MIDDLE SCHOOL EIGHTH PERIOD COURSES

Middle School Improvisation and Sketch Comedy

This class includes both improv and sketch comedy for stage and camera. Students have the opportunity to learn short form improvisation games and skills, and delve into long form techniques. The class will focus on the basics of improvisation rules and playful games and help prepare students interested in joining W!T (Windward Improv Troupe) when they enter the Upper School. In addition, students will learn how to conceptualize written sketches through improv techniques and writing prompts. Students will learn the fundamentals of crafting comedic premises, shaping individual storytelling perspectives, deepening characters, and showcasing their own works through performance. These two offerings will help them gain confidence, learn to work as a team through collaboration, find their unique voices through comedy, and utilize improv techniques in their writing, performance, filmmaking, and their life! Open to all Middle School students without audition.

Middle School Interdisciplinary Visual and Media Arts (7-8) (Eighth Period)

In this Eighth Period course, students will engage in a wide range of studio and multimedia projects. Students will explore a variety of artmaking styles, using prompts and creative projects to encourage the development of personal voice. Sketchbooks will be used as a tool to explore concepts, iterate ideas and prototypes, and document work and process. This course is specifically designed for students who are passionate about the visual and media arts and are willing to be challenged.

Middle School Music Production

There are many aspects to being a Music Producer. They are musicians, composers, audio technicians, recording artists and programmers all at once. In this class, we will learn the basic keyboard skills and rudimentary music theory in which a producer needs to create original music. We will take on various projects as producers such as making beats from scratch, making music for a podcast, and creating original compositions. We will also explore each aspect of making a song, while learning what it means to be a studio musician, audio engineer, and producer. By the end of the year, students will have a deeper knowledge and understanding of how music is created, and will be able to create original music themselves from scratch. After a full year of this course, students can then take their skillset into many different related areas of music, and will in turn be inspired to continue to pursue music as an art and a discipline. No previous music experience is required, beginners are welcome! This class is a full year course.