| | Our Programs "Specials" Classes Art
Creativity without discipline and knowledge is chaos. With discipline and knowledge, comes patience and freedom. With patience and freedom, comes a true creativity that is not hindered by lack of discipline or knowledge. Lower Elementary: Our goal is for the students to develop confidence in their artistic ability and not be afraid to get it wrong the first time. The students will learn to train their eye to break down objects into their basic geometric shapes. When the students leave lower elementary, it is our goal that they will be able to draw anything they want, real or imagined. Upper Elementary: During the fourth year, students will refine their artistic abilities. They begin learning to draw and paint with multiple media (water color, pastels, pen and ink, and chalk). Fifth and sixth years explore Art History with a two-year course. In those two years, we discover everything from cave paintings to contemporary art. The class is divided into two bi-weekly classes. One week is a discussion of art history; the next week the students draw in the style that was discussed the week before. |  | Middle School: Seventh years delve into the world of cartooning and animation, learning their basic concepts. They then move on to drawing basic cartoons and flipbooks. The year's final project is a 30 second hand drawn animation. At 20 to 25 frames per second, this is a very big project! Eighth year students devote their year to the study of sculpture. They will use different media (wax, plaster, wood and stone, wire and metal) to learn this process. The end of the year culminates with an art show. The students proudly display all the work in their portfolios. |  |
Computer
Our Elementary and Middle School computer classes are designed to help the students develop the skills necessary to use the computer as a valuable tool. We begin with keyboarding activities and introduce the students to the basics of word processing, spreadsheets, presentation software, web design, research skills using the web and even programming. |  |
Music
We believe that music is FUNdamental to every child at MAC. In music class we strive to help each child have fun discovering and developing his or her innate musical talent, and using it in an ensemble environment. In all elementary classes we experience basic musical elements such as BEAT-RHYTHM-MELODY-HARMONY-FORM-EXPRESSION-TEXTURE/TIMBRE-MUSIC LITERACY-MUSIC HISTORY. We explore these concepts through a variety of activities: singing, movement, music games, playing instruments (Orff instruments, unpitched percussion, hand chimes, recorders for grades 4-7), etc. Our teaching process combines elements of the Kodaly, Dalcorze, and Orff Schulwerk philosophies, and puts an emphasis on the process of learning: Imitation to Exploration to Improvisation. When the opportunity presents itself, we like to create musical presentations, usually based on children's literature, to share with family and school friends. The curriculum is tailored to each teaching group's unique preferences and needs. |  |
Physical Education
In the Elementary and Middle School, the emphasis in our Physical Education classes is personal fitness, sportsmanship and enjoyment of physical activities, not necessarily for competition. We expose students to soccer, flag football, volleyball, tennis as well as distance running/walking. Some of the students have trained for and participated in mini-marathons. Participating in the Presidential Fitness Challenge is a yearly spring event for which the students prepare over the course of the school year.
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Spanish
Our Elementary program follows the Spanish curriculum of ¡Viva el español! The curriculum has three major segments. We introduce this program to our first years in Lower Elementary and progress at each level as the students are ready. The subjects explored in each unit are colors and shapes, numbers, body parts, classroom items, animals, housing, food, travel, seasons, weather and holidays. The program has different modes such as board games, songs story telling, crafts, show and tell, etc. The students learn the verbs and their proper pronouns, to tell time, different types of housing around the world, read stories and create their own dialogue for skits that they act out. Our main objective is for each child to increase his or her Spanish vocabulary, structure sentences, and understand the written and spoken language at their own pace.
Our Middle School curriculum consists of the ¡En español! program, which is geared specifically for Middle and High School students. This program is a four-level Spanish program that boosts vocabulary development with real-world contexts that provide a purpose for communication. In addition to honing their vocabulary and grammar skills by speaking, students practice their comprehension skills by reading short stories written in Spanish.
| | | Science Enrichment
The FOSS (Full Option Science System) Program provides a prepared curriculum, complete with all necessary materials. There are several sessions each year which are geared for specific grade levels (1-3). There is a three-year cycle (eliminating repetition of activities) that includes themes of Life Science, Earth and Space Science, and Physical Science and Technology. Within these themes, specific topics are provided for the sessions. These sessions have included solar energy, fossil fuels, anatomy, geology, construction, weather, insects, plants, and others. | | |
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