The Rivers School Course Catalog - 2015-2016

THE RIVERS SCHOOL Catalog of Courses

2015-2016

2015-16 Catalog of Courses Table of Contents Arts .... ........................................... 5 Visual Arts ........................ 5 Performing Arts .............. 12 English ........................................ 16 History ........................................ 24 Interdisciplinary Studies.............. 32 Language .................................... 36 Latin ................................ 37 French................................40 Spanish ............................ 41 Chinese ............................ 43 Mathematics ................................ 45 Science ..........................................49

School Mission The Rivers School is a coeducational, college preparatory day school for students in grades 6 through 12. Rivers challenges students to attain their highest levels of excellence in academics, arts, and athletics.

We set high standards and expect students to be active participants in their learning. We cultivate a caring, respectful, and collaborative environment that encourages student performance, including demonstration of logical thought, informed and articulate voice, creative vision, and strong character. Rivers is dedicated to preparing its students for leadership in a world that needs their talents, imagination, intellect, and compassion.

Core Values The Rivers School is a community that upholds the values expressed in our school seal: “Integritas et Sedulitas.”

Integritas: Integrity. We value responsibility, honesty, compassion, diversity, and respect, acknowledging that our actions have a profound impact on ourselves, on others, on the environment, and on the community as a whole.

Sedulitas: Perseverance. We acknowledge that the diligent pursuit of intellectual, creative, physical, and moral excellence is essential to one’s strength of character.

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ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS Academics are at the heart of The Rivers School program. Significant time is set aside during the spring trimester for families to meet with academic counselors to plan each student’s classes for the following year. Cocurricular planning is also included.

Course selections should reflect the various graduation requirements listed below. In addition, students are encouraged to take intellectual risks, challenging themselves broadly and deeply in the hope that they will develop a passion for their work.

College admission should be considered when choosing courses, since the high school record is the most important criterion used by college admission officers. Breadth, depth, passion, talent, and performance are also valued, so students should select a course load that reflects their true selves, rather than one they suspect colleges may be seeking.

Honors Placement Students must have a department’s recommendation to enroll in honors and Advanced Placement (AP) courses in that discipline. Each department sets specific standards by which a student earns honors placement. The following common elements also apply in all disciplines.

The student must have:  earned excellence in the discipline, particularly in the current course.  deep interest and motivation in the subject, as is evident in class participation and independent assignments.  outstanding ability to be analytical, original, and reflective in thinking.  outstanding ability to communicate clearly and coherently in oral and written forms in the discipline.  earned excellence in the discipline on standardized tests, when applicable.

Students new to Rivers and rising eighth graders take placement tests in certain subject areas.

Graduation Credit Requirements 12 in English 9 in math, including Geometry and Algebra II 6 in history, including United States History and 3 credits during grades 11 or 12 6 in science 6 in foreign language 6 in the arts, drawn from a diverse selection of visual and performing arts courses 1 in Interdisciplinary Studies (beginning with the class of 2017) Please note that these are the minimum requirements to earn a Rivers diploma. Students are required to take at least five courses each trimester. Additional credits are accumulated through elective classes offered in all departments. Please be aware that some colleges expect high school students to take more courses in certain subjects than are required to graduate from Rivers.

Electives: Elective offerings are subject to change.

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Senior Projects During the final three weeks of the academic year, seniors complete a capstone project, which serves as a culmination of their academic experience at Rivers. Completing a senior project is a graduation requirement.

Senior projects are limited to the following areas: 1) community service (volunteer work at an approved non-profit organization) 2) internships (with a professional organization), or 3) independent studies (with a Rivers faculty member).

Senior projects will take place from Monday, May 16, 2016 through Friday, June 3, 2016. As seniors are not in classes then, they are able to engage in their projects full-time.

All projects require a portfolio. The portfolio will include: a journal detailing daily progress, a 3-5 page paper reflecting on the experience, and a presentation. Other products may also be required, depending on the nature of the project.

Applications and specific guidelines are distributed in January. All senior project proposals must be submitted to the chair of the senior project committee. They are reviewed by the committee for approval.

OTHER GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS Middle School In grades 6, 7, and 8, students are required to participate in three seasons of athletic activities. All Middle School students maintain a reflective portfolio of their work each year.

Seventh-grade students participate in a media literacy course. This semester course is an introduction to media literacy, teaching seventh-grade students to critically consume and create media. Students begin by looking around them to critique our consumer-based culture. They practice deconstruction skills by looking at current print and television advertisements. Discussions focus on various current issues such as values, gender, nutrition, environment, violence, and bias. Students practice their media skills by creating magazine covers, counter print advertisements, and counter commercials.

All Middle School students participate in human development seminars. The focus for these seminars is different at each grade level. Sixth-grade students explore topics related to friendship, relationships, and conflict resolution. Seventh-grade students participate in a body image and nutrition curriculum. Eighth-grade students spend time in the fall in seminars related to drugs and alcohol, and time in the spring in seminars related to human sexuality.

In addition, all Middle School students participate in a leadership training program at various times throughout the school year. This program is designed to support students’ growth as individuals and as members of a community. During their eighth-grade year, students are required to write and present a speech to the Middle School.

Upper School All ninth-grade students must participate in at least two trimesters of interscholastic athletics. All ninth-grade students must participate on an interscholastic team during the fall trimester. During the trimester when not participating in the athletic program, ninth-grade students will be encouraged to participate in an on-campus activity.

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All new tenth-grade students must participate on a fall interscholastic team or be cast in the fall play.

If he or she is cast in the fall play, the student must, during the remaining two seasons, participate on an interscholastic team. A new tenth grade student who is cast in the fall and winter play will be allowed to do so but they must be on an interscholastic team in the spring.

All returning tenth-grade students must participate on an interscholastic team during any two seasons. Naturally, a student may choose to participate in the athletic program during their third season, which may include an interscholastic team, the fitness program, or a position as a team manager. A returning tenth-grade student who is cast in the fall and winter play will be allowed to do so but they must be on an interscholastic team in the spring.

Juniors and seniors are required to participate in two trimesters of on-campus activities each year.

This may include activities such as athletics, community service, drama productions, the fitness program, co-presidency of Model United Nations, Debate Team, Robotics Club and co-editorship of school publications. See the Rivers School handbook for specific offerings.

Upper School students are also required to complete 30 hours of community service before the end of their junior year. Seniors are required to write and present a speech to the school community.

GUIDELINES FOR INDEPENDENT STUDY Independent study is an academic option for students who have exhibited interest and commitment to a particular field of study. An independent study is a privilege for the mature and motivated student who wants to pursue an area of study in depth beyond the available curriculum. Except in unusual circumstances that warrant approval by the Head of Upper School, these are the criteria for students interested in applying for an independent study course.

• The student must have at least a B (83 or higher) average in the discipline his/her junior year and in applicable senior electives.

• The student, the mentoring teacher, and the department head meet to discuss the student’s idea at least four weeks before the beginning of the trimester of the project. The concept should be consistent with the philosophy and goals of the department and reflect a significant commitment that matches or exceeds the expectations of the discipline.

• If the department head and the teacher agree that the concept is in accord with the department philosophy, the teacher and the student work together on the proposal. The student creates the project, and the teacher serves as the advisor in this process.

• The typed proposal should include the goal of the project, a list of resources to be used, the method(s) of assessment, a weekly schedule of work to be produced, agreed-upon meeting times during the trimester for the teacher and the student, and the method of final assessment.

• The student presents the typed proposal to the department head at least two school weeks before the independent study is to begin. This allows the student to make any required alterations in the plan. After the proposal has the approval and signatures of the department head and the mentoring teacher, the student must obtain, on the official form, the signatures of the Head of Upper School, the director of academic counseling and scheduling, the college counselor, his/her parent, and his/her advisor.

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Course Offerings ARTS The arts program at Rivers offers students opportunities to experience a broad range of foundation courses and then to pursue one or more areas in depth. The Middle School arts program follows a pre-foundation curriculum in the visual arts and the performing arts. The foundation program requires students in grades 9 and 10 to earn three credits from a selection of courses, as well as three additional credits.

Requirements Middle School students must take visual arts and performing arts.

Students in grades 9 and 10 must earn three foundation-level credits. Offerings include: • Beginning Ceramics • Beginning Drawing • Beginning Photography • Beginning Sculpture • Chamber Orchestra • Rivers Big Band • Intermediate Jazz Ensemble • Men’s Chorus • Women’s Chorus • Introduction to Theater • Private Music Lessons (through The Rivers School Conservatory) After earning three foundation art credits, students in grades 10 through 12 must complete three additional courses at the intermediate/advanced level. Students are encouraged to pursue one or more areas in depth.

New students entering grade 10 who have taken courses similar to those offered at Rivers will be given credit at the discretion of the department head. Those who are not given credit are required to take at least two foundation-level courses.

New students entering grade 11 are required to earn three arts credits, which may include foundation-level courses at the discretion of the department head. In the rare instance of a new senior, the requirement will be subject to the discretion of the department head.

VISUAL ARTS The visual arts program at Rivers cultivates a lifelong involvement in the arts. The department teaches creative problem solving, fosters cooperation, and encourages risk taking. Students apply what they have learned to the creation of works of art. Through active participation, students develop imagination, self-confidence, self-discipline, self-reliance, visual literacy, and a honed awareness of the visual world. Through critique and the study of art history, students learn how images communicate and how to look critically at images.

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Middle School Visual Arts: Grade 6 This one-semester, process-oriented course uses art to help students make connections and develop their creative problem-solving skills. Students are exposed to a variety of two- and three-dimensional media. Areas of focus include design concepts, drawing, ceramics, painting, textiles, photography, and the study of contemporary artists whose ideas and work inspire creativity. The class works within the sixth-grade theme of water, and assignments are integrated with the broader concepts of the curriculum.

Visual Arts: Grade 7 This one-semester course is an introduction to a variety of two- and three-dimensional media. It is designed to acquaint students with the possibilities and limits of each medium as they discover creative ways to express their feelings and ideas. Students experiment with many processes and keep journals of their discoveries and experiences.

Visual Arts: Grade 8 Students in this year-long course explore the creative potential of drawing, sculpture, and photography. Projects emphasize process as much as product. The aim of this course is to cultivate appreciation and enthusiasm for art as an expressive means of communication. Students are encouraged to take risks and strive beyond their first solutions. By design, projects throughout the year correspond to key elements of the Human Rights Humanities curriculum.

Upper School Rivers has four art studios, an etching press, eight potter’s wheels, and two electric kilns. An extensive photography lab allows for complete film development and printing. Other facilities include a fully-equipped sculpture space and three gallery areas. Studio offerings include courses in drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, ceramics and sculpture. Most visual arts courses have a charge for supplies.

First-Trimester Courses Grades 9 and 10 Beginning Ceramics 1 credit In this introductory course, students explore three basic hand-building techniques: pinch, coil, and slab. Emphasis on understanding clay as a material introduces students to their own sculpting abilities. Students are expected to spend additional time in the studio on their work.

Beginning Drawing 1 credit This introductory course gives students the opportunity to explore a variety of media, learn fundamental skills, and sharpen their perceptions of the physical world. Emphasis is on the elements of design and drawing and their organizing principles. Exercises and problems involve twodimensional work, including drawing, painting, and collage.

Beginning Photography 1 credit In this introduction to black-and-white photography, emphasis is on basic photographic techniques and principles, including camera operation, exposure control, film developing, printmaking, and

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presentation. Composition is considered by examining the work of major photographers. Regular homework, primarily shooting assignments, is followed by lab work and group and individual evaluation. A portfolio is required at term’s end.

Beginning Sculpture 1 credit Students explore the expressive potential of sculpting with wood, wire, plaster, papier mâché, and other mixed media while learning the history of sculpture in a global and historical context. Basic three-dimensional design issues are addressed. Additive and subtractive methods are used to create abstract, representational, and conceptual projects. The emphasis is on process as much as product.

This course offers an exciting opportunity to work in the Rivers sculpture studio with a range of tools and materials. Safety and responsible use of all equipment is of utmost importance.

Grades 10–12 Intermediate Ceramics (Hand) 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Ceramics This course focuses on concept development relating to sculptural forms. The assignments offer each student the opportunity to explore his or her own creative path, while furthering his or her understanding of the material. Students are expected to spend additional time in the studio on their work.

Intermediate Ceramics (Wheel) 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Ceramics Students commit themselves to mastering techniques of the potter’s wheel. While functional forms are the primary focus of each assignment, students are encouraged to explore surface design and the sculptural possibilities of their objects. Students are expected to spend additional time in the studio on their work.

Intermediate Drawing 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Drawing or recommendation of the instructor This class provides students with the opportunity to develop drawing skills and intensify observation abilities. Elements of design and composition are also included. Students work in a variety of media, including pen and ink, charcoal, pencil, and pastels. Homework is required.

Intermediate Photography (Darkroom) 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Photography or recommendation of the instructor This course expands on the basic techniques and design learned in Beginning Photography.

Refinements in camera operation, exposure selection, interpretative printing, and darkroom controls are emphasized. Included is an introduction to the history of photography. A portfolio is required at term’s end.

Intermediate Photography (Digital) 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Photography or recommendation of the instructor

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This course offers the opportunity to explore the essential aspects of digital photography using DSLR cameras. Students build upon their previous experience with analog photography expanding the expressive aspects of light, time, and color. Regular homework includes shooting assignments to hone the design and creative potential of color photography. Image processing emphasizes Adobe Lightroom and aspects of Adobe Photoshop. A portfolio is required at term’s end.

Intermediate Sculpture 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Sculpture Students deepen their exploration of three-dimensional design concepts introduced in Beginning Sculpture, broadening the range of processes and materials used. Students learn to integrate form and content in an intentional way and choose materials accordingly. Knowledge of contemporary and historic artists continues to be studied as related to pertinent topics. Students explore where their ideas come from and how they are manifested in the physical form of sculpture. Students are required to work outside of class on projects. As students develop their personal voice within the work, emphasis is placed on process as well as product.

Painting 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Drawing or recommendation of the instructor This course is an introduction to acrylic and oil painting. The class emphasizes color theory, composition, and a variety of techniques. Several historical styles are explored. Homework is required.

Printmaking 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning Drawing or recommendation of the instructor Students explore the many possibilities and techniques involved in making a print. The class covers relief printing, mono-printing, and various intaglio methods. Students are encouraged to experiment and work with a combination of techniques that can result in high-quality limited editions.

Advanced Courses Grades 11 and 12 Advanced Art 1 credit Prerequisites: Beginning Drawing, one intermediate level elective, and recommendation of the instructor This course allows a student to explore preferred media and technique in depth. Together with the instructor, the student chooses subject matter and materials. Students receive frequent critiques and evaluations to measure their progress.

Advanced Ceramics 1 credit Prerequisites: Beginning and Intermediate Ceramics and recommendation of the instructor During the course of the term, students create a teapot, a large-scale form, and a set of four objects.

They then design a term’s work based on preferred techniques with guidance from the instructor.

Students are expected to spend additional time in the studio on their work.

