Focus On: Academics

 

 

After concluding one quarter of study, all Juniors completed the First Aid curriculum. Twelve students then attempted and earned First Aid Certification from the American Heart Association© by successfully demonstrating their skill attainment. Certification was received in the areas of Adult, Child, and Infant Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), Automated External Defibrillator (AED), and First Aid. The purpose of this course is to help students recognize emergencies, act quickly, and make appropriate decisions for immediate first aid care. Certified students may now utilize this training in healthcare and non-healthcare settings.

 

 

Students studying Psychology learned about the structure and cognitive functions of the human brain. While participating in a cross-curricular lab, students engaged in the dissection of a sheep’s brain to gain insight into the important structures, understanding the development of the brain, and seeing how structures are related to each other. This hands-on learning experience reinforced theory and allowed the students to use visualization to make connections. A special thank you is extended to Mrs. Hess for making this experience both fun and informative.

 

  

All teaching staff members at the Academy participated in a two-hour presentation which included a question and answer session conducted by Ms. Rawaa Nejad, Learning Disabilities Teaching Consultant (LDTC), from Bergen County Special Services. The focus of this workshop was to discuss various techniques that could be employed to modify assignments and assessments when addressing the needs of those students with Individual Service Plans. Awareness of the different learning styles and how they influence teaching and learning led to an insightful discussion and reflection.

 

 

Students in Grades 9 and 12 spent three weeks during Seminar working with Mrs. Bello, the Academy's Librarian, studying the standards for Information Literacy as outlined in the Library Curriculum. Topics explored included "Finding and Accessing Information" using print materials, online research databases, and internet resources, and “Discovering and Evaluating Information" by defining "academic" source and evaluating websites for credibility. The types of plagiarism, how to avoid inadvertent plagiarism, and our academic integrity policy were also analyzed. These sessions were delivered in preparation for research paper writing that will take place in the areas of English, Social Studies, and Psychology. 

 

 

All Sophomores completed their studies in preparation for the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Permit Test. Other topics explored included substance abuse – alcohol, drugs, and tobacco. After achieving a passing score of 80% or higher, students are required to complete a six-hour behind the wheel training course, if of age sixteen, and additional driving practice before qualifying to take the road test. Drive safely!