2016-17 Class Descriptions

	A	B	C	D
1	Forensic Science	Grades	Teacher Name	Description

2	Script Writing/ACT Writing	6-12	Mr. VerSchure	Mr. VerSchure, a published playwright, will instruct the students on original script and screen writing for half of the year. The other half of the year will be spent on writing skills for test preparation, specifically the essay section on the ACT.
3	American Sign Language (Thowing Signs)	6-12	Mr. Cistaro
4	Animal Zoo	K-3 and 3-5	Mr. Annis	Each week, your child will study a different animal. Students can expect to learn about various animals, their habitats, food requirements, and everything necessary to become a zoo expert.
5	Archery	3-12	Mr. Annis	Stay on target with this fun and exciting sport. After going through safety and equipment, your child will be taught archery basics. All bows and arrows are provided, but students are welcome to bring their own. We use basic compound bows with various adjustable draw weights so this sport can be enjoyed by all. Possibility for a second grader with an arm strong enough to pull the bow.
6	Art	6-12	Mrs. Rilley	No prior art knowledge is needed to take this art class! In the first half of the course we will focus on learning the elements of art through different art studies. As we move through the year, you will have opportunities to explore a variety of artistic mediums through several different projects.
7	Art Imitating History	6-8 and 9-12	Mr. Cistaro	What history can we learn from literature? How can knowing the history of the times help us to appreciate literature better? The intent of this class is to expose students to great literature and help them gain an understanding of why the book is critical to helping them become a thinking rational person. The course offers the opportunity to acquire both literary-critical and historical knowledge, develops the ability to think logically, and acquire a love of reading by making books that might seem esoteric or boring interesting and lively. In-class time will be spent on lectures specific to the themes or time periods presented in the novels discussing the books and their relevance on history, culture, and societal norms. Students are required to furnish their own copy which may often be obtained for free from your local library or through some type of e-reader. For each book read, an essay will be written on themes and ideas expressed in the book, how they relate to their time period (in which they were written), how do they relate to events in the present, and how these novels impacted our culture and/or world views. Potential Book list for this year: The Prince Brave New World The Scarlet Pimpernel Pride and Prejudice OR Emma (Maybe both if the kids like it.) The Aeneid The Clouds, The Birds, OR Oedipus Rex Utopia The Misanthrope Maybe a couple of others.
8	Band	6-12	Mr. Suhusky	A band class for students with with some or no band experience. An instrument fitting is required for new musicians and the parent is welcome to watch the student try a few instruments. In some cases an instrument can be provided. Class comes with a subscription to SmartMusic music education software for grades 6-12. Taught by the very encouraging and musical long time Hamilton Band teacher Mr. Suhusky, the home school band welcomes all musicians. Class may be broken into two groups based on level as the level of enrolled students is determined. Every student will be given a subscription to Smart Music to assist their practice at home.
9	Blood, Bones, and Guts	K-5	Mr. Annis	This in-depth study of the human body will give your child a look at how their body’s various systems work. No bones about it, this class will both excite and educate. Using stories, diagrams, and multimedia, we will explore the circulatory, digestive, nervous, immune, respiratory, and various other systems. Do you have the guts to take this class?
10	Clay	6-12	Mrs. Yaquinto	This clay class will emphasize the making of both useful and decorative/sculptural objects using various hand building and glazing techniques. Projects will include such things as bowls and plates, vases and cups, beads, tiles, small sculptures, etc. Wheel throwing will be briefly demonstrated as well. As the year goes on and students gain confidence in their skills they will be allowed to work more and more independently. Students will learn about firing clay work. Previous experience not required. Students with experience will build on their knowledge and learn more advanced techniques.
11	Coding	3-5	Mr. Annis	Explore the land of 0 and 1. This entry level class will start your child on his or her way to coding their first program. During this class, we will explore block coding as well as javascript. Although coding can be simple, it does often require higher level reasoning skills. This class will be a great fit for any child that may be interested in the field of technology.
12	Crazy 8s Math Club / PE	2-3 and 4-5	Mrs. Sanders/ Mr. Boun	This is MATH GONE WILD! Experience math like you've never experienced it before. Learn the math behind your favorite activities. Build glow-in-the-dark structures, crack secret spy codes and play games like Toilet Paper Olympics. Be ready to be active, both in mind and body! with Mrs. Sanders. Students taking this block will also have a 1 hr 15 min. PE class with Mr. Boun. Exercise will focus on building fitness and having fun. From climbing the rope to touch the ceiling to relay games, this will be a fun and active PE class.
