This is a CORE class that meets twice a week for the full year. Parents are required to attend the mandatory Core Parent Meeting immediately following Family Orientation on either August 24th at 2pm, August 24th at 6pm, September 7th at 2pm, or September 7th at 6pm.
This course will immerse students in English-language literature by reading and analyzing novels, poetry, short stories, and plays. The emphasis will be reading comprehension, understanding literary types and devices, and interpreting literature. Students will be thinking and writing about what they read. This course will be appropriate for anyone in high school level English. This is a year-long course (32 weeks) that meets twice a week, and it will count for a full year English credit.
Students taking this English course will learn the following skills: reading literature for understanding; interpreting literature as written; distinguishing different types of literature; communicating with others; critical thinking about literature.
Each unit of literature will include a week when students make presentations on what they have read and learned. Parents are welcomed and encouraged to attend those days! More information will be provided in Slack at that time.
NOTE: Since plays can be easier to watch than read, we will spend the first Monday watching the first ~45 minutes from a movie adaptation of each play. This is designed to assist student engagement as they read through the plays. Parents may excuse their students from these two days if they do not approve of watching scenes from these movies:
“Death of a Salesman” (1985), online parent's guide at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089006/parentalguide
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (1999), online parent's guide at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0140379/parentalguide
Requirements:
Students must have a copy of each work in the Reading List below, and bring it into the classroom during its week(s). Any edition or printing is acceptable, except that we will only use the King James Version for Psalm 23. (Many of these can be found for free online.) In addition, a notebook and pencil(s) for taking notes are required.
Reading list:
Novels: “Hound of the Baskervilles” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley; “The Old Man and The Sea” by Ernest Hemingway; “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck; “Animal Farm” by George Orwell
Poetry: Sonnet 17 by Shakespeare; “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe; “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” by Dylan Thomas; “Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carroll; "Psalm 23" (KJV) by David ben Jesse
Short stories: “The Rocket” by Ray Bradbury; “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce; “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell
Plays: “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller; “A Midsummer Night's Dream” by Shakespeare
NOTE: If parents have any concerns about the works listed here or on watching scenes from movie adaptations of the two plays, please reach out to me and/or the FPHRC English department leadership in advance of signing up for the class! Many of these works present real-world topics in a challenging context. Parents may excuse their students from the two movie days mentioned in the class Description, with no penalty to the students.
Assistants:
Homework:
Up to 5 Hours Week
Billable Hours Per Week:
2
Admin Tier:
Core
Admin Fee:
$4.00, Term Total = $128
Class Fee:
$192.00
Supply Fee:
$20.00
English Literature for Kids
English Literature for Kids
Ages 9yr-12yr
Valenti, Jill
Fall 2024
Language Arts
- English
Schedule:
Wednesday - Classroom - 135: 1:00 pm - 1:50 pm
Description:
Sharpen your reading comprehension and learn about the various elements of literature while reading engaging fiction, poetry, short stories, graphic novels, biographies, and plays all centered around the Middle Ages! We will spend approximately 3 weeks per book (to be read as homework at home) for a total of 5 literary units each semester. Class time will focus on teaching literary elements (plot, character, theme, symbolism, etc.) related to the story with some time reserved to work on the unit project. Unit projects will include: a diorama, essay, poetry memorization, monologue performance, newspaper article, and/or a persuasive speech. Any work not completed in class will be required as homework.
Requirements:
Students must be able to independently read books at a 5th grade reading level or higher. Students must have physical copies of the following books: Usborne Graphic Legends: Robin Hood by Russell Punter and Matteo Pincelli, Shakespeare Can Be Fun: Romeo and Juliet for Kids by Lois Burdett, Pedro's Journal by Pam Conrad, Parzival: The Quest of the Grail Knight by Katherine Paterson, The Sword in the Tree by Clyde Robert Bulla, The Second Mrs. Giaconda by E.L. Konigsburg, Classic Starts: The Hunchback of Notre Dame retold from the Victor Hugo original (Sterling Publishing), The King's Castles by Kitty Anthony, and Fine Print: A Story about Johann Gutenberg by Joann Johansen Burch
Assistants:
Homework:
Up to 2 Hours Week
Billable Hours Per Week:
1
Admin Tier:
Elective
Admin Fee:
$5, Term Total = $80
Class Fee:
$100.00
Supply Fee:
$25.00
Epic Indoor Gardening
Ages 6yr-11yr
Koetitz, Hailey
Winter/Spring 2021
Science
Schedule:
Thursday - Classroom - 228: 3:00 pm - 3:50 pm
Description:
"Let's bring the outdoors inside! In this class we'll dive into plant care, growing seedlings, and propagation techniques (taking plant cuttings and turning them into more plants!) as well as building our own propagation boxes.
-Grow your knowledge of houseplants
-Learn about the helpful & medicinal purposes of God's creations
-Grow an army of propagated plants
-Build a propagation box!
ABOUT ME: I have spent the last 7 years developing my skills of teaching and caring for young children. I have a degree in Early Childhood Education and was homeschooled from 3rd grade-high school. I would love to pass on the wonderful parts of homeschooling to your children!"
Requirements:
Assistants:
Homework:
None
Billable Hours Per Week:
1
Admin Tier:
Class Override
Admin Fee:
$32, Term Total = $32
Class Fee:
$75.00
Supply Fee:
$35.00
Essentials of Cooking and Nutrition
Ages 9yr-19yr+
Pomaville, Becky
Fall 2024
Science
- Food
Schedule:
Monday - Art Studio - 129: 3:00 pm - 3:50 pm
Description:
In this class we will cover basic kitchen skills, safety around appliances, knife handling, while learning the essential techniques of cooking. We will learn cutting techniques, basic baking and cooking while making simple recipes that are savory or sweet. Nutrition will be incorporated as we discuss preparation techniques and ingredient choices. Students will be working in groups and have assignments: to be the cook, set up/clean up, and/or doing dishes. At the end of the class each student will receive a copy of all the recipes that we worked on all semester. I homeschooled my 8 children and taught them all to cook. Our recipes were so popular that we published a cookbook. I will share some of our family favorites with the students.
