Daniel Middle School is located in Conway, Arkansas and serves grades 6-8 using an interdisciplinary team model. Students are divided into teams based on their elective choice and share core classes together. The school aims to encourage academic responsibility through its SOAR theme. A key part of the curriculum is a yearly service-learning project partnering with Habitat for Humanity to help families affected by recent tornadoes. This project integrates several core subjects and teaches students values of community involvement and humanitarianism.

1. Presented by:
Jessica R. McAfee

2. Daniel Middle School
Name: Daniel Middle School
District: Central Arkansas District
Location: Conway, AR
Grades: 6th-8th
Colors: Green & White
Mascot: The Mighty
Eagle

3. Middle Schools vs. Junior High Schools
teams vs. subject departments
cooperation planning vs. isolation planning
flexible block schedule vs. rigid periods
daily/biweekly advisory vs. guidance twice a year
(Bucher 2012)

4. Theme
Daniel Middle School aims to
SOAR
S. uccessfully
O. btain
A. cademic
R. esponsibility
 The idea to encourage and remind students, teachers,
faculty, staff, and even parents that we are a team and we
have a collective goal that is much more than passing test
and meeting testing standards.
 S.O.A.R. acknowledges that being involved in education is a
duty for us all. We all must be committed to it and to one
another.

5. Daniel Middle School’s
Organization

6. Interdisciplinary Teams
Each team will be composed of students in 6th-8th grade
levels.
The students will be grouped according to their chosen
elective.
Four teams:
-Gray Eagles (Home Economics)
-Golden Eagles (Visual Arts)
-Brown Eagles (Performing Arts)
-Black & White Eagles (Athletics)
Each team will have its own hallway that houses the
classrooms for mathematics, social science, science,
and English/literature classes and a meeting room.

7. Teacher Leaders
There will be one teacher leader for each team.
The team lead will be chosen every two years
through an interview process.
The team lead is responsible for conducting
team meetings and attending biweekly
meetings with the other team leads and the
school’s principal.

8. Teacher Development & Growth
Teachers will attend district and school
development conferences.
Teachers will be informed of the latest
teaching strategies, technological resources,
and other teaching methods.
Teachers will create cooperative lesson plans
with other teachers on their team.

9. Students’ Schedule
There will be an A/B block schedule with four
classes and two lunches each day.
The students will have 3 different core classes every
other day & the same elective class each day.
TIME A Days:
MON., WED., & FRI.
B Days:
TUES. & THURS.
8:00-8:20 Advisory Advisory
8:20-9:50 1A 1B
9:55-11:25 2A 2B
11:25-11:55
12:00-1:35
11:30-12:15
12:15-12:45
12:50-1:35
Lunch(Black/White & Brown Eagles)
3A
3A
Lunch (Gray & Golden Eagles)
3A
Lunch (Black/White & Brown Eagles)
3B
3B
Lunch (Gray & Golden Eagles)
3B
1:40-3:10 4A 4B

10. Teacher’s Schedule
 Faculty will teach three
class periods a day.
 The students’ elective
period will be used as the
teacher’s planning period
 The advisory period will
be used as the teacher’s
team planning period.

11. DANIEL MIDDLE SCHOOL’S
CURRICULUM

12. Arkansas Common Core
 Daniel Middle School’s curriculum will align with the
Arkansas Common Core Standards.
The Common Core State Standards define the
knowledge and skills students should have to ensure
readiness for college and careers. (Common Core
Standards 2014)

13. Core Courses
All students will take core courses.
Courses will be aligned with grade level.
Core courses at Daniel Middle School include:
-Mathematics
-English/literature
-Science
-History
-Physical Education
-Health

14. Electives
Students will also choose one elective to participate
in throughout the school year.
Electives include:
-Athletics (football, basketball, volleyball, soccer,
baseball, softball, track)
-Visual Arts (photography, information
technology, painting)
-Performing Arts (band, choir, dance team,
cheerleaders, orchestra, drama)
-Home Economics

15. Extracurricular Activities
Students can also choose from various extracurricular
activities.
Extracurricular activities include:
-student government association,
-debate team,
-art club,
-math club,
-civics club,
-science club,
-book club, and
-year book staff.

17. DANIEL MIDDLE SCHOOL’S
SERVICE-LEARNING PROJECT

18. Service-Learning Project
Each year every team’s sixth grade students,
transfer students, and any teacher that would like
will participate in a service-learning project.
The purpose of the service-learning project has two
goals: to interconnect involvement in the
community with classroom content and to begin to
instill a sense of humanitarianism and selflessness
in each student. (Bucher 2012)

19. Habitat for Humanity
The students will work in conjunction with the
Faulkner County Habitat of Humanity.
The recipients of the work will be families who
lost their homes during the 2014 tornadoes that
destroyed many homes in Faulkner County,
particularly Mayflower.
The purpose of the service-learning is to help and
enhance the lives of victims of the 2014 tornado.
The teams will alternate participating in the
project one Saturday each month for the full term
of the school year.

20. This project will be intertwined with math, health,
and English/literature.
Math: The students will incorporate area,
perimeter, and scale drawings into the project.
Health: The students will also learn what are
considered living necessities and learn and apply
safety precautions on a construction site.
English/Literature: At the conclusion of the
project the students will write reports on their
experience with the service-learning projects.

21. Organizational Structure
Students must receive permission from their parents
to be on the construction site.
Students will be provided with a schedule for the
project.
Transportation to the site will be provided by the
school district.
The teams will be divided into sub-teams to work on
different facets of the project.
 Students will work from 8 o’clock am until 3:30pm on
their scheduled day and lunch will be provided

22. Incentives to Sustain
 It is a must that the students stay dedicated and
committed to the project. The best way to
ensure so is to create incentives.
The incentive for the students that participate in
both of their scheduled dates will be a pizza party
during lunch.
The incentive for the team that averages the
most student participation will be given a trophy
that will available for the winner for the following
years.

23. Assessment
Students will be evaluated
through a summative
assessment.
 At the end of the school
term and the completion of
the project the students
will be evaluated on their
attendance, performance,
and written reports on
their experience.

24. Daniel Middle School

25. REFERENCES
• Bucher, M. Lee Manning and Katherine T.
Teaching in the Middle School Fourth Edition.
Boston: Pearson, 2012.
• Common Core Standards. 2014.
http://www.arkansased.org/divisions/learning
-services/common-core-state-standards
(accessed October 13, 2014).