At the end of the 2023-2024 year, the school board approved new classes for students. There are four new available classes for the students: Art of War, Astronomy, Communications, and Hydroponics.
Mr. Simmons is a history teacher at Concord and wanted to teach a class about the art of war. The class is about militaries throughout history, what they did during the war, and how it got to that point in time. It also discusses the strategies and weapons militaries used to advance wars and society. Mr.Simmons shares what he hopes the students will learn from this class, “The evolution of war itself and yet also how societies are built around it.”
Senior Alex Searles explains how he feels about the new classes, “I am in hydroponics and art of war. Being able to do hydroponics and work with these massive towers, and the art of war where we built our own shields. It was not something that I expected I was able to do and it was loads of fun.”
Another option for students was Astronomy with Mrs. Fiero. It is a class that is about the universe and what is in it. Most of the work that is given is to be done at night, so they can get a good look at the stars and planets. Students will learn how to use telescopes and how to identify stars and planets when looking at one. Mrs. Fiero shares why students would want to join, “Students who like physics or want to take some sort of physical science class instead of biology or chemistry. Another benefit is that I teach them how to take proper notes, so if students are looking to expand their note-taking abilities or test-taking abilities.”
Senior Jaylin Otto talks about why she wanted to take astronomy, “Because I love planets and I wanted to know more about that and the star constellations. I thought they were really cute and I want to learn more about them.”
Students were given the chance to choose Communications with Ms. Kelly as a class. The class is about communicating to an audience, whether it is verbal or nonverbal. For the first semester, they are doing interpersonal, which is to effectively communicate in everyday situations. The second semester is professional communication, which should teach them to apply it to a job. When asked ‘why [she] would students want to take this class, Ms. Kelly explained that “for introverted students who have a hard time speaking, making eye contact, gathering their thoughts, and just speaking confidently, this class gives them opportunities to practice these skills in low-risk situations.“
Senior Taylor Cole talks why she likes communications, “It is something new and something I am not used to, so it really pushes me to understand the concepts of communicating.”
Another class students could choose was hydroponics with Mrs. Colangelo. Students learn how to use the towers and how to be more self-sufficient with food. Students will use both high school and elementary, and middle school towers to grow such foods as lettuce or basil. When Mrs. Colangelo was asked what interested her in teaching this class, she explained, “Got to keep up with the times. I started plant science and right away I started thinking about hydroponics. I love to try new things, so I was ready.”
Sophomore Hayden Stanhope explains why he wanted to take hydroponics, “This is like the closest thing I can get to working with plants and farming right now. I spent most of my days working with plants since I was a little kid. It is interesting how they grow.”
Concord students are excited about the new classes. We hope to see these classes next year.
