The Parisi Academy curriculum has been developed by an Advisory Board of PhD’s and experienced educators to meet NJ’s academic standards. Our program not only includes the important core subjects, but expands well beyond traditional education to learning experiences student-athletes will carry with them throughout their lives.
Mathematics
Algebra 1 introduces student-athletes to relationships between quantities, linear relationships, exponential and quadratic relationships, advanced functions/equations, and data analysis, along with all of their supportive content representations. In this class, students will apply and explore real-world mathematical applications in 21-century contexts. This serves as the foundation for mathematical comprehension, which will help student-athletes in everyday life and future mathematics courses.
Course topics will be directly aligned and correlated to the New Jersey Common Core Standards that all teaching and learning must adhere to. Specific lessons will be designed upon student-athletes’ prior knowledge of 8th grade pre-algebra concepts and will accelerate to advanced algebra content based on students’ individual learning needs. This course will be heavily integrated with technology driven lessons, interactive activities, project-based learning, and both collaborative and differentiated instruction.
Materials
- Google Classroom Suite
- Glencoe McGraw Hill Algebra 1 textbook & resources
- IXL Math Online
Objectives/Goals
- By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- See structure & relationships in expressions
- Formulate & solve polynomials and rational expressions
- Create & reason with equations and inequalities
- Interrupt, analyze & build functions
- Construct & solve linear, quadratic & function models
Language Arts
The Language Arts Program places an emphasis on building writing composition and literary analysis skills and is integrated with other courses to emphasize similar writing, reading, and research goals. Students explore a variety of writing genres such as literary response, personal narrative, creative writing, screenwriting, journalism, and the persuasive essay, and extend their vocabulary knowledge through exposure and assessment. All literary study is supported by composition. In addition, students are introduced to the essential components of research and information literacy to help them navigate today’s complex information landscape. The aim of the course is to ultimately improve upon students’ ability to read critically, write persuasively, and debate ideas through both written and spoken word. This course, like the others, includes preparation for both standardized assessments and school entrance exams, including high school application essays.
Materials
- 8th Grade Common Core ELA
- 9th Grade Common Core ELA
- Hot Words for the SAT workbook
- The English Grammar Workbook for Grades 6, 7, and 8
- Various novels (1984, Of Mice and Men, Lord of the Flies, The Catcher in the Rye)
- Short stories, poems, short pieces of nonfiction, various news articles
- HSPT practice workbook
Objectives/Goals
- Develop vocabulary skills, including identifying and determining the meaning of synonyms, antonyms, idioms, homophones, and Latin and Greek roots
- Advance reading comprehension skills including summarizing, paraphrasing, or synthesizing information from two or more literary or expository texts and identifying pros and cons
- Identify vocabulary words in a text and give their meaning
- Understand main ideas, compare and contrast ideas and information, identify cause and effect, symbolism, make inferences and understand mood, tone, and point of view in literature
- Apply writing skills in activities such as composing book reports, poems, informational reports, literary response, persuasive essays, personal narratives, and creative short stories
- Identify strong sources for research and learn how to cite information from various media
- Learn to adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks and demonstrate command of formal English through public speaking opportunities
Health Sciences and Physiology
Using a STEM-based approach, this course will center on the body of an athlete and its physiology. The course will cover general nutrition, food preparation, supplements, as well as proper nutrition for student-athletes (pre, during, and post-activity). Additionally, subjects such as chemistry and biology will be integrated into the subject matter within the context of physiology and student athletes will learn not only science from an academic stand-point, but from an athletic point of view focused on helping them within their chosen sport.
Materials
- Nutrition & Wellness for Life textbook
- Science World magazine
- Various online resources and articles
Objectives/Goals
- Represent models of atoms and molecules in a variety of formats, such as how they combine to make simple molecules.
- Identify the difference between physical and chemical properties, see changes in substances based on chemical change, and explain new properties of a substance after a chemical reaction.
- Demonstrate the law of conservation of matter by using models that show that matter is rearranged but not lost in chemical reactions.
- Gather information about the pure substances and energy needed to produce synthetic materials and increase awareness of new resources that will be needed in the future.
- Make a model that shows there is an equal and opposite reaction to every action and solve a simple problem using Newton’s Third Law and experimentation.
- Make and interpret a graph with data collected from an experiment that shows the relationship between mass and speed.
- Design an experiment with all the necessary steps.
