Course Listings
Unlike typical classes found in most elementary or middle schools, EXPLO courses and workshops are designed to be fun, to stimulate curiosity and discussion, and to foster a life-long love of learning and exploration.
First-Come, First-Served
EXPLO at St. Mark's courses are age-specific. Students will be enrolled in two courses per session. Pioneer students choose 6 course preferences for the first period of the day [501-515] and 6 course preferences for the second period of the day [601-615]. Voyager students choose 6 course preferences for the first period of the day [701-724] and 6 course preferences for the second period of the day [801-822].
Courses are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Class size is limited to 14 students. The registrar makes every effort to assign you to one of your preferred choices. If a class is full, you will be assigned to another one of your choices.
Pioneer First Period Courses
| 501 | Pixel Mania+ Digital Photography Want to take gallery-worthy portrait shots of your new friends? Interested in taking sweeping landscape photographs or catching spontaneous scenes on campus? If you've ever wanted to take your digital photography skills to the next level, this is the class for you! With your digital camera in hand, you'll learn all the tricks of composing great images in your viewfinder. Then, in our digital photo lab, discover the powerful art of retouching your photos — making your images brighter, sharper, and more colorful — and find out how to make gallery-ready prints from an ink jet printer. With every click of the shutter, you'll not only be framing great shots, but turning everything you see into amazing works of art!
[For this class, we request that you come prepared with your own digital camera.] | |
| 502 | Super Secret Spy Society+ Surveillance + Spying Skills What kind of super secret spy things happen in a super secret class? Well, we can't just come out and tell you everything — it's a secret. But let's just say, you know, that we may install a surveillance camera or two. And there's a possibility we'll practice following suspects. We may hide microphone bugs and listen in on criminal conversations. And there's a chance (a really, really small one) that we'll build a spy kite camera that can track suspicious characters from above. Or... wait, we've already said too much. You know what, we may not do any of that. We may just sit around, play checkers, and mind our own business. Yeah, that's what this class is. Don't mind us. Don't mind us at all.
Students will only be enrolled in one of the following: 502, 602, or W115. | |
| 503 | School of Rock+ Intro To Electric Guitar Calling all aspiring rock stars! It's time to trade in that air guitar for the real thing! Don't play an instrument or know how to read music? No problem. We'll provide the guitars for your time at Explo (kid-sized Fender Stratocasters, the legendary electric guitar of rocker Jimi Hendrix) and teach you everything you need to know to turn that music bug into a full-grown Beatle. You'll learn how to tune and care for your guitar, discover how to play the major chords, and rock out as we perform folk rhythms, rock 'n' roll riffs, and blues progressions. Look out, world! A new set of guitar gods is about to take the stage! | |
| 504 | Color Splash!+ Painting: Pioneer A dot here, a dab there, a few brushstrokes, and voilá! You have a masterpiece comparable to the Mona Lisa or Monet's Water Lilies. But how do you get things to look three-dimensional? How do you mix the color orange? Take this course and discover the magical world of painting! Those brushstrokes will turn into everything from people and animals to landscapes and shoes as we learn how to make paint do cool things on the canvas! We will learn different painting techniques using tempera, watercolors, and more. You'll create works of art to be proud of. | |
| 505 | Living On the Edge+ Extreme Science Eyeless fish... carnivorous plants... 400-pound deep-sea giant clams! These aren't science fiction novelties, they're real life! As an extreme scientist, you'll examine, hunt, and unearth the odd and unbelievable in nature. We'll discover what causes an earthquake (using an Oreo cookie and a Slinky) and uncover tube worms that live by super-hot hydrothermal vents on the South Pacific floor. Together, we'll build a life-size model of a giant stingray that we'll stretch across the dining hall, and we'll shoot marshmallows, tennis balls, jelly beans, and pine cones at a jumbo-sized spider web to see what sticks and what escapes. The mysteries of the natural world are big, bad, and beyond belief... and we'll bring them back, one by one, to EXPLO. | |
| 506 | Defeating Dr. Diablo+ Math Adventures The diabolical Dr. Diablo has stranded you and five others on a rock surrounded by a river of flowing lava. All you have is a rope... how will you escape? Behind a magical door is a book of clues you'll need to escape Dr. Diablo's fortress. The door is covered in odd symbols. On the floor are hundreds of oddly marked keys. You have only one chance to open the door! How will you figure it out? As we strive to save the planet from the nefarious Dr. Diablo, we will be met with challenge after challenge, each testing our quick wits and problem-solving skills. There's no telling what treacherous task he'll throw our way next, so we'll need to think practically and creatively. We'll solve riddles, unravel mysteries, crack codes, and devise strategies — all as we try to defeat the demented doctor. | |
| 507 | Objection Overruled+ Inner-Workings Of Trial Court Have you ever wondered if someone was lying to you? Are you absolutely, positively sure you remember your friends from school last year or even someone you saw yesterday? We will explore these questions and more by becoming members of a courtroom. We'll see just how reliable eyewitnesses really are, dig deep into lawyers' tricks and techniques, learn how a lawyer can legally prevent evidence from reaching the jury, and ponder what a jury does behind closed doors. Get ready to judge and be judged — whether you are a witness, jury member, lawyer, defendant, plaintiff, or judge. If you like action, excitement, and suspense, this course is for you! | |
| 508 | Project Earth+ Lego Engineering: Earth It’s the year 2035 and the planet is overridden by pollution. With no other choice, your team is called in to revitalize Earth: build machines to bore underground, replant forests, bulldoze toxic landfills, and more. Design and build robot machines out of Legos using motors, gears, and computers to save the planet. We need your help. All you need is a love for the planet and an urge to build. | |
| 509 | Whatever Floats Your Boat+ Science of Watercraft Welcome to the world's largest boat building and racing competition. You and a team of H2O engineers will construct ships that maneuver through obstacle courses, barges that carry cargo without tipping or sinking, pencil boats that speed from coast to coast, and submarines that recover sunken treasure. And with each challenge, you'll be met with new, tough questions: what shape should your craft have? What materials should it be made out of? And how will your ship power its way through the water — on wind? With paddles? Or can you devise a CO2-powered engine? With every new task, you and your teammates will be put to the test... to see whose designs hold water and whose designs are watered down. | |
| 510 | We're Live in 5...+ Broadcast Journalism Lights... camera... action: What's your question? Ever dreamed of being on camera on CNN, ESPN, or MTV? Would you rather race to the scene of a late-breaking story, work the red carpet, or capture it all from behind the scenes? With EXPLO News, you'll get the opportunity to do it all: conducting interviews, writing stories, and operating cameras, soundboards, and more. And when EXPLO rolls out the Talent Show red carpet, you'll be on the scene capturing the coolest acts, asking the direct questions, and working the camera like you've been doing this all your life. Back in the studio, you'll edit the best clips together and create a newscast that just might win you an EXPLO Emmy! So if you can't wait to spread the word, this is the course for you!
