Course Catalog

Art class at Liberty Creek Middle School will focus on having the students develop skills working with various materials. Art projects will introduce the students to various mediums including collage, paint, sculpture, printmaking, 3d construction and drawing. Projects will teach students how to manipulate and use the art materials to visually represent and express their experiences and their ideas. I strongly believe in the learning acquired through interdisciplinary connections. As a result, art projects will integrate subject matter studied in other content areas.

Art projects will increase student motivation, appreciation and understanding of the arts as they introduce students to different time periods and artists throughout art history. Looking at works of art and through creating their own work, students will learn to critically respond to and evaluate their work and the works of others. It is my goal that all students will leave art this year with a greater sense of accomplishment and with a strong capability to solve problems creatively, which is a highly sought after skill in today’s world.

Beginning Band (6th Grade)

Beginning Band is a place for every student at Liberty Creek. You do not need any experience in music, instruments, or performance. You do not need to know how to read music, play an instrument, or put on a show. Beginning Band is for beginners. Beginning Band is for any student who is interested in learning how to play an instrument! Beginning Band will instruct students on the fundamental knowledge of how to read music, play their instrument of choice, and how to play successfully alongside other musicians. All information starts here so if you are even a little interested, 6th grade is the time to begin your musical journey at Liberty Creek! Students in Beginning Band will perform two concerts during the year. Their first concert will be their Holiday Concert in December and their second will be their Spring Concert in April or May. All content learned during Beginning Band will build into Advanced Band I.

Advanced Band I (7th Grade)

Advanced Band I is a continuation of Beginning Band. Students will continue to develop the skills they learned in Beginning Band. Students will also begin to do things in the community alongside the 8th grade band students. While most students will have experience in band at this point, beginners are still more than welcome to enroll in band. This group will perform two concerts during the year. Their first concert will be the Holiday Concert in December and their second will be their Spring Concert in April or May. The Advanced Band will also have a community performance as a pep band in the Fall at the last home football game! In the spring, the Advanced Band will perform for Concert Performance Assessment, a judged concert band performance during the school day. All content learned during 7th grade band will build into 8th grade.

Advanced Band II (8th grade)

Advanced Band II is the final building block of band at Liberty Creek Middle School. All content that has been learned through 6th and 7th grade culminates in 8th grade band. Advanced Band II is the example of musical excellence at Liberty Creek Middle School. Advanced Band II is not a place for beginners. Advanced Band II is a place for refinement of prior knowledge. However if a beginner is interested in band in the Fall of their 8th grade year, a student will be able to join if private lessons are taken outside of school. This group will perform two concerts during the year. Their first concert will be the Holiday Concert in December and their second will be their Spring Concert in April or May. The Advanced Band will also have a community performance as a pep band in the Fall at the last home football game! In the spring, the Advanced Band will perform for Concert Performance Assessment, a judged concert band performance during the school day. All content learned through the band department at Liberty Creek Middle School from 6th grade through 8th grade will setup the students for success as they transition to the band department at Liberty Creek High School.

All students are welcome in chorus at every grade level. There is no audition process for students to join. As long as students have the motivation to sign and the desire to learn more about music and performing, they are welcome in chorus!

6th Grade

In 6th grade, chorus students will explore student voices with vocalizations, rounds and canons, partner songs, and unison/2pt music, discuss the voice changes occurring in girls and boys in the coming years, as well as the mechanics of how our voices work. Students will explore different genres of choral music including classical, jazz, pop, and music from other cultures in other languages, through singing songs, playing instruments and watching examples. Students will learn proper vocal care and correct technique while singing (i.e. posture, breathing, pitch, and blend) They will also begin learning the music theory behind our songs and introduce solfege. This group will perform in at least 2-3 concerts during the school year and have the opportunity to perform in a school talent show/coffee house as individual acts.

7th and 8th Grade

Students in 7th and 8th grade will continue exploring student voices with vocalizations, rounds and canons, partner songs, and unison, 2pt music and 3 part music. Students will explore different genres of choral music including classical, jazz, pop, broadway, and music from other cultures in other languages, through singing songs, playing instruments and watching examples. Students will continue to work on voice control while performing individually and in ensemble setting(s), focusing on: posture, breath management, tone production with freedom, resonance, control, and energy, pitch matching, accuracy, and intonation, balance and blend, and sense of ensemble. This group will perform in at least 2-3 concerts during the school year and have the opportunity to perform in a school talent/coffee house show for individual acts. Our goal is to, eventually, participate in Middle Tennessee Vocal Association events such as Mass Choir and Choral Festival.

Books in the circulating collection may be checked out by students for three weeks and may be renewed once.  Books must be present in order to be renewed. Fines will not be charged for overdue books.  Fees will be assessed if a book is damaged beyond repair or lost.

