Offerings for this Semester

In January, students in grades 8-12 began a new semester of intensive study courses (These classes run on a different schedule than other courses – early Jan through early May).
One of the feature programs of the high school is “Intensive Studies.”  This course format is designed to support a philosophy of deeper learning and flexibility; it features several “regular” meetings (70 minutes each) and most importantly, one elongated meeting time that consumes the better part of one school day (this year, it is “A-Day”) in the cycle.
In many schools, the 70-minute block that is the “norm” at PDS is considered intensive. We think it is too. Still, this is nothing compared to the A-day, when students and teachers can work and learn together for almost four hours. During that elongated “intensive” day, amazing things happen!

Students can get out into the community for a full day (The Awe of Nature hiking-based course), students can build fabulous robots (FIRST Tech Challenge) and theater productions of amazing depth and quality can take form (Macbeth).
The key is having the time to really get into something without worry that the class period is going to end and interrupt the thoughtful collaborations and messy adventures.

Making Choices

Intensive studies allow students to tailor their learning. Over their high school career, students can take eight semester-long intensive study courses! Students can take different kinds of courses (departmental or interdisciplinary) in ways that complement or supplement areas of interest. These enrich each student profile in a unique way.

The program is a tremendous benefit to students on both ends of the spectrum – those who have a clear passion that they wish to develop and those who simply want to explore and try different things, risk-free.