The life of the mind is rich and varied at Walnut Hill. The School offers a demanding academic curriculum intended to prepare students for admission to highly selective colleges, as well as ensuring exciting intellectual exploration. Classes are small and the student-to-teacher ratio allows for close relationships to flourish. Our experienced academic faculty have chosen to teach at Walnut Hill because they wish to work with talented young artists. Current academic faculty members are graduates of colleges such as Brown University, Cornell University, Harvard University, New York University, Wellesley College, and Williams College.
The Nexus Program and Schedule
In 2003, Walnut Hill initiated the Nexus program, an innovative approach to college-preparatory academics for young artists. This program supports depth of understanding and authentic learning experiences, as inspired by the arts, as well as providing a humane pace to the day for our busy students.
DEPTH OF UNDERSTANDING
Arts inspiration: Across the arts programs, students learn in classes designed to support adequate time to develop depth of understanding—a ballet class or a theater rehearsal cannot be effective in a traditional 50-minute class period. Similarly, an arts student does not have to master the entire content of the arts area, but focuses on, one element at a time.
In our academics: To support depth of understanding in traditional academic areas, we provide semester courses that carry one full academic credit. Each course meets five days per week, three days for 85 minutes and two days for 50 minutes.
AUTHENTIC LEARNING EXPERIENCES
Arts inspiration: The arts are designed for learning experiences with real “stakes”—students face both public performances and internal juries in the performing arts, while in visual art and writing, stu–dents’ work is on display for the public in the biannual Arts Show and in the publication of The Blue Pencil.
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In our academics: To reinforce authentic learning expe–riences, Nexus supports the development of hands-on, project-based class work, as designing a greenhouse for use in science experiments; an immersion style of modern language study, so students only speak the language they are learning during class time; student-designed web pages featuring student writing to be “published” on the Internet; and the creation of NPR-style narrative essays using digital recording and editing software.
HUMANE PACE
The Nexus schedule enables students to take 2–3 academic courses in a semester, so their energy is split between fewer obligations than in a traditional high school schedule. A sample semester schedule appears right.
Do you have a specific question about the academic curriculum or courses? Please email your questions to academicfaculty@walnuthillarts.org