13	Dave Ramsey Foundations of Personal Finance	8-12	Mr. VanFarowe	Foundations in Personal Finance: High School Edition will change the financial future of your students and set them on a path to win with money, allowing you to change the way your students look at money forever. They will be empowered, equipped and entertained while building confidence in their own financial decision-making.
14	Exploring Books through Art - Non-Fiction	3-4 and 1-5	Mrs. Zalsman	During this Books Alive! class we will be reading a text from ReadingA-Z.com. We will dig deeper into our stories focusing on reading comprehension strategies and higher-order thinking through collaboration and discussion. Each session will end in a creative project that correlates with the week's story. Students will also take home a paper copy of the book they read for further reading at home! All Books this year will be Non-Fiction.
15	Exploring Books through Art and Elementary Music	K-5	Mrs. Stehouwer / Mr. Suhusky	In Exploring Books with Art students will enjoy one or more books each week with Mrs. Stehouwer and make a craft or project that goes along with the topic. Elementary music is an introductory music course. The focus will be on learning to count, learning music notes and names. Students will have the chance to try out some percussion instruments, boomwackers,a nd more.
16	Exploring Extreme Art	6-12	Mrs. Keesler	Learn about contemporary art, and artists in the last 100 years who have made a splash in the art world. Students will also have fun creating works of art based on these contemporary artists
17	Forensic Science	6-12	Mr. Cistaro
18	Health and Wellness	K-3 and 3-5	Mrs. Voelk	Health and Wellness. Good nutrition, first aid, screen time, sportsmanship, germs, bike and car safety, and more will be covered in this class.
19	Guitar	6-12	Mr. Tolan/Mr. Suhusky	Group guitar lessons for the beginner. Students will need to bring guitar and purchase a guitar methods book.
20	Hands on Equations	6-9	Mrs. VanFarowe	Hands-On Equations is a supplementary program that can be used with any math curriculum to provide students with a concrete foundation for algebra. It uses a visual and kinesthetic instructional approach, using manipulatives to solve equations. This hands-on, intuitive approach demystifies abstract algebraic concepts allowing students to understand the process of solving equations instead of memorizing steps or a set of rules. See more at the Hands on Equations website. Additionally, as time allows, extra subject matter such as probability, fractions, percents, and geometry will be covered.
21	Home School Tae Kwon Do	K-12	Mr. Boun	Students learn basic martial arts skills and self defense. Wear comfortable gym clothes or uniform. This is an all home school class that will teach to all levels. Meets once a week. More intensive twice a week Tae Kwon Do is available as a Community Partner class.
22	Jewelry	6-12	Mrs. Rilley	We will use beads, thread, cord, chain and femo clay to design and create our own unique jewelry pieces. In the first half of the course, we will spend time learning basic jewelry techniques. You will then have an opportunity to bring in your own ideas and have some freedom to work on your choice of jewelry making designs.
23	Kids on Stage/ Young Bookmakers	K-5	Mrs. Roels	Musical Theater is a performing arts opportunity for school age kids grades K-5 to grow in self-confidence and communication skills through the preparation and performance of a musical stage production. Through this process children learn fundamentals of practical theater, vocal projection, stage presence, and basic choreography. The year will culminate in a show on stage at the school. Young Bookmakers - Calling all student authors! As an author yourself, will have the opportunity to make a variety of books and experience different ways that books are published. Some possible books include picture books, comics, how to books, fun shaped books, and more.
