12th grade curriculum
In the twelfth grade there is synthesis; things come together. Seniors review their education and return to the place where they began as first graders, to the image of the whole, but now with a deeper understanding. Seniors wrestle with questions of identity and purpose as they envision their place in the world. The central question of the year is, “Who…?” (Who am I? Who do I want to become?”) The new experiences of the senior year—travels, senior projects, and internships—encourage the students to answer that inquiry with action.
Below is a list of classes offered in 12th grade:
mathematics
Pre-Calculus | This course builds on Algebra II topics by deepening the understanding of polynomials, polynomial operations, and functions. Students focus on practical applications of concepts such as logarithmic/exponential expressions, systems of equations, and trigonometric functions. These topics are explored through real-world examples involving topics that vary from finance to geology to biology and others.
Calculus | This year-long class picks up directly from Introduction to Calculus ended using g a college-level textbook. Students are expected to be able to read the text, make sense of the ideas within it, and ask appropriate questions to help further their understanding. The content begins with a quick review of how to find derivatives, their applications, and revisiting conceptual understanding of the mentioned processes. The following new concepts are covered: indefinite integration; Riemann sums and the definite integral; the fundamental theorem of calculus; the second fundamental theorem of calculus; how to integrate different types of functions; differential equations applications of integration.
Economics | After considering the worldwide network of organizations and activities involved in producing a simple product like a bar of Swiss chocolate, students move to a study of pre-capitalist economics, then on to Adam Smith and his idea of a self-regulating free-market system guided by “the invisible hand.” The seniors learn how supply and demand curves lead to an equilibrium point where overproduction and shortfall can be avoided, and about factors that affect supply and demand. Mergers, oligopolies, conglomerates, and economies of scale were also considered in this context. The block includes an inquiry into how the tensions that exist between our objectives as self-seeking consumers and the ideals we carry as members of a humane democratic society can be resolved. The block concludes with consideration of subprime mortgages, mortgage-backed securities, and other factors that contributed to the economic recession that began in 2008.
sciences
Biochemistry | In this block, the first goal is to further understanding of atomic theory and molecular structure. The initial experiment looks at Brownian motion, which through Einstein’s analysis contributed to the acceptance of atomic and kinetic theories in the twentieth century. Based on the structure of the oleic acid molecule, we learn how to estimate the size of an atom and calculate Avogadro’s number. Discussions on chemical bonding and the special nature of water, including hydrogen bonds, are taken up early in the block and find important applications throughout. The class looks at specific ways of classifying structure, including a discussion of isomers. Experiments explore the effects of chirality (relating to enantiomers, or mirror image molecular structures) on physical properties, such as optical rotation, and on chemoreception.
This understanding can be applied to the realm of biochemistry, beginning with work on the structure of amino acids. Students learn to sequence a peptide experimentally, which includes titration and thin film chromatography. A thorough description of protein structure follows; the class learns to check for the presence of proteins with the Biuret test. Later in the block, the focus shifts to the discovery of DNA and its significance in genetics. We describe its structure and extract DNA from our own cheek cells. Students discuss the human genome project and the process of sequencing the base pairs in DNA, which includes electrophoresis. The last experiment demonstrates electrophoresis on fragments of bacterial DNA. There is a field trip to the bionanotechnology lab at Northwestern University.
Marine Biology and Zoology | This block begins with a brief overview of marine invertebrates in preparation for a week on Hermit Island in Maine, where the students meet the flora and fauna of the North Atlantic coast first-hand. They navigate seaweed covered rocks in the process of exploring life-filled tide-pools; they wade through thick mud in search of soft-shelled clams; they paint land and seascapes; they learn about dune ecology and the genesis of beach forms; and not least , they investigate the tiny details of several ocean dwellers with the help of microscopes. This rich exploration into marine biology is followed by classroom work on vertebrate animals after we return to Chicago. Practicing a form of comparative morphology, the class discusses and compares fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and several characteristic groups of the mammals. The block ends with a consideration of the unique nature of the human being.
Science Independent Study | This year-long class is an independent study course offered for students interested in pursuing the sciences more vigorously. Past projects have included a survey of computer and related technology, in which a student learned the basics of binary arithmetic and Boolean logic, and the use of some electronic circuit emulations. Other projects have been focused in the life-sciences. A student wishing to take the course will write a proposal, including an outline of work to be completed with deadlines that can be met within the allotted time. Periodic written and oral reports are presented by students throughout the course.
Modern Physics | This block challenges students to consider the importance of understanding science and technology as factors of change in the modern world. The class explores optics as a means of demonstrating the evolution of physical theories, taking up experimental work in the field of optics and physical colors, in which we compare the understanding of color phenomena in a wholistic manner with the analysis of experimental results through modern mathematical models. The class also takes up questions that relate historically to the development of physics in the 20th century and their present impact. A background text offering descriptions and a critique of 20th century physics is Physics for the Rest of Us by Roger Jones.