Students will not be enrolled in both 510 and 610. | |
| 511 | Magic for Muggles+ Chemistry + Physics Attention all Muggles (that's you)! Do you wish you could make objects change color, levitate, or even disappear? These and other magical things are all possible with the wonders of chemistry and physics. Join us and we'll mix our own precious potions and solve some spellbinding puzzles. You don't need to know anything about magic or even Harry Potter. The only requirements are imagination and a desire to mystify fellow Muggles with your own scientific magic. | |
| 512 | Speed Racer+ Pinewood Derby How would you like to race your newly built model car in the EXPLO 500 Cup? In this course, you will have the chance to design and build your own pinewood derby car. We will start with a block of wood and learn the secrets behind a successful pinewood car. Will your design be sleek and low to minimize air resistance or will it look like a classic roadster? You will learn how to use woodshop tools as you cut, carve, and sand your creation into place. Snap the wheels on and you are ready to roll. On your mark, get set, go!!! No previous woodshop experience required. | |
| 513 | Break a Leg+ Special Effects For Theater An arrow shoots into your knee — agh! You lose your balance — yelp! — and fall down a flight of stairs — gah! Your arm gets severed —ahh! — by an electric saw! Playing with special effects may seem dangerous, but in this class, you'll learn how easy, fun, (and safe) it is for fool audiences into believing the most extraordinary effects. You'll smash your fist through a pane of glass (made of sugar and tap water), use make-up and prosthetics to create broken noses and scars, and replicate tornados and thunderstorms with garden hoses and leaf blowers. In this kind of theater, breaking a leg has never been so much fun!
Students will not be enrolled in both 513 and W123. | |
| 514 | Mwahahaha+ Creating a Supervillain World domination. Check. Supreme power over all things. Check. The ability to turn all other supervillains to dust. You knew there was something you forgot, didn’t you? Superheroes have it easy — all they have to do is save the day. You, on the other hand, have a whole list of things to accomplish to maintain your supreme ruler status: Invent gadgets and powers that will show the other supervillians — and those pesky heroes — who’s boss. Design a Supervillain Suit that will have people quaking in their boots. Create an, ahem, “moral” code to live by — and write a backstory about what made you so angry and, well, “evil” in the first place. As you develop your menacing laugh, you and the other supervillians in your class will use your powers and cunning genius to respond to daily threats to your world dominance. Do you have the storytelling chops it will take to survive? Those other supervillians don't stand a chance. | |
| 515 | Lions + Tigers + Bills, Oh My!+ The Business of Running a Zoo A lion, a silverback gorilla, a pack of zebras, and a black mamba snake are all arriving at your zoo. What kinds of habitats will they need — and can you stretch your budget to make it happen? As EXPLO Zookeepers, you and your teammates will decide where each new animal will live, what type of habitat they’ll need to survive, and how you’ll support the costs of feeding and taking care of the new animals. You’ll build exhibit models that mimic the animal’s habitats in the wild — a savannah for an African elephant, or a vine-laden rain forest perfect for swinging howler monkeys — and will decide how to structure the new additions to maximize zoo revenue. Where do the gift shops and concession stands go? How will they attract customers — and how much will you charge visitors? As you (and the animals) gear up for opening day, you’ll soon discover that the business of running a zoo is more fun than a barrel of monkeys. |
Pioneer Second Period Courses
| 601 | 3-D Studio+ Sculpture: Pioneer Ever wanted to create something impressive with your hands? This is your chance to create sculptures of all sorts. Different subjects, different kinds of materials... there is no limit to what you can do with imagination and hard work. Have you ever thought of making a sculpture out of candy? We'll learn about a sculptor who did just that. As we experiment with clay, wire, fabric, wood, knickknacks, thingamabobbers, and whatchamacallits, we'll create a variety of sculptures for all of EXPLO to enjoy! So grab your imagination and start thinking in 3-D... it's time to CREATE!
Students will not be enrolled in both 601 and W154. | |
| 602 | Super Secret Spy Society+ Surveillance + Spying Skills What kind of super secret spy things happen in a super secret class? Well, we can't just come out and tell you everything — it's a secret. But let's just say, you know, that we may install a surveillance camera or two. And there's a possibility we'll practice following suspects. We may hide microphone bugs and listen in on criminal conversations. And there's a chance (a really, really small one) that we'll build a spy kite camera that can track suspicious characters from above. Or... wait, we've already said too much. You know what, we may not do any of that. We may just sit around, play checkers, and mind our own business. Yeah, that's what this class is. Don't mind us. Don't mind us at all.
