The next school year will bring a change to the courses the school is offering. These new classes are being offered to benefit students and give them more hands-on experiences and prepare them for their futures.
One of the biggest changes will be in the Xavier music program. Band and orchestra will be combined into two orchestra classes, Beginning Orchestra and Advanced Orchestra.
Band and orchestra teacher Robert Kroehler made the decision to combine the classes to give students more feedback and assistance during their in-class practice time.
“They can have someone in the room to give them feedback and to work with them, just to clean up their charts and make sure they’re playing things correctly,” Kroehler said.
With the classes combining it gives students a chance to work together and focus more on their performances and skills.
Another addition to new courses is a Foods and Nutrition master class with teacher Lexie Rinaldi ‘13. This class will go more in-depth in regards to cooking, baking and nutrition, beyond the fundamental classes students can currently take.
With hands-on kitchen labs, students will practice using different tools and techniques. In these labs they will be making a variety of complex meals while also learning about the nutrition factors within these meals.
Many students who were previously enrolled in the original foods and nutrition course wanted there to be another class. They wanted to have the ability to make more fun and complicated things.
“Last year’s class really enjoyed the foods class. They wanted there to be another level with more food options,” Rinaldi said.
Students in this class will learn more advanced cooking techniques and learn to make things that will require more time and skill.
In addition to these, a new Family Finance course will be replacing the old child development course. Aspects of Family Finance were brought into the child development class as of last year but now the class will be fully focused on finance.
Students who were previously in Rinaldi’s child development course stated that the financial aspects incorporated into the class taught them about how to manage money and their future finances.
“I think that her class really did help me for the future because I learned how to budget and use my money responsibly,” said Shelsia Alcaraz ‘27, former child development student.
The purpose of the class is to teach students how to wisely plan for their futures. Using real-world examples, students will learn how to make financial decisions.These skills are ones they can use after graduation and throughout their adult lives.
These changes and updates in the school’s curriculum will benefit students, making departments more engaging and useful.
