High School Student News

High School Schedule and Lesson Calendar

2009/2010 Supply List

Humanities:

Western Civilization: For the 2009/2010 school year
Teachers:  Kristy Cash & Carrie Talcott

Western Civilization: For the 2009/2010 school year, Compass Montessori High School’s humanities students examine some of the most influential literary, philosophical, scientific, and religious texts from antiquity to the modern era of Western Civilization. A strong emphasis is placed on philosophy and literature to help us analyze and understand the movements and patterns within the developing Western world.

Studies include the ways in which people thought about themselves, their relations with one another, the gods, and the state during each of these historical epochs of the Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance and Reformation periods. The opportunity to develop your own skills of critical analysis, synthesis, and communication are both challenged and expanded during class discussions. Your active and regular participation in class discussions is expected.

Primary source readings, current scholarly articles, and essays are used from the following texts:

Opposing Viewpoints – Published by: Gale / Cengage Learning

Taking Sides – Published by: McGraw Hill

The Choices Program – Published by: Brown University

Bedford Reader 8th edition – Publisher by: Bedford St. Martin

Literature group (quarterly) choices expand upon the cultural context of Western Civilization. Humanities 2009/2010 literature includes:

Sohpie’s World, Jostein Gaarder (summer reading)

Allegory of the Cave, Plato

Dante’s Inferno, Dante Alighieri

Year of Wonders, Geraldine Brooks

The Treasure of Montsegur, Sophie Burnham

Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follet

The Prince, Machiavelli

Othello, William Shakespeare

World Lit Only by Fire, William Manchester

All but My Life, Gerda Weissman

Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut

Brave New World, Aldous Huxley

Farenheight 451, Ray Bradbury

Catch-22, Joseph Heller

Finally, to further our studies, we’ll travel to London, England and villages outside of Paris, France in May of 2010. A detailed itinerary, curricular expectations, and Compass Montessori’s trip policy will be posted soon…stay tuned!

Mathematics:

Mathematics Course Description
Teacher:  Daniel Marsh

Compass Montessori High School’s math program begins and ends with the student math portfolio. The portfolio is designed for students to demonstrate content mastery of material, track their success, and stay current with the big picture of the overall math curriculum in Algebra, Geometry and Calculus.

There are many ways to progress towards content mastery; the main work is through the highly individualized Renaissance Math Program, where our students have the ability to score their math work in seconds (computer generated) and are immediately given a new personalized assignment based on their recent performance. Isolation of difficulty in any math concept is easily identified by the teacher and the student. Group lessons are offered to introduce big themes, discuss historical and modern contexts, and to examine social justice issues through math.

Math reference guides, text books, desktops and laptops, and online resources and interactive applications are abundant in our resource-rich environment. Montessori students know how to appropriately use peer resources, which is often an effective method for both the student and the student-teacher. Because the Renaissance Math program is accessible online; students reprint assignments, score current work, and can print new assignments from home – no more lost homework or textbooks left at school!

Renaissance Math Home Connect - https://hosted162.renlearn.com/2033733/homeconnect/login.aspx

Science:

Science Course Descriptions
Teacher:  Eric Albright

Biology: (offered every year, predominantly for 10th years)

Primary emphasis in Compass Montessori’s Biology course is developing an understanding of concepts rather than on memorizing terms and technical detail, though many students reflect that it is still like learning a foreign language. Essential to this conceptual understanding are: a grasp of science as a process rather than as an accumulation of facts; personal experience in scientific inquiry; recognition of unifying themes that integrate the major topics of biology; and application of biological knowledge and critical thinking to environmental, personal and social concerns.

Major themes of study include: Molecules and Cells, Heredity, Evolutionary Biology, Diversity of Organisms, Ecology, and Chemistry of Life.

Class instruction includes lecture and required labs.

Human Anatomy and Physiology (offered 2009-2010)

Essential principles of human anatomy and physiology are presented in this overview course. These include basic chemistry, cell and tissue studies (histology), and an overview of all the body systems.
Exploration and analysis of topics within Anatomy and Physiology include cells, tissues, and the skeletal, muscular and nervous systems. The endocrine, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, digestive, urinary and reproductive systems, as well as the concepts of development, metabolism, fluid and electrolyte balance, and acid-base balance are introduced.
Class instruction includes both lecture and required labs. This class includes animal dissection components, as well as an end of the year human cadaver lab at an off-site facility.

AP Environmental Science (offered 2010-2011) and Environmental Science (2010-2011)

The goal of the AP Environmental Science course is to provide students with the scientific principles, concepts and methodologies required to understand the inter-relationships of the natural world. The course identifies and analyzes environmental problems both natural and human-made, evaluates relative risks associated with these problems and examines alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them.

The foundations of study include: Energy conversions underlying all ecological process, earth as one interconnected system, human impact on natural systems, cultural and social context of development of solutions, and developing practices that will achieve sustainable systems on which human survival depends.

Class instruction includes lecture, required readings and required labs.

The Advanced Placement, AP, level for this class simulates a college level introductory class. It requires additional work as well as an advanced level of inquiry and questioning. In May, students are offered the opportunity to complete the AP Environmental Science exam for possible college credit.