Mountlake Terrace High School
2007-2008

The Discovery School
Art
  Smoke and Fire
Applied Art History
Pottery
Design Arts
Photography
Advanced Photography
Digital Photography
Digital Film Production
Studio Art
Creative Writing
Interior Design
 
 
     
  Super Terrace Classes AP Classes

Smoke & Fire (ART303)

Prerequisite:   None

Fee:  $20
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
Smoke and Fire is an expeditionary learning experience that will include firing pottery using various kilns and techniques. Students will learn the basic hand-building techniques of pinch, coil, and slab while using the basic elements of art (line, form/shape, space, texture, color and value). Students will learn the technique and safety for open pit firing, raku firings and other primitive firing techniques through lectures, demonstrations and video. Students will keep accurate records of their design process and glazing in order to share their results with other students in group critiques. Students will learn about the effects of smoke and fire on clay and how to control those effects by deciding on which different primitive firing techniques to use for their minimum of  projects.
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Applied Art History (ART000)

Prerequisite:  None

Fee:  $10
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
Students will experience a survey of art beginning with cave paintings and progressing through to the modern era that includes hands on 2 D and 3 D work as well as time on computers working with the CD connected to the Art Throughout the Ages textbook for research and power point presentations. Students will be able to pick and chose their own subject matter, era and art style when producing a relief sculpture, a sculpture in the round, drawings, paintings and small scale models of architecture. The classroom will be set up with zones or areas for various projects after demonstrations and videos have been utilized to give students the skills necessary for competence. Students will be able to use clay, charcoal, pastels, paints as well as found objects to complete projects. Students are expected to present their finished work to the class with an artist statement during critiques.
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Pottery (ART300)

Prerequisite:  None 

Fee: $20  
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
Students will build skills and gain knowledge of materials and processes in clay while learning basic elements of art. They will learn to hand build using pinch, slab, and coil techniques to make cups/bowls/pots/boxes and sculptures while learning about design and production in clay including finishing, decorating, and glazing. Students will also learn how to research a specific culture and time in history focusing on the pottery styles and techniques they used. Students will listen to demonstrations, watch videos, and use books and the internet to plan their projects. Students will use data sheets to document their designs and the glazes they used for sharing with other students. This sharing will be in the form of group critiques. There will also be an opportunity for students to give a presentation to the whole class on a specific culture and its contributions to the world, art and pottery.
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Design Arts (ART000)

Prerequisite:  None 

Fee: $10
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
This introductory class is strongly recommended for the student as a beginning art class. In this class you will work with a variety of drawing materials to learn new ways of expressing your creativity using the elements and principles of design. Drawing projects in this class are not the kind given in conventional drawing classes, where students are asked to look at an object and then reproduce it on a page. Rather, the assignments encourage you to turn your attention and vision inward to create imaginative and intuitive drawings using an assortment of drawing media. Build a firm foundation of drawing skills. Gain self-confidence in the knowledge that you are unique and your ideas have merit. Learning will be assessed in a variety of methods: Art scoring rubrics assessing each student's project on their idea and expression, use of elements and principles of design, technique and skill with chosen media, willingness to experiment, teacher observations, student reflections and effort/work ethic.
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 Photography (ART430)

Prerequisite:  None 

Fee: $40
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
This is a beginning level course in black-and-white 35mm film photography and darkroom techniques. Some digital photography concepts are introduced. Instruction emphasizes observation, composition, imagination and basic photography skills. It is strongly recommended that students have access to their own 35mm SLR camera. Learning will be assessed in a variety of methods: effort, creativity, demonstration of ability to apply knowledge, projects and research. Students also will be assessed on the quality of the portfolio of their work that they create during the course.
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 Advanced Photography (ART000)

Prerequisite:  None 

Fee: $40
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
This course extends the experiences gained in beginning photography. Students will further expand on traditional film photography and darkroom techniques, as well as extend their work into digital photography. Instruction emphasizes observation, composition, imagination and basic photography skills. It is strongly recommended that students have access to their own 35mm SLR camera. Advanced students will serve as mentors to beginning students. Learning will be assessed in a variety of methods: effort, creativity, demonstration of ability to apply knowledge, projects and research. Students also will be assessed on the quality of the portfolio of their work that they create during the course.
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 Digital Photography (ART431)

Prerequisite:  None 

Fee: $25
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
Do you like taking photographs but don't like the thought of a dark room? Then this is the class for you! Learn all the skills of photography in the modern digital world. You will be able to take pictures using state of the art digital cameras and digitally process them using Adobe Photoshop on state of the art computers. Pictures will be printed on and mounted for presentation. Learning will be assessed in a variety of methods: effort, creativity, demonstration of ability to apply knowledge, projects and research. Students also will be assessed on the quality of the portfolio of their work that they create during the course.
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Digital Film Production (ART000)

Prerequisite:  10-12 grade; teacher permission; letter of interest submitted to instructor

Fee:   $20
Length: Semester
Credit:  .5
This course is designed to provide an overview and introduction to the four most basic phases of film making: Development, Pre-Production, Production, and Post-Production. This course covers higher-level thinking skills and art-related technology skills with an emphasis on the creation of short digital films. Students will have the opportunity to work with state-of-the-art hardware and software, including iMovie, iDVD, iTunes, iPhoto and Final Cut Pro Express. The fee covers the cost of a mini-DV tape and DVD-R disc for students' digital portfolios. Learning is demonstrated and assessed through the following:
· Write, edit and produce several short films in several styles (documentary, dramatic, etc.) 
· Learn and apply basic digital editing, digital photo, digital video and desktop media skills. 
· Develop a solid portfolio that may be used for college or industry
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Studio Art  (ART445)

Prerequisite: None

Fee:  $15.00

Length:  1 semester
Credits:  .5

Learn Basic approaches to drawing and/or painting using a variety of subject matter, including still-life, landscape, figure and fantasy. Problems presented stress perception and stylistic organization of line, space, value, texture and color. Explore a variety of media and experiment with techniques and processes. Works of major artists working in related media are studied. This course may be repeated for credit.

Learning will be assessed in a variety of methods: Art scoring rubrics assessing each student's project on their idea and expression, use of elements and principles of design, technique and skill with chosen media, willingness to experiment, and effort / work ethic.Teacher observations/evaluations.  Student self evaluations.

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Creative Writing (ENG570)

Prerequisite: English 11

Length:  1 semester

Credits:  .5

This course will stay with you for a lifetime, I promise. In a circle, we write, laugh, talk, share and learn together. I write along with you, and the assignments are worth doing. I promise. You will value this course. I promise. You'll get a book of our work at the end, and you'll want to keep it. I promise. We will write tons of fun things, listen to music, keep a journal, study, and discuss nearly everything we do!


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