Students will only be enrolled in one of the following: 502, 602, or W115. | |
| 603 | EXPLO Musical+ Pop Opera The assignment: create a new musical by stringing together and performing some of your favorite pop songs — like Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” and Justin Bieber’s “Baby.” Of course, it’s not going to be quite that simple — we’re talking about making a new musical here — a pop opera, actually — so we’ll have to come up with a story and narrative that go through all of our songs. In fact, we’ll digitally remove the original vocals from recordings of the songs we’ve chosen, and then it will be up to you to perform our catchy new lyrics. And, well, of course we’ll be staging our musical, too — so we’ll work out solo and ensemble parts, and fill out our numbers with dance and movement (and costumes?!) to go along with our score. Are you ready to help create (and perform!) the greatest pop opera that EXPLO has ever seen or heard? Then take to the stage: it’s time to sing! | |
| 604 | Yay for Clay!+ Ceramics + Pottery Playing in the mud is always fun, especially when you have something really cool to show for it! In this course, we will explore the many things we can do with clay. You will make pots to keep things in and sculptures of anything from animals, to people, to famous landmarks. We will decorate and fire our creations too! Let's see how many exciting things we can make using only our hands, our heads, and a lump of clay. | |
| 605 | Into the Wild+ Ecology Do you wish that were you out there — in the ponds, the forest, the streams, and the trails — so close to the wildlife that you could reach out and grab it? Join us in this course, and for three weeks, we will conduct a hands-on exploration of our local environment: watching, smelling, feeling, and listening to the life-forms on the St. Mark's campus. We'll map the local water cycle. We'll take hikes in the forests and fields. We'll collect soil samples and examine them for pollutants. And we'll track a variety of species — frogs, dragonflies, fish, and more — collecting data on their local habitat. Ecology... it's not science like you're used to. It's wet, it's slimy, it's dirty. It's science you can touch. | |
| 606 | Spinning the Web+ Web Design What are your favorite websites? Ever wonder how those sites are created? Now you can learn to make your own website! In this course, you'll create a webpage about all the great things you do at EXPLO, then you'll share it with the world so they can see what you've been up to. We'll learn how to include pictures, colors, text, links to other web pages, and even some basic animation! Come join us as we put EXPLO on the web for the world to see!
Students will not be enrolled in both 606 and W157. | |
| 607 | Creating a Kingdom+ Building A Medieval Empire The year is 1246. After centuries of moving from place to place, a group of barbarian nomads has finally settled on an area of land that they will call their own. You, as leaders of the group, must decide where you will build your castles. Who will be your king and queen? Where will you get the resources to build a medieval nation? You must appoint local magistrates to look after your land while you send knights to conquer neighboring territories and local dragons. Where will you get food and water? How will you trade with surrounding kingdoms? Be prepared to be an architect, economist, and political leader as we create a medieval empire! | |
| 608 | Rex Marks the Spot+ Paleontology + Archaeology Perhaps you know the difference between a Tyrannosaurus Rex and an Allosaurus. Or which dinosaurs may have had fur or feathers. But have you ever investigated dinosaurs by digging up and analyzing bones from a dinosaur excavation site?! As part of our group of budding paleontologists, you’ll prime a new excavation site, map out a grid, gather our tools, and start digging. Together, we’ll collect and catalog dinosaur bones and fossils from our very own archaeological dig in an attempt to discover more about the creatures that wandered through our site millions of years ago. By inspecting fossilized seeds and plant life, we’ll deduce what our dinosaurs ate, and if (when!) we dig up footprints, we’ll figure out how big and fast our dinosaurs were by measuring distance and depth of each step. Do you know what mysteries are hidden right under your feet? Come join us as we uncover our very own Jurassic Park! | |
| 609 | Beyond Infinity and Beyond!+ Adventures in Space Want to discover the ins and outs of traveling to — and living in — space? Get ready to practice "weightless" activities in St. Mark's pool, build filtration systems to create drinkable water (Where do you go to the bathroom in space?), and design oxygen regulation systems for your cabin. Build a replica space station for our space simulations, and calculate the satellites' orbit and the force needed to break Earth's gravity fields. After our successful launch, you'll simulate communication challenges that ground control and astronauts face on space missions. Are we ready to take a space walk? Withstand a meteor shower? Suit up, astronauts — we blast off in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1... | |
| 610 | Lights, Camera... Action!+ Moviemaking Bring your ideas to life as you join the EXPLO film crew and learn about moviemaking by producing your own video. We'll start with only a script, leaving you and your classmates to act, direct, film, and edit your way toward stardom. Get behind the camera, block out shots, set up the storyboard, direct actors, or make your big-screen debut. After we capture our scenes on tape, we'll learn how the editor can change a director's ideas or even the entire script by moving scenes around. Join us on the soundstage as Hollywood comes to EXPLO.