To experience physics in a modern setting, the seniors take up such current issues as the energy crisis, alternative energy sources and related technology. There is a field trip to Fermilab, one of the world’s prominent particle physics labs.
humanities
Russian Literature | The Russian land encompasses eleven time zones and climates that range from arctic to subtropical. Russian history encompasses tyrants, heroes, artists, saints and rebels. In this block, literature is a gateway to Russian history and culture as well as to archetypal human questions. We begin with fairy tales and icons. Stories of Russia's acceptance of eastern orthodox Christianity, the Mongol invasions and the biography of Peter the Great give insights into Russia’s simultaneous attraction to and rejection of the West. We read Gogol (“The Overcoat”), Dostoevsky (“The Grand Inquisitor”), Tolstoy (“What Men Live By”), Chekhov (The Cherry Orchard), Akhmatova ("Requiem") and Yevtushenko (A Precocious Autobiography), as well as many poems. The biography of each writer helps place each work in its historical context.
Senior Writing Block | Seniors work individually with faculty advisors to complete their papers for their senior projects.
History Through Architecture | Beginning with the raising of standing stones and ending with contemporary structures, students examine the human being’s changing experience of space, place, purpose, materials and design. In the last week of the course students give a short presentation of an architectural approach to a contemporary question.
The Human Being | This block focuses on the students’ experience of their education so far and also looks at the question of the ongoing education of the adult. Based on observations in early childhood and the lower and middle grades of the school the class discusses their questions about the basis of Waldorf education. This helps the students prepare for their meeting with the faculty prior to graduation when they are asked to reflect on their experience and make suggestions for the future.
Transcendentalists | A small group of thinkers, educators, and writers, many of whom lived in and around Concord, Massachusetts in the years leading up to the American Civil War, addressed the great questions of existence in ways that still shape our thinking today. When students encounter Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman for the first time, there is often a shock of essays and poetry of Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman, along with their associates Bronson Alcott and Margaret Fuller. In keeping with transcendentalist traditions, the class converses and writes in their journals on a daily basis.
English | Most of the literature studied by the twelfth-grade deals explicitly with the struggle of individual human beings to find their meaningful place in the world. Seniors are beginning to look outward into the world well outside of the high school; they are at a threshold, exiting a comfortable world that might nevertheless appear to them as 'stale, weary, and flat,' and entering a mysterious new world that is 'infinite in variety.' This mood is captured poignantly by the mid-twentieth century writers of the existentialist movement, Sartre and Camus. Seniors read No Exit, The Flies, and The Stranger, all from this period. We then move backwards in time, tracing the roots of the existential perspective, reading The Metamorphosis by Kafka, and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Senior reading culminates with the first part of Goethe's Faust. Seniors relate uncannily to the character of Faust, who is at once world-weary and yet fervently hungry for a new kind of knowledge.
world languages
German I | Students can take German I with little or no prior experience. In the first semester, the students learn basic everyday greetings, vocabulary, and grammar. By the second semester, students form more complex sentences, both ask and answer questions, and learn more advanced grammar for writing and speaking. By the end of Level I, students should have mastered basic German vocabulary, grammar, and communicative skills. Grammar concepts include pronouns, present and future tense verbs, nouns, articles, adjectives, conjunctions, negations, prepositions, and the difference between the nominative and accusative cases.
German II | In the first semester of German II, students review verbs, learn more tenses, and address proper sequence and sentence structure. In the second semester, students recall past events and describe them in proper sequence, practice case prepositions and subordinate clauses, and learn colloquial phrases. By the end of Level II, students should have mastered the imperative tense and present, past, and future verb tenses. Students should also know the difference between superlatives, comparisons, subordinate clauses, conjunctions, the accusative case, and dative case. They should be able to write and tell stories in present and past tense.
German III | By the end of German III, students should have mastered the present and past verbs, including reflexives. They should be able to differentiate between the nominative, accusative and dative cases in terms of prepositions, articles, and pronouns, as well as know and apply with accuracy, dative verbs and relative clauses. Practically speaking, students should also know how to ask for products in a pharmacy, describe their injuries or illnesses, tell/recount a story in the present and past, look for a hostel while traveling, and read a short novel.
Advanced German IV/V | This class is an opportunity to study independently with the teacher. By the end of this course, students should have mastered the usage of the subjunctive cases (I and II), passive voice, phrases such as um…zu, je…desto, and da-wo compounds. Practically speaking, the students should know how to write a formal/informal letter and email, how to apply for a job, how to give a presentation, and how to defend his or her own opinion about a worldwide and/or local social problem.
