Prep has hit the new year at full speed as students have been working very hard in all areas. Students have experienced many highlights with our enrichment program meeting exciting, successful people who have shared their experience and expertise to shed light on what paths may lie ahead for us. We have made significant gains in our training with mid year evaluations providing the data to support.
We are very proud to announce that The Prep Class of 2022 had a 100% acceptance rate at all high schools of their choosing. We are thrilled they will all have the options they want and we are excited for them as they plan for the next phase of their academic journey. They will be well prepared!
We are happy to announce that we have limited enrollment remaining for The Prep Class of 2023. Our current Prep students have done an impressive job sharing their experience in our orientations and open houses, and it has been wonderful to meet new families as they consider taking advantage of a Prep Year. Anyone interested may contact us for information on our next orientation.
Prep is also offering an 8 week after school course this spring for any middle school student moving on to high school who would like to better prepare in all areas. These 16, 2-hour sessions are a micro version of our full year program that features curriculum designed to promote academic, physical, and personal growth. |
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Career, Culture & Current Events |
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Our social studies curriculum this winter has featured more introductions to a variety of career fields. We have prepared for and conducted long form conversations professionals who provided illuminating glimpses into what they do, and why they are a good fit. |
Glenn Haber, commercial property manager, gave us the full tour of his building in midtown NYC across from Radio City. We learned about the inner workings of how a building runs from the engineering, to leasing and maintaining. The timing of our visit worked out great as we stopped by Rockefeller Center and St Patrick's Cathedral to capture some holiday spirit. We had valuable discussions with an attorney, physical therapist, high school principal, and even an active Navy Seal currently serving as a liason to the Dept of Defense at the Pentagon. One of our current events discussions centered around vocational careers and the trades. Robert Hoerter of DB Plumbing and Heating visited and enlightened us about wonderful career opportunities that lie outside the path of the traditional 4 year college. |
We've started to dive into some exciting topics in Healthy Living and the students were eager to share personal stories! Specifically, our eating to improve sports performance unit showed how certain foods can improve energy, body composition, prevent injury and aid recovery. Understanding the importance of hydration and pre/post workout meals was discussed at length to ensure students understand how easy it is to get an edge over their competition by focusing on some simple strategies. As we continue to move forward this term, our next couple of units will cover healthy meal planning and grocery shopping. Giving students the tools to cook, food shop and prepare basic meals is a skill many don't learn until later in life. Our class field trip to a local supermarket this Spring is on the calendar and something we all look forward to! |
Sports Psychology & Leadership |
The school year has been flying by! The students have already finished their last Sports Psychology Exam and we are now learning about Leadership, in both sports and in life. Throughout our leadership lessons, the students are working towards developing their own personal Leadership Philosophies that they will present in class at the end of the year. We have also had some guests join our class to share their leadership philosophies and discuss leadership in the context of sports. Our guest speakers so far have been great and we will have more special guests joining us in the near future. I am very excited to see what each student's Leadership Philosophy looks like at the end of the year! |
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In math class we recently completed Unit 3 which featured a deep dive into solving equations and solving/graphing inequalities. Students mastered concepts through our QOD's, classroom lessons, and related IXL sections. It is very encouraging how many of our students have been participating in our online extra help sessions, an opportunity to work directly with the instructor to best prepare for upcoming assessments. In Unit 4 now we are exploring linear equations on the coordinate plane. We will infuse some geometry concepts (transformations) to help prepare for high school courses to follow. We continue to place an emphasis on organization and effort as students are discovering how those traits correlate directly with success in all classes. |
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As we head into the final term, the growth and the maturity amongst the boys has been incredible. Their ability to present ideas clearly and concisely during our Socratic discussions, an extensive use of a more intellectually based vocabulary, an ease in formatting and composing essays and an overall desire to communicate in an open, honest and more descriptive way is clearly evident. I have thoroughly enjoyed our open forum discussions around the themes in The Outsiders, and as we begin our next sci fi novel, The House of the Scorpion, their participation and overall enthusiasm each class is a joy to experience. It is quite apparent that we are heading for an incredibly strong finish! |
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It is hard to believe that Term 2 has ended, and we are already more than halfway through Term 3. In science, students are continuing to integrate areas of Biology into their study of Forensic Science. The focus this term has been to build upon general topics covered in our last term. Students are delving deeper into the different types of physical and biological evidence found at a crime scene. With each new topic students get to perform hands-on lab experiments, WebQuests and view CSI Videos to help enhance their learning experience. We recently covered the biological topic of Genetics and within the coming weeks we will begin our study of DNA, DNA Fingerprinting, and Mechanisms of Death. |
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Students continue to embrace our personal development program submitting a vast range of service, leadership, and personal growth activities. Students complete household chores, cook with their families, shovel snow, recall their SS number, open student checking accounts, tutor siblings, and much more. Students have also been coaching at our All Star Basketball Program for athletes with special abilities, and taking time to attend open houses and speak to prospective families interested in future Prep classes.
In class, we have listened to and discussed Sam Berns's philosophy for a happy life. Sam's positive outlook throughout his life serves as an inspiration and offers a stark perspective on how we can all choose a positive attitude. We also heard the story of Dan Jansen's ability to keep a positive mindset and overcome multiple failures to achieve his dream of winning Olympic gold. Malcolm Gladwell taught us about the story of David and Goliath and how the supposed underdog is not always the way it appears! We are looking forward to our essential skills lessons on basic auto care and an intro to buying and owning a home!
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During this 3rd training cycle we’ve been exploring more complex training methodologies. We’ve introduced training with both eccentric and isometric focus and developed an understanding of the critical differences between these two types of muscular work.
Our speed work has also taken a step forward in complexity; agility work has moved into a more chaotic or unplanned, reactionary, context. The break in the weather has also enabled us to get back outside for hill sprinting.
The entire group continues to makes progress in strength, speed and explosiveness. Technique is really starting to show through; this being critical for the remaining cycles where the training intensity will really start to ramp up.
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Follow The Prep Class of ‘22 as they explore the #pathlesstraveled |
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