NINTH GRADE

BIBLE: Behold Your God (Positive Action for Christ)
The students study the person and nature of God. The purpose of the study is to have a right relationship with God. Students study the ways and means of knowledge of God (and the effects and consequences of such knowledge). Students study the nature and attributes of God, the history of Christ, the person of Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Emphasis is placed on an orthodox, Baptist doctrinal view of each of these (in light of errors, heresies and false teachings). Students memorize at least 2 verses each week and are quizzed weekly.

ENGLISH: Writing and Grammar 9 (Bob Jones Press); Themes in Literature (A Beka Books)
Vocabulary Workshop Level D (Sadlier-Oxford)
In 9th grade English, students review the fundamentals of grammar, such as parts of speech, sentence structure, capitalization, and punctuation. New grammar concepts, such as imperative and indicative mood verbs, determiners, qualifiers, and subordinating conjunctions, are introduced, as are new usage skills, such as dangling and misplaced modifiers. The writing projects continue to give the students an opportunity to use the grammar skills they are learning and focus on improving sentence variety. The study of literature includes thematic units that cover topics such as courage, faith, joy, justice, and humility. The students learn to apply these themes through various writing projects. The novel Animal Farm is also part of the literature study. The course includes a study of vocabulary and spelling that will prepare the students for standardized testing.

HONORS ENGLISH 9: Grammar and Composition III, Themes in Literature (A Beka Books); Great Expectations (Charles Dickens); Vocabulary Workshop Level D (Sadlier-Oxford);

This honors English course includes the core mechanics of grammar. It also emphasizes vocabulary development both with the text and with reading assignments. Reading comprehension is strengthened through short stories, poetry, drama, and novels by major authors. Students are introduced to MLA documentation style and prepare a portfolio of essays and one major research project. They present both oral and written book reports on biography, fiction, and non-fiction.

ALGEBRA I: Prentice Hall Mathematics Algebra I (Pearson Education)
This Algebra I course is designed to expand on the student's basic math skills and the beginning concepts of Algebra learned in pre-algebra. Students should already be able to add, subtract, multiply and divide positive or negative integers and solve one-step equations. In Algebra I students learn to solve more complex equations including proportions, quadratic equations and inequalities. Graphing linear functions, inequalities, absolute value functions, and systems of equations is taught. Problem solving is stressed throughout the course. Students learn to model a situation with an equation or a system of equations. The course ends with simplifying and combining radical expressions and solving radical equations. The goal of this course is to create thinking students of mathematics.

HONORS GEOMETRY: Geometry: Tools for a Changing World (Prentice Hall)
In geometry, students are taught the basic skills of inductive, deductive, and indirect reasoning. They are introduced to geometric constructions and the world of art as it applies to geometry. Students review coordinate graphing and apply their algebra skills to the study of parallel and perpendicular lines. Students investigate the properties of basic geometric shapes and the properties of reflections, translations, and glide reflections. The Pythagorean Theorem is taught, along with the special properties of 30-60-90 and 45-45-90 triangles. Students learn the formulas for surface area, lateral area, and volume of specific three-dimensional figures and apply the properties of parallel lines to find missing angles. Learning to write a 2-column proof provides the students with practice in writing well-reasoned arguments. Properties of triangles, parallelograms, trapezoids, and kites are developed, as well as similarity and proportion. The year ends with an introduction to right-triangle trigonometry and circles.

BIOLOGY I: Biology for Christian Schools (Bob Jones Press)
This laboratory course promotes scientific thinking through problem solving, a process that encourages curiosity and careful inquiry. Each chapter begins by introducing basic concepts and reviews them wherever they appear in other chapters throughout the book. Our study includes cellular biology, genetics, biotechnology, taxonomy, origins, microbiology, and botany. As we explore the science of life and the God of life, we will see His design and how nature fits together according to a plan. The laboratory exercises provide important illustration and close examination of topics covered in lecture. They include working with the microscope, research techniques, the use of biological keys and plant identification.

CULTURAL GEOGRAPHY AND WORLD EVENTS (Bob Jones Press)

Cultural Geography gives students an introduction to key geographical skills. It places emphasis on both physical geography and human geography. Through physical geography, students will learn about earth as God's creation with an emphasis on map skills. Human geography will allow students to learn about the various peoples, cultures, and religions of the world with the purpose of giving students a burden for missions. World events will focus on current events to make the course material relevant for the present day.
 

PHYSICAL EDUCATION:
Physical education in the 9th grade focuses on encouraging students to see the need of maintaining an active lifestyle throughout their lifetimes. They are taught skills that can be used in a variety of recreational and fitness activities. Students play sports, workout in a weight room, participate in body weight exercises, and develop cardiovascular fitness. Students are graded on knowledge of sports rules, participation, fitness testing, responsibility, and basic sports skills. Character is also developed during fitness and game time, as students are taught to exhibit the fruits of the Spirit.

HEALTH: Health for Christian Schools (Bob Jones Press)
Health class is designed to teach students how to be balanced in the five areas of spiritual, mental, emotional, physical, and social health. They are taught how to keep their bodies running efficiently through exercise and nutrition. Students are also taught basic first aid, disease prevention, personal hygiene, and environmental issues.