• A Look Back at Where We Have Come From

• Book Review

• Scholar Bowl

• Your Future Plan Can Be Your Reality

Taking a look back at very specific times in our U.S. history namely 1963 and also the great depression. I want us to look back using two books, The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1963 and Bud Not Buddy, both books by Christopher Paul Curtis. Using both the books and film that go with them take a journey back to two dark times in our history that can ultimately give us light, and help to pave the way for the times that we now live in. The books hold themes of irony and humor that will stand to help us in the present.

It's time to compare and contrast! Which is better: the book or the movie? In this course we will read a novel and watch the movie that goes with it. After we finish the movie, we will have a spirited debate on which one was better and why!

Students will engage in the various games that were played in the district’s former Scholar Bowl competitions. These games allow students to use deductive skills while having fun. They will work on reading comprehension skills and organize analysis skills. They will answer Rebus puzzles, play Nine Men’s Morris, Mancala, Target Number and Mind Benders. They will use various strategies to answer questions. They will compete with each other in weekly Scholar Bowl competitions.

Through this course, students will explore the vast possibilities their future holds by taking interest surveys and researching their hobbies. Once a career choice has been made, students will take a deeper dive to see what kind of education is needed and in what field. They will explore job opportunities as well as salary expectations. Students will compose a research paper and presentation laying out the steps needed to reach their future career choice. Throughout the course, students will learn to collaborate and bounce ideas off one another. Students will leave this course with a step by step plan for their future they can start putting into action the very next school year!

• Graphing and Data Analysis

• Math and Gardening

• Size It!

Society uses graphics and statistics to display data in a variety of ways. Students see graphs and charts in their everyday lives. Online polls, bar chart images, and line graphs are common and used to display information with visual components. This course takes students on a deep dive to uncover the mathematics behind creating graphs and charts utilizing multimedia resources. In addition, students will explore the rationale behind why a person or business may choose one type of visual representation over another. Students will analyze, compare, and create graphs and charts as visual representations of a variety of data.

Math and Interest Based Learning. The interest based learning would be a gardening class. It would focus on both math and science standards. The math portion of the class would relate to geometry standards such as GM.A.7 where we could plan our garden boxes on paper and use math to determine the length of the actual boards needed for a raised garden bed. As for science the students would study and see how plants actually grow. An example of a standard would be 6-8.LS1.A.2 where we would talk about plant cells and how they get energy and grow better in the conditions we create for the plants.

In this course students will learn how things are scaled to size. Students will create scale drawings and dioramas of different objects, buildings and places. This will help them gain a better idea of what is needed to be an architect and understand how things are put together for others to see them.

• Band

• CSI: Forensics Science

• Everything You Need to Know About Sports

• I Can Create The App!

• Make It With Science

Students with at least one year of experience will have four fun-filled weeks in BAND! We will learn new notes, new music, and make new friends!

*Students need to be enrolled in band for the upcoming school year.

Students will learn techniques that forensic scientists use to solve a crime.

They will then apply their knowledge to solve 1-3 full investigative crimes (time permitting).

Have you ever wondered what really goes on behind the scenes of a basketball game or how players get so good at a sport? No reason to wonder anymore. We will go through what professional athletes do to become so skilled by playing team sports like basketball, football, and softball. We will work on how they warm up/ cool down and work on drills that make them so good. That is not all that goes into making a sporting event successful. We will learn how to keep score, keep stats, and the rules of the sport. Then you will use all of these skills to keep score, keep stats and officiate our games in class. When you complete this course you will be able to scorekeep, officiate, and keep stats to 3 major sports.

Using  Chromebooks, android phones, tablets, and desktop computers, students will create and share mobile apps using the pair-programming strategy. Students will develop soft skills in teamwork, problem-solving, communication, interpersonal, and leadership. Additionally, a guest programmer will work with students on creating a physical computing project.

Roll up your sleeves and get ready to explore science hands-on to make and take items home that connect science to the real world around you.