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Advanced Photography (Darkroom) 1 credit Prerequisites: Beginning and Intermediate Photography and recommendation of the instructor This course allows the motivated student to further explore the tools and craft of photography while cultivating a refined aesthetic vision. Interpretative printmaking with post-darkroom manipulation to expand the print statement is encouraged. A portfolio is required at term’s end.

Advanced Sculpture 1 credit Prerequisite: Beginning and Intermediate Sculpture and recommendation of the instructor Students continue to deepen their exploration of design principles and materials covered in Beginning and Intermediate Sculpture. This course begins with assigned projects from which students are challenged to move into their own individualized sculptures. With the guidance of the instructor, students have the opportunity to work on sculptures for a longer duration than in Beginning or Intermediate, as they deepen their concepts and forms. Knowledge of contemporary and historic artists continues to be studied as related to pertinent topics. Students explore where their ideas come from and how they are manifested in the physical form of sculpture. Students are required to work outside of class on projects. As students develop their personal voices within the work, emphasis is placed on process as well as product.

Grade 12 History of Art I: 20,000 B.C.E.–400 C.E. 1 credit. Cross-listed with the History Department The study of the history of art consists of three trimester courses that examine the development of Western art by focusing on selected periods from Paleolithic times to the present. While not exhaustive in scope, these courses aim to expose students to the central problems and methodologies in the field of art history as well as introduce them to many of the important stylistic developments in the history of Western art. Through lectures and slides, the visual arts are placed, wherever possible, in a broad cultural context. Periodic visits to Boston-area museums provide invaluable opportunities to expand the classroom experience. In the first trimester, students study the development of Western art as it emerges from the flickering shadows of the caves of Altamira and Lascaux. The artistic traditions of the Ancient Near East, Egypt, and the Aegean are traversed before arriving on the shores of Greece in the 8th century B.C.E. From there, students trace the development of the classical ideal through its transformation in the late imperial Roman and early Christian styles.

Second-Trimester Courses Unless noted, course descriptions are listed under first-trimester courses.

Grades 9 and 10 Beginning Ceramics 1 credit Beginning Drawing 1 credit Beginning Photography 1 credit

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Beginning Sculpture 1 credit Grades 10–12 Intermediate Ceramics (Hand) 1 credit Intermediate Ceramics (Wheel) 1 credit Intermediate Drawing 1 credit Intermediate Photography (Darkroom) 1 credit Intermediate Photography (Digital) 1 credit Intermediate Sculpture 1 credit Painting 1 credit Printmaking 1 credit Grades 11 and 12 Advanced Art 1 credit Advanced Ceramics 1 credit Advanced Photography (Darkroom) 1 credit Advanced Sculpture 1 credit Grade 12 History of Art II: 400 C.E.–1500 C.E. 1 credit. Cross-listed with the History Department The period often referred to by scholars of the past as the “Dark Ages” is the focus of the second trimester of art history. Through careful examination of the artistic traditions of both East (Byzantium) and West (Medieval Europe), students develop their own assessment of the validity of

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the terms “Dark Ages,” “Romanesque,” and “Gothic.” Finally, delving into the Renaissance era allows students to further refine their understandings of the evolution of the classical tradition across the centuries.

Third-Trimester Courses Unless noted, course descriptions are listed under first-trimester courses.

Grades 9 and 10 Beginning Ceramics 1 credit Beginning Drawing 1 credit Beginning Photography 1 credit Beginning Sculpture 1 credit Grades 10–12 Intermediate Ceramics (Hand) 1 credit Intermediate Ceramics (Wheel) 1 credit Intermediate Drawing 1 credit Intermediate Photography (Darkroom) 1 credit Intermediate Photography (Digital) 1 credit Intermediate Sculpture 1 credit Painting 1 credit Printmaking 1 credit Grades 11 and 12 Advanced Art 1 credit

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Advanced Ceramics 1 credit Advanced Photography (Darkroom) 1 credit Advanced Photography (Digital) 1 credit Prerequisite: Intermediate Photography (Digital) or recommendation of the instructor Students in this course learn how to maximize the technical and creative aspects of image creation and interpretation using DSLR cameras. Projects emphasize in depth investigation of diverse topics. Students are encouraged to cultivate a personal aesthetic integrating design and image resolution. Image processing fully utilizes both Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Photoshop.

A portfolio is required at term’s end.

Advanced Sculpture 1 credit History of Art III: 1900 C.E. – 2000 C.E. 1 credit. Cross-listed with the History Department Due to the narrowness of its scope, the final trimester of art history is more akin to an independent elective than a survey course. The art of the 20th century provides numerous exciting problems for the art historian and the casual observer alike. Artists from this century delighted in the abandonment of centuries-old traditions and conventions, and as a result, the art they produced is as challenging as it is diverse. Through careful study of painting, sculpture, architecture, and the new medium of photography, students begin to form their own educated critiques of modern art. Lectures and slides are supplemented by the use of video and the written words of the 20th century’s most prominent artists.

PERFORMING ARTS The Performing Arts Department, recognizing that the performing arts are at the core of human existence, offers ensembles and classes in a supportive environment that provides for performancebased assessment and process-oriented learning. Students are encouraged to exceed previous levels of achievement, discover self-confidence, develop self-esteem, build self-discipline, and achieve self-awareness. Teachers are models for active learning, risk-taking, and self-expression. Students are taught the arts for the sake of the arts and as a model for all learning. Motivated students are prepared for advanced study.

The study of the performing arts is a major component of a well-rounded education. As such, the performing arts at Rivers aim to help students understand how to listen to and interact with other performing artists as well as to express themselves confidently, articulately, and artistically.

Middle School Rivers provides Middle School students with unique opportunities and experiences in music, dance, and drama. Ensemble experiences are a fundamental part of any student’s education.

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chorus, chamber orchestra, jazz ensemble, or instrumental music ensemble), dance, or theater arts.

Students are placed in an appropriate ensemble after completing an audition with the performing arts faculty in the spring. In addition, Middle School students have the opportunity to receive instruction on a variety of instruments at The Rivers School Conservatory. Lessons typically last 30-45 minutes.

Instructors expect students to practice daily. A separate brochure from The Conservatory describes the range of offerings and applicable fees. Private lessons are usually scheduled around sports practices on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday afternoons. All sixth and seventh-grade students learn public speaking skills as part of their humanities curricula, and eighth-grade students are required to write and deliver formal speeches. Students are required to take a drama class during sixth grade.

Middle School Select Mixed Chorus This course is designed for students with intermediate to advanced singing skills or significant prior choral experience. Students sing in multiple parts, exploring a broad range of musical styles and working in multiple languages. Students audition for this course in September.

Middle School Chamber Orchestra Students study and perform ensemble music from the baroque period through the 21st century. The course is designed for students who have achieved a beginning or intermediate level of mastery on their instruments. It emphasizes ensemble playing skills. Students also work with string and wind specialists on developing individual performance and practice techniques. The ensemble performs at festivals, school concerts, and other school functions.

Middle School Jazz Ensemble This course is designed for students with intermediate to advanced instrumental experience. Students study a variety of contemporary music styles, improvisation, and theory, and are introduced to standard jazz repertoire as well as jazz arrangements of contemporary repertoire. The ensemble performs at festivals and school concerts.

Middle School Instrumental Music Ensemble This course is offered to students who wish to learn to play the trumpet, trombone, or saxophone.

This class is also suitable for students with less than two years of experience on these instruments.

Students study rudimentary music reading skills and advance as far as learning to play jazz and blues solos. The class focuses on developing the individual skills of each student on his or her chosen instrument with a goal of preparing students to join the Creative Jazz Ensemble in the Middle School or the jazz program in the Upper School. Students in this class will perform at one or more of the Rivers School Jazz Concerts during the year, as well as at the Middle School Arts Night in the spring.

Middle School Theater Arts Students explore the tools of the actor: the body, voice, and emotional and sensory experience. They strive to bring these tools to bear on the work of the actor on stage. Emphasis is placed on the work of the performance ensemble: respect, trust-building, timing, and awareness within the group. The efforts of the individual actor and the work of the ensemble culminate in performances that give the students a chance to experience both the rehearsal process and a theatrical event.

Middle School Drama This sixth-grade course introduces students to the rudiments of performance skills through mime, improvisation, and scene work. It is designed to develop imagination and creative skills. 

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Middle School Performing and Creative Arts This class is designed to provide a wide variety of experiences and interactions with broad range of performing and creative arts genres. It is most suitable for the student who has had no or little performing arts training but is also appropriate for the student with significant and/or current performing arts experiences. The class consists of ten three-week units each taught by different Rivers faculty who have expertise and experience in the unit topic. Some units include live performance while others have a more traditional academic classroom structure.

Upper School Chamber Orchestra 3 credits Prerequisite: Admission by audition only This ensemble is for string, wind, and brass players seeking a formal playing experience in an orchestra as well as for the intermediate or advanced classical musician looking to further the exploration of chamber orchestra repertoire and to polish ensemble/orchestral playing technique.

Repertoire from the baroque, classical, and 21st century periods are explored in depth. Suitable repertoire from the romantic and impressionistic periods may also be performed. The orchestra performs at Upper School Arts Nights, festivals, competitions, and other school events. Private lessons are recommended.

Women’s Chorus 3 credits Prerequisite: Admission by audition only This ensemble studies and performs a wide range of choral and vocal repertoire from the Renaissance through newly composed music -- from American music of all genres to music from cultures throughout the world. Music is performed a cappella and accompanied. In addition to performing music specific to women’s voices, this ensemble also combines frequently with the Men’s Chorus. Sight singing is a part of the curriculum but previous experience with music notation is not a prerequisite. Sectionals and vocal coaching are arranged at the director’s discretion. Private voice lessons are recommended.

Men’s Chorus 3 credits Prerequisite: Admission by audition only This ensemble studies and performs a wide range of choral and vocal repertoire from the Renaissance through newly composed music, from American music of all genres to music from cultures throughout the world. Music is performed a cappella and accompanied. In addition to performing music specific to men’s voices, this ensemble also combines frequently with the Women’s Chorus. Sight singing is a part of the curriculum, but previous experience with music notation is not a prerequisite. Sectionals and vocal coaching are arranged at the director’s discretion.

Private voice lessons are recommended.

The Rivers Big Band 3 credits Prerequisite: Admission by audition only This band is for highly proficient musicians. Students perform at concerts, school assemblies, competitions, and festivals. Standard big band repertoire is explored. Private lessons are required.

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The Rivers Select Jazz Combo I/II 3 credits Prerequisite: Admission by audition only Students in this ensemble study and perform works for jazz combo by musicians such as Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, and Herbie Hancock. Emphasis is on developing improvisation skills. Opportunities are available for composition and analysis. Private lessons are required.

Intermediate Jazz Band 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the instructor This band is for the jazz instrumentalist who has begun serious study but is beyond the elementary stages on his or her instrument. The ensemble provides opportunities for the study of jazz ensemble performance, improvisation, and jazz theory. Private lessons are recommended.

Private Music Lessons 1 1/2 credits At The Rivers School Conservatory, there are many opportunities for instrumental instruction and further ensemble involvement. Students in grades 9 through 12 have the opportunity to receive instruction in a variety of instruments. The lessons are typically 45 minutes in duration, though on rare occasions, students may take 60-minute lessons. Instructors expect students to practice daily.

Participation in workshops and recitals is required. A separate brochure from The Rivers School Conservatory describes the full range of offerings and the applicable fees.

DRAMA First-Trimester Courses Introduction to Drama 1 credit Using theater games, mime, body and vocal exercises, and their imagination, students learn the basics of acting and reacting on stage. Through improvisation, students create and develop their own characters. Additionally, they gain a working vocabulary for theater terminology and an introduction to writing dialogue. Students are assessed on performance and journal work, and they attend and critique the Rivers Nonesuch production that trimester.

Second-Trimester Courses Play Production 1 credit Prerequisite: Introduction to Drama or permission of the instructor Acting for Performance students spend class time working as a team to rehearse and stage a short public production. Working closely with the teacher, they spend the first couple of weeks refreshing their acting skills and tools through workshop and exercises, and they get to know each other better through ensemble building activities. Then, students are cast in an existing play, or they “self-script” their own piece for performance. The remaining weeks are dedicated to script work, character development, and rehearsal for the performance, held in the final week of class. Journal writing and readings supplement the class work.

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Prerequisite: Introduction to Drama (or the equivalent) This course offers an introduction to formal acting. Students continue voice and body work and learn how to internalize and depict a character onstage. To this end, they study and present monologues and scenes from traditional and contemporary plays. Additionally, they learn the basics of different acting techniques and develop skills and techniques that they can put to use in dramatic productions.

Students are assessed on performance and journal work, and they attend and critique the Rivers Nonesuch production that trimester.

ENGLISH The Rivers English Department prizes excellence in the use and interpretation of our language. To foster this excellence in our students, we help them develop enduring writing, reading, speaking, and listening skills. At every grade level, students work to improve their written and spoken expression so that they may leave Rivers confident in their ability to communicate with clarity, creativity, and precision. We believe that continual application of logical and interpretative reading skills instills in students a lifelong passion for and intellectual engagement with literature.

Middle School The World and Water: Grade 6 In the sixth grade, the study of water combines both English and social studies into one course.

Social studies concepts are addressed in reading and writing assignments, and these skills are enhanced through a variety of genres including myths, poetry, and novels. Literature and writing are taught through a workshop approach, affording students opportunities for direct skill instruction as they are in the process of reading and writing. Literary experiences are extensive, with an emphasis on reading comprehension and composition skills. Through inquiry and exploration of the past and present, students work to develop understandings of people’s relationships to water and the various conflicts, opportunities, and power that water provides. Moving from the basic understanding that a civilization’s existence depends upon its ability to access and manage water, students examine such topics as whaling, exploration, water management systems, water scarcity, pollution, hygiene, and the economics and politics concerning water. Learning happens in and out of the classroom, with students participating in numerous field experiences across the curriculum. The course culminates with a month‐long campaign through which students work in their own communities to raise water awareness.

The World Through Story: Grade 7 Students explore the power of stories in relation to people and cultures. Stories help define individual and cultural identities, they unite and divide groups, and when taken away, their absence can have destructive effects on generations of people. Students also use the components of story as a lens through which to view literary and historical topics. The social studies component includes current events as well as an emphasis on the role of geography in shaping the narrative of particular cultures. Literature selections expose students to a variety of genres such as novels, poetry, mythology, and short stories. Students also examine primary and secondary sources with particular attention placed on developing critical reading skills. The writing component provides extensive opportunities for students to gain experience in personal and expository writing and emphasizes the process of revision in building communication skills. Students are encouraged to think for themselves and form opinions that they support with textual analysis in their writing. As a culminating experience, students embark on individual research projects in which they apply accumulated skills and demonstrate their understanding of the major themes of the course.

