Curriculum

Delano Middle School focuses on providing a strong foundation in the areas of Reading, Writing, and Mathematics. In addition to these areas, students are able to take advantage of learning opportunities in the Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Arts and Music. The courses taught at each grade level are listed below. A complete description of each course, learner outcomes and prepratory standards can be obtained from the Middle School Office.
 
 

Grade 5 Reading Language Arts Mathematics Science Social Studies Art Industrial Technology Health Project DARE	Grade 6 Reading Language Arts Mathematics Science Social Studies Art Industrial Technology Health Skills for Adolescence Family & Consumer Science	Grades 5 and 6 Band Choir General Music Keyboarding Physical Education
Grade 7 Language Arts Math 7 Pre Algebra Geography Life Science Art Family & Consumer Science Industrial Technology Health Spanish	Grade 8 Language Arts  Math 8 Algebra American History Earth Science Art Family & Consumer Science Industrial Technology Health Computer Communications	Grades 7 and 8 Band Choir General Music Physical Education

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Structure

Grades 5/6

Students have a base room teacher who teaches their Reading and Language Arts and another core subject. They are instructed by other grade level professionals, in the remainder of the core areas. Specialists teach in the areas of Physical Education, Art, Music, Industrial Technology and Family and Consumer Science.

Grades 7/8

The schedule for students in grades 7 and 8 is set up as an alternating day block schedule. The day is divided into 4 blocks of time, each approximately 90 minutes in length. Students take one-half of their course load on Day 1 and the remainder of their courses on Day 2. The days alternate every day, hence the name alternating block schedule. In addition to the classes listed above, students have extended learning opportunities in all of the core areas, Physical Education, Allied Arts and Spanish.

Teacher/Advisor

All students begin their day in advisory. When students enter the Middle School they are assigned to an advisor for the entire time they are in the Middle School. A complete description of the Teacher/Advisor (T/A) Program appears elsewhere on this website.

Talent Development

Opportunities for students who have demonstrated outstanding abilities and performance exist both within and outside the traditional curriculum. A complete description of the Talent Development Program at Delano Middle School can be found
by clicking on the District Heading.

Student Recognition

The philosophy of Delano Middle School is to recognize and reward as many students as possible for their academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular performance. In addition we recognize exemplary citizenship quarterly.

• Academic Recognition – each quarter students are recognized for their academic achievement at Delano Middle School. The criteria for these awards is based on a 4.00 grade scale with A = 4.00, B = 3.00, C = 2.00, D = 1.00.
   
• “A” Honor Roll – students must achieve a grade point average of 3.665-3.990. They receive a congratulatory letter from the principal and their name appears in the Delano Eagle and recognition show case.
   
• “B” Honor Roll – students must achieve a grade point average of 2.995-3.664. Their name appears in the Delano Eagle and the recognition showcase.
   
• Presidential Academic Fitness Award -this honor is bestowed upon 8th grade students who have earned a cumulative 3.50 grade point average for all the years they have been in Delano Middle School. Students must have been enrolled in DMS for a minimum of two years in order to qualify for this award. They receive a certificate suitable for framing with the Presidential Seal and signed by the President of the United States and the Secretary of Education.
• Citizenship – Citizen of the Month – every month, the staff at each of the grade level 5-8 recognize two students who have demonstrated the attributes of good citizenship on a consistent basis. The criteria for the award is:
   
  • Respectful of rules, others and property
  • Helpful to others
  • Trustworthy
  • Courteous
  • Pride in self/school
  • Other criteria determined by each grade level
     
  Students who are selected for this award receive a congratulatory letter from the principal, recognition certificate, and their picture appears in the Delano Eagle and the recognition showcase.
   
• Attendance – we are currently participating a program in conjunction with the Minnesota Twins that recognizes students who have perfect attendance by rewarding them with free tickets to a Twins baseball game.
   
• Hall of Fame – Each quarter, teachers at Delano Middle School recognize students who have made a dramatic improvement from one quarter to the next, done outstanding work on a class project or consistently demonstrate high achievement and a strong work ethic. Selected students receive a recognition certificate and their names appear in the Delano Eagle and the recognition showcase.
   
• Deportment – students who do not receive a disciplinary referral during the quarter are rewarded with an educational or entertainment lyceum.
   
• Accelerated Reader –  the Accelerated Reading (AR) program is going very well at Delano Middle School. We have over 1900 titles on our Reading List. Thanks to Tiger Tuesday money we are able to add 70 new titles in the last month.
  
  93% of our students have taken AR tests this year. Throughout the year, students accumulate points through reading and then testing on library books. To encompass the reading levels of all our students, the books range from a reading level of 1.7 to 11.5 (11th grade, 5th month) with the majority of the titles in the fourth to seventh grade range. For example, the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder are 3.2 to 6.2 reading level, while the Redwall series by Brian Jacques are 5.2 to 7.0 and Moby Dick is 10.3.

Students may choose to belong to the Accelerated Reader Point Club. Each quarter we take pictures of the club students in each grade who have earned 25, 50, 100, 250 or more points. These pictures are published in the Delano Eagle and are posted on the web site. At the end of the year, in early May, we have a recognition party for our club members with snacks and prizes awarded. 

• Other - Delano Middle School has many additional opportunities for students to be recognized in Drama, Music, Athletics, Science Olympiad, Spelling Bee, Destination Imagination, Geography Bee, History Day, Math Masters and many other programs offered through the Talent Development Program.