SOMERSET VIRTUAL ACADEMY COURSE CATALOG 2013

Transcription

1 SOMERSET VIRTUAL ACADEMY COURSE CATALOG 2013 The Mission of Somerset Virtual Academy (SVA) is to provide students with high quality virtual learning content and services. SVA is committed to fostering the development of self-directed and responsible 21 st century life-long learners through the thoughtful use of interactive, media-rich educational opportunities in flexible, student-centered, virtual learning environments. Somerset Virtual Academy provides the following services and benefits to its students: ACCESS: Full access to an extremely diverse, fully-accredited course catalogue. INNOVATION: The possibility for student enrichment, credit recovery/advancement, and/or course make-up in a rich and engaging virtual classroom provided by the student-friendly Agilix Brain Honey Learning Management System. Brain Honey also gives teachers flexibility to enhance course content and adapt requirements and objectives to directly meet individual student needs when needed. RESPONSIVENESS: Facilitation and feedback will be provided by highly experienced faculty members, who hold valid Florida teaching certificates and have taught at least one semester in an Academica-served school. Our teachers are professionally trained in online education best practices, and will communicate and collaborate with students adhering to our high standards for faculty responsiveness. MENTORSHIP: Students will be closely monitored by teachers and administrators to ensure achievement and success, including a cohesive communications plan that alerts students and parents about progress and pacing so any potential problems or struggles are solved before they become major issues. TERM LENGTH: During the traditional school year, each semester is approximately weeks. During the summer however, there may be shortened summer terms. MATERIALS: For the majority of the courses, all content is available when you login to the course. However, some courses do require a lab or technology fee or the purchasing of an outside novel and/or book. Note: Courses with less than 20 students enrolled when registration closes may not be offered.

2 Table of Contents Middle School Course Listings..... Pages 3-5 High School Course Listings..Page 6-9

3 Middle School Course Listings Middle School, Grades 6-8 Course titles followed by (ADV) are also available as Advanced. Electives* M/J Keyboarding Course Code: This course will give you the coaching needed to become a keyboarding master. With special downloadable software, your fingers will learn to fly. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. Credits.5 M/J Reading I Course Code: The goal of this course is to enhance your skills as an active reader, and give you strategies for understanding what happens in the stories you read. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab fee and/or purchase outside required novels. Credits.5 *For other electives, see high school listings Language Arts M/J Language Arts 1 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: In this course, you ll read short stories and novels, listen to music, read newspapers, and even interview your parents. There will be information about vocabulary, grammar and getting the punctuation right. Prerequisites: 6 th Grade Standing. Materials: Lab Fee and/or purchase outside required novels. M/J Language Arts 2 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: In this course, you will read and listen to other people s words. You will analyze what they are saying and how they are saying it. You will read everything from newspapers to novels. Prerequisites: 7 th Grade Standing. Materials: Lab Fee and/or purchase outside required novels. M/J Language Arts 3 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: The purpose of this course is to give you the tools to understand and express who you are and where you want to go. By the end of the course, your portfolio of writings will give you a descriptive self-portrait of a young adult growing up. Prerequisites: 8 th Grade Standing. Materials: Purchase outside required novels.