Students will not be enrolled in both 610 and 510. | |
| 611 | How the Cookie Crumbles...+ Science of Cookie Baking What makes a cookie soft and chewy instead of thin and crispy? What would happen if you made cookies with molasses instead of brown sugar? Join us in our kitchen lab, as we discover the science behind cookie-baking. Our edible experiments will help you figure out how different ingredients and methods of preparation change the taste and texture of baked goods. (So the next time you bake cookies on your own, you'll know exactly how to make them the way you like them!) You'll learn how to modify a recipe for a regular-sized cookie in order to transform it into a giant cookie and — once you're ready to put your baking skills to the test — you'll be challenged to eat a cookie from a bakery and then make an exact replica from scratch! Sound enticing? Come join us as we find out all the tricks to baking perfect cookies — morsel by delicious morsel! | |
| 612 | May The Force Be With You+ Physics of Motion Could you lift a can of peas with a string of paperclips? Can you punch a hole through a piece of paper without touching it? Which falls faster — a rock or a penny? In the world of physics, gravity may try to keep us all grounded, but in this class, our spinning, whirling, swinging contraptions won’t let it keep us down for long. Join us as we test pendulums, weight, ropes, marbles, airplanes, and more, all while completing more and more absurd challenges. Build a windmill that will launch balloons to the ceiling? You’ll figure it out. With a little grit and a lot of imagination, we'll design, build, test and retest, until our problem-solving inventions take flight. | |
| 613 | I Want to be a Superstar+ Drama + Acting Have you ever dreamed of seeing your name in lights? Have you ever imagined yourself as a famous actor or actress? If you have, this is your chance to start a theatrical career! In this course, we will learn the fundamentals of acting and gain a broader appreciation of theater as a medium for self-expression. We will focus on five of the core acting skills: team building, pantomime, projection, intonation, and characterization. We will also play a variety of improvisational games that will help us prepare for our final performance. No previous acting experience is needed... just loads of energy and a desire to have fun! | |
| 614 | Press Pass+ Magazine Journalism What's the scoop? Find out what's happening at EXPLO and around the world and get ready to share the news with everyone. Each week, we will produce a newsletter overflowing with all the latest action. You will live the life of a reporter — learning how to ask good questions, assess the facts, and write an informative story. As we produce our newsletter, we'll understand the ins and outs (and ethics) of working in the newsroom and will experience the different roles of magazine production. Come ready to investigate all the news, sports, movies, music, and fashion happening at EXPLO — and spread the word in your own publication! | |
| 615 | Real Monopoly+ Business Have you ever wondered how people like Bill Gates and Donald Trump made their billions? In order to create a successful business, you need a great idea, a lot of enthusiasm, and a ton of ambition. Join us as we learn the secrets of the trade by starting our own business. In this course, we will start with a simple product to market and sell in order to get our feet off the ground. We will analyze our product's marketing and sales trends. What worked? What didn't work? Finally, we will take our data and use it to create new strategies and apply them to a new product — one that you help create and design! Step into the boardroom it's time to get to work! |
Voyager First Period Courses
| 701 | Light + Image+ Digital Photography Want to take professional shots of your new friends? Interested in taking sweeping landscape photographs or catching spontaneous scenes on campus? If you've ever wanted to take your digital photography skills to the next level, this is the class for you! With your digital camera in hand, you'll learn all the tricks of composing great images. Then, in our digital photo lab, discover the art of retouching photos — making your images brighter, sharper, and more colorful — and find out how to make gallery-ready prints from an ink jet printer. With every click of the shutter, you'll not only be framing great shots, you'll turn them into amazing works of art!
For this class, we request that you come prepared with your own digital camera. Students will not be enrolled in both 701 and 801. | |
| 702 | EXPLO Isles+ Creating an Island Nation You are part of a special team that has been brought together to build the greatest island nation the world has ever seen: I.S.E. (the Island States of Explantis). We must work together to design and construct the islands making up our country. What shape will the islands take? Do we want bridges? Houses? How about a movie theater or an airport? Where will citizens get their food? So many people want to live in our new country that we've got to design and supervise construction as soon as possible. You'll have to be resourceful because supplies are limited and time is running out! Get ready to learn on the job. We've got a country to get running! | |
| 703 | EXPLO Building Company+ Woodworking Have you ever wondered what it would be like to build something out of wood? Well, here is your chance to do it safely! We will build a variety of projects you will be proud of, while learning how to measure, score, cut, join and finish. From the rough plan to the final sand, you will learn how to use a range of tools such as drill presses, saws, and hammers. Learn the basics of woodworking while constructing things like birdhouses, toolboxes, or maybe even a working clock! No woodworking experience necessary. | |
| 704 | I Want My EXPLO TV+ Music Video Production The cameras are rolling, the set is quiet, and the actors are on their marks ready for you to direct the next hit music video. We'll start by analyzing famous music videos and learning about story sequencing, dance choreography, rock dramas, and even live concert filming. You'll learn to use video production cameras and how to bring the pictures in your mind to life as a director. We'll even cover basic concepts of cinematography so you can shoot from a variety of angles. After practicing with short scenes, we'll create a music video that will have the entire EXPLO audience cheering for more.
Students will not be enrolled in both 704 and 804. | |
| 705 | See It, Sketch It, Sign It+ Drawing Are you someone who enjoys drawing but you'd like to learn how to be better? This course will focus on making drawing a fun activity while helping you to develop your skills. We will spend each class doing lots of exercises such as quick warmups, group drawing, still-life drawings, drawing without looking, scratch-board projects, group critiques, and 'How to Make the Big Guy Look Small.' You'll leave with a better understanding of line, form, and figure — as well as greater confidence in your artistic abilities. Let's get drawing! | |
| 706 | It's Alive!+ Stop-Motion Animation Built with green clay, metal, and foam, you strap a hulking PlayDoh beast into a laboratory machine. "Let there be LIFE!" you scream. [Click.] You open the monster's eye. Again: "Let there be LIFE!" [Click.] Slowly, frame by frame, click by click, you make the listless creature stomp, smile, and roar as it becomes the star of your very own "motion" picture. Join us as we fabricate and animate villains and heroes using stop-motion animation. Along the way, we'll construct sets, experiment with mood lighting, and overdub howling voices and cackling sound effects. If you've been dreaming of bringing your favorite scary story to life, this is the hair-raising course for you. | |
| 707 | Thrill Ride+ Lego Engineering: Thrill Yeeeeeeeehhhaaaaaaa! Do you love amusement park rides? Do you have what it takes to design a roller coaster? How many twists? How many turns? Come and learn about the basic effects of gravity, positive and negative Gs, inertia, mass, and speed as we design our own amusement park rides. We'll use Legos, gears, and motors — along with everyday materials like toothpicks, tape, and marbles — to test our ideas and create bumper cars, roller coasters, and other thrill rides that twist, spin, and twirl. Buckle up! This is going to be one wild ride!
