2010 - ACS Athens Institute for Critical and Creative Thinking: Summer Scholars’ Academy

ACADEMIC GATEWAY PROGRAM

A program for new students entering grades 9 and 10

June 28- July 9, 2010 (9:30 – noon; 1:00 – 2:30 daily)

The Academic Gateway Program is designed to provide an opportunity for students new to ACS Athens to experience the challenging, student-centered approach to learning that is at the heart of the ACS Athens experience. It is also designed to give new students a good sense of “how we do things at ACS Athens” before they begin formal studies in September.  

The program will be taught as a series of participatory, hands-on (and “minds on”) seminars and workshops designed to reinforce strategies for successful learning in the various subjects that comprise the ACS Athens program (Language/Literature, Humanities, Natural and Social Sciences, Mathematics, Technology and the Arts), and to help students gain the confidence they need to be active, critical, creative and skilled learners prepared for rigorous high school and college study. Students will also be introduced to the routines, practices and expectations that are important parts of student life at ACS Athens.

They will explore issues related to the theme of change and begin to think about planning for the future. The program will help students to develop the good writing skills, study habits, organizational skills and time management strategies that are necessary for success in school and in life. Experienced ACS Athens instructors will provide students with personal attention as they work on individual and cooperative learning activities. They will challenge students to think critically and creatively to untangle complex concepts and explore alternative approaches and solutions to  multi-faceted questions. They will lead students on field study experiences that extend the classroom to the whole city of Athens. They will demonstrate that learning can be fun.

Cost: 1000 euros (Minimum of 5 students required for course to run.)

SAT PREP ACADEMY

A program for students in grades 10 – 11

June 28 – July 9, 2010 (10:00 – 1:30 daily)

• Ten intensive daily sessions, led by ACS Athens staff
• Two classes per session: Mathematics /Critical Reading and Writing
• Maximum class size: 7-8 students
• Cost:  500 euros    (ACS Athens students)

Minimum of 7 students required for course to run. Maximum number of students who can be enrolled: 15.

Courses for ACS Athens high school credit

HEALTHY CHOICES/HEALTHY LIVING

A program for students entering grades 10-12

June 24 – July 9, 2010 (10:00 – 1:30 daily)

This discussion-rich, project-based course offers an intensive study of the important health and nutrition topics necessary for all high school students to know, so that they can make informed choices to promote physical, mental and emotional health. The student will study such topics as self-esteem, stress management, abuse, First Aid techniques-CPR, nutrition and exercise, human sexuality, sex and family planning, substance abuse, and STD’s. Successful completion of this course will earn students .5 credits and satisfy the ACS graduation requirement for Health.

COST: 500 euros

Minimum enrollment: 5 students. Maximum enrollment: 15 students.

ADVANCED ALGEBRA

A course for students who have completed Algebra I

June 28 – July 23, 2010  (10:00 – 1:30 daily)

The summer Advanced Algebra program has been designed for students who wish to enter Pre-Calculus or IB Math SL in grade 11 and who need to advance one level in Mathematics to meet the Algebra II requirement in order to do so. Students who successfully complete the course (including receiving a satisfactory grade on the final assessment) will receive .5 elective credits, which will be applied towards meeting ACS Athens graduation requirements.

This course contains both content that reviews or extends concepts and skills learned in previous grades and new, more abstract concepts in algebra. Students will gain proficiency in solving linear equations, inequalities, and systems of linear equations. New concepts include solving quadratic equations and inequalities, investigating polynomials and rational expressions. Students will also investigate exponential and logarithmic functions.

Students will be actively engaged using concrete and virtual materials and appropriate technologies such as graphing calculators and computer software. Students will also identify and apply real-life applications of the mathematical principles they are learning to science and other disciplines they are studying.

Mathematics has its own language, and the acquisition of specialized vocabulary and language patterns is crucial to a student's understanding and appreciation of the subject. Students are encouraged to use correctly the concepts, skills, symbols, and vocabulary identified in the course.

Problem solving is integrated throughout the different components of the curriculum. The development of problem-solving skills is a major goal of the mathematics program at ACS. Instruction in the process of problem solving will help students develop a wide range of skills and strategies for solving a variety of problem types. 

Minimum enrollment: 5 students. Maximun enrollment 15 students.

Cost: 1000 euros

ICCT Summer Academy Programs – 4

MIME AND MOVEMENT     

Physical Theatre - Circus - Slapstick - Mask work

A course for students entering grades 10-12

June 24 – July 9, 2010  (10:00 – 1:30 daily)

The Mime and Movement Course will include 12 sessions on the following four theater practices, emphasizing mime as a technique and how movement can be used as a vehicle of communication in different contexts:  

1. Physical Theatre (3 sessions) This part of the course looks at how to use our bodies for our effects, rather than using props, scenery, or sound.

2. Circus (3 sessions) These sessions aim to develop students’ understanding of mime. The text which students encounter during this project includes images of the circus, films about the circus, scenarios for different characters in the circus and circus music. 

3. Slapstick (3 sessions) These sessions explore the genre of slapstick / physical comedy. During this project pupils will develop their knowledge, understanding and skills in mime, physical comedy and proxemics. Pupils also work on pace and timing skills as well as character development and their ability to sustain a role. The resources which students encounter during this project include film clips of slapstick (or images of slapstick) and musi (eg ragtime). 

4. Mask Work (3 sessions) This part of the course introduces the use of masks (trestle masks) in performance. At the end of the project, students perform in class a short improvisation involving characters using masks.

Students who successfully complete this course will earn .5 Arts credits, which will be applied towards meeting ACS Athens graduation requirements.

Minimum enrollment: 6 students. Maximum enrollment 15 students.

Cost:  500 euros