9th-12th GRADE CLASS DESCRIPTIONS and SUPPLIES (2011-2012)

If you plan on having your student take any of the high school sciences, they are required to use Apologia textbooks. We offer Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry, Advanced Biology and Physics.

Fees and some supplies are posted. Additional supplies may be posted closer to Academy start date.

9th Grade Composition (Debbie Hopper) – This class will focus on grammar and composition; specifically the five paragraph report and essay. Different forms of essays will be covered including expository, persuasive, compare and contrast, narrative, and critique. We will work toward the AP level.

10th Grade Composition (Nancy Wheeler) – The fall semester will consist of more traditional types of writing (descriptive, persuasive, etc). The spring semester will be creative writing, story writing, and writing to entertain.

11th Grade Composition (Debbie Hopper) – This class will focus the first semester on creative writing and a review of essay writing. The second semester will focus on writing a term paper.

12th Grade Composition (Terri Oxner) – The class will focus on developing the students' abilities to put their creative thoughts on paper. They will cover essays, writing and analyzing short stories, keeping a journal, mystery writing and various styles of poetry. They will be graded on content as well as grammar, usage, and mechanics of writing. Keeping their journal is a requirement, not optional, and will be a portion of the overall grade, but it is a minimal requirement -- minimum three entries per week and a minimum five sentences per journal entry.

20th Century History (Nancy Wheeler) – This is an American history class, covering the decades between 1900 and 2000. The emphasis will be on American history, but we will also discuss how America was involved in world politics.

Advanced Biology (Lyn Gladden) – DUE TO TIME DEMANDS, THIS CLASS WILL COVER 2 CLASS PERIODS. This course is an in-depth anatomy and physiology course which thoroughly covers the workings of the human body. Because it is an upper-level course with college-level subject matter, regular biology is a definite prerequisite, and chemistry is a recommended pre- requisite. This will be a great course for any senior (or strongly science-minded junior) who is considering a career in the medical / science field. In class, students will have the opportunity to use microscopes to look at slides of various body tissues; practice bone identification with a small, plastic skeleton; and dissect a cow eye, a sheep heart, and a fetal pig. We will also discuss the material covered in each chapter of the textbook. There will be tests every few weeks, plus a final each semester.

Advanced History Seminar (Debbie Sadler) – (Seussiology): This is not a puff class! We will be reading a few Dr. Seuss books, discussing the societal implications of the story and a present day example (Yertle the Turtle and present day Libya, for example). Every other week each student will be assigned an historical event or person to research and present a 5 minute synopsis to the rest of the class the following week. Grades will be based solely on research, presentation and class participation. Class space will be limited to 10 students. Juniors and Seniors only, except by permission.

American Government/Civics (Debbie Sadler) – We will cover government, civics, and economics principles in this course. The first semester will primarily be studying the foundations of American government and the Constitution. Students will need access to the Internet. The second semester will primarily be focused on local government and civic responsibilities, as well as basic economics. Students should sign up for both semesters to count this as either a civics course or an American government course, since there is some overlap in subjects.

American Literature (Debbie Hopper) – Introduces students to works by America’s prominent writers from several different periods. We will read approximately 15 American classics throughout the year. Students will be responsible for own books.

Art (Rebekah Holloway) – Many different mediums will be taught to help encourage the use of the student’s creativity, with the students choosing their own medium the second semester. No talent required!

Biology (Enid Valentine) – This is Apologia’s biology course, Exploring Creation with Biology. Students will learn about life science topics like cell structure, genetics, ecosystems, the five kingdoms, creation and evolution, and more.

British Literature (Debbie Sadler) – Recommended for 11th or 12th graders, but can be taken by younger high schoolers who are avid readers. We will read and discuss several books written by British authors, as well as study literary devices employed in different works. We will briefly discuss poetry, as well (not Necessarily British poetry)

Chemistry (Amber Sublett) – This is Apologia’s chemistry course, Exploring Creation with Chemistry. Students will learn about topics like atoms and molecules, chemical equations, solutions, kinetics, energy & heat, and more. This year this class will be offered as a 1 or 2 hour class. Students may choose to take the lecture part of class to go over the concepts and formulas they have read about in the text. The second hour will be a lab only class with no time set aside for teaching the concepts from the text.

Choir (Nancy Wheeler) – This class is performance based. Basic music theory will be covered within the context of the music that we will be performing. There will be a concert in December and in April.

Cinematography (Debbie Hopper) – This course will study the history of movie making in America. Quite an interesting elective for movie buffs. It would include lighting, camera angles, musical scores, the evolution of recording (from one camera to multiple cameras), etc.

We would have a list of the movies that would be covered during the year and have the parents sign off that they would be approved to be watched.

Here are possibilities that we came up with so far:

• Charlie Chaplin
• John Wayne
• Ginger Rogers & Fred Astaire
• Audrey Hepburn
• Jimmy Stewart
• Hitchcock
• Elvis
• Star Wars
• Pixar

College Test Preparation (Rebekah Holloway) – Get prepared to take your college entrance exams. Recommended for juniors. Focus on preparing to take the tests, with test taking hints, practice test and developing critical thinking skills.