Spanish I | Students learn basic everyday greetings, vocabulary, and grammar. By the end of the class, students form more complex sentences, both ask and answer questions, and learn more advanced grammar for writing and speaking. Students should master basic vocabulary, grammar, and communicative skills. Grammar concepts include pronouns, present and future tense verbs, nouns, articles, adjectives, conjunctions, negations, prepositions, and the difference between the nominative and accusative cases.
Spanish II | The focus of this course is on the systematic review of basic grammar: gender and number of nouns, adjectives, and the present and past tenses of regular and irregular verbs. For the second semester, new grammar topics include comparison of adjectives and prepositions. The students also work on more verb tenses (such as the imperfect), begin to learn the future and conditional tenses, learn new vocabulary, and read short stories from different Latin American authors. The project for the first semester is on a renowned Latin American destination. For the second semester, students present the life and work of a Latin American painter or sculptor.
Spanish III | The goal of this course is to provide the basic grammatical structures needed to communicate in Spanish. The students learn vocabulary for typical activities related to traveling in a foreign country and vocabulary pertaining to housework, shopping, weather, transportation, restaurants, and everyday life. Students learn more complex verb forms (such as the imperfect, future and conditional tenses). They also read short stories from different Latin American authors and work on two different projects for each semester.
Advanced Spanish IV/V | In Spanish IV/V, students read El Esclavo by Francisco J. Angel. Students spend time discussing the book in order to deepen their fluency and write assignments in order to focus on their Spanish reading and writing. Their final test is to summarize the novel in a brief Spanish language essay.
World Exchange Program | As part of the extensive and growing global network of Waldorf schools, the Chicago Waldorf School offers a distinctive exchange program that places our High School students in Waldorf Schools across the world and welcomes exchange students and international students to visit and enroll in our school. Exchange students come to our school from diverse countries including Colombia, Chile, Austria, Switzerland, Korea, Brazil, Germany, Argentina, Kyrgyzstan, France, and Peru, among others.
arts
Drama | The 12th graders are active participants in choosing their play – their final gift to the school community Recent choices have been Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Tennessee Williams’ Camino Real and a musical adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. The seniors are all assigned speaking roles and also sign up for a production crew. The students collaborate on a design plot for the set, often including a background mural, and detailed costumes. They rehearse extensively, blocking the play, memorizing their lines, working on character development and, if applicable, music and choreography. The students have the assistance of a scene coach, set, lighting and costume designers, a musical director, a choreographer, musicians, and a hair and make-up stylist in a production that culminates in three or four public performances.
Metalwork and Design Studio | Students are required to complete a series of elements combining them as they choose. The elements are: etching, enameling, stencil design and completion, a 3 D component, enameling a bowl. The design must come out of their experience with marine biology in Maine. The students design, develop, and complete their individual projects in collaboration with the teacher.
Portrait Painting | Students apply the basics of portrait painting to create a final self portrait or portrait of a classmate using oils.
Sculpture | The class begins with group exercises incorporating the themes of pulse and flow. As they work the students consider their selection of materials and the theme they will develop in this block. Students select from a range of materials.
Portfolio and Technical Arts | The aim of the Technical Arts part of the elective is to explore digital painting and drawing media. Students begin with the basics, exploring use of software and the graphics tablet (along with the necessary laptop The goal is for students to be able to work in a convincingly representational technique with the graphics tablet, from both life and imagination, as well as they are able to do with traditional media.
music
African Drumming | Students develop technique, hand coordination, and traditional rhythms in an ensemble. Additionally, students investigate the cultural and historical significance of the djembe drum, the oral history of each rhythm and song, and the geography of regions specific to the tradition of the djembe as well as Africa in general.
Chamber Ensemble | Chamber Ensemble is for those students who wish to continue the study and performance of music on classical instruments. The students study and perform standard orchestral works arranged for small ensemble and also continue playing both by rote and by improvisation. Listening – melody, harmony, accompaniment – is emphasized, as is technique.
Beginning Guitar | Students learn basic musical concepts and skills with an emphasis on how they apply to guitar as well as to singing. Students learn to play chords, scales, and full songs and attain a basic proficiency in reading music.
Guitar Ensemble | Students who have a basic level of guitar skill play a range of parts (according to level of ability) that when combined, create a cohesive whole, as in an orchestra. Moving beyond unison chords, students will learn to play single line melodies and two or more notes simultaneously, in addition to broken or block chords. Students also sharpen their listening and collaboration skills. The class takes up different genres – classical, folk, rock, jazz – over the course of the year.
