By Will Bonnel
The school offers a wide variety of curriculum. One option for students is the independent studies program, which allows the student to learn about what they wish, and then present their findings.
The independent studies program is a class that is open to students in the Gifted Program. This class lets students go into a topic that they find interest in.
“The independent studies program is an opportunity to explore things of interest that we don’t have time to go into in the regular curriculum,” Gifted Program advisor and English teacher Beth Anderson said.
There is a great variety of topic because the student designs their own class. The idea is to help the student find what interests them.
“My topic is Music Theory and applying that knowledge to songwriting and guitar playing. I have learned many useful musical concepts and how to apply them to my guitar playing and musical compositions,” senior Joseph Pervall said.
The study does require a lot of work. The student must collaborate with their mentor, and right a research paper at the end of the first semester.
“Throughout the year those enrolled in an independent study must complete 140 hours of work, just like a normal class,” Anderson said.
When they get to the end of the year, the students must show what they learned through a presentation. The presentations will be on May 24 at the courthouse.
“[During my presentation] I will give a brief overview of some of the things I learned and covered in my research paper, then I will present and breakdown the song I wrote,” Pervall said.
These presentations will vary because of the large range of topics. The ability to choose what you study allows a great diversity.
“The presentation is an opportunity for the students to showcase what the student learned. It is usually unique to the study,” Anderson said.