Instrumental Music- Lars Johanesson

    Children are introduced to instrumental music in the First or Second Grade. They may choose to stay with the recorder or they may choose another woodwind instrument as they get older. Most children move on to the flute, saxophone, or clarinet. Many students study piano or other instruments out side of class. Each year we have a Spring Concert where young musicians share their work in groups and individually.

    Lars Johanesson teaches and directs our instrumental program. He is helping children develop rhythm, sight-reading, and musicianship. He has had 15 years teaching experience and specializes in silver flute, Irish flute and baroque flute. Lars has studied at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and the Royal Conservatory of Hague in Holland.

Spanish- Christy Hertzberg

    Spanish is taught Kindergarten through Sixth Grade. It is taught in a conversational manner and incorporates curriculum that is appropriate for each grade level. Students develop their ear and accent. The small class size insures individual attention and practice. She uses hands on exercises and art to reinforce her lessons.

    Christy Hertzberg has been teaching Spanish in the Santa Cruz Area for over 13 years. She has been encouraging and stretching our students for the last four years.

Art- Julie Munnerlyn

    Children at SCCS experiment with the various art mediums. We do not aim for perfect, we aim for enjoyment of the experience. The children work with found objects (someone's junk is another's treasure) to create amazing art collages, paper mache, sculptures, scarecrows, and paintings. We put together the children's adventurous stories into  fabulous books. We have created beautiful gifts for the animals at our local animal shelter. We incorporate fine art instruction and art history education. Julie and the children are always so thrilled at how incredible their final art pieces are. They just cannot wait to see how far they can go with each project every week!

    Julie Munnerlyn- During her extra hours she has  a home business selling uniquely designed linens. She has degrees in History, Political Science, and City and Regional Planning. But the wonderful world of art is where she has the most fun.

                        Design- Victoria Sheldon

   Victoria works creatively with students both in writing and art. Her monthly Open Studio is a place where children are introduced at an early age to fundamental art skills that result in thoughtful design concepts. The emphasis will be on conscious use of sustainable materials. All thing that are created by human hands have the element of design.  It is empowering to children to see themselves as both engineers and artists. They work together to imagine, create, evaluate and improve on their concepts, In this class they learn how to support each other, work together, and make some really cool items!

    Victoria Sheldon, BA Fine Art Scripps College Master of Fine Art, Claremont Graduate University 1983 Owner/Designer V.C.Torias, Inc. Private label of Women's Art to Wear Clothing, sold nationally to over 300 boutiques, 1984 to 2003 Clothing Designer and Set Designer for Children's Feature Film 'Frog and Wombat', starring Lindsay Wagner and Ronnie Cox Star and Producer of Two Broads Abroad, TV pilot Alumna in residence, Scripps College. She taught at The University of La Verne, Scripps College Sierra Conservation Center, Prison Arts Program.  Currently she is designing jewelry and has completed a large installation of paintings in Scotts Valley.

                Biology- Laura James-Beckham, MD

   The life sciences/biology course offers a hands-on approach to exploring the living world.  Some lecture / demonstration teaching does occur to increase the understanding of introduced concepts.  Discussion and student inquiry are encouraged.  Scientific methods and experimental design will be introduced.  The students practice their skills of observation, inference, and prediction while exploring living organisms’ structures, classification and living processes. This year we will be exploring the importance of water and life in water environments. This class requires that all students use reading, writing, and math skills as appropriate for grade level.  Students are expected to do assigned work outside of class in order to enrich the classroom experience.

    Laura James-Beckham,MD is a Family Medicine Physician.

Geography and Community Studies- Nicolette Harris

    Nicolette brings Geography and Culture life through hands on experience with food, language, artifacts, music, art and maps. Nicolette is from England and has traveled the world. She has a deep understanding, love, and knowledge of world cultures... and children.

   

Ancient Civilizations- Amy Marlo

    In this class, students will focus on the culture of these ancient civilizations: Egypt, Greece, China, and the Mayan Indians. They will learn about each civilization's art, mythology, governance, major accomplishments, and daily life.  Active learning through hands-on projects will help students better imagine the lives of these ancient people.  Children will consider how beliefs and geography shaped these cultures, and explore their impact on human history.  Through this class, we hope that we can see ourselves and our culture in a different light.

    Amy Marlo’s educational background includes a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and International Studies, with a particular interest in philosophy and art history.  She also has two Master's degrees.  She first earned a Master's degree in Urban and Regional Planning and worked as a planner in urban neighborhoods.  Her second Master's is in Social Work and she has worked, most recently, in children's mental health.

Earth Science and Oceanography- Deirdre Scholar

    In our Earth Science class students will learn about rocks and how they form.  We will also investigate internal geologic processes such as earthquakes and external earth processes such as glaciers.  In our study of the earth’s oceans we will learn about the topography of the sea floor, waves, currents and tides as well as environmental issues of the oceans.

    Deirdre Scholar has been teaching Oceanography, Geology, and Environmental Science at college level for 10 years.  She has also worked as a research oceanographer and geologist for the U.S. Geological Survey.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies and a Master of Science in Earth Sciences both from University of California Santa Cruz.

Vocal Music- Lorna Kohler

   Lorna  has been teaching music to children for many years. She introduces rhythm, instruments, and song to young children and complex harmonies and songs from around the world to older students. She has Masters Degree in Music from the California Academy of Arts.

PE- Veronique Winiarski

    Through a variety of challenging and stimulating activities, the P.E. program  provides enjoyable and success-oriented experiences that will reach every child.  The class begins with building a community through cooperative games. It progresses with various units lasting approximately 1 month. These include the following: Movement Awareness/Rhythm and Dance, Yoga and Stretching, Circuit Training/Gymnastics, Running/track, and Game Skills (kickball, soccer, basketball, t-ball, etc).

    Emphasis is on space and body awareness, social skills, flexibility, balance, and overall coordination. The children develop self- confidence and safety awareness. Most of all the P.E. class provides a place to have some good old-fashioned fun!

    Teaching and fitness are a big part of Veronique Winiarski’s life. She taught  for 12 years at the middle school level and has also been an educational consultant for Santa Clara County. She an avid cyclist and triathlete who believes the research that says exercise is great for improving ones brain, mental skills, and mind and body coordination. She is a massage therapist and is studying the Feldenkrais Method.

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