They continue to participate in extracurricular sports teams with their Middle School counterparts, as well as in music and art, forming a multilateral social group. Special events include the Hallowe-en Party, the Overnight Basketball Tournament & Dance and the Weeklong Wilderness Trip. Grade 8 students also participate in the International Gauss Math Contest, hosted by Waterloo University, in which many of our students excel. The highly anticipated Grade 8 Independent Research Projects are a rite of passage of the graduating class, as is the Self-Portrait Project in which students reflect upon who they have become at the end of this phase of the lifelong educational journey.

In Grade 8, our teachers often begin their curriculum by reviewing European explorations and the conditions in Europe and North America that set the stage for the American and French revolutions, which generated the ideals of Fraternité, Égalité, and Liberté for all people. The theme of rebellion - which corresponds to the Grade 8 student’s psychological development - continues in the study of other paradigm shifts, including the Industrial Revolution, the Technological Revolution, the Suffrage Movement, Civil Rights, and Environmentalism. The overarching theme is how rebellion can act as catalysts for dramatic change and as a vehicle for world-changing revolution.  

In Grade 8, our students continue work with fractions, squares and roots, and practical problem-solving. They work with the commutative, associative, and distributive laws in algebra, along with the concept of the difference of squares and its applications. Students learn about terms and polynomials, simultaneous linear equations, and simplifying complex brackets in algebraic expressions. They study number systems and binary arithmetic, graphing complex curves, and solving simultaneous equations graphically. In geometry, our Grade 8 students examine volumes of various solids, including rectangles, pyramids, prisms, cylinders, and cones, as well as the density and weight of solid objects. Topics include loci of lines and planes, enlargements, rotations, reflections of shapes, angles, and circle properties such as angles in the same circle and intersecting chords. They construct five Platonic solids and discuss triangle properties, including sides and altitude formulas. The curriculum also  includes learning to calculate the surface area of solids, as well to construct ellipses, parabolas, and hyperbolas. Grade 8 students also participate in the International Waterloo University Gauss Math Contest, in which many of them excel.

In Grade 8, the study of physics expands on concepts from Grades 6 and 7, deepening students' understanding of acoustic, optics, thermal physics, and the interconnectedness of electricity and magnetism through electromagnetism. Students study the development of motors and dynamos, and they have the opportunity to build their own simple motor. Hydraulics is also introduced. In chemistry, students explore photosynthesis and how plants create their own food. They conduct tests for starch, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, linking these substances to their own metabolism and practical applications like soap and paper making, as well as kitchen chemistry. The physiology curriculum focuses on the reproduction, nervous, muscular, and skeletal systems. Additionally, meteorology is studied, covering cloud formation, weather fronts, patterns, and barometric pressure, and environmental issues. 

The Grade 8 curriculum includes reading and discussion of social themes from 19th and 20th century literature, using excerpts or complete works, and passages from non-fiction works. Weekly track class focuses on the study of different literary forms, e.g. novels, A Shakespeare play and short stories. Emphasis is on composition including essays, stories, and poetry. Grammar work includes adjective, adverb, and noun clauses, and participle, gerund, and infinitive phrases. Students work with simile, metaphor, analogy in writing exercises and learn to use varied perspective using short stories, fiction, non-fiction, and current events. The majority of written work is composed by students, and journal writing may be explored. Research skills are developed further and are applied to subjects from the curriculum or biographies. Speaking skills include presentations on main lesson themes, reports on current events, formal debates, and the presentation of Grade 8 Project. 

Grade 8 students delve deeply into the Cyber Civics Year 3 curriculum, exploring their roles as media consumers and producers while examining the impact of persuasive technologies on themselves and society. In subsequent units, they learned to identify "fake" news, employing critical thinking skills to evaluate questionable information and detect online misinformation through practical activities. The final unit focused on understanding stereotypes and media representation, helping students recognize missing perspectives and viewpoints in the media they consume and may one day produce.

Grade 8 students reinforce basic vocabulary and grammatical skills in order to communicate within specific situations, focusing on the four components of language: listening, speaking, reading and writing. They practice conjugating the present tense of regular and irregular verbs, learning the future close tense and the verbal expressions with infinitives. During the last term they are introduced to past tenses. By graduation, the majority of the students express themselves clearly in simple sentences in a range of everyday situations, becoming increasingly more conversant and preparing for high school French courses and potential academic exchanges to French-speaking countries (please see the Toronto Waldorf School high school curriculum; busing for high school students is available from 250 Madison to 9100 Bathurst Street for students who wish to continue their Waldorf education to Grade 12). 

From finger knitting to crochet, cross-stitch to leatherwork, handwork develops fine motor skills, creativity, and right-to-left-brain coordination. Students develop confidence that they can be adaptive self-sufficient, thereby gaining a sense of agency to carry through life. In alignment with their study of the Industrial Revolution, Grade 8 students explore how sewing machines function. They will learn to read, follow, and understand patterns, beginning with a basic project of sewing pajama pants and gradually advancing to more complex tasks, such as creating a book bag. This experience fosters self-sufficiency while also enhancing listening, organizational, and problem-solving skills. As with other creative initiatives, handwork provides a quiet and peaceful time during an otherwise active day. 

Grade 8 students continue woodwork classes, and create items such as canoe paddles. Students face the challenge of forming a paddle that is both lightweight and strong where needed, fostering an appreciation for the paddle as an essential tool linked to Indigenous and Canadian history, and the natural world. This project encourages outdoor activity while sharpening observation and problem-solving skills. Using only hand tools and without outlining in pencil, students form wood into well-proportioned and useful objects. Through this work they learn to use tools, to be self-sufficient, to find symmetry and balance, and develop keen observation. The main project is specifically orchestrated to be long-term in order to require patience, perseverance, and dedication.

The Grade 8 class joins with Grade 6 and 7 for art class, including drawing and painting with a focus on perspective, form, and the human figure. Particular projects reflect cultural events and classes may break into sections to make grade-specific projects such as the Grade 8 Self-Portrait exercise.  

In Grade 8, the music program continues with choir, instruments, and sometimes more complex musical pieces in various formats. Recorder playing continues with base and alto recorders, and orchestra and ensembles may be formed. 

Drama is always part of the curriculum in some form, often as a class play tied to grade-specific themes where students participate in acting, set design, and production. An effective pedagogical play is not judged by the same criteria as a mainstream production. The intention is beyond entertainment for an audience or for parents. Students learn to depend on each other in new ways and to discover their ability to take on different characters after deeply entering into a new stage persona. Students find new voices for themselves, new motivations, and develop a new appreciation for each other through their interactions on stage. The Grade 8 class play is particularly significant to the students’ graduating year. 

Grade 8 joins with the other Middle School classes for the formation of conventional sports teams (basketball, volleyball), with a focus on teamwork, coordination, and physical fitness. Where applicable, Waldorf Academy competes in the Small Schools Athletic Foundation (SSAF), and in other city-wide tournaments (e.g., badminton). A highlight of the year is the annual Middle School Basketball Tournament at Toronto Waldorf School, where athletes from several Ontario Waldorf schools come together to compete and celebrate with a dance and sleepover. 

Field trips include museums, institutions and art galleries with themes related to the curriculum. Plays and festivals include: The Rose Ceremony; the Michaelmas pageant to summon inner courage;; the Winter Fair to celebrate community; Mayfair to usher in Spring, the class play, and the closing Rose Ceremony. Annual highlights include the Hallowe-en Dance, the Middle School Basketball Tournament, and the weeklong Wilderness Trip. And of course, a culminating event of Grade 8 is the Graduation Ceremony.