Specialists
Course Descriptions:
Art: Portrait Drawing and the Grid Method (Mr. Davis)
Students will be taken through a series of responsive drawing exercises that emphasize observation and the employment of rendering techniques in graphite. Throughout the course, students will be asked to reference a diverse survey of historically and culturally significant imagery inspired by self portraiture and self expression. Each student will then produce a portrait in graphite using a photograph as source material. The process will investigate the grid method, a technique designed to aid the artist in achieving accuracy and proportion within the picture plane.
Card Sharks (Mr. Cutter)
The course focuses on games played with a traditional deck of playing cards. We will use these games to improve arithmetic fluency, build logical thinking skills, and most importantly, have fun playing cards!
Public Speaking (Mrs. Huezo)
Public speaking is designed to help students practice and improve their public speaking skills. Through creative speech writing, individual and group performances, and fun impromptu activities, the students will gain the confidence to speak in front of any audience.
American Sign Language (Mrs. Zeiss)
Students learn how to communicate using American Sign Language. In this engaging class, students focus on receptive skills, learn signs, build signing fluency, and study influential movements and people within the Deaf culture.
Hispanic Culture (Sra. Parsons-Lamb)
This fall quarter class will focus primarily on Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct 15) and Día de los Muertos (Oct. 31- Nov 2) . Students will learn about the many historically important people with Hispanic heritage and apply that knowledge during Day of the Dead when we create an altar in their memory. Students will make crafts and take part in a variety of Day of the Dead activities. Games, food, piñatas and music will round out the course. Spanish language will be used!
Debate (Mrs. Gangl)
A debate is a structured argument involving two sides: one in favor of an issue, the other against it. In this course, students will partake in several debates covering a variety of topics by either supporting or opposing a claim. They will research and gather evidence to strengthen their assertions as well as use their critical thinking skills to assess and refute their opponents. Most importantly, they will do their best to convince the judges that their team has proven their case and their side should win the debate!
Exploring Drama and Storytelling (Sra. Parsons-Lamb)
In this course, students will explore the fundamentals of drama, the art of storytelling and other theater related topics. This class will provide an opportunity for students to stimulate imagination, practice movement, and role-play. Through theatre games and activities, students will learn to lose inhibitions and gain trust in themselves as well as others in their groups. Students will exhibit and reinforce their skills through individual and group performances, movement and voice, character building, and short script writing.
7th Health (Ms. Stromberg, ONE QUARTER REQUIRED)
The Health enrichment class will be using the Glencoe Teen Health textbook, and meets all of the National Health Education Standards while covering a variety of teen health and wellness topics. Units of study include the following: physical fitness and nutrition, mental and emotional health, building healthy relationships, tobacco, alcohol and drugs, male and female reproductive systems,and communicable and noncommunicable diseases.
8th Yearbook (Mr. Valiulis)
Yearbook is the class where students design the HPA yearbook that we distribute to every student in June. Students collaborate to achieve consensus, as well as work within clearly defined jobs. They interface with the broader HPA community to ensure our yearbook represents our community. Students need to balance design, ambition, and resources against strict deadlines to avoid going over budget with our publisher. Yearbook students work hard to create this important artifact that defines and commemorates the year for students and families in the broader HPA community so that it can be remembered for decades.
Technology (Mr. Flagg)
First Quarter | Exploring Computer Science
Computer science examines the core fundamentals of computational thinking and how they’re applied in a real-world context for deeper exploration. Exploring computer science engages learners on the practices and tech industry standards, exposing our learners to state-of-the-art technology and methodologies. As a tool for student-centric learning and discovery, students in this course will apply social awareness alongside their newfound skills to leverage problem solving and systems thinking applications.
Second Quarter | The Innovator’s Studio
A design workshop for students to plan, iterate, and innovate their ideas, while learning about standard maker tools. The foundation of technology use at High Point Academy is to see students become producers of technology, as emphasized by creativity and innovation. The Innovator’s Studio is about embracing the complexity of tinkering, playful learning, experimenting, iterating and collaborating - from process to product. At the beginning, students will use a “station rotation” model to learn skills in the safe use of Makershed tools, materials, and 3D modeling/printing. All deliverables from workshops will come from project-based development.
Third Quarter | High Point Academy Film & Media Class
Storytelling is an effective means for creatively sharing information and telling stories. Multimedia design through film, music, or podcasting serves as a vibrant means to influence our attitudes and perceptions of the world around us. The most powerful tools in modern culture for shaping values and conveying information stands at the crossroads of technology and storytelling. In this course, students will have the opportunity to practice using Google Apps to collaborate ideas and explore a variety of media tools to develop their projects. Students will spend the beginning of the year developing scripts and small films, which will later lead to optional submissions to the California Student Film Festival, or Middle School Film Festival, and a presentation to screen for a school-wide audience.
Optional ISEE/HSPT Test Prep Course for 8th Graders (Mrs. Zeiss)
Mondays (September-November), Study Hall
Students who choose to take this course will learn strategies for success on the entrance exams for high schools, including the High School Entrance Exam (HSPT) and the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE). Students will engage in lessons, practice exercises, self-correcting, and practice tests.