Students will not be enrolled in both 707 and 807. | |
| 708 | Castle Under Siege+ Strategy + Survival Set up the blockade! Fill the moat! Seal the castle door! Our kingdom's under attack, and we're locking this place down so no one gets in. That will keep us safe for now... but the bigger question is: how will we survive on just our limited supplies? We'll prepare a plan for rationing our food and figure out the fairest way for divvying up our supplies. But that will only last us so long: we'll also need to hatch a plot to escape. What's our enemy's weak spot? And how can we catch them off-guard? With the pressure of survival resting on all of us, we’ll triumph or fail — but either way, we'll have to do it together! | |
| 709 | (Ad)Ventures+ Marketing + Advertising That catchy jingle plays and replays in your mind for days... but does it really change which type of soap you buy? And sure, the leprechaun and the toucan in the commercials are cute... but can they really make you crave a certain cereal? We'll answer these questions by conducting our own unique brand of advertising experiments on the EXPLO student body. We'll research what our fellow students like, then use what we’ve learned to write commercials, design logos, invent mascots, create catch-phrases, and hire spokespeople (that is, the EXPLO staff) to capture their interest and imagination. Can you get in their heads? If so, you can get them to buy! | |
| 710 | Making the (Garage) Band+ Computer-Aided Music Design In this class it doesn't matter if you can play an instrument or not! If you've ever wanted to learn how to compose music, this is the class for you! Using the computer program GarageBand, we'll write and record our own songs digitally. You'll harness the power of digital instruments like the electric guitar, organs, horns, bass, and drums. You'll learn about tempo and time signatures, rhythm and keys, and all of the important elements of good music composition. At the end of the class, you'll be the next music sensation as you walk away with a recording of your very own hit song. Look out Top 40, this (Garage)Band is ready to rule the charts. | |
| 711 | Blood Will Hath Blood+ Shakespearean Fight Scenes "A plague on both your houses! They have made worm's meat of me...." Join our Shakespearean theater troupe as we punch, stab, fence, and shout our way to glory. Along the way, you'll learn stage-fighting tricks and techniques, master the art of sword play, and enact some of the best fight scenes in Shakespeare's repertoire. We'll stage battles between the Montagues and the Capulets, recite Shakespearean dialog (and translate it into how we speak today), and perform our own choreography on the big stage. So join our ranks, and before you know it, you'll be shouting, "You're fish food, my friend!" — and slicing up opponents on cue. | |
| 712 | Ready, Set... Act!+ Improvisational Theater Who needs a script when you can make up what you want to do or say as you go along? This class is not only a blast of continuous laughs, it teaches you to think on your feet and get through seemingly impossible situations using nothing but your quick wits. To help you make up things in a moment's notice, we'll loosen up with mood skits, body language games, and more. You'll act in talk shows, interviews, and skits, having to make up everything as you go. We'll give you the experience needed to create an entire show to perform without a script. So don't worry, you won't forget any of your lines on stage — because you won't have any to start with!
Students will not be enrolled in both 712 and W182. | |
| 713 | Mission: Codebreaker+ Cryptography The red phone just rang. That means just one thing: the National Security Agency needs you. The NSA has uncovered a major auto theft ring that is coordinating criminal activity through codes. That's why they're gathering a team of expert cryptographers to help recover the vehicles and they've called us. Our task is to crack criminal codes and encrypt secret messages to help locate this cache of the most coveted cars in the world. We'll learn about every major cipher from the Caesar and Rail Fence Ciphers to the German Enigma machines. As we begin to create our own dialogues in code, we'll also try to crack the criminals' master code and recover their hidden treasure. | |
| 714 | Pet Peeves + Pleasures+ Veterinary Science What makes Scooter sick? Why does Fido fetch? And what goes on inside Bruiser's brain? If you've ever wanted to know more about your family pet, here's your chance to go inside the heads, hearts, bones, and stomachs of the critters you love so much. We'll study treatments that cure common animal illnesses and discover the latest theories on animal psychology. You'll also learn how to read animal X-rays and have the opportunity to meet with a real life veterinarian. From cats and dogs to lizards and ferrets, caring for animals is a rewarding job... now here's your chance to get your paws wet doing it. | |
| 715 | Imagineering+ Construction Challenges Holding the weight of a bowling ball with a box of toothpicks it sounds like an architectural impossibility, but it's not. Using the principles of engineering, we'll create incredible structures out of the feeblest and frailest materials around. You'll use straws and shaving cream to build ten-foot towers and marshmallows and spaghetti to construct a fortress able to withstand a battering ram. You'll construct truss bridges out of newspaper that will not only span a four-foot river but also withstand the weight of a human being. From suspension bridges made out of paper tubes and dental floss to geodesic domes made out of tissue paper, we'll learn how to carry amazing weight and push the principles of physics to the limits. | |
| 716 | Best Years of Our Lives+ EXPLO Yearbook Next winter, how are you going to remember all the summer fun you had at EXPLO? By making a yearbook for everyone! Blaze a trail through campus as we capture all the EXPLO events we want to remember — and save us from forgetting the best days of our lives! We'll give you a digital camera and notebook: you get the skinny on everything that's going on! Shoot press-worthy photos, interview amazing staff and students, and write awe-inspiring stories about everything you’ve experienced! Together, we'll layout a design that highlights our work — a grid of pictures? a collage? something entirely different? — and will bind together all of the best memories of the summer. In the end, you'll commemorate the golden days of EXPLO and help us all remember them for years to come. | |
| 717 | Café Italiano+ Italian Language + Culture The best way to learn about Italian culture? To eat, drink, and soak it in, of course! Which is why we're going to open our very own Italian café. We'll create a menu of dishes like linguini, cacciatore, tortellini, ravioli, cannoli; learn how to prepare (and then eat) those delicious dishes; and try our hands at speaking Italian by taking orders and answering customers' questions (la pasta é deliziosa!). Of course, we'll want our café to feel like Italy as well. So we'll design our layout in the style of Roman architecture, choose classic Renaissance artwork for our walls, and make playlists of popular Italian music to set the mood. With our café of food, language, art, and song, we'll be serving up authentic Italian flavor in more ways than one! | |
| 718 | Art in Your Face+ Nontraditional Sculpture Can you build Mount Rushmore out of chicken wire, or carve the Eiffel Tower out of bamboo? If you have a giant idea, how do you translate it into a giant piece of public art — one that is as grand, beautiful, and awe-inspiring as the idea you cooked up in your imagination? Public art is everywhere — it's a bronze sculpture in the center of town, a garbage-bag giraffe inflated over a subway grate, or a quiet monument made out of collected sticks. But what, exactly, is public art? How do you find it, and how do you make it? Your hunt begins around St. Mark's campus and continues in the studio, where the great artist is you — and the greatest public work of art is your own. | |
| 719 | CSI: EXPLO+ Forensics + Criminal Intelligence You receive a call in the middle of the night. A series of crimes has been committed and Interpol needs your help. This is a complicated case because all of the crimes have happened in different countries. You will learn techniques of strategic criminal intelligence analysis and some basic crime lab skills. Will you be able to trace a bit of broken glass to its source? Can you analyze ink to determine the author of a piece of writing left behind at the scene? You will be questioning suspects, determining motives, and listening to alibis. You must act as both forensic scientist and international detective to catch the criminal (or criminals). Accept this case. The world needs your help to fight international crime!
