ELECTIVE CLASSES
ART APPRECIATION – ART FRAUD DETECTIVES
9th-12th grades - FALL ONLY
In this one semester class, students will use the book, Art Fraud Detective, to study famous paintings found in the National Gallery in London, comparing copies of the originals with potential fakes. It’s a fun mystery to solve that encourages students to really look at the details in the paintings. Students will learn facts about the specific paintings, the artist who painted it, what period it comes from (Impressionist, Romantic, Modern, etc), as well as become familiar with art terms and techniques. Beyond paintings, we’ll study mosaics, stained glass, statues, iconography, and the elements of art/principles of design. We’ll talk about the Monuments Men and the importance of beauty and art and why it’s worth saving. We will spend several weeks focusing on sacred art. The final project is an art show where students take on the role of art curator and find art around the world that fits their chosen theme and present it to the class.
No prerequisites. No art skills necessary. This class is worth ½ credit for Fine Arts.
Textbook: This class will use Art Fraud Detective which will be loaned to the student and must be returned at the end of the semester in good condition.
Tuition: $35 per month for 4 months ($105 for the semester after registration deposit)
Supply fee: $20, which includes the magnifying glass, homework folders, a resource folder, food for an “art show” at the end of the semester, and printouts each week.
Class size: minimum 4, maximum 10
Required supplies: Pen
Tutor: Kim Ellerbrock (Ellerbrock.tutor@gmail.com, 847-224-5763)
MUSIC APPRECIATION
9th-12th grades - SPRING ONLY
In this one-semester class, we will focus on the types of music that tell a story: tone poems, descriptive music, oratorios, musicals, operas, movie scores, etc. Students will learn how to identify instruments in an orchestra and be exposed to some music terminology. They will learn how to actively listen to music – to hear the different layers and textures in order to figure out what the composer is trying to say in the story. This class will require time spent outside of class listening to assigned music and writing in a music listening journal each week. Some weeks additional homework will be assigned.
Students will make a slideshow set to music for their final project.
No prerequisites. No music skills necessary.
This class is worth ½ credit for Fine Arts.
Tuition: $35 per month for 4 months ($105 for the semester after registration deposit)
Supply fee: $20, which includes homework folders, resource folder, weekly printouts, access to copyrighted music for the final, and food for a movie party at the end of the semester.
Class size: minimum 4, maximum 10
Required text: None, though access to the internet for listening purposes is required. Required supplies:
● Good quality speakers or headphones.
● A computer to listen to the music via YouTube links
● Pen and looseleaf paper for the listening journal
Tutor: Kim Ellerbrock (Ellerbrock.tutor@gmail.com, 847-224-5763)
SAT PREPARATION FOR THE MATH SECTION
9th-12th grades - SPRING ONLY
During this class, students will learn tips and tricks for scoring well on the digital SAT math section. Students will be required to complete and score practice tests and work problems from Khan Academy at home and come to class with a list of questions to discuss. Students can expect about 30-45 minutes of work per day outside of class.
Tuition: $40 per month ($120 for the semester after registration deposit)
Supply fee: $10
Class size: minimum 3, maximum 10
Required materials: College Board and Khan Academy accounts (both are free)
Tutor: Sondra Mullan (c4mrsmullan@gmail.com, 972-953-8450)
SPEECH/PUBLIC SPEAKING
9th-12th grades
The goal of this one-semester course is student improvement in writing and delivering interesting and compelling speeches with less anxiety, and perhaps, even have some fun!
Course Objectives:
● Ease students’ fears of speaking to groups, enabling them to deliver thoughts and opinions with increased confidence.
● Equip students with skills used in introducing themselves and others, interviews, conversations, and phone calls.
● Improve delivery by increasing awareness of volume, speed, tone of voice, breathing, vocal pauses, and other important considerations.
● Provide a safe place to practice public speaking and receive positive, uplifting comments which can help each student to improve.
● Teach students to analyze peer speeches and provide kind and useful feedback.
● Peer feedback is a primary tool in this class. Peer evaluations will develop each student’s skills of analysis and listening. Student feedback will be provided regarding content, delivery, and effectiveness of peers’ speeches.
