TPS News, Information, and Updates
This image is from our new pre-K to grade 5 video course, Arts Appreciation for Little Global Citizens, featuring 16 weekly video art projects plus four virtual art parties! We take a look at artists (of many mediums) from all over the world, past and present, and get messy with a creative activity for our hands and minds. The supplies list is minimal and the weekly streamed video lessons are short and sweet for the sake of our younger students’ need to be doing rather than watching. View a short promo video.
2021-22 Enrollment Highlights
Elementary School Classes. Uniquely purposeful and enjoyable for our younger learners (grade 4+) at home. Learn more.
We are pleased to announce our first class for Pre-K to Grade 5! The course is Arts Appreciation for Little Global Citizens, developed and taught by one of our world-traveling TPS alumni (class of 2004!). For our younger learners, we take an entirely different approach by offering the course as a series of videos that lead your student through fun educational projects that you can do in your own time, with a few fun live meetings during the course to enhance the social enjoyment for everyone.
AP Exam Top Scores! TPS AP students are top scorers every year: 48% 5 (top score), 72% 4 or higher. Learn more.
Be a High Scholar! Earn 12 university credits and 6 high school credits in the two-year “great books” Belhaven High Scholars humanities program for students grades 10-12.
College Dual Credit. Affordable credits, flexible options! Learn more.
Boost your summer! We offer a full range of summer math and writing courses to help you build up, catch up or get ready for 2021-22.
New Courses (you may not know to look for)
- Arts Appreciation for Little Global Citizens – The full title of this course is History Makers – Arts Appreciation and Exploration for Little Global Citizens. We take a look at artists (of many mediums) from all over the world, past and present, and get messy with a creative activity for our hands and minds. This course develops little learners’ Critical Thinking skills through the Visible Thinking method. We also cover the elements of art on a beginning level…
- Photography – Summer Starter – In this summer course students will learn the basics of how to utilize their camera settings, compose images, and work with natural summer light. Each week will cover a new theme or subject, and a new technique. After the first class each week, students will take some shots and apply what they learned…
- Reading to Learn 4 – Did your child master reading basics only to struggle with comprehension and retention? Do you have a reluctant reader in your home who could use an academic boost? Does your elementary-aged student need to qualify for a more advanced English class? Or maybe you have a child who enjoys good stories, but chooses titles below grade level…
- African American History – This course is fully titled Climbing the Mountain – African American History from Africa to Present Day. It is designed to introduce students to the rich and diverse history and culture of African Americans, tracing their accomplishments and struggles. This course helps develop an understanding of the African American culture through their history within the broader context of United States history. This course will increase the student’s understanding of current events involving the African American community…
- Eastern Kingdoms – A Survey of Asia’s History – Are you curious about…the development of yoga? The invention of fireworks and the cannon? The real story of Mulan? An ocean-going naval explorer 80 years before Columbus? The story of Indian curry? The origin of manga? The birth of Korean hangol writing? These and many more interesting topics are studied in this exciting course which focuses on the histories of India, South Asia, China, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia from around 2000 years ago to the present day….
- AP Human Geography – For the many people who have asked for this course, it is now in the catalog and available to strong grade 9 and up. Enjoy!
- AP Comparative Government and Politics – We located a great teacher and are pleased to place this course back in the catalog. Take this course, do well on the AP exam, and impress the college where you apply to study policy, pre-law, or anything related to world studies or government.
- Introduction to Playwriting – This course is a combined dramatic literature and creative writing course. Students with a passion or interest in theatre will be taken on a guided journey through a selection of unique and influential contemporary plays. Students will develop an approach to dramatic literature, gaining tools for reading and interpreting plays both as literature and as blueprints for a theatrical experience..
- Behind the Stage – An Introduction to Technical Theatre – This course provides an overview of the broad spectrum of technical theatre for students interested in what goes into a theatrical production. The class will examine the basics of scenic, lighting, sound, props and costume design and technology. Students will be introduced to the fundamentals of theatrical design, the practical implementation and methods of construction, and the overall production process…
- CADD 3D Modeling – Artifacts to Architecture – A digital 3D model is a representation of a physical form, generated using mathematical equations. If the thought of complex math makes design sound scary, meet Rhino 7. Rhinoceros 7 is the latest 3D modeling program, and it makes 3D modeling easier than ever before. With this cutting-edge computer application, if you can imagine it, you can design it visually. whether your interests are making 3D printed jewelry or designing an elaborate custom aircraft, a wide range of design fields can be reached starting from this course…
Improvements and Updates
- Transcripts – We significantly cut the time and cost of getting a TPS transcript (with accreditation signature, seal and logo).
- Middle School Workload – We monitor our own courses carefully and we appreciate the feedback we get as well. Based on our ongoing reviews, we have reduced the workload in middle school English and Science courses a bit.
- English 3 Lit Analysis and Comp (Grade 9 English) – This is the course to take for every grade 9 student or maybe even older students to build a strong foundation in the essential skill of the analytical essay, so you can be ready for upper high school English and Social Studies courses, including college and AP. We have added a second version of English 3 to give students more options of literature and movies to discuss and analyze in their essay writing.
- Advanced Comp and Lit Survey – Our world-famous and famously-popular grade 10+ courses Advanced Comp – Style and Rhetoric and Lit Survey and Composition have been renamed slightly. Thanks to the effectiveness of our English 3 courses at preparing students for our English 4/5/6 courses, we are now able to lower the prerequisite requirements and remove the “Honors” label from these two flagship courses, without making any changes to the course content or level. This makes these popular courses available to more students coming from our English 3, which will in turn make our AP English courses more accessible to students who take our English 3 and English 4/5/6 courses.
- Foreign Language “Honors” – We have redesignated our two-day foreign language courses as “Honors” (changing the title, not the course). The one-day and two-day versions of the same foreign language course cover about the same breadth of material, but the two-day versions provide more instruction, practice and evaluation of spoken language, and students gain more proficiency through them. Students planning to go to Year 3 or AP in a language are encouraged to take the two-day versions if possible.
Items of Interest
). Use the Let’s Chat link at the top of any page of this site or the LiveChat option on the main site menu (under Connect). The live chat reverts to a support email after hours. You’re also welcome to check our searchable FAQ’s.Teachers Wanted. TPS is now hiring teachers for 2021-22 and beyond. We meet with applicants throughout the year for the next upcoming school year, so please apply if you are ready to consider teaching with TPS for the upcoming school year. Courses of current immediate interest and other opportunities are listed on our Online Teaching Opportunities page.
Yearbook. TPS is sponsoring a yearbook for 2020-21! TPS students, teachers and staff will be able to submit profile information, quotes, photos, artwork, audio links, video links and other memories for adding to the 2020-21 yearbook. To start the process, we are forming a Yearbook Team of students to manage and work the project.
Student Art Gallery. TPS art class students display their work in our student art gallery.
Academic Calendar. The 2021-22 academic calendar is posted, including 2021-22 class schedule posting date, enrollment dates, and school breaks. The 2020-21 academic calendar is also still available.
Messages, Classes, Assignments, Grades. Check those four StudyPlace icons regularly so you don’t miss anything or fall behind. Most information is more than one place (messages, email) to remind you. Parents have all the same info, but for all students in the family.
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