Students will not be enrolled in both 719 and 819. | |
| 720 | Fizz, Bang, Pop!+ Chemistry Have you ever wanted to mix different liquids and powders in your kitchen just to see what happens? There is chemistry everywhere around you, and it's easy to make things from simple materials at home. Would you like to learn how to make slime or glue? We can harness chemical power to make safe mini-explosions. Have you ever wondered how to make gum or root beer? We will get to see how chemistry relates to food, while making things to eat and drink. Whether in the outside world or in our stomachs, we will have fun with the chemistry we see every day!
Students will not be enrolled concurrently in 720, 820, and W184. | |
| 721 | Blast Off!+ Aerodynamics + Rocketry 3... 2... 1 — Why isn’t it blasting off?!? Houston, we have a problem. Are there any gifted engineers out there who can help the EXPLO Aerospace Center get these rockets off the ground? You’ll need to test our rockets to see how far you can make them fly, how high you can make them go, and how well-equipped you can make them to protect our precious cargo. You’ll have to experiment with different propulsion sources — like water pressure, elastic bands, and anything else you can come up with. And you’ll have to engineer different fin, nose cone, and parachute designs to maximize each rocket’s lift, flight, and return efficiency. We’re shooting an egg off into space. Can you make a rocket that will return it safely to Earth? Do you think you’re up for the challenge? BLAST OFF!!! You’re hired.
Students will not be enrolled in both 721 and W116. | |
| 722 | Zap!+ Electrical Engineering Did you know that your body contains enough electricity to make a light bulb glow? Or that a potato can run a clock? The science of electrical engineering can be pretty hair-raising stuff... literally! We'll build Van De Graaf generators that will make your hair stand on end, conduct enough electricity through homemade circuits to cook a hot dog and make a pickle glow, and rewire battery-powered keyboards and electronic toys to alter the way they speak and sound. Too good to be true? Prepare to be shocked (metaphorically speaking, of course) as we rewire and re-imagine the everyday power of electricity! | |
| 723 | Focused Hocus Pocus+ Magic Use your pinky to keep someone from standing. Read minds to predict the names of distant relatives. Perform supernatural feats like flying and bringing dead insects back to life. If it sounds too fantastic to be believed, that's because it is. It's magic. You'll bring cards to the top of the deck and make coins jump, bend, and disappear. We'll also practice the craft of the magician — concealing smaller movements with big ones, employing, even developing an onstage routine of 'patter' and jokes that will confuse, confound, and captivate your audience. If you want to become the world's next David Blaine or David Copperfield, then this is the course you'll want to have up your sleeve. | |
| 724 | Footloose+ Dance Choreography Think Rihanna’s got all the moves? Wish you could show Lady Gaga a thing or two? Then strap on your beginner shoes, because this is the course for you! To start, we'll introduce and practice essential ballet, modern, and hip-hop steps. Once you’ve gotten confidence in your moves, we’ll learn short dance phrases, and begin choreographing your own dance passages — turn a plié and a pirouette into a beatbox-fueled step dance! Transition rolls and leaps into sweeping, swirling movements. By the time you’re ready to go up on stage and introduce everyone at EXPLO to your sweet moves, they’ll be as fluid as Usher’s and as fierce as, well, as fierce as you want them to be! So strap on your dancing shoes, because the next big number is choreographed (and danced!) by you! |
Voyager Second Period Courses
| 801 | Light + Image+ Digital Photography Want to take professional shots of your new friends? Interested in taking sweeping landscape photographs or catching spontaneous scenes on campus? If you've ever wanted to take your digital photography skills to the next level, this is the class for you! With your digital camera in hand, you'll learn all the tricks of composing great images. Then, in our digital photo lab, discover the art of retouching photos — making your images brighter, sharper, and more colorful — and find out how to make gallery-ready prints from an ink jet printer. With every click of the shutter, you'll not only be framing great shots, you'll turn them into amazing works of art!
For this class, we request that you come prepared with your own digital camera. Students will not be enrolled in both 701 and 801. | |
| 802 | The Situation Room+ International Conflict Resolution The world is waiting. International leaders, news crews, and entire armies await your country's next move. A crisis has developed and now China and the United States face off in a political conflict. The class is divided in two — each group responsible for doing what’s best for its country in an attempt to find a peaceful solution. Join this course to experience and resolve international conflicts firsthand. Whether you are the President, Secretary of State, or a military advisor, you must do your job and work with your fellow Cabinet members to decide the best course of action. Every second counts when you step into the Situation Room! | |
| 803 | Shrink the City+ 3D Modeling + Urban Planning Take out your triangle and surveyor's scope, we've got some serious shrinkage to attend to! First stop: shrink St. Mark's School to the size of a shoebox. Once we've got St. Mark's down to size, we'll begin building a complete city, one that's small enough to fit into a room, but large enough to walk around inside! You'll construct homes, stadiums, and airports, and plot out everything from roadways and train tracks to public gardens. But this isn't just a walk in the park! You're going to have to build everything to scale! How high is each story on a 140-floor skyscraper that is four-feet tall? What's the proper speed limit for a five-foot road? And you've got to stick to a budget! Think you're big enough to handle the challenge of building a shrunken city? Then help us construct EXPLO's next (tiny) metropolis! | |
| 804 | Fixin' Flicks+ Re-edited Movies What if we made Toy Story into another kind of movie: a horror movie about, say, a criminal mastermind toy cowboy bent on world domination? Or what if, instead of being a teenage rock star, Hannah Montana lived a double-life as an alien from outer space? In this course, we'll be reinventing our favorite movies — changing the stories' dialogue and sound effects and adding in our own crazy ideas. Pirates of the CSI. Wolverine: A Teddy Bear Love Story. You'll create mixed-up, mashed-up stories, and then cut and re-edit the film to tell your tale... whatever ridiculous, absurd, zany tale that may be.