Books with hold requests are not renewable.

Students may have two books checked out at any one time. If a student has one or more overdue books, another book may not be checked out until the overdue books are returned.

The library is open daily from 8:00 to 3:00.

Students are allowed to come to the library any time during the school day with a teacher's permission, in order to check out and/or exchange books.

The librarian will work with students to ensure availability to access the library before and after school if they are not able to come during the school day.

6th Grade

Physical Education Class at Liberty Creek will introduce students to the idea of increasing their overall effectiveness in all aspects of life through getting more exercise. Physical activity has been identified as one of the most important factors in determining quality of life as we mature. In this class a student can expect to learn hand-eye coordination skills, proper exercise times and intensity, foot skills associated with various sporting events, and begin to learn how to become part of a team.

7th Grade

Physical Education class builds on skills learned in the previous year. Students will begin to measure where their base physical skill level is and learn techniques that will improve their performance. Competency in the activities at this level will begin to help instill confidence, promote leadership, and create initiative for the student. Students will also engage more in team activities.

8th Grade

Physical Education class will continue to build upon lessons learned in the previous years. Students can expect that no matter what their skill level, physical ability level, or interest in activity routines they will learn wellness/physical education Skills that will last them throughout life. In this level, students also will be more involved in strategy-type activities that promote roles and students taking the Initiative.

Introduction to Social Health is a foundational middle school course that equips students with the skills needed to be successful adults. This class serves as a stepping stone for the clusters of Education and Training and Human Services, as well as Health Science.

In addition to the TN Social Health Standards, we also cover the Family Life portion of the State Health Education Standards. This includes the dynamic process of growth and development encompassing physical, mental, emotional, and social maturation. Throughout the course, we will partner with multiple outside agencies to deliver this information. All curriculum has been approved by the Safe Schools Department at the Sumner County Board of Education. Additional information will be sent home during the school year.

6th Grade

Students will focus on self-development, goals, time management/planning, values, relationships, communication, nutrition, exercise, food safety and sanitation and lifespan development.

7th Grade

Students will build on the lessons previously learned. Additional topics will include drugs/alcohol prevention, bullying (including cyber bullying), social media use, body image, financial literacy, and first aid. Students will work with LCHS Health Science students to be trained in hands only CPR.

8th Grade

Students will build on the lessons previously learned. Additional topics will include high school pathways and careers. Students will also be certified in CPR through Vol State in partnership with the Gallatin Fire Department.

What is Design-thinking?

Design-thinking is a practice that combines the best of transdisciplinary STEAM education, project-based learning, growth mindset, and the maker movement with the seven skills identified as “essential” for the 21st century by business leaders and innovators. Design-thinking is also a process that acts as a catalyst, requiring critical-thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication to work in synergy with one another. Giving students opportunities to practice solving challenges using the design thinking process allows them to develop and refine the “4 C’s” of design thinking to the point where they become second nature.

Fundamentals of Design-thinking

6th grade students will explore a variety of topics, methods, resources, and materials, both low-tech and hi-tech, while becoming familiar with each phase of design-thinking, a practice that combines the best of transdisciplinary STEAM education, project-based learning, growth mindset, and the maker movement with the seven skills identified as “essential” for the 21st century by business leaders and innovators. Students will work together to complete challenges crafted to ignite curiosity and develop the four pillars of Design-Thinking: critical-thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication. Some challenges will directly tie into content studied in other classes; other challenges will be driven by student choice or community engagement opportunities.

Applications of Design-thinking

7th grade students will work through the design-thinking process from start to finish as they tackle increasingly complex design and engineering challenges. Challenges will require students to implement the skills introduced in Fundamentals of Design-Thinking, and an emphasis will be placed on students developing the ability to engage the four pillars of design-thinking to identify and use appropriate resources, materials, and methods when formulating, problem-solving, and presenting solutions for each challenge. Challenges will be of a longer format than those presented in the Fundamentals class and will be diverse in nature, incorporating cross-curricular tie-ins, student choice, and community engagement.

Design-thinking for the Greater Good

The course is designed for 8th grade students and will be focused on a single challenge: using design-thinking to identify and develop a solution to address a specific need/problem within our school community or the community-at-large. Students, working in groups, will directly engage with members of their community as they work through the design-thinking process to solve the need they have chosen to address. The skills and experience students develop through this capstone project will provide them with a “toolkit” that will allow them to be prepared and resilient as they compete in the global marketplace of the future.

The Technology course is designed to develop and build 21st century skills that include critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. Students in this class will participate in a variety of individual and group projects. Students will use a wide variety of programs and web tools that will include word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, web and app creation, 3-D printing, coding, design, and more through project based learning. Students will build onto these skill sets as they progress through the grade levels.