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Human Rights and Global Issues: Grade 8 In the eighth grade, Human Rights and Global Issues integrates English and social studies into one course. Through literature and the analysis of current and historical events, the course examines issues surrounding human rights. The year begins with a comprehensive study of Native Americans, followed by an overview of the U.S. government, including the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Focusing on the Civil Rights movement, the course analyzes how government was and was not used to bring about social change. The course then shifts to an examination of survival, rescue, and resistance during the Holocaust. Finally, students conclude the year by choosing specific global and current issues through which they explore contemporary human rights. The English component of the course is designed to unite students with their peers and teachers in a community of writers and readers. The classroom is a workshop in which participants risk, practice, create, and share. Students learn from each other and from models. Reading, writing, and grammar skills are taught, practiced, and honed in the context of their uses. The study of literature and literary elements includes extensive student response. Student voice is integral to the program, as students choose much of the literature they read and many of the ideas and genres for their writing.

Upper School English 9 3 credits English 9 focuses on the development of writing, reading, critical thinking, and study skills. In their analytical writing, students learn to organize their thoughts and make persuasive arguments using evidence from texts they are studying. In their personal writing, students work to develop their own voices, become aware of audiences, view writing as a process, and understand both the structure and the power of language. Core texts focus on coping with challenges, essentially addressing the themes: “Who am I? How have I become that person? What is important to me?” Texts may include William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Athol Fugard’s Master Harold…and the Boys, Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Bryce Courtenay’s The Power of One, William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, Homer’s The Odyssey, Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis, and J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. 9th Grade English Honors Seminar For students with a demonstrated passion for reading and writing, this seminar is a special opportunity to study the discipline beyond the standard 9th grade curriculum. In addition to taking English 9, Honors Seminar students meet weekly with other members of the department in small, rotating “break-out” groups in order to focus more intensely on particular works and skills. During one trimester, each group chooses and studies a lengthy novel by an author crucial to literary history, such as Charles Dickens, Herman Melville, George Eliot, Ray Bradbury, or Jane Austen. Another trimester is devoted to the analysis and writing of poetry and short stories. The course also involves collaborative presentation, the sharing of written work, and online elements. Enrollment in this course constitutes a significant commitment of time and focus and requires students to relinquish study halls to participate. Permission of the department is required and credit is awarded on a pass/fail basis.

English 10 3 credits English 10, a genre course, exposes students to a breadth of literary voices and perspectives.

Through a study of works from various cultures and time periods, the course helps to foster empathy

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and cultural competency as it develops the reading and writing skills necessary to explore different genres and experiences. Texts may include a Shakespearean play, a Greek tragedy, Gloria Naylor’s The Women of Brewster Place, John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, Susan Minot’s Monkeys, Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger, and Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street. All sophomores also participate in the Sages & Seekers program in the spring. The course asks students to consider the role that perspective—both authorial and narrative— plays in our interpretation of a text. More specifically, students consider how they can better understand their individual experience through striving to understand cultures and worlds that may seem vastly different from their own.

Honors English 10 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department Students invited into this class have shown a passion for reading and writing and the ability to handle challenging assignments, both nightly and through long-term projects. The course features a variety of world literature including short stories and essays, as well as John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany, Sophocles’s Oedipus Rex and Antigone, a Shakespearean tragedy, Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment, Susan Minot’s Monkeys, Beowulf, and John Gardner’s Grendel. Students work together on a group project than spans several months and, additionally, independently on an outside reading program that introduces nonfiction as a genre and affords students a chance to choose their own texts. Vocabulary includes extensive work with Latin and Greek etymology. Frequent writing assignments and language study are important elements of the course.

English 11 3 credits This course is designed to consolidate those skills that have been developed in the first two years of the Upper School English curriculum through a study of demanding and rich literature from the American canon. Students continue to review and solidify their knowledge of English usage and to develop a more sophisticated vocabulary. Juniors engage in considering questions such as: “What is the American Dream? Who are we? What makes us who we are? What is American literature?”

Students are expected to produce both critical and personal essays in response to their reading, as well as an independent extensive American author project. In addition to opportunities for creative writing, a major focus of the course is learning to express oneself clearly and logically. Core texts are Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, and Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God. Additional works may include Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome, and Kate Chopin’s The Awakening. Students also explore the work of major American poets and short story writers.

Honors English 11 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This honors course, open to invited 11th graders, is designed with an American literature framework and prepares students for the AP English Language and Composition test, which primarily measures writing aptitude and analysis of writing styles. Writing skills are honed through assignments based on American authors, including Native American writers, Puritan writers, and a wide range of poets and short story writers. Students also read these major works: Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome, Charlotte

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Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Richard Wright’s Native Son, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, Larry Watson’s Montana 1948, and Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon. The authors’ biographical backgrounds are also emphasized, and creative writing and independent projects are important elements of the course. Note that all English 11 Honors students are required to take the AP Language and Composition Exam in May. AP English Literature and Composition: Grade 12 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department The AP English Literature course is the culmination of the honors English program and is open to invited 12th graders. While the course prepares students for the Advanced Placement exam, its real aim is to provide an opportunity for sophisticated literary discussion and written analysis. Students pursue a chronological study of British literature, including Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Shakespeare’s King Lear, John Milton’s Paradise Lost, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things, Ian McEwan’s Atonement, George Orwell’s 1984, and Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse. Students are expected to master additional texts independently. Analysis of poetry is a major element of this writing-intensive class. Students are required to take the AP Literature and Composition Exam in May. Senior Electives Seniors not in AP English are required to take an English elective each trimester. While all electives focus on particular literary genres, styles, and concepts, each emphasizes continued development of reading and writing skills through its particular literary lens. The English Department expects to offer the following electives in 2014-2015: First-Trimester Electives 21st Century Voices 1 credit In this reading-intensive course, students study selected recent, notable works that employ distinct narrative voices. In addition to discussing the rich thematic content of the novels in their modern contexts, students explore the significant roles played by perspective, style, and narrative structure in a literary work. Students respond to the literature with short pieces of analytical and creative writing.

Texts may include Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad, Jonathan Safran Foer’s Everything is Illuminated, Herman Koch’s The Dinner, and recently published poetry and short stories.

Adaptation 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies In this course, students take an interdisciplinary approach to the study of textual adaptation.

Exploring diverse content ranging from literature and film to science and philosophy, the class examines the ways in which texts and ideas are adapted across different genres, mediums, contexts, and disciplines. Topics may include the following: Malcolm Gladwell’s What the Dog Saw; the media response to the Matthew Shepard murder and The Laramie Project; Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now; the theory of relativity, Einstein’s Dreams, and Interstellar; and the story of the Fall in The Bible, Paradise Lost, and artwork. As they seek to understand the ways in which ideas become reworked and reborn in new forms, students are expected to draw upon thinking and writing

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skills from a variety of disciplines. Guest speakers from other academic departments supplement daily reading and discussion. The course culminates in final projects for which students create and present an original adaptation of a text or idea of their choosing.

Autobiographical Writing 1 credit The aim of this elective is to help students develop their own writing voices. The course combines reading of Jeannette Walls’s The Glass Castle and Frank McCourt’s Angela’s Ashes with frequent and varied autobiographical writing assignments. Considering a broad swath of different composition styles and techniques, students engage in honest and constructive critique of one another’s work. By the end of the course, each student should be a better writer, a more alert reader, and a more self-aware individual. This course is limited to 12 students.

The Days After 1 credit We can discover a lot about people and their communities by witnessing how they respond in the days after a tragedy. The aftermaths of tragedies seem to hold up mirrors in which we can see not only ourselves but also the cracks in our communities. In this course, we read works in which people encounter unexpected tragedies and are thrust into struggles in the days that follow. Texts might include Jesmyn Ward’s National Book Award-winning Salvage the Bones, Jane Hamilton’s A Map of the World, and Russell Banks’s The Sweet Hereafter. Through reading and discussing these texts, we attempt to see what we can learn about ourselves and our own communities—and to identify our strengths and weaknesses while equipping ourselves for the tragedies we might encounter in our own lives. Students should expect considerable reading and writing and should be prepared to participate actively in discussions.

Psychological Literature 1 credit This course asks students to look at literature through a psychological lens, thus prompting them to understand themselves and others with more clarity. The curriculum is taught with the dual purpose of expanding students’ knowledge of non-fiction and literature and introducing them to some common psychological profiles. The literature explores topics such as sexuality, motherhood, creativity, family dynamics, power struggle, suicide, and mental illness. The texts examine these issues at the personal level as well as in familial and institutional settings. Students examine underlying human psychological forces by reading titles including Robert Akeret’s Tales from a Traveling Couch, Susanna Kaysen’s Girl, Interrupted, Peter Shaffer’s Equus, Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and Judith Guest’s Ordinary People.

Shakespeare 1 credit London’s recent 450th Shakespeare birthday celebration, the restoration of the Globe Theater, Shakespeare’s “Man of the Millennium” award, myriad films and a range of Shakespeare iPad apps attest to the continued popularity of Shakespeare and his work. But why does a contemporary audience appreciate dialogue written 400 years ago? Why are we still moved by this drama? Why do we laugh at jokes intended for an Elizabethan audience? Why have Shakespeare’s plays been translated into 80 languages (including Klingon!)? How are his plots adaptable to virtually any setting – past, present, or future? In this class students will learn about Shakespeare’s universal appeal through a study of his historical period, and, most importantly, his work. Works studied may

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include A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet, The Merchant of Venice and The Tempest. A trip to a Shakespearean play and a student directed/acted scene supplement the course’s reading, writing, and assessment.

Writing Workshop 1 credit; also offered in the second trimester While there is an unnamable creativity involved in great writing—something original and inspired— its genius is always built upon the solid scaffolding of a learned, honed, and recognizable craft. This course focuses on the latter of these: the elements of writing that are attainable through attention and practice. Using The Bedford Reader, students read models of effective essays, studying not only how successful writers infuse their writing with life, but also how exactly they create their intended effects. Simultaneously, students practice these approaches through concentrated, weekly essay assignments and workshops in order to help students focus on improving their writing. This course is limited to 12 students.

Second-Trimester Electives Alternative Narratives 1 credit Most English courses focus on traditional narratives: novels, plays, and poems that convey meaning through written language and conventional plotting. However, in the last fifty years, audiences have become increasingly interested in diverse forms of narrative; indeed, non-traditional forms of storytelling may well dominate the 21st century. Thus, the goal of this course is to explore some examples of “alternative narrative” in an effort to understand how other forms of narrative conform to, depart from, and even change tradition; how and why artists might employ new forms of narrative to accomplish their artistic goals; and what new forms of narrative can tell us about contemporary society. Texts may include Dave Eggers’s Zeitoun, Green Day’s American Idiot, Joyce Carol Oates’s Zombie, Richard Wright’s 12 Million Black Voices, Art Spiegelman’s Maus, Cormac McCarthy’s The Sunset Limited, the HBO television series The Wire, the NPR podcast Serial, and selected films. Ultimately, the course focuses on exploring the central place of narrative in our world.

The Art of Short Story Writing 1 credit Although they are brief works of literature, short stories can pack an emotional and intellectual punch. Typically focusing on a smaller set of characters and a shorter time span, they can evoke particular moods and convey themes that resonate with readers, all within the span of a few pages. In this elective, students read George Saunders’s short story collection Tenth of December (a National Book Award finalist), along with an assortment of contemporary stories by authors such as Raymond Carver and Alice Munro. Through reading these stories, students explore the craft of short story writing while simultaneously experimenting with techniques. Students culminate the course by creating at least two polished short stories of their own.

The Enlightenment 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies This interdisciplinary course makes use of visiting experts from different Rivers departments to consider how the Enlightenment changed the way we look at the world and humanity’s place in it. In the course of grappling with these questions, students address the following figures and topics: Galileo, Newton, and the scientific revolution; Hume, Voltaire, and the critique of dogmatism; Lessing on religious tolerance; and Paine, Jefferson, and political liberalism. Students then examine

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critiques of the Enlightenment, including Romanticism, globalization, and postmodernism. We conclude by considering the Enlightenment’s contemporary relevance, in particular the notions of truth, rationality, and relativism.

Literature of Death 1 credit Like virtually all art forms, literature is charged with expressing the questions we ask and meaning we make of our own mortality. As a central and defining moment in our lives, death often figures importantly in literature that seeks to convey the human experience. This course examines a breadth of examples of fiction, essays and poetry that deal both explicitly and symbolically with the concepts of death, dying, grief and notions of the afterlife, and in so doing, studies the cultural and sociological undergirding of those presentations. In addition to reading several novels, assorted poetry and nonfiction, students write not only analytical reactions but also more personal essays concerning their own understanding of or experience with death. Works taught may include biblical excerpts, Ondaajte’s The English Patient, short works by John Updike and Virginia Woolf, Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Wiesel’s Night, the poetry of Donne, Dickinson, Whitman and the English Romantics, and various contemporary poets and essayists.

Senior Seminar in Writing: Playwriting I 1 credit; offered as a winter-spring consecutive course Designed for seniors interested in dramatic writing, this two-term elective focuses on the history and craft of playwriting. Composing monologues, dialogues, and a series of 10-minute plays, students learn about the unique demands of writing for performance. The first part of the course focuses on theater history; the second part focuses on contemporary play analysis. However, the main work of the class is the writing and workshopping of student plays. Theater excursions, a workshop with a professional playwright, and attendance at the Boston University Young Playwrights’ Festival supplement daily work. Quizzes, personal and analytical essays, and other assessments supplement the reading and dramatic writing. At the course’s end, students present a portfolio of their work.

Southern Literature 1 credit This course asks students to examine literature through a cultural lens as they focus on a specific region quite different from New England. Students read a number of texts that collectively embody the voice of the American South, one of the 20th century’s most influential regional groups. In particular, students focus on Southern Gothic literature, examining how these authors intensified their themes through the use of grotesque, violent, and shocking elements. Students study Flannery O’Connor’s A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories, Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury, and Toni Morrison’s Beloved.

Writing Workshop 1 credit; see first-trimester electives for a description of this course.

Third-Trimester Electives Contemporary Literature 1 credit This course asks students to read and analyze literature that has been written in the past 20 or so years. Students examine such complex and sensitive issues as coming-of-age, sexuality, sudden loss,

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death, abuse, terrorism, infidelity, and moral ambiguity. As we explore these texts and issues, we take a close look at how both family and community play a role in shaping who we are. Texts include Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones, and Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.

Experiential Writing 1 credit In this advanced writing-intensive course, students produce personal, creative, and journalistic pieces based on experience and observation. Weekly assignments ask students to engage in experiences in their communities—for example, cooking a meal with family members, visiting a hospital waiting room, or taking an extended ride on public transportation—and then to develop short essays inspired by those experiences. Supplementary reading assignments, including Dave Eggers’s A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, provide students with models of success for such pieces.

Ultimately, the course helps students develop attention to detail in their observations, respond creatively to experiences in the world, and continue their growth as writers.

Exploring Ethics: Language, Literature, and the Brain 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to the investigation of central ethical concepts: free will, duty, empathy, authority, virtue, and justice. Students are required to integrate disciplinary contributions from English, biology, and philosophy in order to fashion their own resolutions of some of the most important questions in ethical theory. What roles do empathy and imagination have in effective moral deliberation? How do contemporary developments in biology and neuroscience shape our notions of responsibility and humanity? How should one understand the relationship between morality and religious belief? Assessments consist of both personal and analytical responses, in addition to a culminating creative project.

