Class Descriptions
And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
Luke 2:52
Multi Media Art
Instructor Lori Murphy
Create fun works of art and learn the techniques used by artists! This elementary-level art class emphasizes the fundamental principles of art through painting, collage, drawing, [printmaking, and sculpture. The class will introduce basic skills that are foundational and necessary for all art production. We will also touch on artists, both famous and not so famous. Students will learn the elements and principles of design, and will gain expertise in art by looking at great works created by the masters, discussing the elements found in those works, and imitating the techniques used in those works.
This class will go into deeper, more involved art projects with older students, but will be age-appropriate at each level. We’ll use a variety of media which may include but is not limited to: paper, acrylics, ink, colored pencil, papier-mache, clay, and a variety of “found objects,” creating both 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional art. This will be a relaxed class where students will be able to express their creativity. All projects will be completed in class. Each student will create a series of art projects, culminating in a portfolio to be displayed at the end of each semester.
Hands On Creation Science
Instructor Joanne Rabolli with the Creation Studies Institute, Fort Lauderdale
Units are designed to bring together the wonders of God’s world and a Biblical worldview. Students will acquire valuable skills through age-appropriate scientific inquiry while gaining a deeper appreciation of God’s creation. This course is designed for the student to get a broad sampling of the major fields of science and to be “hands-on” with as many in-class experiments as possible.
Each class will be devoted to experiments where the students can see actual cause and effect in action. Our lab time is filled with exciting learning and discovery on a particular topic. With inquiry-based learning and hands-on activities, your children will work both individually and in small groups. They will participate in class demonstrations, discuss science principles
and concepts, learn new science terminologies, and apply the scientific
method as these activities are carried out. Through Hands-On Science, your child will be able to touch, see, hear, smell, and taste what science is really all about. We will strive to provide
an atmosphere that is both safe and fun. Our focus is on keeping our learning environment engaging for all children participating in our lab. Also, each student will learn how to document and draw conclusions from each experiment. Using the lab’s endless supply of science materials, students will develop excitement and curiosity for everything related to science.
Some areas of exploration may include, but are not limited to: the senses, things that rot, dinosaurs, wetlands of Florida and its creatures, meteorology & wild weather, ocean life, things that fly, astronomy & a mission to Mars, forces & motion, fossil exploration, Entomology & the dissection of bugs, Chemistry, and forensic science. No textbooks and little or no homework for this class ~ just a desire to learn and have fun with science!
Creative Connections to Literature
Instructor Susan Hammer
“It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth reading. Something that will stretch their imaginations—something that will help them make sense of their own lives and encourage them to reach out toward people whose lives are quite different from their own.” –Katherine Patterson
Join us for classes that will take us to places we have never been before as we explore books through the creativity of art, music, poetry, movement, and words! The books we choose will be age appropriate and will connect to our unit topics. All classes will have hands-on art projects connecting to each student’s creativity. Throughout the course students will complete a series of projects, culminating in a portfolio to be displayed at the end of each semester.
Younger Classes
“The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” –Dr. Seuss
Our journeys will take us into different worlds—into the rich simplicity of Tomie dePaola’s stories, the inventive language of Dr. Seuss, and the colorful creations in books by Leo Lionni. We might read Stone Soup and sample our own village fare, create a chalk masterpiece when we read In the Small, Small Pond, or become mice in Mouse Paint as we explore color combinations through an art project. This class is all about reading classic picture books and building connections to creativity with the books we read. Students do not need to be able to read for this class and no homework will be assigned.
Middle Classes
“So it is with children who learn to read fluently and well: They begin to take flight into whole new worlds as effortlessly as young birds take to the sky.” –William James
The middle class will have a mix of the books and activities of what the Younger and Older Classes have to offer. It’s really the best of both worlds! We will read one or two chapter
books during the course of the year. We may read Sarah, Plain and Tall or The Bears on Hemlock Mountain and take a few weeks before or after to read some pictures books having to do with the chapter book. There will be some homework in this class when we read the chapter books.
Older Classes
“Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting.” –Edmund Burke
Off we go, into the wide world of chapter books, along with related picture books! We’ll read three to four chapter books—one of the books will be of the students’ choosing. Some we might consider are: The Sign of the Beaver, Beacuse of Winn-Dixie, The Whipping Boy, Number the Stars, Mr. Popper's Penguins, The Tale of Despereaux, Twenty-One Balloons, or one of the Narnia books. We will explore good literature while looking at how individual aspects of a story connect together as a whole, how to find biblical parallels and principles in literature, and how to recognize and use general literary terms. Students will work toward a culminating creative hands-on project that relates directly to each book read in class. Students will have homework in this class. They will answer questions each week for the short stories and chapter books we read.
Hands-On Math & Critical Thinking
Instructor Edith Irizarry
The objective of this class is to help students build a clear conceptual understanding of mathematical ideas, to assist in explaining why those ideas are important, and to show in what context they will be useful to them. Our goal is to help students develop a love for math and a stronger sense of how to solve problems in more than one way, while also prompting them to check their answers, ask questions, and share their own thinking with others.
A portion of our class time will be used to introduce and review age-appropriate math concepts. In this part of class students will learn how to make use of many different types of manipulatives. Hands-on manipulatives offer a concrete way for students to visualize their math problems, perform the necessary calculations, and work on new mathematical strategies. Older students will eventually use manipulatives less and less as their concrete thinking naturally transitions to a more abstract and mental math process.
Parents, this is not a traditional math class that is meant to replace whatever teaching you as the home educators are doing at home. This is meant to be a hands-on enrichment class that reinforces whatever you are teaching at home.
During our small group time students will practice using abductive and inductive reasoning as they analyze and discuss thought-provoking puzzles. If that sounds too difficult, do not worry. They may not even notice the challenge because they will be having so much fun playing the games and thinking through the puzzles!
All K-5th graders will also participate in a game-play segment of class. Games are an important tool for learning elementary mathematics, and all children love to play games that are fun and motivating. Our game time will provide students with a chance to explore fundamental number concepts, such as the counting sequence, one-to-one correspondence, and computation strategies. It will deepen their mathematical understanding and reasoning, and allow their own mathematical ideas to emerge as they notice new patterns, relationships, and strategies.
Lastly, our 2nd-5th grade students will enjoy becoming math detectives, as they work to solve mathematical mysteries through deductive logic. Again, do not worry if this sounds too challenging, they will be having such a good time they will not even notice!