Upper School Curriculum

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Science

Three years of coordinated science are required for graduation. As students’ laboratory and mathematics skills build through the years, topics are studied with increasing depth in each discipline. Advanced courses and electives are offered to 9th- through 12th-grade students. (Eight science electives are open to 12th graders; two science electives are open to 11th graders; one science elective is open to 10th graders; and one science elective is open to 9th graders.) Advanced and elective courses are subject to change and variation.

  • Grade 9 Coordinated Science: (Chemistry I and Physics I)

    In Grades 9 through 11, students engage in a three-year course of study that focuses on two coordinated sciences per year. This coordinated approach allows students to understand the core principles behind each science and the many connections between them. The coordinated science program also integrates thoughtfully with the mathematics curriculum. 

    Chemistry and physics are taught concurrently in 9th grade; chemistry and biology are taught concurrently in 10th grade; and physics and biology are taught concurrently in 11th grade. Cross-curricular concepts, laboratory skills, and the scientific method are emphasized in the classroom routines—which include group work, laboratory experiments, and field trips. 

    In chemistry, students pursue an understanding of matter, chemical bonding, limiting reagents, thermochemistry, acids and bases, gas laws, and organic chemistry. Physics students learn about kinematics, forces, waves, optics, electrostatics, torque, motion (projectile, circular, and periodic), vectors, and quantum theory. In biology, students explore cell structure and energetics, endocrinology, embryology, evolution, medical physiology, genetics, cancer, and the international AIDS crisis. As the curriculum progresses from 9th through 11th grade, building-block topics are reconsidered in greater depth, as new concepts are introduced. 

    After the students complete three years of the coordinated science program, they can enroll in a variety of college-level electives.

  • Grade 10 Coordinated Science (Chemistry II and Biology I)

    In Grades 9 through 11, students engage in a three-year course of study that focuses on two coordinated sciences per year. This coordinated approach allows students to understand the core principles behind each science and the many connections between them. The coordinated science program also integrates thoughtfully with the mathematics curriculum. 

    Chemistry and physics are taught concurrently in 9th grade; chemistry and biology are taught concurrently in 10th grade; and physics and biology are taught concurrently in 11th grade. Cross-curricular concepts, laboratory skills, and the scientific method are emphasized in the classroom routines—which include group work, laboratory experiments, and field trips. 

    In chemistry, students pursue an understanding of matter, chemical bonding, limiting reagents, thermochemistry, acids and bases, gas laws, and organic chemistry. Physics students learn about kinematics, forces, waves, optics, electrostatics, torque, motion (projectile, circular, and periodic), vectors, and quantum theory. In biology, students explore cell structure and energetics, endocrinology, embryology, evolution, medical physiology, genetics, cancer, and the international AIDS crisis. As the curriculum progresses from 9th through 11th grade, building-block topics are reconsidered in greater depth, as new concepts are introduced. 

    After the students complete three years of the coordinated science program, they can enroll in a variety of college-level electives.

  • Grade 11 Coordinated Science (Biology II and Physics II)

    In Grades 9 through 11, students engage in a three-year course of study that focuses on two coordinated sciences per year. This coordinated approach allows students to understand the core principles behind each science and the many connections between them. The coordinated science program also integrates thoughtfully with the mathematics curriculum. 

    Chemistry and physics are taught concurrently in 9th grade; chemistry and biology are taught concurrently in 10th grade; and physics and biology are taught concurrently in 11th grade. Cross-curricular concepts, laboratory skills, and the scientific method are emphasized in the classroom routines—which include group work, laboratory experiments, and field trips. 

    In chemistry, students pursue an understanding of matter, chemical bonding, limiting reagents, thermochemistry, acids and bases, gas laws, and organic chemistry. Physics students learn about kinematics, forces, waves, optics, electrostatics, torque, motion (projectile, circular, and periodic), vectors, and quantum theory. In biology, students explore cell structure and energetics, endocrinology, embryology, evolution, medical physiology, genetics, cancer, and the international AIDS crisis. As the curriculum progresses from 9th through 11th grade, building-block topics are reconsidered in greater depth, as new concepts are introduced. 

    After the students complete three years of the coordinated science program, they can enroll in a variety of college-level electives.

  • Principles of Ecology and Evolution

    Prerequisite: Department approval.

    It must be taken in addition to a student’s regular coordinated science classes. This course presents the principles of evolution and ecology for students beginning their study of biology and the environment. It discusses principles of evolution at the molecular, organismal, and population levels. For students curious about how the interactions between individual organisms and their environments scale up to global ecosystems, this course provides a good introduction to the nested complexity of the natural world.