Poetry and Poetics 1 credit This course focuses in tandem on reading the work of established poets and practicing techniques available in the writing of one’s own poetry. Students study and together analyze the work of a wide range of poets in order to gain familiarity with and appreciation of the craft and simultaneously begin to build their own portfolios of work. The technical aspects of poetry are stressed in both the reading and the writing, and a workshop format allows students to receive feedback on works in progress. An independent project focuses more intensively on the work of a selected poet. Students do not need previous experience as poets, and regardless of their level of comfort with this art form at the outset, leave the course more confident in their ability to read and write poetry effectively.

Senior Seminar in Writing: Playwriting II 1 credit, see second-trimester offerings for a description of this two-term course.

The Transcendentalists 1 credit This course offers an in-depth exploration of the lives and work of Emerson, Thoreau, Fuller, Alcott and some of the lesser-known voices of the movement that established Concord as the hub of American literature and thought in the 19th century. We begin by examining some of the Eastern texts and spiritual precepts that gave rise to Emerson’s notion of the Oversoul. After looking at his essays and poetry, we read excerpts from Thoreau’s Walden and also consider political applications of transcendentalism, using “Civil Disobedience” as a central text. In light of Bronson Alcott’s

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utopian vision, we consider the questions of how romantic ideals can or cannot be useful in a functioning society, how transcendentalist thought perpetuated America’s cultural drive toward selfimprovement and self-analysis, and how the exuberance of their vision and voice echoes still in our public speech, politics and literature. At least one field trip to Concord is included in the course.

Writing for Social Justice 1 credit In order to participate actively in our culture, we need to be informed—not just through our own reflection, but also by engaging with the worlds of others. Using a sampling of texts on a wide range of human issues, this course will help students to become better thinkers and writers, heightening our consciousness of the conflicts we face as citizens of a global world, including the unequal distribution of power. Readings include both fiction and nonfiction by writers such as Mohandas Gandhi, Nicholas Kristof, Anna Quindlen, and Gloria Steinem. Students are expected to complete at least one shorter piece of writing each week, but even more importantly, to investigate first-hand a social problem of their choosing that they attempt to transform with their writing. Rhetorician Catherine Lamb has lamented that, “As a culture, [Americans] learn more about how to repress or ignore conflict than how to live with and transform it.” This course treats conflicts as opportunities for personal and social transformation and is the perfect elective for students who believe that a more equitable world is possible and that their writing can help create it.

HISTORY Habits of mind, skills, and content are intimately linked in the study of history. The Rivers History Department encourages students to develop these habits to become good historians and citizens of the world. Certain skills allow the student to access material, others to manipulate it, and still others to communicate it clearly and persuasively. Knowledge of content allows for the use and reinforcement of important skills in meaningful contexts. Rivers history teachers believe that all students should develop a working knowledge of American, European, and World History. Students should have a working knowledge of world geography and an appreciation for the effect of geography on history. The study of history provides crucial perspective on the origins of the present, current events, civic participation, and an understanding of the triumphs and failures of previous human societies. The study of history is essential to facilitating a critical attitude about sources, evidence, and arguments.

Middle School The World and Water: Grade 6 In the sixth grade, the study of water combines English and social studies into one course. See full course description under English.

The World Through Story: Grade 7 In the seventh grade, Rivers combines English and social studies into one course. See full course description under English.

Human Rights and Global Issues: Grade 8 In the eighth grade, Human Rights and Global Issues combines English and social studies into one course. See full course description under English.

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Upper School Grade 9 Perspectives in World History 3 credits This course explores world history through several thematic units rather than a strictly chronological survey. Curricular units begin with a current events topic and then investigate the topic’s ancient and modern roots. Themes include: the relationship between the environment and human society, wealth, and poverty, the function of religion/ethics in human experience, violence and conflict, various forms of leadership and government, and social identity. In general, the course focuses on the history of the last 100 years in order to equip students as social and political citizens. Students confront various perspectives in order to explore and articulate their own principles and gain greater empathy for those of others. This course teaches the critical thinking, research, and writing skills necessary for success in the department’s advanced courses.

Honors Perspectives in World History 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This course covers the same material as the non-honors sections but moves at a faster pace and examines topics in greater depth through readings, assessments, and independent work. Primary sources and supplemental readings are integral parts of this course.

Grade 10 United States History 3 credits A graduation requirement, this survey course covers the period from European migration through the Cold War. Students continue their work with independent research, analysis of primary sources, and reading of supplemental materials. Successful completion of a research paper is required.

Honors United States History 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department The honors United States History course covers the same material as the non-honors course.

However, it moves at a faster pace and examines topics in greater depth through readings such as biographies, local studies, and historical fiction. Primary sources and supplemental articles are also part of the assignments. A research project is required.

AP United States History 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department Designed to be the equivalent of an introductory college-level course, students study United States history from the beginning of European exploration to the present. Critical thinking, primary source evaluation, and essay writing are emphasized. Students are required to take the AP exam in May. Grade 11 and 12 AP Modern European History 3 credits Prerequisites: Recommendation of the department Designed to be the equivalent of an introductory college-level course, students study European

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history from the Renaissance to the present. Critical thinking, primary source evaluation, and essaywriting skills are emphasized. Students are required to take the AP exam in May. AP United States Government and Politics 3 credits Prerequisites: Recommendation of the department. Open to seniors only.

This year-long course sets out to provide students with a foundational knowledge of the theoretical underpinnings and practical institutions of American government and politics, which allows them to understand and participate in the American democratic “experiment.” Through the study of a textbook, primary sources, and extensive archival and current news articles, the class learns about the U.S. Constitution, the workings and interaction among the three branches of the federal government, federalism, political parties, interest groups, the media, public policy, and civil rights and liberties. The course ends in the spring term by comparing the American model of government to other styles of democracy around the globe. Students are required to take the AP exam in May. First-Trimester Electives Big History I 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies Prerequisites: Students must sign up for both fall and winter trimesters of this two-trimester course.

Big History is a two-trimester course that seeks to study the past as a whole, considering the history of humans within the wider context of the history of the earth and the universe. The course begins with the Big Bang, the origins of stars and galaxies, the evolution of our sun and solar system, and then moves on to the origins of life on earth. While human history plays an important role in the story, humans are not encountered until well into the course, and when they do finally appear the course focuses on the key themes and turning points in human history suggested by this wider view: human origins, the agricultural revolution, and the industrial revolution. Ultimately students are asked to explore two critical questions in Big History: How did the Modern World—our world-come to be? and What does the future hold for humanity? by integrating ideas from the disciplines of astrophysics, chemistry, geology, biology, anthropology, and history.

Boston: Brahmins, Brogues, and Busing 1 credit The course examines the religious, economic, social, political, and artistic character of Boston from the arrival of the Puritans in the early 17th century to its revival as a modern metropolis in the late 20th century. Students consider Boston as the cradle of the American Revolution; a center of Yankee industrialization, merchant trade, and culture; a principal region in the Abolitionist movement and the Civil War; a perceived haven for immigrants; and the birthplace of numerous political lineages and controversies over race and ethnicity. Boston’s role in world history is emphasized along with its local and regional impact.

The Earth, Humans, and Environmental Policy 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies Although environmental history is a relatively new research field within the broader field of world history, the research of environmental historians has significantly changed our understanding of world history, providing new insights into many important historical periods and events. In this course students begin by using the discipline of Earth Science to explore the question “How does the Earth work?” This is followed up by a history unit driven by the question “How does the Earth work with humans around?” The last discipline introduced is Political Science, in a unit focusing on the question “How is public policy made?” The course concludes with a study of the current global

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warming debate, requiring students to integrate material from all three disciplines to create a public policy recommendation paper on the issue.

History of Art I: 20,000 B.C.E.–400 C.E. 1 credit. Cross-listed with the Art Department See course description in the Art section.

The Holocaust 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies This interdisciplinary course asks how it was possible for the Holocaust to occur, who were the perpetrators and the victims, what are the Holocaust’s lasting effects, and how the study of the Holocaust can help humanity to answer the call of “never again.” Students examine the many factors that led up to the Holocaust, including the history of antisemitism, the role of World War I, the Weimar Republic and World War II, the psychology behind the actions of both the perpetrators and the victims, and people’s interpretations of the Holocaust through art, literature, and music. We draw from the disciplines of history, science, psychology, music, and art. Resources may include readings, including primary source readings (testimonies and documents), literature, guest speakers, and films.

Honors Thesis in History 1 credit Prerequisites: Recommendation of the department. Open to seniors only.

The Honors Thesis in History is intended to be the capstone experience for Rivers’ most enthusiastic history students. Enrollment is open to any senior who desires to pursue historical study at a more advanced level and conduct research on a topic of his or her own choosing. Taught in the format of a college seminar, this course introduces students to advanced historical research methods in an effort to help them understand what “real historians” do and to put this knowledge to use in the production of a 15-20 page Honors Thesis. Course topics include an introduction to historiography, historical theory, and methodology; current historical debates such as the challenges of doing history in the digital age; and advanced research skills. Over the course of the trimester, students travel to a local university to visit an archive, explore historical primary sources first-hand, and meet with a professional historian. At the conclusion of the elective, students are required to share the results of their research either through teaching, blogging, publication, or some other acceptable public venue.

International Relations 1 credit This course uses the core tenets of International Relations as a discipline to examine current challenges confronting the international community. Students discuss diplomatic policy and its effects on the changing global landscape, and they analyze specific historical and contemporary situations to better understand global issues. To this aim, the role of the United States in world affairs in the 20th and 21st centuries and the rise of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) as new powers on the world’s political stage are discussed in depth. Students explore how these emerging states and major events have shifted the global balance of power as well as how these changes require new approaches in a multi-polar world. Current events anchor discussions of how domestic, regional, and global factors influence policymaking and relations between states.

Islam and the Modern World 1 credit This course assesses the nature of Islam in the 21st century by tracking its political and social development over the course of its existence. Students gain a greater understanding of how and why

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Muslims split into distinct sects throughout the religion’s history, and the role that Islam plays in the political, economic, and cultural spheres of modern Muslim-majority and non-majority states alike.

Through an examination of various sources, including Islamic leaders’ writings and Western media portrayals of the Muslim world, students investigate Islam’s relationship to terrorism, human rights, democratization, and economic growth in the 21st century. The term culminates with students researching and role-playing Islamic scholars’ predictions for Islam in the 21st century.

Modern India: The Unfinished Revolution 1 credit Who would have predicted in 1947, when India declared independence from the British Empire and took on the immense challenge of unifying its ethnic, linguistic, religious, and caste differences under one flag, that it would become the world’s largest and most vibrant democracy? Students explore India’s commitment to liberal values in society and government and the factors, including religious nationalism, socio-economic inequality, and political corruption that threaten that commitment. Through primary sources and current events, students track the continuing negotiation between tradition and modernity.

Modern Russia: Communism and Power 1 credit From the 1917 Revolution to the Cold War and beyond, Russia has been one of the major players in world affairs. In 2015, the nation stands on the brink of creating a new Cold War with the West and hopes to establish itself as a foil to the European Union. Certainly a modern Russian history course is as relevant today as it was fifty years ago during the heart of the Cold War. This course analyzes the history of Russia over the last century as well as the underlying issues that Russians have been grappling with since before the collapse of the Romanov Imperial State. Drawing from a variety of primary sources, students examine the establishment of the Soviet Union and follow its history until its collapse in 1991 after the failed reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev. Equal emphasis is given to postSoviet Russia as well as the Bolshevik experiment. From Nicolas I to Vladimir Putin, the course explores questions of government, nationalism, ethnic relations, economics, political dissent and everyday social experience.

Second-Trimester Electives Big History II 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies Department See course description under First-Trimester Electives.

Cities: The History of Metropolitan Culture 1 credit This course examines the urban tradition and the history of the development of cities. Students study various cities, among them Paris, New York, and Buenos Aires, to better understand the role metropolitan centers play in the development of identities, institutions, and relationships in society.

Moreover, investigating how cities have emerged and expanded is a central component of understanding the city in a historical context. Urban culture and identity in historical and modern cities are analyzed using various sources, including readings, maps, art, and architecture. The contribution of cities to contemporary society is assessed in parallel to the challenges cities face in the 21st century.

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Civil Rights in the United States 1 credit The Civil Rights movement is one of the most significant sources of social change in the United States. This course analyzes the structure and dynamics of the Civil Rights movement from the viewpoints of history, society, and politics. Students pay close attention to the roles of organizations, resources, leadership, recruitment, commitment, values, ideology, political culture, gender, and counter-movements. Students are given a number of readings, including articles and primary source documents. They also view a number of documentary and feature films.

Global Issues of the 21st Century 1 credit The world we live in seems to be shrinking as our ability to connect with cultures and societies around the globe eases. While living in one of the most developed nations, and one of the world’s greatest powers, we are both insulated from and faced with global crises of huge proportion.

Through the lens of increasing population and the various impacts this has on all global citizens, students focus on such issues as genocide, mass migration/displacement of large populations, terrorism, hunger, religious fundamentalism, climate change, nuclear proliferation, and natural disasters, to name a few. The goal is for students to deepen their understanding of what it means to be a global citizen. Does that mean we are responsible for problems in other countries, and what can we do to promote a safe and harmonious future for the citizens of the world? Exploring current events is a major component of this course, as well as assigned readings, various media resources, and research projects.

History of Art II: 400 C.E.–1500 C.E. 1 credit, co-listed with the Art Department. See course description in Art section.

Modern Africa: Beyond Colonialism 1 credit While it begins with an overview of European colonialism and its effects on the continent, this course moves beyond this conventional, single narrative to view the diverse history of Africa in world history. Students explore the major issues facing the continent today, such as disease, religious and resource conflicts and stable governance. Students are responsible for researching a particular nation or issue in contemporary Africa and presenting their work to the class and giving peer review to others.

Modern Vietnam: The Fight for Independence 1 credit The central question of this course is when and how Vietnam achieved political, economic, and cultural independence in the modern era. It begins with an examination of European colonial domination in the late 19th century and the subsequent war for national sovereignty that became swept up in the larger global struggle of the Cold War. Modern topics include the economic reforms of the 1980s, the end of diplomatic and economic isolation, liberalization of civil rights, and Vietnam’s relationship with an increasingly powerful China.

Pathogens, People, and Inequality 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies In the past 50 years, historians have written extensively about the impact of disease on human history, exploring its impact on cities, population groups, government policy, public health, and economics. There are few aspects of human culture and society that have not been touched by

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infectious disease, and from Old Testament plagues to more recent outbreaks like Ebola, infectious disease has impacted all periods of human history. In this course students use the disciplines of biology, history, and ethics to explore the impact of major disease pandemics on human societies.

