by ANDERS GUSTAFSON A&E EDITOR
and SEBASTIAN POLONIS SPORTS EDITor
A large piece of Chadwick’s identity comes from offering experiential learning opportunities for students. From Outdoor Ed to global programs, Chadwick is constantly evolving in its educational offerings. The newest creation is English 12: Thriving in a Changing World, a new class that has already seen success just three months into the new school year.
Taught by Erin Nordlund, the course focuses on a vast array of projects to create lessons with more real-world applications. It’s also an alternative to the traditional AP classes, giving students a rigorous learning experience without needing to follow an AP curriculum.
“I’ve taught [the AP curriculum] for many years, and I think it has some really good skills, but those assessments are largely in-class essays,” Nordlund said. “I’m not bound by feeling like I need to prepare the students for those in-class essays. With all of these different honors classes, we are trying to think about what the priority skills are that students are going to need in the future.”
The curriculum teaches students important skills outside the classroom relating to communication and literacy. Several units planned for the year include lessons on persuasion, storytelling, and digital media.
These lessons also mean that the class reads texts different from typical English curriculums. For its first unit, the class read the book Made to Stick (2007) by Chip and Dan Heath. The book details the strategies needed to communicate ideas effectively, helping to teach audience members how to hold on to points made by a speaker. Students carried the ideas from their book into activities in the class, reusing the lessons from the Heaths in their first projects.
Senior Connor Jordan, for example, proposed a redesign to the Chadwick library. Using computer-aided-design software, Jordan created a presentation with a model version of the library, detailing the different additions and changes he would add to a reimagined design of the space.
In their next unit focused on storytelling, students wrote and presented short stories on a fun occasion called Trive Night. Students aimed to learn more about self-presentation, delivering stories, and furthering their understanding of communication.
“The major difference is how we use the materials/texts we work with,” senior Forrest Steele said. “It’s not just about analyzing an author’s hidden meaning or intentions, but looking at the text from our perspective—what can we learn from it?”
As the students learn more about their environment, they also learn more about themselves and their environment, and how they can create a positive impact.
The students’ impact on the community includes an Apex project that all seniors participate in during the second semester.
Because the Apex project is a large part of the English 12 curriculum, Thriving in a Changing World aims to make sure that students recognize and embrace their passions and continue to pursue them well beyond the classroom.
“I’m kind of envisioning it like every single thing we’re doing right now … like planting seeds in different ideas or different skills that they’ll then utilize on their Apex project,” Nordlund said. “I’m trying to show students how they can take something that they’re intrinsically interested in, double down on that, and utilize their strengths in order to create impact.”
Alongside the Apex project, students will also pursue their passions through a mentorship program. Each student was assigned a mentor to help them learn about real-world applications and think about the future. These mentors, who are often Chadwick alumni, all have a connection to the school and are committed to helping current students adapt their skills for the future.
Erin Nordlund says she’s ‘never had so much fun’ teaching a class.
The core principles of “Thriving in a Changing World” connect to one of Chadwick’s main tenets: experiential learning. In this class, experiential learning has come in the form of the assignments. “[Experiential learning is] why I’m doing this. How do I shift all of my assessments to have some kind of real-world context?” Nordlund said.
She has also found a new sense of enjoyment in teaching the class. “In all my 20 years [at Chadwick], I’ve never had so much fun as teaching this class, because the kids are more into it.”
Students in the class seem to agree with Nordlund’s sentiments. Senior Joe Huber appreciates the class’ intuitive curriculum.
“She’s teaching what she genuinely believes is the best for our education instead of what the College Board thinks,” Huber says. “And so she’s able to do stuff that caters specifically to us, and it’s really made me more engaged in the course.”
Along with other new classes this year, such as Honors Environmental Science, Honors Applied Design, and Honors English 11: Into the Wilderness, Thriving in a Changing World is another strong example of Chadwick’s commitment to learning through doing… while creating a more engaging curriculum.
The Mainsheet 