Exploring Other Areas of Interest
Beyond our core curriculum, students at the Great Books Summer Program get the opportunity to explore personal areas of interest in our electives classes. Working in small groups with highly-talented teachers, each week everyone gets to choose a literature and an art elective to expand their horizons and to share their creativity through self expression.In our literature electives, students explore one of four different topics that change every week. From the sonnets of Shakespeare to Greek mythology, to the modern short story, each class focuses on a particular author, genre, time period, or style of writing. They delve deep into their chosen topic to read and analyze a number of different works.
At the end of each week, each class gets the opportunity to try writing in the style of the authors they’ve been reading. Whether writing poetry, essays, or personal narratives, our students have produced works of beauty that have been truly inspiring.
In our arts electives, the visual and performing arts provide an outlet for all that’s being explored and discussed the rest of the week. In theater, students begin with voice and movement training before creating their own production. Music gives aspiring vocalists, performers, and composers the chance to come together in an ensemble performance. In art, students may explore different media, anywhere from sketching or painting to sculpture or photography. And for those who can’t get enough of the written word, our creative writing elective gives a chance to write additional short works of fiction, whether it be a poem, a play, or a short story.
Our arts electives culminate each week as students collaborate and contribute to a final evening of performances. All of our students get to share what they’ve been working on throughout the week with the whole student body. It’s the highlight of the Summer Program!