Students begin by using biology to explore the nature of infectious diseases. Students then use history to do case studies of three major infectious diseases: plague, smallpox, and influenza. In the final unit of the course, students explore the discipline of ethics and then integrate biology, history, and ethics to explore the impact of infectious disease in the world today in a case study of HIV/AIDS. Surviving the Conquest: Aztecs and Mayas in Colonial Mexico 1 credit The “Great Encounter” between Europeans and indigenous Americans in 16th century Mexico brought together two worlds with an impact that was simultaneously cataclysmic and creative. While traditional historical narratives have tended to focus on the Spanish role in conquering the Aztecs and building a European civilization in the Americas, this course seeks to better understand the ways in which the indigenous peoples of Mexico responded to these events. Far from being passive victims of Spanish domination, Aztecs and Mayas exercised tremendous creativity in adapting to the changes initiated by the arrival of the Spanish. By exposing students to this alternative history of the Americas, it is hoped that they begin to develop a more nuanced and balanced understanding of this momentous event as well as a greater appreciation for the indigenous cultures of the Americas.

Third-Trimester Electives The Cost of War in the Nuclear Age 1 credit This course seeks to identify how warfare and its effects on society have changed since World War II. In particular, students explore the increased efficiency of non-state actors and local militias and the new challenges posed to conventional armies supported by industrial nation-states. By examining a range of conflicts and insurgencies from the Vietnam War to the Contras in Nicaragua, and looking at them through different perspectives, students are able to better understand the factors that shape a modern conflict, particularly those conflicts in the developing world. Even as we understand the changing nature of military strategies and tactics, equal focus is given to the impact of these conflicts on civilian culture and security.

Design for the Common Good 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies This community-based interdisciplinary course examines how one makes social change, focusing on systems that are in place to meet people’s basic human needs. Starting with identity and cultural competency work, students recognize their personal strengths and challenges related to social change, understand components necessary to make effective, sustainable change, and utilize systems thinking to deconstruct and analyze social issues. Students participate in weekly nonprofit internships and complete final research papers connecting their community internships with an analysis of the relevant social issue. Through readings, simulations, case studies, field trips, guest speakers and TED talks, the class investigates personal and systemic possibilities for social change.

Empires in History 1 credit The modern world is dominated by nation-states, but these are a relatively recent innovation in world history. The nation-state has replaced the empire, which, for much of the past 4,000 years,

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dominated the lives of the world’s people. In this course, students use the comparative method to explore some of the key issues raised by the long history of empires. These questions include: How are empires created? How do rulers establish their legitimacy? What mechanisms do rulers employ to control large populations with ethnic, linguistic, and geographic diversity? How do rulers use religion, art, and writing to maintain their power? Students explore these questions by focusing on three contemporary empires, which will rotate on a yearly basis.

History of Art III: 1900 C.E. – 2000 C.E. 1 credit, cross-listed with the Art Department. See course description in Art section.

History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict 1 credit At the crossroads of the ancient world, the lands of the Middle East became holy to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In modern times as well as in ancient times, the people of these lands have seen little peace and less stability. What factors account for the turbulent history of this region?

Students examine the ethnic, religious, economic, political, social, and demographic tensions that have contributed to the region’s many conflicts, particularly since the creation of Israel in 1948.

Related topics include the roles played by foreign intervention, Islamic revivalism, Zionism, PanArab nationalism, terrorism, and the politics of petroleum. Students keep journals, write book reviews, and create research papers on topics of their choice.

The History of Writing: Signs, Language, and Decipherment 1 credit Linguists define writing as “visible speech,” an attempt by humans to capture in concrete symbols their spoken languages. Writing is a behavior unique to humans, but it is a relatively recent human invention, having originated only about 3000 BCE in Sumeria. The practice of writing then expanded by means of independent invention in a small number of other locations around the world.

In this course, students explore this fascinating human practice by studying the basics of some of the world’s first writing systems, use the knowledge they gain to analyze the characteristics of writing systems in general, and study how scholars deciphered some of the world’s oldest writing systems.

Medieval Spain: An Age of Exchange among Jews, Christians, and Muslims 1 credit Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies The history of medieval Spain offers a unique opportunity to investigate fundamental questions about the role of religious identity in human experience. For eight centuries, from 700 to 1500 CE, significant populations of Muslims, Christians and Jews lived in close proximity on the peninsula.

Did medieval Spaniards of different faiths merely co-exist together, or did they experience an authentic multi-cultural society based on respect and cultural exchange? Evidence is drawn from a wide spectrum of sources, including political treaties and city market regulations, architectural structure and decoration, and battle epics, folk tales, and travel guides. In order to thoughtfully consider these questions, students use analytical skills and habits of mind from history, art history, and literary criticism. Throughout the course, class discussion considers the legacy of the medieval Spanish experience in current international relations among Christians, Jews and Muslims.

Modern Latin America: Emerging Independence 1 credit This course focuses on the creation of a distinct culture in the wake of independence from Spain and the recent birth of strong, independent economies within the cultural and political diversity of the region. Students discuss the complexities associated with the region’s varied racial and ethnic make-

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up, examine the area’s political development under the sphere of US hegemony, and investigate the rise of new regional powers. The course focuses on Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, and Peru. Topics concerning immigration, economic development, globalization, and domestic and transnational politics anchor the course.

Thanksgiving Undone: The Indian Experience in Pre-Revolutionary Massachusetts 1 credit The iconic image of Pilgrims and Indians sharing the first Thanksgiving meal in Plymouth, Mass., is indelibly etched in the American consciousness. But is this image a fitting symbol for IndianEuropean relations in the early years of the nation? “Thanksgiving Undone” seeks to deconstruct this American icon by telling an alternative history of Massachusetts, one that privileges the indigenous voice in an effort to understand the founding of our nation through the eyes of its first inhabitants.

Taking advantage of access to local historical sites and archives, students conduct first-hand historical research as they seek to reconstruct a more accurate image of the Indian experience in preRevolutionary Massachusetts.

INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES Exemplifying the belief that excellence in high school education need not be constrained by a traditional academic curriculum, the interdisciplinary studies department is founded on the principle that a complete high school education must aspire to an exploration of the significant connections between academic subjects. While such interdisciplinary engagement has always been important as an intellectual pursuit in its own right, there is growing evidence that in a rapidly changing, globalized environment, aptitude for and confidence with intellectual and creative synthesis are increasingly vital qualities for successful graduates.

As ‘excellence’ provides the rationale for this innovative department, ‘humanity’ constitutes the department’s fundamental content: a full appreciation of the richness and value of our shared humanity involves a creative and rigorous examination of the relationships between our arts, histories, sciences, mathematics, languages and literatures. Examples of the kinds of questions explored in departmental courses follow: How is our understanding of human history affected by seeing it in the context of the scientific study of the universe as a whole? How do medieval cosmology and ancient philosophy influence the poet Dante in imagining his Inferno? What is the most just and effective method for allocating medical resources in large-scale public health emergencies?

While interdisciplinary courses should and will vary widely in terms of delivery style, subject matter, and teaching faculty, it is in its creative fostering of these qualities and this content that each interdisciplinary course finds its deepest educational rationale.

First-Trimester Electives Adaptation 1 credit. Cross-listed with English In this course, students take an interdisciplinary approach to the study of textual adaptation.

Exploring diverse content ranging from literature and film to science and philosophy, the class examines the ways in which texts and ideas are adapted across different genres, mediums, contexts, and disciplines. Topics may include the following: Malcolm Gladwell’s What the Dog Saw; the media response to the Matthew Shepard murder and The Laramie Project; Heart of Darkness and Catalog of Courses  THE RIVERS SCHOOL

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Apocalypse Now; the theory of relativity, Einstein’s Dreams, and Interstellar; and the story of the Fall in The Bible, Paradise Lost, and artwork. As they seek to understand the ways in which ideas become reworked and reborn in new forms, students are expected to draw upon thinking and writing skills from a variety of disciplines. Guest speakers from other academic departments supplement daily reading and discussion. The course culminates in final projects in which students create and present an original adaptation of a text or idea of their choosing.

Big History I 1 credit. Cross-listed with History Prerequisites: Students must sign up for both fall and winter trimesters of this two-trimester course.

Big History is a two-trimester course that seeks to study the past as a whole, considering the history of humans within the wider context of the history of the earth and the universe. The course begins with the Big Bang, the origins of stars and galaxies, the evolution of our sun and solar system, and then moves on to the origins of life on earth. While human history plays an important role in the story, humans are not encountered until well into the course, and when they do finally appear the course focuses on the key themes and turning points in human history suggested by this wider view: human origins, the agricultural revolution, and the industrial revolution. Ultimately students are asked to explore two critical questions in Big History: How did the Modern World—our world-come to be? and What does the future hold for humanity? by integrating ideas from the disciplines of astrophysics, chemistry, geology, biology, anthropology, and history.

The Earth, Humans, and Environmental Policy 1 credit. Cross-listed with History Although environmental history is a relatively new research field within the broader field of world history, the research of environmental historians has significantly changed our understanding of world history, providing new insights into many important historical periods and events. In this course students begin by using the discipline of Earth Science to explore the question “How does the Earth work?” This is followed up by a history unit driven by the question “How does the Earth work with humans around?” The last discipline introduced is Political Science, in a unit focusing on the question “How is public policy made?” The course concludes with a study of the current global warming debate, requiring students to integrate material from all three disciplines to create a public policy recommendation paper on the issue.

The Holocaust 1 credit. Cross-listed with History This interdisciplinary course asks how it was possible for the Holocaust to occur, who were the perpetrators and the victims, what are the Holocaust’s lasting effects, and how the study of the Holocaust can help humanity to answer the call of ‘never again’. Students examine the many factors that led up to the Holocaust, including the history of antisemitism, the role of World War I, the Weimar Republic, and World War II, the psychology behind the actions of both the perpetrators and the victims, and people’s interpretations of the Holocaust through art, literature and music. We draw from the disciplines of history, science, psychology, music and art. Resources may include readings, including primary source readings (testimonies and documents), literature, guest speakers, and films.

Technology & Humanity (Not offered in 2015-16) 1 credit. Cross-listed with Science What does it mean to be alive? What does it mean to be human? In this course, students look at the answers to these questions from perspectives in biology, social science, philosophy, and computer science. The class uses those perspectives to consider how closely computers and robots currently

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come to being ‘alive’ and functionally equivalent to humans. To experience this relationship firsthand, students complete labs in computer programming and robotics. The class also analyzes how modern technology is redefining what it means to communicate and have a relationship. The course concludes with an investigation of how we can and should control the role and impact of technology in our lives. Students are assessed through papers, in-class essays, lab reports, quizzes, and a final test that covers the history of technology.

Second-Trimester Electives Big History II 1 credit. Cross-listed with History Prerequisites: Students must sign up for both fall and winter trimesters of this two-trimester course.

See course description under First-Trimester Electives.

Dante’s Divine Comedy 1 credit. Cross-listed with Language The Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri’s literary masterpiece written at the beginning of the fourteenth century, stands at the secular and religious crossroads of medieval Europe and renaissance Italy.

Dante’s epic poem is a universal tale of personal crisis and spiritual fulfillment. Dante the pilgrim journeys through hell, purgatory, and heaven to learn first-hand what happens to those who love wrongly, and by doing so he comes to understand how and whom to love rightly. Dante the author weaves the cloth of ethics, philosophy, politics, science, art, and religion into the seamless vision of his magnum opus. Students taking this interdisciplinary course concentrate on the first leg of the pilgrim’s spiritual journey, the Inferno. Daily readings are supplemented by guest lecturers from the fields of history, science, philosophy, and art, and the course culminates in a final project in which students demonstrate their understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of the poem.

The Enlightenment 1 credit. Cross-listed with English This interdisciplinary course makes use of visiting experts from different Rivers departments to consider how the Enlightenment changed how we look at the world and humanity’s place in it. In the course of grappling with these questions, we address the following figures and topics: Galileo, Newton, and the scientific revolution; Hume, Voltaire, and the critique of dogmatism; Lessing on religious tolerance; and Paine, Jefferson, and political liberalism. Students then examine critiques of the Enlightenment, including Romanticism, globalization, and postmodernism. We conclude by considering the Enlightenment’s contemporary relevance, in particular the notions of truth, rationality, and relativism.

Financial Investment Analysis 1 credit. Cross-listed with Mathematics This interdisciplinary course introduces students to the structure, purpose and return profiles of basic investment categories. Through a variety of written materials, including cases studies and lectures given by guest speakers with expertise in a particular investment area, students explore the following questions: What are the distinguishing features of each type of investment? What role do they play in our economy and society? Can historical trends and evidence be used to predict investment behavior and returns? How is mathematical modeling used to assess investments? What impact do current events, legislation and individual vision have on the success of a particular investment? Students explore actual investment decisions by debating case studies and preparing written analysis of investments. They conclude the course with a formal presentation arguing in favor of an investment of their choice.

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Pathogens, People, and Inequality 1 credit. Cross-listed with History In the past 50 years, historians have written extensively about the impact of disease on human history, exploring its impact on cities, population groups, government policy, public health, and economics. There are few aspects of human culture and society that have not been touched by infectious disease, and from Old Testament plagues to more recent outbreaks like Ebola, infectious disease has impacted all periods of human history. In this course students use the disciplines of biology, history, and ethics to explore the impact of major disease pandemics on human societies.

Students begin by using biology to explore the nature of infectious diseases. Students then use history to do case studies of three major infectious diseases: plague, smallpox, and influenza. In the final unit of the course, students explore the discipline of ethics and then integrate biology, history, and ethics to explore the impact of infectious disease in the world today in a case study of HIV/AIDS. Third-Trimester Electives Design for the Common Good 1 credit. Cross-listed with History This community-based interdisciplinary course examines how one makes social change, focusing on systems that are in place to meet people’s basic human needs. Starting with identity and cultural competency work, students recognize their personal strengths and challenges related to social change, understand components necessary to make effective, sustainable change, and utilize systems thinking to deconstruct and analyze social issues.

Students participate in weekly nonprofit internships and complete final research papers connecting their community internships with an analysis of the relevant social issue. Through readings, simulations, case studies, field trips, guest speakers and TED talks, the class investigates personal and systemic possibilities for social change.

Exploring Ethics: Language, Literature, and the Brain 1 credit. Cross-listed with English This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to the investigation of central ethical concepts: free will, duty, empathy, authority, virtue, and justice. Students are required to integrate disciplinary contributions from English, biology, and philosophy in order to fashion their own resolutions of some of the most important questions in ethical theory. What role do empathy and imagination have in effective moral deliberation? How do contemporary developments in biology and neuroscience shape our notions of responsibility and humanity? How should one understand the relation between morality and religious belief? Assessments consist of both personal and analytical responses, together with a culminating creative project.

Medieval Spain: An Age of Exchange among Jews, Christians, and Muslims 1 credit. Cross-listed with History The history of medieval Spain offers a unique opportunity to investigate fundamental questions about the role of religious identity in human experience. For eight centuries, from 700 to 1500 CE, significant populations of Muslims, Christians and Jews lived in close proximity on the peninsula.

