Overview
The 8th grade is an important moment for the students to be preparing to launch into high school the next year. We have the students work on reflecting on their career here at St Matthew as well as anticipating how they will transition into a “different”world of high school.
The Middle School Religion and Social Studies classes are meant to inform, encourage and stretch students to do their very best at understanding what life can be like.
We have many class discussions on so many historical, philosophical and spiritual topics. We also get a chance to simulate situations from history to try and recreate a first hand experience. The students produce written work, electronic and traditional paper-based projects, and personally answer thoughtful questions to assess their comprehension of facts and use of information to analyze new situations.
6-8th Grade Religion and Social Studies
Mr. Greg Hawksford
Hello, My name is Mr. Greg Hawksford and I have had the pleasure of teaching here at St Matthew for over 2 decades. The community here is so very welcoming and supportive of the education process that I have wanted to spend all these many years here. My students come to my classes in 6th grade with an opportunity to grow as people and as academicians. I enjoy challenging them to stretch their knowledge and self-confidence so that when they leave for high school, they are ready for high school. I love to share my thoughts and ideas in class discussions and the students get to know that I enjoy sports, music, prayer, and food as a fan and participant.
Mr. Hawksford attended St. Pius X Elementary School in Mountlake Terrace, Bishop Blanchet High School, University of Oregon (undergraduate studies), University of Washington (Bachelor’s Degree in History and post graduate classes), Seattle University (Teaching Certification), and Grand Canyon University (Master’s of Education Degree in Curriculum Development and Technology).
He substituted in schools K-12 for four years and taught 5th-8th Grades for 8 years at St. Bernadette in Burien. He began teaching 6th-8th at St. Matthew School in 1999.
Curriculum
The St Matthew Middle School Curriculum for Religion includes 6th Grade study of the Old Testament, 7th Grade New Testament and 8th Grade Church HIstory. We discuss many topics that include those areas of study along with liturgy planning, seasonal celebrations, participating in Community Service, learning about saints and prayers. The St Matthew Middle School Curriculum for Social Studies includes ancient civilizations for the 6th grade.
We emphasize note taking skills as well as close reading of texts. For 7th grade we study Washington State and World History, that includes note taking for lecture style classes as well as experiencing some simulations of events in history. For the 8th Grade, US History is the main topic from Colonialism to Civil Rights. The students produce and present unit projects as well as participate in simulations from our past.