Requirements:
Students taking this class are expected to have an appreciation of the dangers inherent in a kitchen and thus be able to follow directions. Students should also be able to understand and follow instructions carefully to participate safely around a stove top and in handling a knife.
Assistants:
Homework:
None
Billable Hours Per Week:
1
Admin Tier:
Elective
Admin Fee:
$5, Term Total = $80
Class Fee:
$125.00
Supply Fee:
$45.00
Experimental Watercolor Techniques
Ages 10yr-16yr
Neal, Melanie
Winter/Spring 2021
Arts
- Painting
Schedule:
Tuesday - Art Studio - 129: 1:00 pm - 1:50 pm
Description:
Learn to understand and master the art of watercolor. Learn to relax with your art, turn your mistakes into something beautiful, and discover the joy that creating with this versatile technique can bring, In this course, using pictures of different animals as a starting point, you will learn to draw them both realistically and in a more creative way. We will then paint these guided projects with watercolor, gouache, and other more experimental techniques. Each student will complete 8 works in this course. With each artwork we will apply different techniques, and the level of complexity will go from least to greatest.You will know the different basic watercolor techniques (dry stroke, wet stroke, dry on dry, dry on wet, wet on wet, and wet on dry) and the key to painting with ease in watercolor: be open to error. Basic drawing skills are helpful for this course, but not required.
Requirements:
Assistants:
Homework:
None
Billable Hours Per Week:
1
Admin Tier:
Class Override
Admin Fee:
$32, Term Total = $32
Class Fee:
$120.00
Supply Fee:
$100.00
Exploring Creation w/ Astronomy (ES)
Ages 8yr-12yr
Haskins, Maija
Spring 2024
Science
- General Science
Schedule:
Wednesday - Classroom - 224: 3:00 pm - 3:50 pm
Description:
This course is designed to introduce the wonders of our solar system, the stars, and beyond. Your student will explore and learn about the sun, planets, asteroid belt, dwarf planets, the Kuiper belt galaxies, nebulae, and even black holes as they reveal the marvel and might of our loving Creator.
Each week in class we will do an experiment or project to reinforce what students are learning. Students must be able and willing to read the chapter at home individually or with a parent (there's also an audio version available for purchase from Apologia if that works better for your student) and come to class ready to engage in our classroom project/experiment that correlates with their at-home reading for that week. The goal is to continue to spark their curiosity about the world God has created and build good at-home study skills along with having a fun time with their peers doing cool experiments together.
This course is designed to introduce the wonders of our solar system, the stars, and beyond. Your student will explore and learn about the sun, planets, asteroid belt, dwarf planets, the Kuiper belt galaxies, nebulae, and even black holes as they reveal the marvel and might of our loving Creator.
Each week in class we will do an experiment or project to reinforce what students are learning. Students must be able and willing to read the chapter at home individually or with a parent (there's also an audio version available for purchase from Apologia if that works better for your student) and come to class ready to engage in our classroom project/experiment that correlates with their at-home reading for that week. The goal is to continue to spark their curiosity about the world God has created and build good at-home study skills along with having a fun time with their peers doing cool experiments together.
Evidence of God’s creation is all around us. Each week we will explore an aspect of our wonderful world. Class begins with circle time which includes a read-aloud, songs/movement, and a mini-lesson related to our weekly theme. Students then move to stations which may include art projects, math/science activity, and the sensory bin. To end class, we come back to circle and students “share” with the class what they made or did that day!
Requirements:
Assistants:
Homework:
None
Billable Hours Per Week:
1
Admin Tier:
Class Override
Admin Fee:
$32, Term Total = $32
Class Fee:
$75.00
Supply Fee:
$10.00
Exploring Grammar and Sentence Writing
Ages 7yr-9yr
Raia, Katie
Spring 2024
Language Arts
- English
Schedule:
Monday - Classroom - 220: 3:00 pm - 3:50 pm
Description:
Join us as we explore 1st/2nd grade grammar and sentence writing while creating an interactive language arts notebook. Interactive notebooks are a place for students to record what we learn in class in a fun and engaging way. Each student will bring home their notebook at the end of the term with over 60 pages they can use to reflect, practice, and demonstrate their learning.
Topics we will cover in this class will include vowel teams, beginning and ending digraphs, rhyming words, syllables, prepositions, synonyms, elements of a story, sequencing, and much more.
We will also read short stories aloud, answer comprehension questions as a class, and edit “fix-it” sentences.
Requirements:
Students should be reading at a Kinder/1st grade level or higher, able to sound out CVC words, and able to write a few sentences with help and encouragement. Students should also be able to use scissors and glue independently.
Please make attendance and punctuality a priority for this class. Students who are excessively absent or tardy will miss out on valuable class content.
Assistants:
Homework:
None
Billable Hours Per Week:
1
Admin Tier:
Core
Admin Fee:
$4.00, Term Total = $64
Class Fee:
$100.00
Supply Fee:
$25.00
Exploring the World of Animals
Ages 3yr-4yr
Cates, Heather
Winter/Spring 2021
Science
Schedule:
Thursday - Science Lab - 127: 2:00 pm - 2:50 pm
Description:
This semester we will be exploring the amazing world of animals, from creatures great to small. Each week we will learn about a new animal through books, crafts, and play.