education.

This course provides middle school students with basic entrepreneurship skills. The course teaches business based mathematics integrated in business plan development to support innovation as well as provide mathematics instruction. Students participate in business plan competition and have the opportunity to compete in the national NFTE competition.

The course provides 6th grade students with basic MIT Application Inventor skills. They will create functional mobile apps to include location aware apps, texting apps, quizzes, games, and motion sensitivity apps. Students will develop a business plan to support the app created. At the conclusion of this course students will have created their own unique app that they will pitch to a panel of local judges. This course satisfies the MSDE Computational Thinking/Learning requirement.

The course provides 7th grade students with the skills to conceive and create a web-based business idea. Students will build out their concept using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Students will develop a business plan to support the concept created. At the conclusion of this course students will present their concept or website along with their business plan for a chance to win seed capital to launch their business. This course satisfies the MSDE Computational Thinking/Learning requirement.

Part of the General Education department at Thurgood Marshall Middle School.

Part of the General Education department at Thurgood Marshall Middle School.

The Gateway to Technology (GTT) curriculum provides project-based learning — a hands-on approach — that relates technology to students’ daily lives. Design and Modeling (DM) is the first foundational course in the GTT series of courses. Students discover the design process and develop an understanding of the influence of creativity and innovation in their lives. They are then challenged and empowered to use and apply what they have learned throughout the unit to design a therapeutic toy for a child who has cerebral palsy, use measurement to construct and test a skimmer and use the entire engineering design process to design, build, and test a puzzle cube. This course satisfies the MSDE Computational Thinking/Learning requirement.

The Gateway to Technology (GTT) curriculum provides project-based learning — a hands-on approach. It also promotes communication and collaboration by emphasizing a teaming approach. Design and Modeling (DM) is the first foundational course in the GTT series of courses. It is recommended that any seventh grade student completing a GTT course for the first time take Design and Modeling. Automation and Robotics (AR) is the second foundational course in the GTT Series of courses. Seventh grade students in their second year of GTT are encouraged to take Automation and Robotics (AR). Students learn about the history and impact of automation and robotics as they explore mechanical systems, energy transfer, machine automation, and computer control systems. Using the VEX Robotics $\\textcircled{8}$ platform, students apply what they know to design and program traffic lights, robotic arms, and more. This course satisfies the MSDE Computational Thinking/ Learning requirement.

The Gateway to Technology (GTT) curriculum provides project-based learning — a hands-on approach— that relates technology to students’ daily lives. It also promotes communication and collaboration by emphasizing a teaming approach in the four instructional units: Design and Modeling uses solid modeling to introduce students to the design process. Automation and Robotics traces the history, development, and influence of automation and robotics; Flight and Space introduces students to aeronautics, space and the use of design to help make aerospace engineering an important field; Science of Technology traces how science has affected technology throughout history; and The Magic of Electrons, through hands-on projects, explores the science of electricity, the movement of atoms, circuit design, and sensing devices. Students acquire and apply knowledge and skills in engineering problem solving and explore the many aspects of aerospace engineering. This course satisfies the MSDE Computational Thinking/Learning requirement.