  • Environmental Science & Policy

    Prerequisite: Departmental approval.

    It must be taken in addition to a student’s regular coordinated science classes. From the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring to the passage of laws protecting the environment in the 1970s, ideas on the environment have continually evolved and led to the emergence of environmental science as a discipline. Confronting environmental challenges requires the implementation of policies and laws that lead to effective solutions; law, policy, and economics are, therefore, an integral part of understanding how to deal with environmental challenges.

    This class begins with a look at the major world habitats, and quickly moves into the significant environmental issues confronting us today: waste management/recycling, acid rain, ozone depletion, agriculture, air/water/soil quality, sustainability, etc. Climate change/global warming is a central theme. A common question throughout the class is: How are different world economies (the U.S., the EU, Asian, African, and South American countries) dealing with the challenges presented by climate change and global warming? Further, we look extensively at the challenges and opportunities facing New York City, with a focus on urban ecology and sustainable development. This is intended to be a broad survey course, with a focus on research projects, field work, and written, oral, or interactive presentations—instead of traditional concept memorization and testing. In addition, the students’ inquiries lead a part of the material covered in the class. They are expected to take a leadership role in the school’s environmental and sustainability initiatives through the environmental club.

  • Advanced Topics in Chemistry

    Departmental approval required.

    It must be taken in addition to a student’s regular coordinated science classes. This 11th-grade advanced chemistry elective explores in greater depth several topics covered in introductory chemistry, such as acid/base chemistry, kinetics, and thermodynamics. It also introduces other new topics that are typically taught in a college-level chemistry class. These include equilibrium, molecular geometry, and molecular orbital theory. A major focus is on problem-solving strategies—understanding formula, rather than memorizing them. It is highly advisable that this class be a prerequisite to taking Advanced Chemistry: Organic in 12th grade.

  • Problems in Science

    Departmental approval required.
    It must be taken in addition to a student’s regular coordinated science classes.

    This 11th-grade course analyzes art forgery, solves a medical emergency, and even predicts the course of a hurricane! Students are presented with realistic problems in various areas of science: meteorology, genetics, chemistry, physiology, ecology, bacteriology, etc. Through research (literature and online), role-playing, and lab investigations, students formulate a response to various issues. Emphasis is on the quality and depth of research, as well as the organization and logic of the student’s approach to their solution. A willingness and capacity for independent work are essential.

  • Advanced Topics in Marine Science

    Prerequisites: Departmental approval.

    Over 95 percent of Earth’s oceans are unexplored and we do not even know how many species exist within them. New species are discovered with surprising regularity in the marine environment, which accounts for the majority of Earth’s biosphere. This course begins with an understanding of how scientists organize life by looking at the classification system, how it works, and why it changes. Students learn to identify all life in the sea and begin to understand their significance in discussing ecological relationships and their role along the evolutionary timeline. Benefitting from the knowledge obtained by marine scientists around the world, students examine organisms with ever-expanding data.

    In the second portion of the course, students go through the process of planning, contemplating ethics, carrying out, and communicating the outcomes of a field expedition. Students develop their own research questions to investigate for the remainder of the year, giving them a chance to see how human impacts on the ocean can affect certain animal behaviors and their number along the coast, in seagrass beds, open water, etc. This course is designed for students who wish to enhance their ocean literacy, participate in cutting-edge field research that works toward protecting threatened marine resources, and investigate human impacts (both positive and negative) on the ocean ecosystem.

  • Advanced Biology: Neuroscience

    Prerequisites: Departmental approval.

    Every human experience is centered in the brain. This course offers students a deep dive into the inner workings of the most complex object in the universe: the human brain. The course begins with an in-depth examination of brain structure and function, and then moves on to the cutting edge of modern neuroscience research. In collaboration with brain scientists from NYU, students learn about experiments that are expanding our understanding of the brain. With a firm grasp of the fundamentals of modern neuroscience in place, students then study their own brains, using state-of-the-art techniques and equipment. In particular, students have the opportunity to examine brain waves using EEG, and visit a laboratory that performs brain scans using fMRI and MEG. Following this crash course in experimental neuroscience, students define their own original research questions to investigate for the remainder of the year. This course is designed for students with a strong interest in biology, who are excited by the prospect of a challenging course.

  • Advanced Chemistry: Organic

    Prerequisites: Departmental approval required—completion of Advanced Topics preferred but not required.