Concepts of Algebra (Lanette Stewart) – This class will consist of working with the basic algebraic equations to the more in-depth equations. It will start out with Algebra I type problems and work up to Algebra II.

Early Childhood Development (Nancy Wheeler) – This class is designed to introduce the students to basic theories in early childhood development. The first semester will focus on learning about different ideas on how to best educate children, and the second semester the students will have a chance to put their knowledge into practice in actual classroom settings. A text will be required.

French 1 (Linda Allison) – French I is an introduction to the French language and culture. Students will be introduced to new vocabulary and grammar each week and will practice both written and spoken expression. Class time will include practice of pronunciation by repetition and by participating in conversations.

French 2 (Linda Allsion) – This course will continue where French I left off. Class time will include practice of pronunciation by repetition and by participating in conversations.

Girls Bible Study (Amber Sublett) – This is a girls only Bible Study class. We will be going through the book, Passion and Purity by Elizabeth Elliott.

Home Economics (Lisa Thomas) – The students will be challenged to learn different cooking techniques, learn how to budget their food monies, how to incorporate a healthy diet, and household basics such as laundry and cleaning tips, and very basic sewing. Each student will be expected to bring their own cooking utensils. We will be making a recipe file for each student to keep.

Latin I (Linda Allison) – This course is based upon Wheelock's Latin, Latin Made Simple, So You Really Want to Learn Latin?, and Canon Press's Latin Grammar and meets the requirements for a first year Latin course: 1st, 2nd. and 3rd noun and adjective declensions; all 5 verb conjugations in the present, imperfect, future, perfect, pluperfect, and future perfect tenses; imperatives of verbs; comparison of adjectives; formation of adverbs; English derivatives; translations; weekly quizzes; and semester finals.)

Latin 2 (Linda Allison) – This course is based upon Wheelock's Latin, Latin Made Simple, So You Really Want to Learn Latin?, and Canon Press's Latin Grammar and meets the requirements for a second year Latin course: 4th and 5th declension nouns; pronouns: personal, intensive, reflexive, and relative; locative case; expressions of time and direction; passive voice in all the tenses; deponent verbs; semi-deponent verbs; participles; ablative absolutes; all tenses of infinitives; indirect statements; subjunctive mood; jussive subjunctive; irregular verbs; causal clauses; English derivatives; translations; weekly quizzes; and semester finals.

Personal Finance (Rebekah Holloway) – Students will learn about income and expenses as well as assets and liabilities. They will learn how to budget for short and long term expenses. Access to a computer and the internet will be necessary in order to complete assignments.

Photography (Kim Magnus) – Teaches basic photography techniques. Students will work throughout the year to build a portfolio and compete for cash prizes at the end of the year.

Physical Science (Lyn Gladden) – This is a science dealing with non-living matter. We will cover subjects such as motion, chemistry, earth science, and astronomy. Using the textbook Exploring Creation with Physical Science by Dr. Jay L. Wile, we will cover the experiments from each chapter and briefly discuss the topics covered in the chapter. Students will read one chapter each week at home and come to class ready to do the experiments for that chapter. There will be a test every third week covering the experiments and some of the subject matter from the previous two chapters.

Physics Lab (Lyn Gladden) – This course will be the lab companion to the text book Exploring Creation with Physics, 2nd edition, by Dr. Jay Wile (Apologia Ministries; ISBN: 1-932012-42-7). Students will be required to read the text at home an come to class prepared to complete the experiments for the assigned chapters. The class will cover each chapter in approximately two weeks, though some chapters may be covered in one week and others in three weeks.    Each semester there will be notebook checks, an open book quiz, and a few worksheets, but there will not be any chapter tests in class; therefore, parents are encouraged to purchase the Solutions and Test booklet that goes along with this course. As time allows, I will work with students on the math problems in this course. Prerequisites: Physical science, Algebra 1, and geometry or trigonometry (the student should be familiar with calculating sine, cosine, and tangent). First day requirements: For the first day of Academy, all students are expected to come to class having read Modules 1 and 2 (to page 68).

Sewing (Debbie Hopper) – Learn how to use a sewing machine, read a pattern, and basic sewing techniques. You will need to have a portable machine or share one with someone else taking the class.

Spanish I & II (Mercy Smith) – A conversational approach will be taken in teaching the students, with a goal of having the students understand and speak with a vocabulary used in everyday Spanish. An English/Spanish dictionary is required.

Speech (Terri Oxner) – The goal of this class is to teach students the basic skills needed for making public speeches, and to help them overcome fear of public speaking. Note: Participation in speeches is NOT optional in this class and is a major part of the grade.

Theatre (Nancy Wheeler) – Whether it’s acting, costuming, lighting, sets or sound. All aspects of theatre will be taught in class with a final performance at the end of the year.


PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT IN ORDER FOR THE STUDENT TO ENROLL IN ONE OF THE HIGH SCHOOL SCIENCE LABS, EACH INDIVIDUAL FAMILY MUST PURCHASE THE SPECIFIC TEXT LISTED. OF COURSE, SIBLINGS MAY SHARE SCIENCE TEXTS.