Did medieval Spaniards of different faiths merely co-exist together, or did they experience an authentic multi-cultural society based on respect and cultural exchange? Evidence is drawn from a wide spectrum of sources, including political treaties and city market regulations, architectural structure and decoration, and battle epics, folk tales, and travel guides. In order to thoughtfully consider these questions, students use analytical skills and habits of mind from history, art history, Catalog of Courses ď‚&#x; THE RIVERS SCHOOL

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and literary criticism. Throughout the course, class discussion considers the legacy of the medieval Spanish experience in current international relations among Christians, Jews and Muslims.

NEW: Summer Elective Cádiz: At the Intersection of History and Contemporary Spain 1 credit. Cross-listed with Language This course is an opportunity for advanced and highly motivated Rivers language students to immerse themselves in the language and life of Spain by living with Spanish families and studying both in and outside of the traditional classroom setting. While in Cádiz students attend daily classes taught by teachers who are native to Spain and travel with Rivers Language faculty to sites of pivotal significance in the evolution of contemporary culture. Field classes are designed to connect directly to students’ Rivers classes in the winter and spring prior to departure and to their morning and afternoon classes while in Cádiz. Students explore history, religion, architecture and art and consider the confluence of time, place and culture as they have created our present day world. Work and learning in Spain are intensive and take place day 7 days a week. All work is conducted entirely in Spanish. This program culminates in a capstone paper or project designed by the student in which the student further examines one aspect of culture or history from view of multiple academic disciplines.

Criteria for selection for this program are demonstrated academic commitment, demonstrated effort and enthusiasm in the classroom, maturity and reliability as demonstrated in the student’s interactions at Rivers, ability to function in Spanish at an advanced intermediate level, and personal essays. Sophomores and juniors selected for the program commit to weekly preparation classes beginning in late January until departure for Cádiz in mid June.

Students participating in Cádiz: At the Intersection of History and Contemporary Spain are strongly encouraged to request the spring trimester elective Medieval Spain: An Age of Exchange among Jews, Christians, and Muslims, which will complement their work in Cádiz.

LANGUAGE As a student progresses in the Rivers language program, the student moves from a structured, guided environment to an environment in which he or she is expected to demonstrate independence, initiative, and leadership in learning. Methodologies intend to balance the changing needs of the maturing student and the specific linguistic objectives of each level in order to achieve communicative and cultural fluency. All Rivers language students are expected to take responsibility for their learning and to seek connections between their work in the classroom and the world beyond. Although the graduation requirement stipulates that a student successfully completes at least two years of foreign language study in the Upper School, we encourage students to pursue as many years of foreign language study as their talent, interest, and course loads allow. Students are invited, wherever possible, to expand their foreign language experience to include a combination of the department’s offerings. A student who completes a course with a grade of C- or below should not advance without extensive summer work and approval of the department chair. All language courses are offered contingent upon minimum enrollment.

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CLASSICAL LANGUAGE The Latin curriculum strives to develop a conscious awareness of the debt of knowledge that we and other Western societies owe to the civilization of the Romans. By studying the language, literature, history and philosophy of this complex civilization, we believe that our students improve in the analytical skills so necessary the 21st century. Courses are designed to explore both the practical and philosophical wisdom inherent within the study of Latin.

LATIN Grade 6 Latin 6 All 6th grade students are required to tale Latin 6. This course uses the Cambridge Latin Course, Unit I, a text that offers a flexible, dynamic approach to studying Latin. From the outset, students work toward developing a basic reading knowledge of the language. By reading stories set in Pompeii, 79 AD, the Roman world is presented in a coherent and credible fashion. Students acquire translation skills and a solid introduction to the culture and customs of the Romans. They are exposed to basic forms and grammatical constructions, and to the grammatical forms and syntactical clauses common to both English and Latin. Vocabulary and derivative skills are emphasized throughout this course.

Concepts presented in the sixth grade humanities course, The World and Water, are reinforced in the Beginning Latin class. Exploration of the Roman aqueduct system and water management, and the way water figures into Greek and Roman stories and myths, are also focuses of the class.

Grade 7 Latin 7 Prerequisite: Middle School Latin 6 Continuing with the Cambridge Latin Course, Unit II, students learn the remaining noun declensions, all active forms of the indicative verb system, prepositions, adjectives, demonstrative and relative pronouns, and present participles. Students continue to read stories that present the Roman world as a coherent whole by using historical characters set in believable, everyday situations. The series focuses on life in Roman Britain and Alexandria.

Grade 8 Latin 8 Prerequisite: Middle School Latin 7 Continuing with the Cambridge Latin Course, Unit III, students continue their study of Latin grammar. Topics include the present active and perfect passive participles, degrees of adjectives and adverbs, complex sentences with dependent clauses, and the forms and uses of the subjunctive mood of verbs. In addition, students work on sight-reading skills and identification of forms in a Latin sentence. The series focuses on life in Roman Britain, the process of Romanization, the Roman Army, and travel and communication in the Roman Empire. Completion of the Middle School Latin program is the equivalent of Latin I. Grades 9 and 10 Latin I 3 credits Using Wheelock’s Latin textbook, students learn the five noun declensions, six verb tenses, active and passive voice, and uses of the present infinitive and imperative moods. In addition to grammar and syntax, the course introduces the mythology of the Roman gods, creation myths, and the role of heroes. The daily life of Romans as it relates to childhood, education, marriage, slavery, and games is also studied.

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Latin II 3 credits Prerequisites: Latin I or Middle School Advanced Latin and recommendation of the department This course continues the student’s grammatical and syntactical introduction to the Latin language.

Continuing with Wheelock’s Latin students are provided with a gradual transition toward more complex Latin syntax. In this course, through readings and project-based reports, students study the history of the Roman Republic. Cultural topics include daily life in ancient Rome.

Honors Latin II 3 credits Prerequisites: Latin I or Middle School Intermediate and Advanced Latin and recommendation of the department In this accelerated course, students are taught via the traditional grammar translation method and complete all of the major grammatical and syntactical constructions found in Latin. During the spring term, students begin reading original Latin authors to continue on the honors track and better prepare for the AP Latin curriculum. The text for this course is Wheelock’s Latin. Students also study the history of the late Roman Republic.

Grades 10 and 11 Latin III 3 credits Prerequisites: Latin II and recommendation of the department After completion of all major grammatical constructions, students concentrate on improving their reading skills. Through a variety of texts, students gain the ability to transition into reading original Latin authors from different literary genres. Students also study and complete projects based upon the history of the early Roman Empire.

Honors Latin III 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Latin II and recommendation of the department In this accelerated course, students study original Latin authors by reading and analyzing the writings of Cicero, Caesar, and Vergil. By the end of this course, students can consider taking the SAT Subject Test in Latin. Students also study the political period of the last century of the Roman Republic and the first century of the Roman Empire. Successful completion of this course prepares students to begin the AP curriculum offered in Latin IV. Grades 11 and 12 Latin IV 3 credits Prerequisites: Latin III and recommendation of the department Students continue to refine their ability to read original Latin texts, including the selected works of Vergil, Ovid, Seneca, and Aesop. Students are also engaged in the process of analyzing the politics of the late Roman Republic and early empire and its effects on Roman literature. In addition, students explore the ethical and moral questions posed by Seneca’s letters and the fables of Aesop, and they produce projects on Greek and Roman philosophy.

Advanced Placement Latin IV 3 credits

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Prerequisites: Honors Latin III and the recommendation of the department Students read Vergil’s epic poem The Aeneid. Approximately 800 lines are read in Latin from Books 1, 2, 4, and 6. The remainder of those four books, along with all of Books 8 and 12, are read in English translation. Students analyze the poem in its literary, cultural, and historical context. In addition, students will spend time reviewing selections from Caesar’s Gallic Wars that were read in Latin III Honors. The following themes will be stressed: War and Empire, Leadership, Views on Non-Romans, History, and Memory, Human Being, and the Gods. Students considering this course should show a strong capacity for language acquisition and commit to a demanding course of study at a fast pace. Students are required to sit for the AP examination in May. Grade 12 Honors Latin V 3 credits Prerequisites: AP Latin IV or Latin IV and recommendation of the department Honors Latin V builds upon the curriculum begun in the Latin IV Advanced Placement course.

Students read selected works from the Roman authors: Catullus, Ovid, Horace and Vergil. The literary genres of lyric, epic, and national poetry are studied. Students considering this course should show a strong capacity for language acquisition and should commit to a demanding, fast-paced course of study.

Second-Trimester Electives Dante’s Divine Comedy 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies Department The Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri’s literary masterpiece written at the beginning of the fourteenth century, stands at the secular and religious crossroads of medieval Europe and renaissance Italy.

Dante’s epic poem is a universal tale of personal crisis and spiritual fulfillment. Dante the pilgrim journeys through hell, purgatory, and heaven to learn first-hand what happens to those who love wrongly, and by doing so he comes to understand how and whom to love rightly. Dante the author weaves the cloth of ethics, philosophy, politics, science, art, and religion into the seamless vision of his magnum opus. Students taking this interdisciplinary course concentrate on the first leg of the pilgrim’s spiritual journey, the Inferno. Daily readings are supplemented by guest lecturers from the fields of history, science, philosophy, and art, and the course culminates in a final project in which students demonstrate their understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of the poem.

MODERN LANGUAGE The ultimate goal of the Rivers Modern Language program is to prepare students for life in a world in which fluency in other languages provides both opportunity and cultural richness. The objective of each level of the Modern Language experience at Rivers is proficiency in the five linguistic competencies: speaking, listening, writing, reading, and socio-linguistic competency, with immersion in the target language as our guiding philosophy. Courses are designed to provide students with structure and varied authentic exercises in order to build proficiency in receptive and productive language. Strong mechanical and technical skills provide a sound foundation for functional, precise, and creative expression. Each level targets specific skills in addition to the practice and refinement of skills achieved in previous levels.

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FRENCH Grades 7 and 8 French I This introduction to French uses proficiency-oriented materials. Emphasis is on communicative competency with the goal of developing a strong foundation in the skills necessary to understand, speak, write, and read in French. A strong grammatical foundation is balanced with varied and frequent opportunities to hone communicative proficiencies. A wide range of evaluations is used to measure student performance. Classes are conducted primarily in French. Level 1 French is offered contingent upon minimum enrollment. The goal of this program is to prepare students for Honors French II in Grade 9.

Grades 9–11 Honors French II 3 credits Prerequisites: French I and recommendation of the department Students enrolling in this course need to show a strong capacity for language acquisition in order to be comfortable speaking, reading, and writing exclusively in French at the pace and level of detail required in this course. Introduction to cultural perspectives of the French-speaking world via video materials and readings on current events supplement and broaden students’ knowledge of French language, customs, and cultures.

Grades 10–11 Honors French III 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors French II and recommendation of the department This section covers third-year material at a fast pace and in sophisticated detail. Students enrolling in this course need to show a strong capacity for language acquisition in order to be comfortable speaking, reading, and writing exclusively in French.

Grades 11 and 12 Honors French IV 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors French III and recommendation of the department This course builds upon the work students have completed through Honors French III and initiates a two-year sequence of preparation for the French Language AP exam. After an intensive review of all major aspects of grammar, students read works by a variety of authors from around the Frenchspeaking world. Readings mirror those covered in the French IV section, but more extensive discussion and analysis are expected in this course, as is a greater sophistication of expression via creative vocabulary and precise syntax. A high degree of comfort with the language is expected, since all activities and exercises are conducted in French. Students enrolled in this course commit to a rigorous course of study and are expected to move forward on the honors track to AP French V. French IV/V 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Level III French and recommendation of the department This course uses French film and selected readings to further develop students’ oral and written proficiency, particularly in the more colloquial style found in many informal day-to-day interactions among native speakers. Through a detailed examination of each film, including its broader social context and historical background, the course challenges students to increase their awareness of the

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complex interaction of language and culture, further refine their grasp of French grammar, and enrich their vocabulary with a variety of new conversational skills and techniques. Serious emphasis is placed on independent, student-driven analysis, research, and presentations with the ultimate goal of building confidence in all skill areas. An overarching goal of the course is to provide students with a fun, supportive environment for linguistic experimentation, informed risk-taking, and personal growth.

AP French Language and Culture V 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors French IV and recommendation of the department This course is the culmination of the students’ work on the honors track. Students continue to prepare for the French Language AP exam. Students commit to a rigorous course of study paced at the collegiate level. A high degree of sophisticated analysis is expected. Activities and exercises are conducted entirely in French. Students are required to take the AP exam in May. SPANISH Grades 7 and 8 Spanish I This introduction to Spanish uses proficiency-oriented materials. Emphasis is on communicative competency with the goal of developing a strong foundation in the skills necessary to understand, speak, write, and read in Spanish. A strong grammatical foundation is balanced with varied and frequent opportunities to hone communicative proficiencies. A wide range of evaluations is used to measure student performance. Classes are conducted primarily in Spanish.

Grades 9 and 10 Spanish I 3 credits See description above.

Grades 9–11 Spanish II 3 credits Prerequisite: Spanish I This course continues to expand upon the skills introduced in Spanish I. Students are encouraged to think more idiomatically and to express themselves in Spanish with more creativity and precision.

Vocabulary study is more extensive, as are reading and writing assignments. Oral and written projects are required. Classes are conducted in Spanish.

Honors Spanish II 3 credits Prerequisites: Spanish I and recommendation of the department This section covers second-year material at a faster pace and in more sophisticated detail than in the regular sections. Students need to show a strong capacity for language acquisition in order to be comfortable speaking, reading, and writing exclusively in Spanish. Students in this section are expected to move forward on the honors track in subsequent years with a final goal of mastering the AP curriculum.

Grades 10–12 Spanish III

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3 credits Prerequisites: Spanish II and recommendation of the department This course further develops skills introduced in Spanish I and II. Advanced grammatical forms are studied with an emphasis on correctness of both oral and written expression. Readings are chosen from the works of Hispanic authors. Vocabulary, organized around thematic units, forms the basis of class discussion, presentations, and debate as students are encouraged to relate thematic units to their own lives. Course requirements include oral projects and papers written in Spanish. Classes are conducted in Spanish.

Honors Spanish III 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Spanish II and recommendation of the department This section covers third-year material at a faster pace and in more sophisticated detail than the regular sections. Students need to show a strong capacity for language acquisition and a commitment to working at a fast pace. Emphasis on advanced grammar and vocabulary development aid the student in communicating in both written and oral form with creativity and precision. Students in this section are expected to move forward on the honors track in subsequent years with the final goal of mastering the AP curriculum.

Spanish IV 3 credits Prerequisites: Spanish III and recommendation of the department This course is designed for serious students of Spanish. A review of all major aspects of grammar, readings from works by a variety of authors from around the Spanish-speaking world, and vocabulary presented in thematic units are springboards for increasing communicative proficiencies.

Readings and discussions of current events supplement and broaden the student’s language experience. Oral projects and individual research refine vocabulary and grammar usage and expose students to cultures surrounding the language. All classroom activities are conducted in Spanish.

