Fine Arts

Art 6 Middle School

Art 6
Grade: 6

The Middle School Art program invites students into the creative art-making process. For our 6th graders, they will be working with the theme of “Sharing Untold Stories.” Through skills practice, art appreciation, and completing projects, students develop their understanding of what goes into making a successful work of art. They develop skills with materials, deepen their visual awareness, and expand their understanding of the Elements of Art and Principles of Design. They also learn strategies for generating and developing their own ideas. The class will offer students the opportunity to work with traditional and non-traditional media, which includes ceramic, painting and drawing, and stop motion animation.

Unit 1 The Story Behind my Name
Unit 2 An Illustrated Life
Unit 3 Re-inventing a Scene
Unit 4 Stop Motion Action

Art 7 Middle School

Art 7
Grade: 7

The Middle School Art program invites students into the creative art-making process. For our 7th graders, they will be working with the theme of “Stepping into the World of Dreams.” Through skills practice, art appreciation, and completing projects, students develop their understanding of what goes into making a successful work of art. They develop skills with materials, deepen their visual awareness, and expand their understanding of the Elements of Art and Principles of Design. They also learn strategies for generating and developing their own ideas. The class will offer students the opportunity to work with traditional and non-traditional media, which includes ceramic, painting and drawing, sewing and 2D animation.

Unit 1 My Goals and Dreams
Unit 2 Dreamscapes
Unit 3 Planet of Fantastic Creatures
Unit 4 Move with the Music

Art 8 Middle School

Art 8
Grade: 8

The Middle School Art program invites students into the creative art-making process. For our 8th graders, they will be working with the theme of “Exploring who I am.” Through skills practice, art appreciation, and completing projects, students develop their understanding of what goes into making a successful work of art. They develop skills with materials, deepen their visual awareness, and expand their understanding of the Elements of Art and Principles of Design. They also learn strategies for generating and developing their own ideas. The class will offer students the opportunity to work with ceramic, painting, drawing, character design, puppet-making, and 2D animation.

Unit 1 Storing my Culture
Unit 2 My Multiple Selves
Unit 3 I’m a Superhero
Unit 4 Artwork-inspired Hat

Music 6 Middle School

Music 6
Grade: 6

The Grade 6 MYP Music provides students with a comprehensive understanding of music by exploring fundamental music theory, world music, orchestra, and instrumental and vocal ensemble.Throughout the course, students will enhance their knowledge of music structure, explore the rich diversity of musical traditions from around the globe, and have opportunities to perform in small groups, honing their skills in collaboration, ensemble performing, and interpretation.

Unit 1 Fundamentals of Music Theory
Unit 2 Exploration of World Music
Unit 3 Exploring Orchestra Instruments
Unit 4 Chamber Music/ Choir

Music 7 Middle School

Music 7
Grade: 7

The Grade 7 MYP Music developes students’ musical knowledge and skills by learning advanced music theory concepts, Western music history, and larger ensemble. Students will develop their analytical skills, allowing them to identify musical structures and patterns and compose their own music. Through the research on the contributions of significant composers (from Renaissance to Classical), as well as their dominant compositions and the characteristics of different musical forms and genres, students will develop an appreciation for the evolution of Western music and its impact on contemporary musical performance.

Unit 1 Music Theory II & Composition
Unit 2 Exploring Music Through Time and Culture I (Western Music History, Renaissance-Classical)
Unit 3 Chamber Music

Music 8 Middle School

Music 8
Grade: 8

The Grade 8 MYP Music expands and develops students’ understanding of musical knowledge and their musicianship. Students will study advanced concepts such as extended harmonies, modulation, musical form, and advanced rhythmic patterns. Students will continue researching influential composers, significant musical works, and cultural movements from various periods, including the Romantic, 20th century (Jazz), and Modern. Through the Music Social Justice unit, students explore the role of music as a catalyst for social change and expression of social justice issues and examine how people historically used music in contemporary contexts to raise awareness, inspire activism, and promote positive change. In the Larger Ensemble unit, students keep maturing their ability to listen and respond to other performers, demonstrating effective communication and teamwork in creating a cohesive ensemble sound.

