Communication about many serious issues in the modern day is often marked by a distinct lack of nuance, reliability, and articulate expression. Competitive Speech and Debate is a course designed to help build the skills necessary to communicate effectively and persuasively in today’s world. Student will build all the necessary skills to do credible research, critically organize their thoughts, and compose writing that effectively articulates their point of view. Students will employ the skills they learn in competitive settings to receive feedback from a wide range of audiences, understanding the nuances of communicating their thoughts to diverse groups.
Some of the outcomes for students who take this class are:
- Advanced Communication Skills
- Critical Thinking Proficiency
- Confidence in Public Speaking
- Collaborative and Ethical Discourse
- Adaptive Leadership and Civic Engagement
UC/CSU Subject G Approval
This course is offered outside of the 9:00 am – 2:45 pm school day.
Students in this semester-long course explore spirituality through the analogy of sports. Students will determine how human beings encounter the Holy in the midst of everyday life with emphasis on athletic experiences as an athlete and/or as a fan (of specific athletes, teams, and/or sporting events). Students will also examine the relationship between competitive, organized athletics and elements of communal religious practice and purpose. Included is a study of embedded meaning associated with the movement of the human body, an analysis of ritual practice, a survey of major events where sports and religious practice intersect, and a differentiation between religious practice and personal spirituality. Ultimately, students will come to know more deeply the ways in which one relates to the Holy or the Transcendent in the course of their own faith journey, and how personal faith contributes to communal practice and celebration of what is Holy and Transcendent.
Foundations of Kinesiology is a course that introduces students to the field of Kinesiology and its overall relationship with exercise science, sports performance, and sports psychology. This UC/CSU approved College Prep Elective (“G”) course will be taught in two one-semester courses allowing maximum flexibility in scheduling. Students do not have to take Foundations of Kinesiology 1 to take Foundations of Kinesiology 2.
While each course will share common threads in training, nutrition, sports, psychology, and basic human anatomy, each course offers a slightly different approach to discovering the keys that improve performance. Both courses will involve some physical activity.
Foundations of Kinesiology 2 will concentrate on “why” the body moves by understanding the relationship between fitness principles of exercise and how to improve sports performance. Foundations 2 will also introduce to students the vocations/careers associated with the field of Kinesiology.
*This class will be offered pending staffing availability and adequate enrollment.
Foundations of Kinesiology is a course that introduces students to the field of Kinesiology and its overall relationship with exercise science, sports performance, and sports psychology. This UC/CSU approved College Prep Elective (“G”) course will be taught in two one-semester courses allowing maximum flexibility in scheduling. Students do not have to take Foundations of Kinesiology 1 to take Foundations of Kinesiology 2.
While each course will share common threads in training, nutrition, sports, psychology, and basic human anatomy, each course offers a slightly different approach to discovering the keys that improve performance. Both courses will involve some physical activity.
Foundations of Kinesiology 1 will concentrate on “how” the body moves by investigating human movement and understanding the benefits of kinesiology. Foundations 1 will explore the purpose of exercise and sports nutrition.
*This class will be offered pending staffing availability and adequate enrollment.
This one semester course will explore the origin, cultural value, and materials used to create a variety of Latin American handicrafts. Students will make their own craft for each unit. Scheduling approximately 9 class meetings per handicraft project would allow for 5-6 different units during a semester course. The class would be conducted in Spanish. Students would also learn new vocabulary and review a major grammar point per project.
Each craft project would be accompanied by:
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- historical background of object
- cultural value and meaning of object
- vocabulary list related to current topic
- at least one main grammar review point
- formal and informal commands
- preterite & imperfect
- present subjunctive
- future & conditional
- at least 2-3 reading comprehension activities
- music/videos/visuals
*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.
This is an advanced, semester-long course designed for students who wish to improve their Spanish language skills and cultural knowledge, with particular emphasis on the improvement of oral communication skills. Students will gain a better understanding of the culture, history and traditions of Latin America and Spain by watching films and participating in class debates and discussions. New vocabulary and expressions will be taught to allow the students a better understanding of the authentic materials used in class. The class will review some of the advanced grammar structures learned in previous classes, but no new grammar structures will be covered. This class will be conducted in Spanish, and students will be expected to speak Spanish at all times.
*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.
In this one semester Spanish course, students will explore, use and improve their Spanish by reading outstanding short stories by some of the most successful authors of our time; Gabriel García Márquez, Isabel Allende, Julio Cortázar, Jorge Luis Borges, Carlos Fuentes, & Juan Rulfo, just to name a few. Students will read ONE short story per week. Students will be asked to read, understand, & analyze these short stories. For quizzes students will need to recall characters, vocabulary, and storylines and critically think about themes. Class discussions and debates will provide a forum for students to become literature critics and trade ideas with the teacher and classmates regarding the messages provided in the stories. Students will be able to strengthen their grammar, vocab and speaking skills in Spanish. In order to immerse students in the target language, the class will be conducted in Spanish and students are expected to speak Spanish at all times.
*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.
PE 210 is a weight lifting and fitness class which introduces resistance training as a lifelong fitness choice. Through safe lifting technique, appropriate progression and repetition, students will learn more about their bodies and how weight training can support their fitness goals. This class is centered on the development of Muscular Strength and Muscle Endurance and is appropriate for students new to weight lifting, as well as in and out of season athletes. In addition to our program, each student must complete a Standard First Aid & CPR (or an equivalent) course during the semester enrolled. We will offer the CPR/SFA course pending staff availability and enrollment.
*UC/CSU Subject G Approval pending
**This class will be offered pending staffing availability and adequate enrollment.
Jesuit education encourages students to live as women and men with and for others. Service and community engagement support this goal. This semester course explores how community service promotes solidarity and spiritual development within the context of Christian faith and commitment to social justice. Specifically, students will study responsible civic partnership, discerning God’s presence in service experiences, living a faith that does justice, promoting social justice through service relationships, and contributing to the common good through civic engagement. The course uses a service-learning method of instruction. Students will receive release time from a portion of classroom instruction for service in the community. SI will organize partnerships with community organizations to support specific learning objectives. The course requires students to participate in one of these partnerships as part of a cohort. Students will learn from their service experience through a process of intentional reflection and interpretation. In addition to their service experience, students complete traditional coursework designed to complement and enrich the experience. The course assesses students on their professionalism, their ability to make skillful observations of their experience, the intentionality of their reflections, their ability to use course concepts to interpret their service experience, research about the strengths and needs of a community they serve, and communication of their learning.
The foundation to this course is the call to uphold and promote the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. This two-semester course engages students in the broad philosophical and theological discussions of good and evil, right and wrong, freedom and duty, in and beyond the practical moral decisions of everyday life. The first semester establishes an understanding of human dignity, informed conscience, and emphasizes a spectrum of principles and virtues. The second semester introduces the tradition of social justice, Catholic social teaching, and the common good. Students will tackle some of the most compelling dilemmas and dreams of the human experience.