Improvisational Ensemble | Based on the notion of improvisation that there are “no wrong notes,” this class offers an environment in which students feel comfortable experimenting with and creating new sounds. Students play any instrument they feel comfortable with, including voice, general percussion instruments provided for the class, and any instrument the student would like to bring (guitar, harmonica, woodwinds, strings, etc.). Students may split into smaller groups in order to apply the core principles of improvisation and to build connections between players. Collaboration with classmates is highly encouraged and showcased at the end of the year in the "Show of Work" performance.
Jazz Band | The Jazz Ensemble plays many different styles of jazz including Dixieland, Bebop, Bossanova, Swing, and Standards. The students play at a high level on their instruments, study music theory, and improvise as part of the ensemble.
Vocal Ensemble | Vocal Ensemble is both a performance-driven chamber choir focused on the rehearsal and performance of choral and vocal music, and a supportive environment to try new things, experiment with improvisation, and have fun creating music together. The class places emphasis on vocal development, independence in part-singing, stylistic understanding, and performance technique. Time is spent on reinforcing and developing an understanding of musical notation and conducting patterns.
movement
Eurythmy | Eurythmy is a performing art that engages aspects of dance, music, poetry, speech, and kinesthetic expression. A feature unique to Waldorf education, the beautiful, spiritual, and emotional art of eurythmy introduces students to the frameworks underlying speech and music through movement. The study of Eurythmy develops concentration, spatial orientation and dexterity, and engages students in the study of enhanced rhythms of speech and music as experienced and interpreted through the whole body.
Gym | At the Chicago Waldorf School, we believe every student is a mathematician, scientist, artist and athlete. In our gym program and extra programming we strive to offer a rich variety of athletic activities designed for students to explore physicality in all its aspects. Students learn fundamental movement skills through sport lead-up games, then participate in team and individual sports. From aerial circus arts to javelin to football to parkour, our students have ample opportunity to discover their interests and to develop mastery.
electives and interest groups
Math Club | This extracurricular club offers students opportunities for customized study in math, fun group challenges, and problem-solving projects, all in a collaborative social millieu. The Math Club travels to the Regionals and State Math competitions, where for many years our Student Mathletes have won top trophies for outstanding performances, and earned many other accolades and marks of distinction.
Spanish Club | Students in this after-school club convene to study lessons and enjoy social events that celebrate and investigate Spanish Culture. They visit cultural institutions and museums, and study the film, music, literature and art of Spanish and Latino cultures. Many students enroll in Spanish club in preparation for the cultural exchange they will experience when they study abroad in Latin America for their Sophomore or Junior year in the school's World Exchange Program. Others use the club to supplement their preparations for the summer travel abroad program that visits the Spanish cities of Madrid and Barcelona.
Student Leadership | In this class, students undertake projects of student initiative for the High School student body. In the past, these have included surveying the High School students about key issues, organizing the High School Spirit Wear program, staffing other activities, and planning events such as the school prom.
Creative Writing | This writing seminar allows students the opportunity to work on their creative writing within a group discussion, critique framework, and consult with a member of the English faculty.
Current Events/World Issues | This class focuses on topical issues of importance. Students engage a course of study that analyzes a contemporary issue (or issues) within the a framework of its historical, social, cultural, and political context.
Literary Journal | Students write, edit, and manage the production of the school's literary anthology, the CHI WAL HI Journal. The student staff solicits and edits all submissions to this journal of poetry, prose, and short stories.
Yearbook Staff | Students join the production staff to engage in publications skills (photography, writing/editing, illustration and layout) and distribution processes (promotions, advertising, and sales) to create The Loop, the school's annually published yearbook.
Student Ambassadors | The Student Ambassadors are practiced in representing the school to external audiences. They make presentations about student life and their own experiences as students at the school's Tour and Orientation events, as well as at outreach events, neighborhood festivals, and other annual promotional events in which the school participates.
Portfolio and Technical Arts | Students engage in technical workshops and complete assignments and critiques to prepare a portfolio of their creative projects. They review and update past projects and create new works to finalize their presentation portfolio.
Independent Science Seminar | This elective offers students opportunities to make science-based projects in consultation with a High School Science faculty member. Often the independent science seminar offers the roots of scientific research that students hone to final form in their Senior Projects. In the past, other independent science projects have taken the form of group project-based classes like the CWS Rocket Club.
Equity and Inclusion Committee | Students from 10th-12th grade are invited to join faculty and staff on the Equity and Inclusion Committee, which undertakes initiatives to advance the school’s progress toward becoming a more just environment, celebratory of all people regardless of skin color, ethnic background, personal history, ability, age, gender, or sexuality.
field trips
Indiana Dunes | The entire High School travels to the Indiana Dunes National Park. For five days the students and faculty camp at this beach campground while engaging in workshop activities and group discussions that both welcome the new incoming freshmen class and cement social bonds and relationships in the High School's student body.