Foreign Language Foundations
The Foreign Language Foundations program exposes students to the basics of multiple foreign languages so they can be more confident in choosing a language for high school and college. The program covers the basics of vocabulary, sentence structure and communication for several of the most popular languages.
Materials
- Rosetta Stone for Students
Objectives/Goals
- Master the basics of languages covered
- Select the language for future study, which suits their interests and skill best
History and Current Events
This program takes the elements of traditional history and ties them to current events from which student athletes can relate. Beyond its significance as a core subject, the aim of this program is to teach student athletes to think critically and conceptually. It also includes review of and experience in local culture and history with research and site visits to historical places of interest in the tri-state area. A weekly discussion of current events fosters an interest in the state of affairs in the world and includes important discussion of sources of news and influences, as well as how it relates to US and world history.
Materials:
- Career Report Binder
- News periodicals
Objectives/Goals
- Explore notable wars and the lasting effects on today’s world.
- Review of the most impactful moments in US history and the results.
- Identify the structure of the US federal government and the role of its citizens.
- Prove that history repeats itself by correlating current events to points in history.
- Trace the geography of the world through conquests, bargains, spoils and purchases and identify its effects on today’s world culture.
- Analyze great figures of US history and determine his/her lasting legacy on the culture of the United States.
- Define a global economy and how the US must be involved to protect its own economic structure & growth.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the complexities across national and international events and discuss current events and how they relate to students’ lives
- Research and identify credible sources
- Develop interview skills
- Gain a deeper understanding of history and culture in their local communities
Personal Development
This program is intended to “round-out” the student-athlete by teaching self-discipline, responsibility and productive interactions with the world around them, as well as many other skills. Personal Development delivers new dimensions to student-athletes. They will experience “mini-series” courses during this class period on subjects such as study habits, critical thinking, personal responsibility, exploring personal brand/reputation, financial literacy, digital fluency, and more. Mini-series will be taught by various experts in their fields who will provide real-world insights and information.
Materials
- A variety of customized materials developed by experts within their fields that work as learning aids and experiential guides
Objectives/Goals
- Exhibit awareness of self-responsibility and commitment through various projects including: environmental, self-growth, family/friend interactions, community, and giving back
- Develop a sense of one’s self and how personality and actions reflect to others and effects an individual’s future potential
- Gain insight on careers, realities of professions and potential natural talents, which make particular careers more possible
- Identify learning styles and associated study techniques to maximize study habits and improve comprehension
- Create personal habits that help a student-athlete throughout his/her school and professional careers
- Think critically about topics and circumstances in life
The Project Lab
The Project Lab is a two-hour per week program that combines interdisciplinary topics together in a project based curriculum. Beyond more comprehensive learning from the combination of subject matter, student-athletes will learn skills such as team work, long-term assignment planning, leadership and contribution, and group responsibility. Each faculty member will contribute to these projects, but the program will be delivered, taught and graded by an designated instructor to ensure The Project Lab experience is rich and contributes to student-athlete learning depth.
Materials
- A variety of customized materials, tools and equipment needed to execute the various projects
Objectives/Goals
- Assess, plan and execute a complex project assignment
- Function as a team member through contribution of ideas and deliverables
- Take a leadership role within a team
- Be responsible for the team’s, as well as one’s own personal success
- Master the interdisciplinary subject matter presented as a part of each project
The Learning Lab
The Learning Lab is also two hours per week and is focused on helping student-athletes who might be struggling with a concept in a particular program or for those who excel in a subject and need additional challenges. This time each week is totally focused on each student-athlete’s individual needs, growth and success. Learning Lab will be monitored by a designated instructor, however all faculty will be available as needed to assist student-athletes.
Materials
- Program materials from all classes
Objectives/Goals
- Be up to date with all assignments, in call classes
- Accomplish the challenges he/she faces in a particular subject
- Push beyond in subjects where he/she shows advanced skills and talents
Friday Life Enhancement
Friday life enhancement is designed for students to experience hands-on things they are learning in a “field trip” type of approach. For example, if student-athletes are learning about the environment, a Friday might be a hike in a nearby state park to see first-hand the things they learned about in the classroom. As a part of this program, they also explore professions and careers, while meeting with professionals to give student-athletes “ground zero” insights. Of course, there is the occasional Friday when due to academic pressures, it’s just simply a “fun Friday” of competitive games or time on the field.
Materials
- Program materials from all classes
- Materials needed for customized experiences, as required
Objectives/Goals
- Apply hands-on application learning from the classroom
- Experience professions, careers and cite career deciding facts of each
- Contribute to a team and its experiences