Honors Spanish IV 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Spanish III and recommendation of the department This course continues the work students have done in Honors Spanish III. An intensive review of all major aspects of grammar aids students in speaking and writing with precision. Great attention is paid to the development of a broad and rich vocabulary and the application of this vocabulary to communicative and writing exercises in a variety of contexts. Students read a variety of authentic source materials in Spanish. A high degree of comfort with the language is expected, as is the capacity to process and produce language with speed and accuracy. Students are expected to use Spanish exclusively in class and to look for ways to extend the use of Spanish beyond class. Students in this section are expected move forward on the honors track to AP Spanish V. Spanish V 3 credits Prerequisites: Spanish IV and recommendation of the department This course concludes the student’s high school experience in Spanish. Building on the work done in previous levels, students read a variety of authentic materials in Spanish. Readings are arranged thematically and serve as points of departure for class discussions, debates, presentations, and essays. Readings and conversations on current events supplement the study of literature. Grammar and vocabulary are refined with the goal of creative and precise expression in Spanish. All activities

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are conducted entirely in Spanish.

AP Spanish Language V 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Spanish IV and recommendation of the department This course concludes the student’s work on the honors track. Students continue to hone skills and to prepare for the AP Spanish Language exam. Students taking this class need to commit to a rigorous course of study paced at the collegiate level. Students are required to take the AP exam in May. Honors Spanish Literature 3 credits This course is designed for students, grades 9-12, for whom Spanish is a first language. In this class students focus on the learning of grammar and vocabulary through the analysis and discussion of various literary works originating from several different Spanish-speaking countries. The purpose of this course is to give students more opportunities to speak, read, and write in their mother tongue while providing them with cultural and historical insights of the Spanish-speaking world. Students may take this course multiple years as the curriculum is different each year. This course is conducted entirely in Spanish.

NEW Elective: Cádiz: At the Intersection of History and Contemporary Spain 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies This course is an opportunity for advanced and highly motivated Rivers language students to immerse themselves in the language and life of Spain by living with Spanish families and studying both in and outside of the traditional classroom setting. While in Cádiz students attend daily classes taught by teachers who are native to Spain and travel with Rivers Language faculty to sites of pivotal significance in the evolution of contemporary culture. Field classes are designed to connect directly to students’ Rivers classes in the winter and spring prior to departure and to their morning and afternoon classes while in Cádiz. Students explore history, religion, architecture and art and consider the confluence of time, place and culture as they have created our present day world. Work and learning in Spain are intensive and take place day 7 days a week. All work is conducted entirely in Spanish. This program culminates in a capstone paper or project designed by the student in which the student further examines one aspect of culture or history from view of multiple academic disciplines.

Criteria for selection for this program are demonstrated academic commitment, demonstrated effort and enthusiasm in the classroom, maturity and reliability as demonstrated in the student’s interactions at Rivers, ability to function in Spanish at an advanced intermediate level, and personal essays. Sophomores and juniors selected for the program commit to weekly preparation classes beginning in late January until departure for Cádiz in mid June.

Students participating in Cádiz: At the Intersection of History and Contemporary Spain are strongly encouraged to request the spring trimester elective Medieval Spain: An Age of Exchange among Jews, Christians, and Muslims, which will complement their work in Cádiz.

CHINESE Grade 9 Chinese I 3 credits Prerequisite: Permission of the department This course provides students with the basic tools for speaking, reading, writing, and understanding

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Mandarin Chinese (also known as Modern Standard Chinese or putonghua). The language is approached from several angles. First, students familiarize themselves with Pinyin Romanization, a system of phonetic transcription. Character recognition, writing, and typing are then gradually introduced as students become increasingly familiar with Chinese pronunciation and intonation.

Lastly, these two approaches are combined with thematic vocabulary and key grammatical building blocks to promote communication and self-expression across a variety of language scenarios. The course places a major emphasis on constant interaction between students in the form of conversations, discussions, games, and contests.

Grade 10 Chinese II 3 credits Prerequisite: Chinese I The primary objective of this course is to build upon the conceptual foundations established in the introductory course. Previously studied content is reviewed and applied to new contexts and language situations; the grammar, vocabulary, characters, and pronunciation skills acquired in the first-year course are developed and broadened through the introduction of new topics, themes, and materials drawn from a variety of sources. Special emphasis is placed on pronunciation, recognizing and typing characters without the crutch of Pinyin, and the use of more grammatically sophisticated sentences in both speech and writing. A major theme of the year is the analysis of an increasing number of unfamiliar (drawn from outside the textbook) readings, audio recordings, and film excerpts to better prepare students for unscripted communication with native speakers.

Grade 11 Chinese III 3 credits Prerequisite: Chinese II The third year course takes a holistic approach to the development of the four essential skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing (typing), encouraging students to view the language as an assemblage of interconnected elements (characters, grammar, syntax, vocabulary, etc.) rather than discrete skill areas. Coursework is designed to prompt frequent transitions between these different elements, and skills from each of these areas are often required in the course of a single integrative assignment (i.e. researching a specific topic, composing a short written response, presenting it to the class, and responding to questions from other students). In-class discussion and interaction between students in a variety of language contexts are of paramount importance to the course, and students are asked to explore, analyze, and engage in debate over topics that demand both sophisticated forms of self-expression and the articulation of increasingly complex ideas and opinions.

Grade 12 Honors Chinese IV 3 credits Prerequisite: Chinese III This course is conducted almost exclusively in the target language; students are expected and encouraged to express themselves without relying on English. The course relies heavily on authentic materials to supplement textbook content. Assignments require a greater degree of creativity, initiative, and organization that is considerably more complex than those of a standard fourth-year class. Finally, greater emphasis is placed on student-to-student and group interaction in the classroom and through other mediums of communication (email, online text/video chat, and telephone).

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MATHEMATICS The mathematics curriculum is designed to teach literacy and competency in mathematical concepts and related problem-solving strategies. Teachers expect students to take ownership of their own learning, emphasizing the needs for effort, perseverance, self-discipline, active participation, and ability. Whenever possible, students investigate problems in multiple ways: numerically, algebraically, graphically, and verbally. Many real-world examples are used, with emphasis placed on interpreting the solutions in context. Students are encouraged to study mathematics throughout their careers at Rivers.

Middle School Grade 6 Pre-Algebra 6 The Pre-Algebra 6 course begins students’ formal preparation for algebra. The program helps students gain mastery of computation and estimation through various small group problem-solving activities and independent skills practice. The course develops students’ thinking in the key mathematical processes of counting, visualizing, comparing, estimating, measuring, modeling, reasoning, connecting, representing, and using tools. Among the topics covered are factors, multiples, fractions, decimals, percents, ratios, proportions, Cartesian coordinates, area, perimeter, volume, and data analysis. Emphasis is placed on real-life applications, often involving multiple step word problems that require students to apply what they have learned to new situations. During the year, the Pre-Algebra 6 course is integrated with the sixth grade science (Earth Science) and Humanities (The World and Water) courses through projects.

Grade 7 Pre-Algebra 7 This course continues students’ preparation for algebra and is designed to address four main topics: number theory, statistics, geometry, and basic algebra skills. In number theory, students explore the number system through the use of patterns, fractions, decimals, and percents. The statistics unit examines probability, data collection, data presentation, and decision-making. The geometry unit investigates properties and patterns of geometric shapes and theories. Students are exposed to methods and skills of manipulating symbolic representations. This course uses activities, labs, games, and projects to help students comprehend and master the concepts covered.

Grade 8 Algebra I Prerequisite: Pre-Algebra This course includes the study of signed numbers, operations with literal expressions, factoring, fractions, linear equations and systems, fractional equations, radicals, quadratic and exponential equations, and their applications to problems. Students are expected to achieve proficiency with the basic techniques of factoring and simplifying expressions. The ideas and rules of algebra learned in this course form the foundation for much of high school math and science.

Honors Algebra I Prerequisites: Pre-Algebra and recommendation of the department Honors students study all topics from Algebra I in addition to more difficult ideas and techniques.

Students derive formulas, clearly explain the advantages of different problem-solving strategies, and study more topics than are covered in Algebra I.

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Upper School Geometry 3 credits This course covers properties and relationships of two- and three-dimensional objects including 1) points, lines, angles, and planes; 2) triangles, including right triangle trigonometry, quadrilaterals, and other polygons, including composite polygons; 3) circles; and 4) solids. Deductive and inductive reasoning are stressed as methods of investigating properties and relationships between figures and means of drawing conclusions. Students learn to construct formal proofs and algebra skills are regularly integrated into the problem-solving.

Honors Geometry 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This rigorous course is for students of demonstrated ability who have the strong desire and capability to learn and work independently and to think creatively. The entire content of Geometry is completed in more depth and with greater rigor. Constructing logical arguments, especially through formal proof, is a mainstay of the course. Additionally, algebra skills are reviewed and developed, with particular emphasis on solving equations, factoring, systems, and coordinate geometry.

Algebra II 3 credits This course reinforces and extends the concepts and methods covered in Algebra I, including fundamental mathematical properties, solving single variable equations, applications of linear equations and their graphs, and factoring techniques. The course reviews and enhances student skills and understanding of solving systems of equations, inequalities, and systems of inequalities. New topics include the study of quadratic, logarithmic, polynomial, exponential, radical, and rational functions. Students are instructed in the use of either a Texas Instruments NSpire CAS handheld graphing calculator or other online graphing apps. They use these tools to explore and investigate concepts, learning about the behavior of the different families of functions, in addition to modeling and data analysis.

Advanced Algebra II 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This course reviews and extends the concepts and methods covered in Algebra I while introducing the concept of a function. The course reviews and enhances student skills and understanding of solving equations and inequalities, linear functions, and linear systems. New topics include the study of piecewise, absolute value, quadratic, logarithmic, polynomial, exponential, radical, and rational functions. The course builds strong skills in working with exponents, radical expressions, complex numbers, and logarithms. Students are instructed in the use of a Texas Instruments NSpire CAS handheld graphing calculator and other online graphing apps. They use these tools to explore and investigate concepts, learning about and modeling the behavior of the different families of functions.

Honors Algebra II 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This rigorous course is intended for students of demonstrated ability who have the desire and capability to learn independently and to think creatively. The entire content of Algebra II is

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presented in greater depth. Additionally, the course includes topics such as graphing techniques, including graphing of rational and polynomial functions, conic sections, and systems of non-linear equations. Students are instructed in the use of a Texas Instruments NSpire CAS handheld graphing calculator and other online graphing apps. By the end of this course, students are prepared for the SAT Math Level 1 Subject Test.

Precalculus 3 credits Prerequisite: Algebra II This course is designed for students who need to improve their algebra skills. Students review topics covered in Algebra II and the fundamental skills that go with them, in addition to exploring new functions and techniques. Students study linear, quadratic, and exponential functions with an emphasis on modeling real-world data. Trigonometric functions are also covered. This course is open to juniors only.

Advanced Precalculus 3 credits Prerequisites: Advanced Algebra II and recommendation of the department This course introduces students to new concepts needed for the study of calculus and strengthens understanding of topics in algebra and geometry. Students study functions with particular attention to linear, quadratic, trigonometric, polynomial and rational, exponential, and logarithmic functions.

Students learn to work with functions numerically, visually, algebraically, and verbally. In addition, students study sequences, series, and conic sections. Graphing technology is utilized throughout the course to enhance student understanding of mathematical concepts. The frequent use of real-world applications illustrates and reinforces mathematical ideas.

Honors Precalculus 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Algebra II and recommendation of the department This course is for students of demonstrated ability and includes all of the topics covered in Advanced Precalculus in addition to polar coordinates, vectors, proof by induction, and other advanced topics.

Students complete the content preparation needed in order to perform well on the SAT Math Level 2 Subject Test. The material in this course provides a strong preparation for Advanced Placement Calculus, with the study of formal calculus topics beginning after the midyear exam. The course covers all of differential calculus by the end of the year.

Statistics 3 credits Prerequisites: Precalculus and recommendation of the department This course focuses on helping students to interpret and manipulate the vast amounts of data around them, and in so doing, helps students to become better at making informed decisions. It serves as an introduction to the fundamental concepts of statistics involved in collecting, displaying, summarizing, and drawing inferences from data. Topics include exploratory data analysis, design of surveys and experiments, probability, sampling distributions, estimation, and significance testing.

Students frequently engage in hands-on projects that involve gathering and analyzing data applicable to their daily lives and real-world events. In the spring trimester, students apply what they have learned in the course by designing, conducting, and analyzing their own studies. Calculators and computers are used regularly to assist in understanding the major concepts.

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AP Statistics 3 credits Prerequisites: Advanced Precalculus and recommendation of the department This course follows the College Board AP Statistics syllabus. The four main units of study are: data analysis, data collection and experimental design, probability, and statistical inference. It differs from the regular statistics course both in the difficulty of the problems to be examined and in the quantity of work asked of the student. Topics are taught through extensive investigations of realworld examples and frequent use of the graphing calculator. Students are required to take the AP Statistics exam in May. Calculus 3 credits Prerequisites: Precalculus and recommendation of the department This course is designed for those who plan to continue the study of calculus in college and/or who may need this background for courses in applied sciences. The curriculum introduces the fundamental concepts of calculus, including the ideas of functions, limits, continuity, and standard differentiation formulas and their applications. Through applications of derivatives to problems in maxima and minima, the students gain experience in the power of calculus. In addition, basic methods of integration are discussed. This course does not prepare students for either of the Calculus AP exams.

AP Calculus AB 3 credits Prerequisites: Advanced Precalculus or Honors Precalculus and recommendation of the department This course in differential and integral calculus follows the Advanced Placement Calculus AB syllabus. Topics covered include limits, continuity, differentiation and integration of algebraic and transcendental functions, optimization and related rates problems, areas bounded by curves, volumes of revolution, techniques of integration, and differential equations. Students are required to take the AP Calculus AB exam in May. AP Calculus BC 3 credits Prerequisites: Honors Precalculus and recommendation of the department In addition to completing the syllabus of AB Calculus, this course completes the preparation for the BC level of the AP exam in calculus. Additional topics include integration by parts and by partial fractions, improper integrals, L’Hospital’s rule, first-order separable differential equations, logistic differential equations, infinite series and power series, and the calculus of parametric, polar, and vector functions. Students are required to take the AP Calculus BC exam in May. AP Microeconomics 3 credits Prerequisites: Advanced Precalculus and recommendation of the department The purpose of the course is to give students a thorough understanding of the principles of economics that apply to the functions of individual decision makers, both consumers and producers, within the economic system. This course focuses on introducing students to the principles of microeconomics, placing primary emphasis on the nature and functions of product markets.

Additionally, the course includes the study of factor markets and of the role of government in promoting greater efficiency and equity in the economy. It also provides students with a brief overview of macroeconomics, giving them an understanding of the principles of economics that

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apply to an economic system as a whole. At the conclusion of the course, students are required to take the AP exam in microeconomics.