24	Law and Order - A Review of Historic Supreme Court Cases	6-12	Mr. Cistaro
25	Learning with Dr. Seuss / Elementary Art	K-3	Mrs. Keesler	Students will have fun each week creating crafts and completing hands on activities with Dr Seuss. Young artists explore art history and make projects based on popular art movements
26	Authors and Artists / Learning with Legos	K-2	Mrs. Keesler	Students create artwork based on popular children’s literature. Learning with Legos. Students engage in hands on learning and building
27	Art through the Ages/ Learning with Legos	3-5	Mrs. Keesler	Art through the Ages - Young artist explore art history and make projects based on popular art movements. Learning with Legos. Learning with Legos. Students engage in hands on learning and building projects utilizing Legos
28	Lifeguarding	10-12	Mr. Talsma/Mr. Mousel	This course is designed to prepare students for a job that requires a lifeguarding or water safety background. It will require both in-class and in-water instruction. You will be responsible for ensuring the safety of the facility patrons, by preventing and responding to emergencies and by enforcing all facility policies and rules. At the end of this course you will be certified in lifeguarding, basic first aid, CPR, AED, oxygen administration, and preventing disease transmission. You must be 15 years old, be able to swim all three strokes, retrieve a 10lb. block, and tread water for 2 minutes.
29	Math Games and Logical Thinking / PE	1-2 and 3-5	Mrs. Sanders/ Mr. Boun	Do you like to play games? Are you up for a challenge? Have fun while strengthening your logical reasoning and problem solving skills using age appropriate board games, riddles and "mind benders". Students taking this block will also have a 1 hr 15 min. PE class with Mr. Boun. Exercise will focus on building fitness and having fun. From climbing the rope to touch the ceiling to relay games, this will be a fun and active PE class.
30	Math Pentathlon	6-8	Mrs. VanFarowe	Math Pentathlon is a program of engaging and interactive problem-solving games that strengthens basic math concepts and creative thinking while developing problem-solving skills. By using specially designed games and activities that differentiate instruction, ALL students of varying abilities and learning styles are motivated to enjoy math and spend more time learning math. See more about this program at Mathematics Pentathlon website.
31	Musical Theater	6-12	Director	Musical Theater is a performing arts opportunity for school age kids grades 6 - 12 to grow in self-confidence and communication skills through the preparation and performance of a musical stage production. Through this process children learn fundamentals of practical theater, vocal projection, stage presence, and basic choreography. Each semester friends and family will be invited to an evening show at the school.
32	My Amazing Brain/ Science Lab	K-3 and 3-5	Mr. Annis	The idea of this class is to start your child thinking about his or her brain, what it does, how it works, its importance, and how to take care of it. Using various books, videos, and games, your child will learn how this very important organ works! Signing up for this class is a no-brainer.
33	PE	K-5	Mr. Mousel	One hour of physical fitness in the gym. Have fun learning new group games, play some team sports, ride on the belly carts, and more. You are sure to leave this class out of breath and with a smile.
34	PE	6-12	Mr. Sikma	Our PE class will be an upbeat, activity filled, engaging experience. Students should come prepared for action and positive participation. Let's improve our fitness and our skills, and let's learn to give our best effort as we play both cooperative and competitive games. Participation in an online compenent is a required part of this class. Learn something about the activity before you go to class each week for a more educational experience. The purpose of this course is to develop competence in: (a) physical fitness (b) body management skills (c) participation skills (d) health (e) social behavior (f) and strategies for physical activities and game play.
35	Photography	6-12	Mrs. Rilley	Join us for a fun class of picture taking, editing and publishing on our class website! We will be using the Mac Lab and online media to edit our images. The online sites we use include, but are not limited to, www.picmonkey.com, www.flickr.com, www.kizoa.com, and www.schoology.com. Each week we look at a new photography technique, or theme for picture taking. You will not need your own camera, but it is helpful!
36	Science Lab	K-3 and 3-5	Mr. Annis	Non-Newtonian fluids? Circuitry? Smashing eggs? Need I say more? How about learning several magic tricks and pranks to play on your friends using SCIENCE!? These are just a few of the many things we will be doing in our Science Lab. All materials are provided, but lab coats are encouraged (you don’t need them, they’re just a great fashion statement).
37	Space	K-5	Mr. Annis	The final frontier. These are the voyages of Starship Education. Its one-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new moons and other celestial excitement, to boldly learn what you’ve never learned before. Your captain, Mr. Annis, will share the bridge with your child to explore various stars, planets, moons, and galaxies far, far away.
38	Spanish	6-12	Mr. VerSchure	In this class, we'll start from scratch with learning pronunciation of Spanish words and important early vocabulary, such as greetings, counting, telling time and use of basic verbs. Unlike many conversational classes, however, we'll frequently do some exploring of how Spanish grammar works. This class is accompanied by the popular K12 Spanish online prgram, Power Speak to supplement the class and continue the language acquisition at home.
