8th Grade Language Arts: The eighth grade curriculum provides opportunities for students to improve their writing, speaking, and listening skills through a variety of applications. Reasoning ability is utilized as students expand their writing to include problem-solving essays, persuasive compositions, journal entries, and research papers. Through these writings, students recognize their need for continuous study of grammar, mechanics, and usage. The students study major literary genres. Selections include poetry, drama, science fiction, fiction, and nonfiction. Students develop strategies to become active readers, build vocabulary, and analyze elements of both classical and contemporary pieces of literature. Literary analysis of character and setting, plot, mood, tone, and theme is developed through group discussions, independent practice, and technology applications. 8th Grade Religion: The history of the Church is studied in 8th grade religion. Through study, discussion, and examples of how Christ and the saints lived their lives, students are encouraged to examine their own lives and offer their time and talents by serving others in our school, parishes, and community. The 8th grade students work through the program The Theology of the Body. This program helps the students learn who they are and who they strive to be as Catholic adults.