Unit 1 Music Theory III & Analysis
Unit 2 Exploring Music Through Time and Culture II (Western Music History, Romantic-Modern-Jazz)
Unit 3 Music and Social Justice
Unit 4 Chamber Music & Larger Ensemble

High School Art High School

High School Art
Grade: 9 -12
Prerequisite: None

This course is designed to further develop student understanding of the formal aspects of art – composition, line, form and shape, texture, value, and color – through a variety of projects. It builds on technical skills introduced in previous MYP classes. Design principles and art historical elements are included in every unit of study. Understanding and recording the individual art-making process is an essential component of HS Art because it prepares students for IB Visual Arts.

Advanced Art High School

Advanced Art
Grades: 10-12
Prerequisite: High School Art

This course is ideal for students who wish to pursue a career in the visual arts. It builds on skills and concepts first encountered in earlier MYP art classes, including HS Art, while providing students with opportunities for more independent exploration of their own ideas. Students will generally work in larger-scale formats while investigating a wide range of materials, including oil paint and clay. Expectations for preparatory work include doing research and studies in a journal, in anticipation that some students will elect to enroll in the IB Visual Art course after completing Advanced Art.

IB Visual Art SL/HL High School

IB Visual Art SL/HL
Grades: 11-12 (this is a two-year course)
Prerequisite: High School Art

This studio-based, two-year course emphasizes the creative process and the final art product, with high expectations for independent work. As students develop their craft they will conduct thoughtful inquiry into their own thinking and art-making processes–while recording this learning in written and visual formats in a personal Process Journal.
Students are expected to conduct extensive, relevant research into the history and practice of art forms across cultures and to connect their research to their own work, creating art that expresses personal meaning within a cultural context. Critiques, museum and gallery visits, and field trips are important parts of the course.

Higher Level – In Year 1 Students will try out many different media and styles to develop their personal approach to making art. In Year 2, Students will focus on developing a strong, cohesive exhibition of selected resolved works to present as part of their final IB assessment. Groups of studio work connected thematically and/or stylistically are strongly recommended, and occur naturally in most cases. The formal requirements include a Process Portfolio and Comparative Study. IB Art HL level is ideal for a student who is extremely dedicated to the subject and has had previous art experience.

Standard Level – As in HL, Year 1 SL Students will try out many different media and styles to develop their personal approach to making art. They will identify themes in their own work and pursue them as they construct studio work in preparation for the final exhibit in April of Year 2. Although the required number of studio pieces and journal pages is slightly lower than that for HL students, the demands on a student’s time and the expectations for technical excellence are the same, including the requirement for a Process Portfolio and Comparative Study.

Music Appreciation (formally HS Music) High School

Music Appreciation (formally HS Music)
Grades: 9 – 12
Prerequisite: None

This is a year-long course designed to introduce students to music history, elements of music and rudiments of music theory. The course will focus on the appreciation and analysis of music across time periods and develop a basic understanding of music from a variety of cultures and genres.

Choir Ensemble High School

Choir Ensemble
Grade: 9-12
Prerequisite: None

This is a year-long music course focusing on developing vocal skills in a choir setting. The aim of this course is to introduce students to vocal technique, sight-singing and build musicianship pertaining to choral studies. Students will study a variety of repertoire from art songs to modern works.

This course is open to complete beginners and experienced vocalists. Students interested in taking ABRSM singing exams will be prepared for examination through this course.

Chamber Music I/II High School

Chamber Music I/II
Grades: 9 – 10
Prerequisite: None

This is a yearlong performance based course aimed at developing chamber music class ensemble. This class is open to students who play one of the following instruments: stings (violin-viola-cello-double bass) Woodwinds (flute-oboe-clarinet-bass clarinet-bassoon-saxophone) Brass (trumpet-french horn-trombone-euphonium-tuba). This class is open to beginners, intermediate and advanced players. Some instruments will be provided by the school, such as violin, cello, double bass and trumpet.Woodwind instruments can be rented from the school.

Students interested in taking ABRSM ensemble exams will be prepared for examination through this course.

This course is a prerequisite for IB Music.

IB Music SL/HL High School

IB Music SL/HL
Grade: 11-12
Prerequisite: N/A

IB Music (SL/HL) is a two year course that will prepare students for DP Music as part of the full diploma or the DP certificate in music. Through this course, students will develop their skills as composers, performers and researchers by exploring a range of musical contexts and making links to, and between, different musical practices, conventions and forms of expression, and evaluate and develop critical perspectives on their own music and the work of others.