Our Curriculum

Beginning in the ninth grade, History and English classes follow an interdisciplinary curriculum. These cored classes also share common projects and activities.  Our program guarantees the completion of all the A through G requirements established by the University of California. State standards are incorporated and expanded upon in all classes.

An Overview:

• Interdisciplinary curriculum with a focus on Literature, Philosophy, History, Art and the Social Sciences

• Guarantee of A through G requirements and state standard with intense rigor

9th Grade

• Theme: Global Perspectives

• Academic focuses: Understanding Research, Interdisciplinary exposure to Philosophy, Rhetoric and Grammar, Sacred Art and Visual Literacy World Religions and Civilizations through 1500s

• Ninth grade students are immersed in the Humanities. They will cover fundamentals in Philosophy, Rhetoric and Grammar, Sacred Art and Visual Literacy. Through their cored classes, they will be introduced to the fundamentals of academic research. Grammar, composition, note taking and library skills are polished through an interdisciplinary exposure to the cultures and civilizations of the ancient and medieval worlds. Excerpts from the classics such as The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Iliad, the Odyssey, and the Inferno are read, as well as the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, and a survey of world mythology. This provides a truly global perspective on literature, art, history and religion

​​​​​​​10th Grade

• Theme: Humanism and its influence

• Academic Focus: Cross cultural influence, convergence and consequences for periods of 1600-present

• In the tenth grade, students continue their exploration of world history. Works such as Macbeth, Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales, Frankenstein, Tartuffe and A Tale of Two Cities are read for their literary value and political significance. Students study the emergence of Europe as the dominant continent and the development of nations. Special attention is paid to the effect of humanism upon the politics of the time and the consequences of Spanish and British imperialism upon the rest of the world. Students also examine the growing importance of science and its affects on history and politics. In addition to their History and English classes, the students are enrolled in Honors Biology

​​​​​​​11th Grade

• Theme: The American Experience

• Academic Focus: literary analysis and political theory

• Eleventh grade students engage in the study of the American experience. With a special emphasis on both literary analysis and political theory, students read works such as The Scarlet Letter, Huckleberry Finn, Moby Dick, The Great Gatsby and Ragtime. The curriculum focuses on many of the political conflicts and contradictions in American society. A cross-curriculum paper is completed each semester. Students have the option of taking either Honors level or AP level history and English classes in the eleventh grade

12th Grade

• Themes: Globalization and Our Era

• Academic Focus: Historical and sociological approach to political and economic theories

• Twelfth-grade students concentrate their study on the last 100 years, with emphasis on political, philosophical, artistic and literary movements. In the English class, such works as Heart of Darkness, A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man, Waiting for Godot and The Wasteland are read in an attempt to understand the mind-numbing assault of information and technology unique to the 20th Century. In their Government/Economics class, students take a historical and sociological approach to political and economic theory. Consistent with and expanding upon state curriculum guidelines, students learn the principles of democracy and economics as they are reflected in the events of the 20th Century. Through lecture, film, assigned readings and simulations, the course covers the major ideological movements of the last 100 years, including Liberalism, American Conservatism, Capitalism, Marxism, Fascism, Multiculturalism and Globalization, as well as the cultural phenomenon of Postmodernism, comprising an in depth analysis of the effects of these movements on international politics and economics.