    This advanced senior course introduces organic chemistry, also known as carbon chemistry. Carbon is the central component to proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and virtually every biologically important molecule. By introducing the nomenclature and structures, as well as discussing hybrid orbitals, spectroscopic methods, curved arrow diagrams, and named reactions, this course demystifies one of the most challenging courses in science, one that is often a gateway to professional scientific careers.

  • Advanced Environmental Science: Energy, Ecosystems, and the Future

    Prerequisites: Departmental approval.

    We will soon live in a world with 10 billion people, and no one knows how we can do that sustainably with a decent quality of living. This class focuses on humans' impact on the environment by first understanding natural ecosystems and the Muir Webs that connect all living things in a delicate balance. Then we look at ways that people can produce the energy and food, as well as reduce waste without destroying those natural ecosystems. A major course focus is energy production. For most of human history, we had access only to the energy from our own manual labor and that of domesticated animals. The industrial revolution ushered in our modern world with plumbing, electricity, mechanical transportation, etc. However, the power we use to create the modern world is exacerbating climate change. We do an intensive survey of clean power sources: wind, solar, hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear (fission and fusion) plus carbon capture and battery technologies to determine their potential and limitations.

    We also look at ecosystems and the various components that make them work, and how they are threatened, These include keystone species, apex predators, primary producers, niche partitioning, boundary effects, and invasive species. We concentrate on the system part of ecosystem.

  • Advanced Physics

    Prerequisites: Departmental approval. A corequisite in calculus and permission of the instructor are required.

    This is a mathematically and conceptually rigorous course in advanced physics topics, focusing on 20th-century developments. Topics include special relativity, the wave and particle theories of light, the quantum theory of the atom, and general relativity. The course includes the history of these developments along with their quantitative foundations and applications. A lab component of the course asks students replicate and analyze one of the foundational experiments that helped lead to the development of these theories.

  • Applied Science in Engineering: The Process of Design

    This course is a hands-on exploration of various engineering principles and the design process, exploring a broad range of engineering and STEM topics, including mechanisms, the strength of structures and materials, circuits, 3D printing, and automation. Students learn how to analyze a problem and execute research, development, physical building, testing, and improving a solution. We also learn to accurately document each step of the design process, with an emphasis placed on sketching and formal drawings. Many projects are explained in a design brief that outlines the criteria and constraints of the problem. Actual projects will vary depending upon student interests, but example projects could include building trebuchets, energy turbines, electronics, robotics, gliders, and bridges. We might even find a way to build something that hasn’t yet been invented!

  • Applied Science in Everyday Life

    Science isn’t only something that happens in a laboratory. It is all around us. How do air conditioners and microwave ovens work? Why does my toothpaste have polysorbate 80? What are vitamins and fatty acids? Every day, we interact with scientific principles countless times, but most of us never think about them. This class explores many of the “silent” ways that science impacts us—including health, nutrition, and biochemistry. It encourages students to spend a lifetime considering the unseen forces around them. The course also has a hands-on component in which students build batteries and other devices to apply science to everyday issues.

  • Epidemiology: Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases

    Since the spring of 2020, the world has been fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019 there were more than 1,000 cases of measles reported around the NYC area, exceeding records since the disease was officially “eradicated” in the USA. The World Health Organization estimates that there were approximately 36.9 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide in 2017. Of these, 1.8 million were children under the age of 15. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported that in 2017 an estimated 219 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide and 435,000 people died, mostly children in the African continent. How are these statistics compiled, and how are they used to combat these diseases? What are the most common emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases?

    These are some of the topics the course explores: Why are some diseases that were almost eradicated in the past re-emerging? What are the key differences between bacteria, viruses, parasites, and other infectious agents? The class also addresses environmental, socioeconomic, and political factors that contribute to the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases.

Faculty

  • Photo of Jeffrey Tam
    Jeffrey Tam
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor, Science Department Chair
    Bio
  • Photo of Megan Henry
    Megan Henry
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor
    (212) 426-2548
    Bio
  • Photo of James McClintock
    James McClintock
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor
    (212) 426-3392
    Bio
  • Photo of Esteban Monserrate
    Esteban Monserrate
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor
    Bio
  • Photo of Benjamin Raisher
    Benjamin Raisher
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor
    Bio
  • Photo of Jim Roche
    Jim Roche
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor
    Bio
  • Photo of Robert Stoll
    Robert Stoll
    Upper School Science Teacher, Advisor and Science Support
    Bio
  • Photo of Leann Winn
    Leann Winn
    Upper School Science Teacher and Advisor
    Bio
Ambitious academics.  Engaged students.  Balanced lives.

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