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 The CAMP — Computer, Art, Music, and Performance — program introduces
these areas of study. The objectives of the program include sequential
skill building, the acquisition of knowledge, and the development of
self-confidence. Each year, students in grades 5–8 rotate through the
four disciplines. In addition to acquiring a broad-based understanding
of the arts, it is anticipated that students will be better prepared
for Upper School, most notably for the Visual and Performing Arts program.Programs of StudyComputerComputers 5-6: Fifth and sixth graders learn to use Microsoft Word. They do a variety of projects that will allow them to practice their skills. They also use keyboarding programs to learn proper form in producing documents. Computers 7: Seventh graders learn to use Microsoft Excel as well as continue to develop and improve their word processing skills in Microsoft Word. They do a variety of projects that will allow them to practice their skills. Proper keyboarding skills are emphasized. Computers 8: Eighth graders learn to use Microsoft PowerPoint as well as continue to practice using Word and Excel. They do three projects that allow them to practice their skills. Proper keyboarding skills are emphasized. ArtThe program is designed to encourage sequential learning in such a way that, as students move through the Middle School, skills and experiences will be based on prior learning. The main goal of the Middle school art curriculum is to develop visual awareness through learning to look and record what is experienced. Another objective is to grow self-confidence as a result of carrying out processes that demand personal expression. Learning to use tools and materials with dexterity and skill is also important to the program. The Middle School art program also recognizes the significance of art history and the need to develop an appreciation for the work of artists from the past and the present. Along with this students are encouraged to cultivate sensitivity to aesthetic issues and the appropriate application of the formal elements of art. Music: Vocal and Instrumental CAMP students in grades 5–8 are enrolled in the
music division for one marking period each year (a total of nine
weeks). Fifth and sixth grade students study general music and
beginning violin. Seventh graders study general music and beginning
music composition. Eighth graders study beginning music composition and
beginning guitar. The School provides the instruments used in CAMP
music classes. In each period, the following coursework isdelivered:
General Music : Through the study of various historical periods and musical styles, the following concepts are introduced: meter, tempo, rhythm, pitch, form, dynamics, melody, harmony, and the use of expressive devices. Students will experience these concepts through written work, discussion, clapping exercises, music listening activities, and the use of classroom instruments. Beginning Violin: Study includes development of good posture, proper bow hold, left-hand playing position, tone production, scales, tuning, repertoire played in first position, and proper maintenance and care for the instrument. Beginning Guitar: Study includes basic music staff reading skills, chord charts, tabulature, strumming techniques, picking techniques, tuning, and proper maintenance and care for the instrument.
Beginning Music Composition: Students will learn to create sounds on a variety of instruments and createnon-traditional sounds through experimentation.
Students will create non-traditional and traditional music notation. Compositions will be created using computers and notation software.
Performance Students will examine extracts from plays —monologues and scenes — as study materials and as source materials for performance. Films may be viewed and analyzed for plot, acting, and design. Students will create their own short scenes and monologues for performance, and will practice improvisations based upon games with varying degrees of structure imposed. The emphasis will be on taking the stage; that is, most of the skills learned will have a practical bearing on the dramatic exercises of any given day. Theater games will figure prominently in the curriculum, with varying degrees of structure imposed by the instructor. Warming up is a daily regimen of stretching the body and toning the voice in preparation for the athletic art of acting. Students learn some basic yoga, sports and dance stretches, and for the voice, choral techniques, tongue twisters, and methods of focusing and projecting the voice. Improvisation is learned through a wide variety of games that provide a non-threatening forum for role-playing, mime, storytelling, plot invention, and fanciful vocalizations. Because the rules are simple and few, “improv” counters stage fright. Acting with Short Scripts, including written scripts, student-generated scripts, and “flexible scene-work.” Combining text analysis with performance, students work to match delivery with meaning. In “flexible scenes,” students devise a short plot to fit a piece of dialogue whose language is non-specific enough to make it “flexible.” After all performances, the actors and audience analyze the scene to help establish a more specific subtext for the work. Vocabulary studies accompany a wider examination of the world of theater, including history, professions, theories, and design.
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