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The Academic Program: Science Return to the other academic program pages: | English | Modern Languages | History | Mathematics | | Grade Nine | Grade Ten | Grade Eleven | Grade Twelve | Electives | The study of the sciences is stressed at our school and all grades have biology, chemistry, earth science, and physics main lessons every year. Students who are especially interested in the sciences may elect year-long courses in environmental chemistry or ecology in the freshmen and sophomore years, and full year courses in chemistry or biology during their junior and senior years. Our science courses deepen the students' connection to the natural world by placing a primary emphasis on laboratory observation and fieldwork. Students develop a conceptual grasp of scientific principles from a study of the historical background of the subject coupled with directed observation, and they become aware of their scientific heritage and of their responsibility for the environment. Physiology Seminar with Lab—This block is spent investigating the form and function of the human body. The systems examined include: the circulatory, repertory, digestive, and excretory systems. Students exercise powers of observation by describing and drawing physical systems. A complementary class in Charcoal Drawing is offered in the afternoon art blocks. Course requirements include a research paper, lab reports, main lesson books, quizzes and a final exam. Organic Chemistry Seminar with Lab—The organic chemistry block begins with a study of life processes common to plants, animals, and humans. Photosynthesis, respiration, hydrolysis, and dehydration are studied with respect to carbohydrates. Students examine fossil fuels, their components, and their use in the world today. The fermentation of sugar leads students to the study of alcohol and finally to organic acids and esters. Course evaluation is based on a midterm and final exam, completed laboratory reports, and the main lesson book. Physics: Thermodynamics Seminar with Lab—The ninth grade Physics block is a study of thermodynamics. Building on the students' skills of careful observation developed in the elementary school, more quantitative work is introduced. Mathematical laws are discovered as arising out of the measurements taken from demonstrations and experiments. Topics covered include: temperature scales, the expansion of metals and gases, changes in state, specific heat, and energy. Among the practical applications covered are different kinds of thermostats, the Newcomen steam engine, and the four-stroke gasoline engine. Students are evaluated on their participation, main lesson books, lab reports, quizzes, and final exam. Geology Seminar—Largely a study of the surface of the earth, the ninth grade geology block is designed to introduce the students to some basic concepts of Earth Science, and, in an introductory way, to relate the science of geology to some of the important environmental issues of today. Students examine the forces that shape the surface of the earth including: volcanoes, earthquakes, and plate tectonics. Evaluations are based on evidence of comprehension of course material demonstrated by test results, oral participation in class, and clarity of presentation in the main lesson books. Physiology II Seminar with Lab—Topics covered in this main lesson include, homeostasis and transport, organ,s and their functions. The immune, nervous, and reproductive systems are also examined. Labs investigate osmosis and diffusion, blood smears, and drawing elements of the circulatory systems. Students will be asked to write labs and to take weekly quizzes. A main lesson book is required and a final exam is given. Chemical Processes Seminar with Lab—Tenth grade inorganic chemistry is the study of metals, nonmetals, acids, bases, salts, and the processes of oxidation, hydration, and neutralization. The concepts of atomic mass, oxidation states, and stoichiometry are applied to these processes. Students further develop their skills through lab activities where they perform experiments relating to oxidation and crystal growth. Student assessment is based on labs, quiz and test performance, and main lesson books. Physics: Mechanics Seminar with Lab—In this main lesson students study how inanimate matter moves and what causes it to do so. By working with mathematical relationships and by studying history, students are able to understand philosophical law. Students contrast the geocentric universe of the ancients with the heliocentric model. In this context, students are able to appreciate the experimental methods of Galileo and the sweeping laws of Newton for their revolutionary importance. The main lesson book for this course requires no essays but rather numerous graphs, charts and formulae. Each student is graded on his or her main lesson book, final exam, class participation, and quizzes. Ecology Seminar—This course is an introduction to some of the basic concepts and problems in ecology. The seminar is taught in conjunction with the weeklong class trip to the Hawthorne Valley Farm. It focuses on the human impact on the environment and the obstacles facing today's agriculturalists. Course evaluations are based on class participation, an independent research project, the main lesson book, and a final exam. The Farm—The curriculum
is enhanced by the school's close association with the Hawthorne
Valley Farm, a biodynamic and organic dairy and vegetable farm located
in Columbia County, New York. During the tenth grade Ecosystems
and Evolution seminar, students experience a week long visit to
the farm. Students examine the ecological implications of farming
through guest lectures and visits to other farms. Botany Seminar with Lab—In this course students study the plant with emphasis on the major taxonomic groupings of plants, as well as life cycles, evolutionary strategies, and their relationships to the human being. Laboratory exercises allow the students to explore the plants from Bryophyte to Angiosperms in greater depth. Students complete a fieldwork project while at the New York Botanical Garden and present their research in the main lesson book. The students prepare the final main lesson book and take examinations as a means of assessment. History of Chemistry Seminar with Lab—This main lesson is a study of the history of chemistry from the time of the Greeks to the very beginnings of modern atomic theory. Students suspend what they already know about modern chemistry and approach the block from the point of view of the people and periods they are studying. Students come to an appreciation of the development of science by thinking the thoughts of the masters of earlier days. Students are asked to consider the Four Elements of ancient times: phlogiston theory; spontaneous generation; and the existence of gases. Special attention is paid to the work of Democritus, Aristotle, Jacques Charles, Gay-Lussac, Anton Lavoisier, Amodeo Avogadro, Robert Boyle and John Dalton with others. In lab students refine metals, manufacture sulfuric acid, and recapitulate other classic experiments. Quizzes, tests, lab reports, and the main lesson book are all part of evaluating student performance in the course. Physics: Electricity and Magnetism Seminar with Lab—This main lesson works from a direct experience of electric and magnetic phenomena finding appropriate concepts to describe them. Through fields, students are able to describe static electricity, voltages, currents, magnetism and electromagnetic waves. Lab time is spent studying series and parallel circuits, in order to discover, and test circuit laws. Students are evaluated on their main lesson books, participation, lab reports, quizzes, and final exams. Zoology Seminar—This course examines animals, their evolutionary development, and their interrelationships and connection to the human being. Various evolutionary theories are discussed including Lamark, Wallace, and Darwin. The second portion of the course investigates major representatives of phyla with regard to their habitat, life cycles, specialized physiology, and ecological relationships. Individual presentations of research and a mid-block and final exam are the basis for evaluation. Chemistry Seminar with Lab—This class is a study of the history of the atomic theory from the work of John Dalton to the present. The theories and experiments of Dalton, Thomson, Rutherford, Bohr, and a number of other scientists are presented to the class as observable phenomena and students work to make sense of raw results. Radioactivity and an introduction to quantum theory further refine our model of matter. At each step the original experiments, performed by the developers of the atomic theory, are performed allowing students to think the thoughts of the great scientists who first made these discoveries. Light and Modern Physics Seminar with Lab—The focus of this main lesson class in physics is on light. Students begin by observing the laws of reflection, refraction, curved mirrors, and lenses. This is followed by a historical overview of light including Newton's particle theory and Young's wave theory. The course culminates in a review of electromagnetism building on previous knowledge to see how light is united with electromagnetism using the work of James Clerk Maxwell as a guide. Environmental Chemistry Elective-9th and 10th
Grade Ecology in New York City Elective-9th and 10th
Grade Biology Elective with Lab-10th (with permission
of the instructor) 11th and 12th Grade Chemistry Elective with Lab-11th and 12th Grade
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