4 Mathematics M/J Mathematics 1 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: This course is designed to engage you at every turn. You will have opportunities to demonstrate your knowledge on number manipulation by applying them to real world scenarios. Prerequisites: 6 th Grade Standing. M/J Mathematics 2 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: This course gives plenty of opportunity to create, investigate, and demonstrate mathematical knowledge at both the intermediate and advanced levels. Prerequisites: 7 th Grade Standing. Credits 1.0 M/J Mathematics 3 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: This course will help you understand higher level mathematical concepts such as systems of equations and central tendencies. Prerequisites: 8 th Grade Standing. Natural Sciences M/J Comprehensive Science 1 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: This course provides an introduction to Science, Energy, Force, Weather, Climate, The Earth s Systems, and the Living World. Prerequisites: 6th Grade Standing. Materials: Lab Fee. M/J Comprehensive Science 2 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: In this course students explore: The Foundations of Science, Energy, The Earth and it s features, The Earth s internal and external structures and how they change, The Earth s history, living things and how they change and interact, Genetics and Heredity, and The Organization of the living world. Prerequisites: 7 th Grade Standing. Materials: Lab Fee. M/J Comprehensive Science 3 (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: Topics covered in this course include: The Nature of Science, Earth and Space Science, Properties of Matter, Changes in Matter, Matter and Energy, and Energy flow in the living world. Prerequisites: 8th Grade Standing. Materials: Lab Fee. Social Sciences M/J World Cultures (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: From ancient Mesopotamia, to China and its ancient dynasties, different civilizations left their mark on history. They also left their mark on how we live today. In this course, you ll become a quiz show contestant, traveling back to these ancient civilizations to dig out the facts. Prerequisites: Recommended for 6 th Grade.

5 M/J World Geography (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: In this course you ll research the cultural and natural landscapes of the regions you visit throughout the world. Then you ll design your own theme park offering a multicultural understanding of our world s diverse people and places. Prerequisites: Recommended for 7 th Grade. Materials: Lab Fee. M/J US History (ADV) Course Codes: , Adv: You will investigate history by using the tools of a historian to examine the historical, geographic, political, economic, and sociological events that influenced the development of the United States. Prerequisites: Recommended for 8 th Grade. Materials: Lab Fee. World Languages M/J Spanish Beginning Course Code: You will acquire the skills to read, write and speak in Spanish. You will also learn the basic Spanish grammar that will make your sentences come out right. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. M/J Spanish Intermediate Course Code: You will learn how to speak Spanish in many practical and useful situations that will apply to your everyday environment. You will learn how to greet people, introduce yourself, speak about your family, your home, food, sports, weather and your likes and dislikes. Prerequisites: Successful completion of M/J Spanish I or equivalency. Materials: Lab Fee.

6 High School Course Listings High School, Grades 9-12 Course titles followed by (HON) are also available as Honors Electives Computer Programming I Course Code: Computer Programming 1 is a two semester course which enables students to learn two modern programming languages, Python and Java. The course teaches programming using real-world, practical examples. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. SAT Prep Course Code: In this course, you ll practice thinking strategies, build verbal competence, and sharpen your mathematics reasoning. You ll become familiar with the terrain as you acquire essential test-taking strategies. Prerequisites: 10th Grade standing or higher. Materials: Lab Fee and/or purchase outside novel. Credits.5 Thinking and Learning Strategies (Reading) Course Code: Through reading, writing, and math activities, students develop critical-thinking skills and test-taking strategies. Students also gain reading, writing, organization, and study strategies. Prerequisites: None. Credits.5 Web Design 1 Course Code: In this course you will learn internet basics, HTML, and the file structure of a well-organized website. Students will create web pages with clear text, complimentary colors, visual assets and appealing designs. Prerequisites: Computing for College and Careers or Business Systems and Technology. Language Arts English I (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: Great books, short stories, poems and plays convey messages and feelings that make them great. The purpose of this course is to give you the tools to see and hear with real understanding, and to communicate with real conviction. Prerequisites: 9 th Grade Standing. Materials: Purchase outside required novels. English II (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: Through the study of literature, nonfiction, and life, we will explore what it means to be human, what it means to be fulfilled, triumphant, empowered, and transformed. Prerequisites: 10 th Grade Standing. Materials: Purchase outside required novels.