Second-Trimester Electives Financial Investment Analysis 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Department Prerequisites: Advanced Precalculus and permission of the Interdisciplinary Studies Department This interdisciplinary course introduces students to the structure, purpose, and return profiles of basic investment categories. Through a variety of written materials, including cases studies and lectures given by guest speakers with expertise in a particular investment area, students explore the following questions: What are the distinguishing features of each type of investment? What role do they play in our economy and society? Can historical trends and evidence be used to predict investment behavior and returns? How is mathematical modeling used to assess investments? What impact do current events, legislation, and individual vision have on the success of a particular investment? Students explore actual investment decisions by debating case studies and preparing written analysis of investments. They conclude the course with a formal presentation arguing in favor of an investment of their choice.

SCIENCE Science has always been one of the fundamental tools of the truth seeker. However, the enormous achievements of science itself have also complicated this quest. Science helps students cut through the information and misinformation to make independent, rational choices. Rivers graduates will be responsible, thoughtful citizens who have a measure of control over their lives. The science they have learned will be a tool for living.

Middle School Earth Science: Grade 6 The sixth grade program focuses on water throughout the disciplines. As students work through each science unit, connections are made and played out in the other disciplines. A hands-on experiential approach has students working in and out of the classroom as they explore oceans, ponds, rivers, wetlands, and aquifers. Rivers’ location next to wetlands and Nonesuch Pond provides an immediate outdoor classroom. Among other topics, students investigate waves and currents, weathering and geology, and groundwater and water distribution systems. They learn and apply the scientific method as they gather and analyze data. The Earth Science course is also integrated at times throughout the year with the Pre-Algebra 6 course.

Life Science and Sustainability: Grade 7 Seventh grade science students are introduced to the study of ecology, the environment, and the human body. The year involves investigation of the complex interactions between all types of organisms and their environments. Students learn that ecosystems consist of communities of plants, animals, and various microorganisms that are dependent on each other as well as on the non-living parts of the environment. Emphasis is placed on experiments, both in and out of the classroom.

Projects with hands-on involvement, independent thinking, and innovative solutions are important components of the course. Topics covered include ecological, life, and nutrient cycles, introduction to viruses, bacteria, protists, plants, and animals, human influence on the environment, renewable and non-renewable energies, sustainable living, and human anatomy and physiology.

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Introductory Physical Science: Grade 8 This course focuses on the scientific method as it applies to chemistry. The course takes students through experiments that allow them to gather data suggesting the existence of the atom. Discovery is an essential part of this laboratory-based course, and students gain extensive experience working with laboratory equipment. The course also places great emphasis on analytical and independent thinking skills, requiring students to come up with explanations and solutions to problems not previously considered. At the completion of the course, students have a solid background in physical science, allowing them to continue in biology, chemistry, and physics.

Upper School Grades 9 and 10 Biological form and function have always been the emergent properties of underlying chemical principles. With the rapid advancement of molecular and biochemical techniques, this synergy has become more evident. At the introductory level, today’s students need to have a fluid proficiency of chemical principles even as they explore biological phenomena. The offering of Biology & Chemistry I and II at the regular and honors levels is a response to this interdisciplinary nature of science.

Biology & Chemistry I 3 credits The first of a two-year integrated curriculum, Biology & Chemistry I is the traditional first-year science course at Rivers. Students begin by examining the scientific method: the logical, step-wise deductive process that pervades all scientific endeavors. The scientific method is followed by the fundamentals of basic chemistry, which serves as a foundation for the rest of the course. Students look at the composition of matter from both an atomic and molecular level, including bond formation, and how the organization of the periodic table informs these concepts. Following a survey of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell types and organelles, the concepts of energy and membrane transport are explored. Expanding their knowledge of cell organization, students look at DNA from both its division and distribution in mitosis and meiosis to its role in directing protein synthesis. The gene’s role as inheritable factor and the principles of Mendelian genetics complement our cell survey. The culmination of the year is the study of evolution, and how chemical and molecular occurrences and reactions affect organismal behavior and survival. Weekly laboratory periods enable students to expand and develop classroom concepts through both experimental procedures and integrated case studies. Labs reinforce how each discipline informs the other. Beyond assimilating fact and information, Biology & Chemistry I requires students to integrate and apply concepts in doyour-own (DYO) laboratories, where students must design experimental approaches toward answering select problems.

Honors Biology & Chemistry I 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department Students enrolled in Honors Biology & Chemistry I explore the same topics as in Biology & Chemistry I, but in greater depth and detail and at an accelerated pace. While approval of the department is necessary, the successful honors student should be self-motivated and independent.

Laboratory reports, homework assignments, and tests all require a higher level of engagement and commitment on the part of the student.

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Biology & Chemistry II 3 Credits Prerequisite: Biology & Chemistry I Biology & Chemistry II is the second year of the two-year integrated biology and chemistry curriculum. Students begin the year with a laboratory investigation to review the concepts of the periodic table, cell structures, macromolecules, and the chemical makeup of compounds. This is followed by a study of the chemistry of biological systems. Students explore the various systems of the human body and their underlying chemical reactions and relationships. Gas laws and the respiratory system are followed by how enzymes affect reaction rates and their role in the digestive system. Students then focus on chemical equilibrium as it relates to hormones and explore acids and bases in the context of blood and buffers. In addition, students learn the fundamentals of thermochemistry and nuclear chemistry. Students use basic algebraic and problem-solving skills as they apply chemistry to these biological systems. The culmination of the course is a fetal pig dissection that reviews the human system and the chemical reactions that help them function.

Honors Biology & Chemistry II 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department Students enrolled in Honors Biology & Chemistry II explore the same topics as in Biology & Chemistry II, but in greater depth and detail and at an accelerated pace. While approval of the department is necessary, the successful honors student should possess strong algebraic skills to successfully balance chemical equations and solve stoichiometric problems. Honors students should also be self-motivated and independent. Laboratory reports, homework assignments, and tests all require a higher level of engagement and commitment on the part of the student.

Grades 11 and 12 AP Biology 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department AP Biology is designed to be a college-level introductory biology course, both in the classroom and in the laboratory. The topics covered previously in Biology and Honors Biology are covered in more depth, with greater emphasis on biotechnology, plants, and classification. The required 12 AP Biology Labs are designed to illustrate key concepts as well as relevant laboratory procedures, the analysis of which are detailed in a formal lab report. This fast-paced course requires about one hour of study per night, and students are required to take the AP Biology exam in May. AP Chemistry 3 credits Prerequisite: Honors Biology and Chemistry II and recommendation of the department This course is designed to provide the student with a college level introductory general chemistry course, both in the classroom and in the laboratory. The topics covered previously in Honors Biology and Chemistry II are explored in more depth both mathematically and conceptually with an emphasis on chemical calculations and the mathematical formulation of principles. In addition to the classroom work, extensive time is spent in the laboratory. The students further develop their skills and knowledge to conduct a well thought-out chemistry experiment and are able to present their results in a traditional formal laboratory report. They leave the course with the ability to critically analyze scientific issues. Students should expect at least one hour of homework each night and are required to take the AP Chemistry exam in May.

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AP Environmental Science 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This course is designed to be the equivalent of a first-year college course in environmental science.

Concepts covered in the course are the foundations of Environmental Science: the ecology of the natural world, how the natural world impacts humans, and how humans impact the natural world.

These topics include ecosystems and their interactions, the human population, cities, soil, water, the atmosphere, pollution, waste disposal, climate change, and renewable and nonrenewable resources and sources of energy. Nightly reading, class discussions and lectures, laboratory experiments, and field study on and off campus are all used to help develop students’ understanding of the environment. Students are required to take the AP exam in May, and preparation for this exam is worked into the day-to-day routine of the course.

AP Physics C: Mechanics 3 credits Prerequisites: Advanced Algebra II and recommendation of the department This is a calculus-based, college-level, physics class which covers the fundamentals of mechanics, including kinematics, forces, energy, momentum, statics, rotational motion, and waves. The pace of the course is brisk and the demands are considerable; independence and motivation are vital. The emphasis is on problem solving and analytical thinking. Students are presented new, unfamiliar physics and math daily, requiring them to persevere and search thoughtfully for means of tackling the challenges presented. Although a calculus course is not a prerequisite, students must be adept at mathematics and have a solid background in algebra and trigonometry in order to learn the fundamentals and applications of calculus in this course. All students take the first half of the AP Physics C exam in May. Honors Computer Science 3 credits Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department Steve Jobs once said, “I think everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer, because it teaches you how to think.” In this course, students learn problem-solving through objectoriented programming, which includes designing and implementing reusable components and classes. The students also develop data algorithms and structures, as well as perform operations such as searching and sorting on those structures. All programming is done in Java. This course is the equivalent of a first-semester college course in computer science, although no prior programming experience is required or expected. Students are encouraged to take the AP Computer Science exam in May. Human Anatomy and Physiology 3 credits Prerequisites: Biology and Chemistry Our understanding of the human body is increasing at an explosive rate. To understand how and why the body works, students must integrate the study of anatomy, physiology, and pathology. In this challenging course, students learn about each of the human organ systems, their healthy function, and possible diseases.

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Physics 3 credits Prerequisite: Algebra II or recommendation of the department This course is designed to give students a conceptual understanding of the major ideas of physics, including mechanics, heat, sound, and electricity. Although the emphasis is on concepts, the course requires students to practice and develop the quantitative skills they have learned in algebra and geometry through laboratories and work with elementary physics equations. Significant stress is placed on students’ growth as analytical thinkers. The ability to tackle new problems using understanding gained from prior concepts is a daily requirement.

Grade 12 AP Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism 3 credits Prerequisite: AP Physics C: Mechanics This course is a continuation of AP Physics C: Mechanics. Students learn the fundamental concepts of electric charge, electric fields, electrostatics, circuits, magnetic fields, and electromagnetism. The emphasis continues to be problem solving and analytic thinking as students learn more sophisticated applications of calculus to the physical world. All students take the second half of the AP Physics C exam in May. Students are also exposed to topics beyond the scope of the AP exam, including buoyancy and fluid flow, gases, thermodynamics, light and optics, atomic and nuclear physics, and relativity.

First-Trimester Electives Grades 9 – 12 Robotics I 1 credit Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department Students learn and apply real-world math and science concepts to design, build, and program their own robots. Lego kits, Tetrix materials, and a 3D printer are the means of producing robots that accomplish designed tasks. Students learn to program the robots using a C-based programming language, and have the robot respond to touch, sound, ultrasonic, and other sensors. As the challenges increase in complexity, students develop their problem-solving skills, as well as planning, organizing, and managing their work with others. Students keep a daily written account of their work in an engineering notebook. This course introduces students to the fundamentals of robotics and working on a small engineering team.

Grades 11 and 12 Engineering I 1 credit This course is a hands-on, project-based exploration of the engineering approach to problemsolving. Through a series of design challenges, students are exposed to the different disciplines of engineering (mechanical, electrical, chemical, civil, and systems), as well as some of the skills of those disciplines (brainstorming, prototyping, circuitry, programming, and data analysis). While there is some amount of math, physics, and chemistry involved, they are the tools, not the focus and are taught as we go along. The syllabus has been developed by the University of Texas' Engineering and Education departments in association with the National Science Foundation and NASA. The first of the three trimesters focuses on an introduction to the design and engineering process.

Students are challenged to design and build a rubber band-driven vehicle and a pinhole camera for

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artists with disabilities. The class emphasizes effective teamwork, documentation, and effectively assessing the needs of a customer in order to develop a quality product.

Kinetic Anatomy 1 credit Through an in-depth study of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems of the human body, the class looks at the anatomy, classification, and function of the bones, muscles, and ligaments in the body and how they pertain to locomotion. Students look at the different articulations in the body and learn how they apply to human movement. The nervous system is covered, including muscle innervation and the process of conscious muscle control.

Technology & Humanity (Not offered in 2015-16) 1 credit. Cross-listed with Interdisciplinary Studies What does it mean to be alive? What does it mean to be human? In this course, students look at the answers to these questions from perspectives in biology, social science, philosophy, and computer science. The class uses those perspectives to consider how closely computers and robots currently come to being ‘alive’ and functionally equivalent to humans. To experience this relationship firsthand, students complete labs in computer programming and robotics. The class also analyzes how modern technology is redefining what it means to communicate and have a relationship. The course concludes with an investigation of how we can and should control the role and impact of technology in our lives. Students are assessed through papers, in-class essays, lab reports, quizzes, and a final test that covers the history of technology.

Second-Trimester Electives Grades 9 – 12 Robotics II 1 credit Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This course is a continuation of Robotics I. Students expand on the concepts and skills learned during Robotics I to create robots that overcome ever more complex challenges. Emphasis is placed on increasing the robot's autonomy in response to environmental stimuli.

Grades 11 and 12 Engineering II 1 credit This is a continuation of Engineering I. The challenges for the winter trimester include designing an earthquake-resistant building and reverse engineering a small appliance. Students improve their abilities to build structures and circuits, analyze data and optimize performance, and communicate effectively using engineering reports.

Sports Medicine 1 credit This class covers a range of topics including, but not limited to, common orthopedic injuries of the upper and lower extremities including mechanism, anatomy, and evaluation. Students study emergency and first aid protocols for seriously injured individuals, as well as an in-depth analysis of spinal and head injuries and the evaluation of concussions and post-concussive syndrome. Students look at common thermal and electric therapeutic modalities and evaluate the efficacy of both. Other topics include prophylactic taping and bracing and genetic predisposition to injury.

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Third-Trimester Electives Grades 9 – 12 Robotics III 1 credit Prerequisite: Recommendation of the department This course is a continuation of Robotics II. Students embark upon independent projects in robotics, with an emphasis on real-world robotic applications. Students are encouraged to invent their own robotics challenges, and then decide their own path to overcoming those challenges. Additionally, students are encouraged to complete a community service project in an effort to bring science and technology to others.

Grades 11 and 12 Engineering III 1 credit This course is a continuation of Engineering I & II. In the spring trimester, students learn how to program a microcontroller and work with basic circuits, skills which are then applied in the design and launch of an aerial imaging system. As they work on the aerial imaging challenge, they learn how teams need to plan and communicate effectively so that separate systems (i.e., launch, payload, and descent) integrate successfully. Juniors in the course continue in May with an introduction to robotics, where they learn to program a pre-built robot to perform various tasks.

Exercise Science 1 credit This class looks at the different components of human fitness, including muscular strength and endurance, cardiovascular capacity, and musculotendinous flexibility. Students discuss the effects exercise and sports have on the human condition, like metabolism, health, and wellness, as well as the psychological benefits. The class discusses performance-enhancing drugs and supplements and their effect on the individual and society as a whole.

ADDITIONAL COURSE OFFERINGS Senior Third-Trimester Seminar Grade 12

An Analysis of Values 1 credit This course asks students to analyze the values people, organizations, and they themselves hold.

Through readings, videos, and discussions, students examine such issues as competition, compassion, friendship, expectations, and emotions. Students respond with a nightly journal, reflective writing, and research projects to demonstrate their understanding of the essential questions of the course. Major resources include Tuesdays With Morrie, Give and Take, TED talks, and This is Water.

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