39	Stop Motion Animation	6-12	Mrs. Keesler	Students will create clay stop motion animation short films. Each student will need to provide their own ipad or tablet for class.
40	Swim	K-5 and 6-12	Mr. Talsma/Mr. Mousel	Students will learn a variety of skills from basic familiarity of the water, basics (free, back, breast) to more difficult strokes (butterfly). Course will be held in the Hamilton MS pool.
41	Tools for School	K-5	Mr. Annis	This class is designed to prepare your child for the future. We will cover a variety of tips and strategies to make your child reach his or her full potential. Just a few of the topics we will cover include: handwriting, note taking, listening skills, and even a little typing.
42	Wonder of Words/ Exploring Cultures through Art	3-5	Mrs. Keesler / Mrs. Dobb	Wonder of Words with Mrs. Keesler Students will be engaging in novel studies, grammar, and reader theater experiences. Exploring Cultures through Art with Mrs. Dobb. Travel around the world learning about different cultures. From how people celebrate holidays, to what colors they use in their paintings, each week will be an educational adventure.
43	Jr. Robotics	K-2	Josh Kirby aka Mr. Josh	Jr. Robotics is an intro into Lego Robotics. The student does not get to keep the Wedo set. Jr. Robotics may be taken twice. This is an online class and student must meet the eligibility requirements. They students will get to take home a programmable car and work at home but attendance is required for the Wedo portion of the class.
44	Robotics 1	3-6	Josh Kirby aka Mr. Josh	Robotics 1 is an intro course in to the EV3 Lego kit. Every student that completes a full year and meets the attedance requirement will get to keep their EV3 kit at the end of the year. Instructional videos can be viewed online at home or during class time. Class will meet for 1 hour a week for troubleshooting, working on the online videos, and challenges given by the instructor to further the lessons. Must have minimum of 6 students per class. A second grader that took Jr. Robotics may sign up for this class with Mr. Josh's approval. This is an online class and student must meet the eligibility requirements. Attendance at the hour per week session is not required, but is encouraged.
45	Robotics 2	4-8	Josh Kirby aka Mr. Josh	This will be a review of Robotics 1 and then a jump into new content utilizing the expansion kit. Each kid will be given the expansion kit to keep at the end of the school year. https://education.lego.com/en-us/products/lego-mindstorms-education-ev3-expansion-set/45560 If the student struggled with Robotics 1, the smaller class size of this year will help bring them up to speed and enable them to move on. This is an online class and student must meet the eligibility requirements. Attendance at the hour per week session is not required, but is encouraged.
46	Robotics FLL Team	4-5	Josh Kirby aka Mr. Josh	This team will compete in an FLL competition. Only for grades 4-5 and may require some extra time outside of this class time. Competition is held on a Saturday. Time commitment may increase if they make regionals or states. There will be an online component to this class and it will count as an online class for eligible students. Must have taken Robotics 1. Need a minimum of 6 students to have a team.
47	Strategies for Academic Success	6-10	Mr. VanFarowe	How to become an effective reader (Summarizing and Paraphrasing Learning Strategies). How to increase your vocabulary (Word Mapping Strategy which looks at root words, prefixes and suffixs). How to become an effective and efficient writer, etc..
48	Info Tech and Exploring the Natural World	K-3 and 3-5	Mr. VanFarowe	Info teach- Keyboarding, Google Apps, Cyber Security, and a research theme of the day. Exploring the Natural World - Seasonal Nature Walks, Habitats, animal tracks insects, pond study, This will be exploratory rather than bookish if weather allows. Curriculum: The Private Eye (use of loupes for 5X magnification), Exploring Nature with Children (PDF), Last Child in the Woods
49	SAT Math test prep	9-12	Mrs. VanFarowe	SAT Test Prep is an online class in which students will study for the Math portion of the SAT. Each week an online video will introduce a topic and the student will need to work through some problems. In class, the students will get more practice, as well as keep up a review of topics already covered. Students will be expected to be ready for class and to keep up with the online instruction to be successful in this class. For grades 9-12, but any serious 8th grader studying for the SAT is welcome to join.
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