A junior boarding and day school for boys in grades 6, 7, 8 and 9

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General Electives

This is a sampling of the general electives offered. These and other courses may be offered depending upon the availability and individual interests of the faculty. General electives are trimester courses.

  • Chess

    The Chess elective provides a relaxing interlude from the academic routine. Beginners are welcome along with experienced players who want to strengthen their game. In this elective students develop patience, deep concentration, and strategic thinking. They learn the joys of combinational play.

  • Chinese Chess

    Chinese Chess offers a comprehensive exploration of the timeless game of Chinese Chess, also known as Xiangqi. Students learn about the game’s rich history, rules, and strategies. Students engage in friendly matches and strategic exercises that challenge their critical thinking and sharpen their decision-making abilities. The class is suitable for beginners as well as experienced players.

  • Comic Book Art & History

    This class begins with students learning about the history of comic books. Students also learn the basic techniques of penciling, inking, and coloring. The elements of composition and storyboarding are explored. Students are immersed in various projects such as drawing a comic book cover, inventing a super-hero, and creating a story with six large panels.

  • Dungeons and Dragons

    In this elective, students learn how to play the game Dungeons and Dragons. They will strengthen their communication and collaboration skills through team building, role-playing, and storytelling. They take on the roles of different characters while exploring this imaginative game.  

  • Financial Literacy

    This class introduces students to personal, corporate, and global finance. Topics are explored such as budgets, debt, investing, and retirement. Students learn how to analyze company, economic, and personal information so they can begin to set themselves up for financial success. Students use creative technologies to present their investment arguments to the class.

  • Fly Tying & Fly Fishing

    The Fly-Tying and Fly-Fishing elective is designed to introduce students to a wonderful sport, rich with tradition. In this class students build a workbench and learn how to use the tools necessary for tying a wide variety of nymphs, streamers, and dry flies. While fabricating their flies, the students integrate the basic art elements of design, color, perspective, and function. Aside from developing a lifelong enjoyment of the sport, an additional goal of this class is to help students recognize the importance of the protection and conservation of our waterways.

  • Forensic Science

    An introduction to the principles and practices of forensic science, which starts with crime scene investigation. You’ll learn about collecting and processing evidence and about scientific tools and techniques for analyzing certain types of evidence. Pattern recognition — including fingerprint analysis, document analysis, and ballistics analysis — may be emphasized. Case studies of actual crime scenes will be presented and discussed. A background in biology or chemistry is not required, but we’ll cover basic forensic biology and chemistry topics such as DNA analysis, hair analysis, toxicology, and materials analysis. 

  • Game Theory

    Game theory isn't just about playing games—it's a fascinating field that helps us understand how people and businesses make choices in various situations. In this engaging class, students will learn the basics of game theory through fun and interactive activities. From simple games like rock-paper-scissors to more complex scenarios, students will explore concepts such as cooperation, competition, and negotiation.

  • Gym Games

    This class will include a variety of physical activity games such as dodgeball, kickball, soccer, capture the flag, and more. Student suggestions will be considered. We will also have weekly tournaments and formal competitions as well as more casual sessions. Other focuses of the class will be on communication, participation, and collaboration. This will be a great chance to compete, exercise, and have fun!

  • Juggling

    This elective begins with students learning how to toss juggle with balls. By the end of the trimester, students demonstrate their proficiency by making twenty consecutive throws and catches. Then, students branch out into diabolo, luna stick, and club juggling. Students may also choose to learn how to unicycle, stilt walk or free stand ladder ride. At the end of each trimester the class puts on a show at one of the all school morning assemblies.

  • Knitting

    In this class students learn the basics of knitting. Students learn a few different stitches and make something by hand such as hats, pot holders, and scarves.   

  • Lifeguard Training

    This is an American Red Cross certified Lifeguard Training class. The students learn techniques for water rescue, Standard First Aid, CPR for the Professional Rescuer, and how to use an Automatic Electronic Defibrillator. The students will receive a certification card for each of these subjects upon completion of the course, and will be able to act in the capacity of a lifeguard in a paid, or volunteer position. Students must be 15 years old by the time the course is completed.

  • Picture Book & Early Reader Creation

    In this elective, students study a range of picture books and early readers. They learn about the qualities and characteristics of these books and compare and contrast the language used in beginning readers to picture books. Then, students write and illustrate their own picture book or early reader. Through the writing process, students write, revise, edit, and make a final copy of their book.

  • Relax and Read

    Relax and Read is an elective in which students self-select books to read during the academic day. The class takes place in the library. Students have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the pages of a book and build lifelong reading habits. After finishing a book, students complete a book log where they write a short reflection about the book. While students do complete a brief book log, the focus of the elective is on reading versus writing.

  • Robotics

    This is an introductory robotics course in which we utilize the Lego Mindstorms EV3 kits as the main platform to introduce the student to basic programming as well as problem-solving strategies. This course will involve students in the development, building and programming of a LEGO Mindstorms robot. Students will work hands-on in teams to design, build, program and document their progress. Topics may include motor control, gear ratios, torque, friction, sensors, timing, program loops, logic gates, decision-making, timing sequences, and propulsion systems, pending the math and science skill level of the students.

  • Rocketry

    Students design, build, and launch model rockets in this elective class. When constructing the rockets, students use a variety of materials including paper, plastic, and wood. Students experiment with new and interesting body, wing, and fin shapes. Through trial and error, students test which designs produce the optimal launch and recovery of a model rocket.

  • Sewing

    This beginner sewing class introduces students to the various elements of sewing. Students learn many hand stitches as well as how to operate a sewing machine. The teacher guides students through each step of the sewing process, making sewing easy and fun. Students create a variety of items such as pillows, tote bags, and t-shirts. 

  • Speaker Building

    The speaker building elective involves the construction of a set of audio speakers for the student to keep. Designs vary each session, but have included stereo bookshelf speakers, stereo tower pairs, 2.1 systems, and bluetooth portable designs. Each design involves cabinet construction, crossover installation, and cabinet finishing.

  • SSAT Prep

    SSAT Preparation is a fall elective class for Sixth Formers that provides students the opportunity to hone their quantitative, reading, verbal, and writing skills for the SSAT. The class also helps students strengthen their test taking strategies. Students participate in the online program TestInnovators which offers practice tests for students and generates individual plans for students based on their test results.

  • Sustainability

    In this elective class, students are introduced to sustainable energy. They examine different renewable resources that are used to power the world. Students work collaboratively to identify real problems and then generate answers by accessing prior knowledge as well as by conducting research. Students use an engineering design process to generate sustainable solutions. They build models and test those models. Depending upon the results, students redesign the models and test again. Examples of projects include creating a solar phone charger, solar lanterns, a solar oven, and a water turbine.

  • Video Brookie Bits

    In this elective class, students create a news show, Brookie Bits. Each week begins with a meeting to decide what the newsworthy stories are on campus. Students learn to interview, anchor, edit, and report. Basic components of video production including tripod set-up, camera angles, lighting, and shot composition are explored in the class. Brookie Bits is aired on the big screen once a week before morning assembly.  
271 Pine Nook Road   |   P. O. Box 7   |    Deerfield, MA 01342   |   413-774-7411