7 English III (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: In this course, you ll gain an appreciation of American literature and the ways it reflects the times in which it was written. You ll discover how people thought and lived and wrote about their experiences. Prerequisites: 11 th Grade Standing. Materials: Purchase outside required novels. English IV (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: You will be guided through a series of literary pieces that allow you to analyze the political, social, economic, and cultural messages of its time as well as its relevance to the world you live in today. Prerequisites: 12 th Grade Standing. Materials: Purchase outside required novels. Mathematics Algebra 1 (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: This course is designed to give you the skills and strategies for solving all kinds of mathematical problems. It will also give you the confidence that you can handle everything that high school math has in store for you. Prerequisites: Successful completion of Pre-Algebra or equivalency. Algebra 2 (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: This course will begin with a review of basic algebra, travel through systems of equations, factoring, and radical and quadratic equations in the first segment. In the second segment, you will venture into the realms of polynomial functions, rational equations, exponential and logarithmic relations, landing at sequences and series. Prerequisites: Successful completion of Algebra I. Geometry (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: Throughout this course, we ll take you on a mathematical highway illuminated by spatial relationships, reasoning, connections, and problem solving. Prerequisites: Successful completion of Algebra I. Natural Sciences Biology (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: This course provides an in depth look at the fundamental characteristics of living organisms. It is designed to promote scientific inquiry and discovery. The students will be introduced to the structure, function, diversity, and evolution of living matter. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. Earth Space Science (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: Earth/Space Science is a laboratory course focusing on the study of space, and the geologic and atmospheric forces that shape our world. Through experimentation and investigation, students will

8 explore the earth cycles including the geosphere, hydrosphere, crysosphere, atmosphere and the carbon cycle. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. Physical Science (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: Topics include forces and motion, energy through waves, electricity and magnetism, the matter around us, chemical bonding and reactions. This course is designed to serve as a foundation for the study of the physical sciences. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. Physics (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: You ll learn the concepts, theories and laws that govern the interaction of matter, energy and forces. From tiny atoms to galaxies with millions of stars, the universal laws of physics are there for you to observe and apply. Prerequisites: Algebra I; Algebra II recommended. Materials: Lab Fee. Physical Education Fitness Lifestyle Design Course Code: In this course, you will improve your flexibility, enhance your cardiovascular fitness, and increase your strength and endurance. This course will help you experience the benefits of exercise, good diet and proper weight. Prerequisites: None. Credits.5 Life Management Skills Course Code: This course is all about you and the important decisions you make. It s also about having the correct information before making those decisions. We ll deal with real issues like nutrition, substance abuse, coping with stress, and sexual abstinence. Prerequisites: None. Credits.5 Personal Fitness Course Code: By taking this course you will feel the difference, both physically and mentally. You will start by assessing your current physical condition. By the end of the course, you will have developed the kind of healthy habits that will last a lifetime. Prerequisites: None. Credits.5 Social Sciences American Government (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: You will gain a greater understanding on the history of the country's beginnings, and knowledge of how government functions at the local, state and national levels. Prerequisites: Recommended for 11 th grade or higher. Credits.5 American History (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: In this course, you will look at some of the most profound questions that thoughtful Americans still debate. You will research many important events throughout the history of America. In the process,

9 you will witness the development of America from its first settlers to today s superpower status. Prerequisites: Recommended for 11 th Grade. Economics (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: In this course, you will recognize examples of economics in your daily life. You will see how the economic choices of larger groups, like businesses and governments, affect you and others. Prerequisites: Recommended for 11 th grade or higher. Credits.5 Psychology I Course Code: The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the psychological facts, principles, and phenomena associated with each of the subfields within psychology. Prerequisites: None. Credits.5 World History (HON) Course Codes: , Hon: Students will use knowledge pertaining to history, geography, economics, political processes, religion, ethics, diverse cultures, and humanities to solve problems in academic, civic, social, and employment settings. Prerequisites: None. World Languages Spanish I Course Code: You will learn basic Spanish grammar to help you build your fluency and understand the structure of the Spanish language. Prerequisites: None. Materials: Lab Fee. Spanish II Course Code: The purpose of this course is to strengthen your Spanish listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. Prerequisites: Spanish I, or equivalent. Materials: Lab Fee. Spanish III Course Code: The purpose of this course is to strengthen your Spanish listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. Prerequisites: Spanish II, or equivalent. Materials: Lab Fee.