Students will not be enrolled in both 704 and 804. | |
| 805 | What's In a Face?+ Portrait Painting When you paint someone’s portrait, you’re not just rendering a human likeness, you’re sharing something about the person you are trying to depict — and a lot about the person doing the painting (YOU!). Join us as we use portraiture to discover the power of paint. As you work on portraits, self-portraits, and other painting exercises, you’ll not only learn how to mix your own colors and develop a color palette, but also discover how to experiment with different paint applications. We’ll use photo grid techniques and basic facial anatomy to render portraits in a realistic style — and then will flip things on their head as we experiment with abstract and cubist portraiture. Looking at portraits done by famous artists (and the work of artists in our class), you’ll understand how (and why) paintings are constructed the way they are, and will discover how much our brush strokes and color choices say about us.
Students will not be enrolled in both 805 and W181. | |
| 806 | Up, Up... and Away!+ Comic Book Art Marvel Comics has offered our class a contract to create the next hit comic book using our own made-up super heroes and crazy characters. Before we get started, we'll look at Marvel's X-Men, DC's Superman, Japanese manga, and other comics to help us explore the relationship between text and picture and the ways that comic books can develop a narrative. We'll investigate comic book design and learn the art of sequencing and storyboarding. As we practice our drawing, inking, and coloring skills, we'll craft scenes using textures and colors — just like the pros. If you want to help us publish issue #1 of our own original EXPLO comic, this is the course for you! | |
| 807 | Goofy Gadgets+ Lego Engineering: Gadgets Your mission: to design and construct sophisticated machines that can complete a series of engineering tasks to benefit society... using Legos. We might have to build a movable machine to plant seeds for other countries. Or maybe we'll develop a solar panel and windmill system for an energy-efficient home. Whatever the task, we’ll engineer our solutions with Lego motors, gears, and blocks. So snap to it! Come learn to design useful, functioning machines as we challenge your problem-solving skills and immerse ourselves in the world of Lego engineering.
Students will not be enrolled in 707 and 807. | |
| 808 | Get Out Alive!+ Wilderness Survival We're stranded! On an island! With nothing except the wreckage from our crash! But panicking won't get us anywhere, so let's get to work. First, we'll have to figure out a way to purify water and cook food. Next, with whatever materials we have handy (rope, tarp, twigs), we'll need to build a shelter. And a fire too, even though we don't have any matches. With bears stealing our food and torrential rains destroying our tent, there's no telling what disaster will strike next. So, we'll stay vigilant. We'll practice emergency rescue procedures, and we'll learn how to treat wounds and diseases. And we'll plot our escape. Whatever it takes to get off this island — smoke signals, a giant raft, Morse code — we'll learn how to do it so we can get back home safely! | |
| 809 | Stock Pit+ Brokers, Traders + the Stock Market Imagine yourself as a trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. You may make a couple thousand bucks in five minutes or you may lose your life savings before lunch! You'll need economic knowledge and a keen eye on world events and politics... or you could lose your shirt. Hear the chatter of the ticker tape spitting out prices of stocks as you play the roles of traders and brokers in order to learn how the stock market affects and is affected by our economy. Buy, sell, and trade stocks while faced with critical news flashes that change the playing field in the middle of the game. Come see if you can earn big bucks in the EXPLO Investors Group. | |
| 810 | Working from Scratch+ Computer Programming The next time a computer starts talking to you, you can talk right back — you just need to know how to speak its language! To understand the basics of programming, we'll use LOGO to write code that computers will respond to. Type in: RT1, FD4, LT1, FD4, LT1, FD4, LT1, FD4, and your computer will draw a simple box. As we master the LOGO language, you'll learn to think and talk like a computer. You'll be able to tackle increasingly difficult programming challenges like painting a rainbow, making a screen saver with blinking stars, or creating a maze. If you've never done any computer programming before, this is a great class to get you started! | |
| 811 | Engage the Stage+ Theater Set Design There’s no set! THERE’S NO SET! How are we going to stage these Broadway plays WITH NO SET? Spiderman’s got to swoop in from skyscrapers to save the day. Simba must rule his kingdom from Pride Rock. Blue Man Group’s got to have drums filled with paint and places to mysteriously hide. How are we going to do this? WHAT? You? YOU can design the stage? You think YOU can build a set with painted backdrops and movable pieces that can change from scene to scene? We can trust YOU to create props that look like a spider web or masks that will transform our actors into great African beasts? You think YOU can learn about lighting techniques and stage tech? You do? Well, we do, too. | |
| 812 | Which Way to Broadway?+ Musical Theater Your makeup is perfect, your costume is just right, you're in character, and suddenly — the spotlight is on you! Come sing, dance, act, write, produce, and direct in an all-new musical that you help create. You are the star of your own show and the focus is on entertainment, not individual performance. Be a part of the cast, a stage manager, a choreographer, a publicity director, a props designer, a set creator, a technical crew member, a makeup artist, or a costume designer as you and your classmates work together to develop and perform a complete musical! | |
| 813 | Protect the President!+ Secret Service + Security Congratulations, you have been accepted to the Secret Service. Your first assignment: protect the President of the United States of America. EXPLO's State of the Union Address is only days away, so your work begins immediately. You'll diagram the Quad and set up surveillance stations. You'll practice using your body to deflect flying projectiles. You'll learn how to detect a lie and how to spot suspicious behavior in a crowd. You'll build prototypes of impenetrable security systems that will trigger alarms if anyone tries to break in. And you'll develop contingency plans for evacuation in the case of unforeseen developments. It's your mission — so prepare a slick code name, find a pair of dark sunglasses, and get ready to protect the leaders of EXPLO and the free world!