● Assignments include preparing and giving various types of speeches including a self-introduction speech and narrative, expository, persuasive and impromptu speeches. Students will also gain experience in small group interaction, overcoming difficulties in conversation, and job interview techniques. Homework for this class will require 1 to 3 hours of time outside of class per week.
Introduction to Public Speaking, a resource created by Andrew Pudewa of the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW), is the backbone of the course which features demonstration speeches by students with informational instruction by Andrew Pudewa. Videos will be used for a small part of classroom time and will be augmented by group discussion, presentations, and other materials provided by the instructor.
Each student will be provided with an IEW Introduction to Public Speaking Student Notebook (124 pages in a binder) which is included in your supply fee.
Tuition: $40 per month ($120 for the semester after registration deposit)
Supply fee: $40 covers IEW Introduction to Public Speaking Student Binder and copies of other classroom materials
Class size: minimum 6, maximum 15
Tutor: Mary (Reisinger) Rodriguez (mateomaryrodriguez@gmail.com, 469-909-0828)
SAT PREPARATION FOR THE READING & WRITING SECTION
9th-12th grades - FALL ONLY
During this class, students will learn tips and tricks for scoring well on the digital SAT reading and writing sections. Since English classes rarely focus on test-taking skills, they will gain confidence and experience with this course. Students will be required to complete and score practice tests and work problems from Khan Academy at home and come to class with a list of questions to discuss. Students can expect about 30-45 minutes of work per day outside of class.
Tuition: $40 per month ($120 for the semester after registration deposit)
Supply fee: $10
Class size: minimum 3, maximum 10
Required materials: College Board and Khan Academy accounts (both are free)
Tutor: Sondra Mullan (c4mrsmullan@gmail.com, 972-953-8450)
Introduction to Accounting
9th-12th grades
This introductory full-year course covers the basics of accounting. Topics include assets, liabilities, profits, statements, loans, credit, labor, depreciation, and taxes. This one-credit elective is geared toward those with no accounting experience. Only basic math skills are needed, so this course is suitable for any high school student.
Tuition: $40 per month for 9 months ($160 fall/$120 spring after registration deposit) Required Text: Provided by instructor
Supply fee: $20
Class size: minimum 5, maximum 10
Tutor: Sondra Mullan (c4mrsmullan@gmail.com, 972-953-8450)
Robotics 101/102
5th-9th grades
(This class is open to new Robotics students and those who have taken C4 Robotics in 2025/26. Students who have taken C4 Robotics in 2025/26 will work on more advanced Robotics concepts and become team leads in the Spring. Students can take this class 3 times to explore Robotics in greater depth and with different Spring semester challenges.)
Welcome to the world of robotics! This is a very hands-on class where students will use the VEX IQ robotics platform (https://www.vexrobotics.com) as they work in teams of 2-3 students. The teams will be building and modifying robots throughout the school year. Students will also learn to keep an Engineering Notebook.
In the fall semester, the students will build robots as they learn about robotic concepts such as friction, center of gravity, torque, gears, and mechanical advantage. They will focus on learning and constructing different types of object manipulators to plow, scoop, grab, and accumulate objects. They will also study multiple lifting mechanisms, such as the rotating joint and the 4-bar linkage. There will be several small class competitions as a training ground for the big match in April.
In the spring semester, each team will build a robot for the end-of-the-year class competition modeled after the VEX IQ tournaments. Each team will devise a strategy to score the most points in the announced competition challenge. With this strategy in mind, they will design and build a robot as they apply the robotic concepts they learned during the fall semester. Each team will compete in alliance with another team. The competition will be fun and challenging!
This class will explore and develop: STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) skills, critical thinking skills, problem-solving, team collaboration/dynamics, robot construction,
building/understanding/evaluating different robotic arms and lifting mechanisms for specific functions, gear ratios for mechanical advantage, torque, center of gravity, friction, winning and losing, FIRST® ethics of Gracious Professionalism and fun competition.
Come and explore the world of Robotics!
Tuition: $50 per month for 9 months ($200 fall/$150 spring after registration deposit) Supply Fee: $70 includes the use of all of the robotics equipment in the class
Class Size: minimum 10, maximum 15
Text: None
Required Supplies: Black Graph Ruled Composition Notebook