Courses

LIFE School Course Requirements

Juniors:

For Course 1, students must take Advisory and Community. In addition, they are required to take American Mythbusters (US History and Government and American Literature 1) along with Physics and Chemistry of the Universe. Some students also take LIFE School math, while others choose to take math on the main campus.

Seniors:

For Course 1 students take Advisory/Community. In addition, they are required to take 2 semesters of English and 2 semesters of Social Studies in the LIFE School. Other courses are optional.

Community

Community (1/2 credit) is a central aspect of the LIFE School experience and a credit-bearing program. Once a cycle, the entire LIFE School community meets to discuss governance issues and to learn together, and there is the expectation that everyone can and should be a leader. This emphasis on leadership, personal growth, and self-governance shifts the student-teacher relationship to more of a partnership than is normally possible in school.

Advisory

All students also earn credit for Advisory (1/2 credit), one of the things that makes the LIFE School special. It is, in many ways, the soul of our school. Advisory is a small group of students (divided by grade) that meets with an adult three times each cycle. The purposes of Advisory include, but are not limited to:

• Learning about social and emotional intelligence as well as other issues of particular interest and importance to its members.

• Helping students manage their academic and personal growth.

• Supporting and managing our internship programs.

MAIN COURSES :

3059 LS AMERICAN LITERATURE (1 credit)

(Juniors, blocked) “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

– Margaret Mead

All LIFE School students must take American Literature 1 and US History and Government, which are combined in an interdisciplinary humanities experience called “American MythBusters.” This course explores major current day themes in American society and their historical and cultural roots while seeking to determine the extent to which myths about America and its past are true. The course is designed around students’ exploration of various forms of American literature and other media, as well as highly rigorous, collaborative student research that focuses on use of subscription databases and other scholarly sources in order to answer important, complex questions about America and its past.

3062 LS WORLD LITERATURE (1/2 credit)

(Seniors, unblocked) In this course, students will explore their own identities and lives, as well as the world around them, through literature and other forms of media and expression. Students will collaborate with the teacher to identify themes and topics to study, as well as the books, articles, poetry, stories, films, music and other media to analyze. Possible themes may include: the role of literature in the US and other countries; the impact of music and poetry in societies; our own choices and preferences in what we read, listen to, and watch; the role of the written and spoken word in politics, the economy and society as a whole.

3054 LS WRITING COMMUNICATIONS (1/2 credit)

(Seniors, blocked) In this course, students will explore various genres of writing, along with other media, and engage in intensive revision and peer review of their work to enhance their skills. They also will improve their speaking skills, as they will write and perform speeches and spoken word poems. The students will read model texts in each of these genres and analyze the authors’ techniques so that the students can apply these techniques to their own writing. While the genres the students study are prescribed, the topics the students choose to write about are open-ended, allowing them to pursue their interests and write about ideas and issues about which they care.

MATH OFFERINGS:

The LIFE School offers two courses in mathematics. Students are strongly encouraged to take both courses in their two years in the LIFE School, if possible.

3125 LS SUNY STATISTICS AND PUBLIC POLICY (1 credit)

(Seniors, unblocked) This course covers fundamental concepts of statistics with an applied approach, designed to create savvy "statistical consumers,” able to understand, evaluate, and analyze quantitative evidence presented in the media on issues relevant to citizens in our society today. Students enrolled in this course may be eligible to earn 3 undergraduate credits through SUNY New Paltz. Statistics and Public Policy (MAT 145 at SUNY New Paltz) satisfies the SUNY-wide Mathematics GE requirement. Students interested in pursuing college credit for this course must meet the SUNY New Paltz placement requirements, which include a qualifying score on a placement exam or a math SAT I score of 550 or higher. Eligible students may choose to pay a (discounted) fee and receive a SUNY transcript for this course.

LS APPLIED PRECALCULUS (1 credit)

(Historically, students who are successful in this course receive a teacher recommendation for a precalculus course and have passed 4302, 4305, or 4307.) This course integrates precalculus topics, including elementary functions, trigonometry, conic sections with planetary motion, parametric functions, and limits. The topics will be studied primarily through the use of problem- and project- based learning, utilizing and expanding upon collaboration and communication skills. Projects will include modeling, making, and predicting.

SOCIAL STUDIES OFFERINGS:

3110 LS U.S. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT (1 credit)

(Juniors, blocked) All LIFE School students must take American Literature 1 and US History and Government, which are combined in an interdisciplinary humanities experience called “American MythBusters.” This course explores major current day themes in American society and their historical and cultural roots while seeking to determine the extent to which myths about America and its past are true. The course is designed around students’ exploration of various forms of American literature and other media, as well as highly rigorous, collaborative student research that focuses on use of subscription databases and other scholarly sources in order to answer important, complex questions about America and its past. This course also prepares students for the US History and Government Regents Exam.

3035 LS ECONOMICS (1/2 credit)

(Seniors, blocked) This course fulfills the NY State graduation requirement. It is focused on economic and personal finance issues that are most relevant to our economy today and students' lives as they prepare for college and the workplace. The curriculum is largely negotiated with the students; the students help decide what they will study and how they will study it. In previous years, students have done fieldwork and studied economic inequality, the economics of energy, the global financial crisis, personal debt, the importance of personal budgets, energy policy, the national and local effects of the pandemic, and many other topics.

3115 LS SOCIAL JUSTICE (1/2 credit)

(Seniors, unblocked) Students enrolled in this semester course will conduct research on various social justice issues, study models of effective activism, and execute an action plan for affecting change. Students will consult with experts and learn how to use technology, including social media, to magnify their effectiveness. The course will emphasize self and peer feedback and collaboration.

SCIENCE OFFERINGS:

3090 LS PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY OF THE UNIVERSE (1 credit)

(Juniors, blocked) This course will explore the question How is Science Limited by Technology? Students will use stop motion videos and computer programming to model physics and chemistry concepts from the scale of quantum to astrophysics. Topics will include the standard model, waves and light, electricity and magnetism, and mechanics (including mass, gravity, and time). In addition to how these concepts play out in the micro and macro worlds, students will explore how they are observed and affect us by completing a personal radiation audit, studying constructions for restoration ecology, and exploring their electric grid. Students will get the opportunity to analyze theories such as multiverses, parallel universes, singularity, life beyond the solar system, and more. The material will be project-based with an emphasis on the following skills: analysis, synthesis, inquiry and research, feedback and revision, and expression.

3095 AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE (1 credit)

(Seniors, unblocked) This full year science elective course is the equivalent of a one semester introductory college environmental science course. AP Environmental Science (APES) in the LIFE School is a rigorous, project-based, scientific study of the interactions between humans and ecology. APES in the LIFE school involves investigations and simulations that require students to think like scientists, policymakers, farmers, and others in real-world settings. Students will engage in collaborative problem solving, argumentation, and deep exploration of the following topics: ecological footprints, community ecology, food systems, oceans, population dynamics, and climate change. All areas of exploration include a local component where students study how the content is connected to their life at Greeley, home, or in Westchester. Students will use a local ecosystem to conduct studies, grow crops to donate from their garden, and collect data to advertise to their peers on how to be more sustainable.