Students will not be enrolled in 813 and W115. | |
| 814 | Between The Bones+ Physiology + The Human Body Is scaring the pants off someone the best way to cure their hiccups? Ever wonder what’s really happening inside you when you feel like you have butterflies in your stomach? If you want to figure out why your body does the weird and wacky things it does, have we got the class for you! We'll perform all sorts of weird and cool experiments as we scrape off tongues, squidge between toes, and stretch our dermis (or skin) to see exactly what's going on (and what's living) in there. You'll turn saltine crackers into sugar using your saliva, mix scrambled eggs with laundry detergent — that's digestion — and find out how many burps it takes to blow up a balloon. There's no counting all the wonders our bodies can produce, and we guarantee you'll have fun trying! | |
| 815 | Medieval Mayhem+ Medieval Battle Contraptions Invaders will soon be storming the Explo castle, and it's up to you to save the kingdom! We'll need a moat and strong, tall walls to keep them out. But the real key to turning these invaders away will be outsmarting them. How will we do it? Basic physics, of course. We'll use levers, weights, pulleys, and pendulums to make catapults, crossbows, and trebuchets that will defend our castle against the invading hordes. In the process, we'll learn about trajectory, transfer of energy principles, and how to aim large projectiles. By the end of the course, saving the kingdom will be only half the fun — the other half will be discovering the secrets behind medieval science. | |
| 816 | Pirates, Princes + Planets+ Fantasy Writing What kind of a fantasy world do you want to create? One like Middle Earth (in Lord of the Rings)? One that's set in a galaxy far, far away (like in Star Wars)? Or one where magic and the Muggle world collide (a la Harry Potter)? Join us as we invent extraordinary stories, fantastic characters, and adventurous plots in worlds that are as unique as our imaginations. What are the laws in your world? What kind of creatures live there? Who's in charge — and who wishes they were instead? How do you get to your world? (Through a wardrobe? or by wearing a magical sock, perhaps?) And what does it look like once you get there? There's a whole world behind the answers to these questions — a world that you will be writing! | |
| 817 | Stand Up + Speak+ Public Speaking + Debate Are you someone who likes to speak in front of lots of people? Or are you the shy type that stays seated in the back? Come learn how to express yourself in a calm, confident way and how to argue thoughtfully and effectively. First, we'll practice speaking in front of groups and learn how to stay calm, cool, and collected. Then we'll move on to debate, where we'll learn how to organize our thoughts, present a coherent argument, and follow the basic procedures of parliamentary debate. Don't just sit there, stand up and speak! | |
| 818 | Fun With Mud+ Ceramics Come learn how to transform a gooey, slimy clump of mud into a beautiful piece of pottery. We'll practice some age-old and brand-new methods of turning lumps of clay into cool works of art. We'll start with the basic pinching, coiling, and scoring. Then we'll work our way to the wheel, where you'll set up clay and throw your own pots (on the wheel, not at your classmates — sorry)! We'll learn how to glaze our finished pieces and understand the process of baking pottery in the kiln. So get fired up! This is your chance to be a real "Potter." | |
| 819 | Crimes, Clues + Courtrooms+ Criminal Investigation + Prosecution From the cop on the beat to the judge on the bench, you'll investigate a crime scene and take the case all the way through the system. EXPLO "Law and Order" will have you and your team identifying a suspect, making an arrest, and taking the suspect to court. We'll teach you some basics in the forensic lab (analyzing bite marks, fingerprinting, tracking clues, and testing evidence) and then we’ll play the parts of lawyers, witnesses, judge, and jury to decide the fate of the suspect. Before we have our trial, you'll have to figure out the crime timeline and the motive. If we want our suspects behind bars, we better be able to convince the jury we know what we're talking about!
Students will not be enrolled in both 719 and 819. | |
| 820 | Fizz, Bang, Pop!+ Chemistry Have you ever wanted to mix different liquids and powders in your kitchen just to see what happens? There is chemistry everywhere around you, and it's easy to make things from simple materials at home. Would you like to learn how to make slime or glue? We can harness chemical power to make safe mini-explosions. Have you ever wondered how to make gum or root beer? We will get to see how chemistry relates to food, while making things to eat and drink. Whether in the outside world or in our stomachs, we will have fun with the chemistry we see every day!
Students will only be enrolled in one of the following: 720, 820, or W184. | |
| 821 | Hovercraft Heroics+ Hovercraft Physics Testing the limits of science... defying the laws of gravity... it's all in a day's work for the average hovercraft scientist. Join us as we learn and apply Newton's Laws of Motion and Bernoulli's Principle on pressure and lift to create a fleet of hovercrafts that really fly, float, and scoot across the landscape. We'll create hovercrafts for every occasion: small tabletop models that could fit in your bag, large ones big enough to ride and race on — and an absolutely humongous one that we'll knock around in a life-size game of (inverted) air hockey. Sound too good to be true? Trust us. This is a class that will sweep you off your feet! | |
| 822 | Gears of Fear+ Robotics Clap three times and the door to the castle creeeeeeaks open. Stepping inside, you discover singing portraits with eyes that move, candlesticks that flicker on and off as you walk by, and statues that begin to break-dance when you come near. Although you might think otherwise, this haunted house you've entered isn't run by magic... it's the handiwork of robotic engineers. In this course, we'll use PicoCricket computer software technology to program our own array of robots and "magical happenings" — connecting sensors and resistors to motors and sound-boxes in order to bring our own scale-model haunted house to life. Our guests will be mystified... but we'll know the engineering secrets behind our designs. |