Blake High School

Ballet 2 A/B

 Ballet 2 is for the serious Ballet dancer who has 2-3 years of Ballet training. This course will improve dance technique, body alignment, control, strength, and flexibility. Students work on adagio, petit allegro, ballet barre, across the floor, and center floor combinations. Students will explore choreography and self- study to gain personal growth. Prerequisite Ballet 1A & 1B.

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Basketball

The Basketball course is designed for students to achieve and maintain a healthy level of fitness and increase physical competency in the sport of basketball. Students are provided with opportunities to develop a positive self-image, personal responsibility, and to learn to work collaboratively with their classmates. Drills will be focused on developing and improving basketball fundamentals, dribbling, shooting, defense and teamwork. Games and tournaments will be played. Considerable time will be spent playing the game. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times. 

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Choreography A/B

 This elite level class is for students who have at least 2 years of training at Blake HS, including the Advanced Jazz or Dance Company class. This class is for technically proficient dancers who have experience with choreography. Students who wish to be a part of this class must be ready to create new organic and purposeful movements that demonstrate a story, theme, or piece of artwork. The class will study improvisation, explore stimuli, and learn choreographer’s techniques, vocabulary and themes to show how to create movement in dance. In addition to creating choreography, students will complete written assignments and work on technical production, portfolio, and self-reflection. Students will have the opportunity to showcase their choreographic works.

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Comprehensive Health Education (Honors)

This semester course meets the state one-half credit Health Education graduation requirement. Students will address issues in seven topics: Mental Health; Tobacco, Alcohol, and other Drugs (ATOD); Personal and Consumer Health; Nutrition and Fitness; Safety and Injury Prevention; Family Life and Human Sexuality; and Disease Prevention and Control. At honors level, students will be required to pursue the same academic criteria as the regular Comprehensive Health, but at a more rigorous level. Students will be expected to complete individual projects that may require utilizing outside community resource/agencies, working with others on group assignments, as well as completing individual projects requiring the ability to do research on a given topic. Students will utilize current technology through the use of Chromebooks for accessing relevant health information on a given assignment. 

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Dance Company A/B

Participation in this course class is by audition only. Upperclassmen who are technically proficient and have experience with choreography for a minimum of 3-6 years. Students ready to move onto the next step in becoming a professional dancer/choreographer will learn selected dance repertory. Students will be required to perform at several selected venues at Blake and elsewhere. Students will study in depth choreographic principles, improvisation, history, culture, performance, technique, dance for fitness, and job opportunities. In addition to performing, members of the Blake Dance Company will complete a full professional portfolio including choreography, written assignments, resume, and self-reflection. Dance Company students will have the opportunity to showcase their choreographic works. 

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 Dance For Fitness

Dance your way to fitness! This course is a fun, upbeat dance fitness experience that uses easy to follow cardio dance moves to a variety of high-energy beats, including today’s hottest pop, hip hop, Latin, Bollywood and dance music. This class combines medium- and low-impact aerobic dance moves with a variety of fitness activities ranging from resistance training to stability ball exercises. This class is a total body workout, incorporating all elements of fitness – cardio, muscle conditioning, balance and flexibility. No dance experience required. You will be hooked from the first beat! Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.

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Field/Team Sports

Field Sports- Students will develop and advance their skills in a variety of field sports activities. Some examples activities include: Football, Soccer, Ultimate Frisbee, Softball, Basketball,Volleyball, Floor Hockey, Handball, Doubles Badminton and Tennis. Through active participation in field and team sports, students will foster an appreciation for sports and fitness activities which benefits Physical, Social and Mental Emotional health. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times
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Floor Hockey/Lacrosse

This semester-long course offers in-depth instruction in Floor Hockey and Lacrosse. Considerable time will be spent playing the game of floor hockey. The course will provide opportunities to apply movement skills to advanced tactics and concepts. Students will be instructed in the basic skills of the sport as well as rules of play and strategies of play. Students will be given leadership roles as an opportunity for growth in personal and social responsibility. Drills, games and tournaments will be played. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.

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Flag Football

This semester-long course offers in-depth instruction in the rules and game play of football. The course will provide opportunities to apply movement skills to advanced tactics. Students will be given leadership roles as an opportunity for growth in personal and social responsibility. Enhancement of skills and strategies will be gained throughout this course. Class emphasizes individual and team offensive, defensive concepts of team organization and play. Considerable time will be spent playing the game. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.

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Jazz

Jazz Dance, Beginner A/B

This is an introductory course in jazz, as well as a refresher for the dancer who had time off. Emphasis is on development of technique, self-expression, and creativity. Students will explore dance concepts through aesthetic, historical, cultural, performance, and criticism. Students will learn the basic elements of dance such as space, time, and energy.

Jazz Dance, Intermediate A/B 

Intermediate Jazz students will learn to integrate their bodies with more difficult dance techniques and concepts. Students will pay attention to detail in order to gain a greater understanding of the mechanics within the body and how it can be used for self-expression. Basic choreographic principles are introduced along with improvisation and creation of organic movement. This course prepares the student for the difficult dance skills of the advanced level by exploring direction, tempo, rhythms and level changes. This course will include advanced leaps, turns, and repertoire. Prerequisite Jazz 1A & 1B or audition. 

Jazz Dance, Advanced A/B 

This course is for the serious and competitive dancer who has a minimum of 3-5 years of training. The students will continue to refine skills and understanding introduced in the pre-requisite courses. The advanced student must have mastered all beginning and intermediate level skills. This class will learn technically complex combinations, concepts, and technique. The students will create choreography and review choreographic principles to produce organic movement. Students will learn how to express an idea through movement utilizing improvisation and creative movement. The students will also fine tune their understandings of dance history, culture, aesthetics, criticism, performance, and dance for fitness. Prerequisites Jazz 1A & 1B and Intermediate Jazz 2A & 2B or audition.

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Net Sports

This course instructs students in basic fundamental skills, offensive and defensive strategies, tactics, and current rules of play. Students will perform in drills, game situations and tournaments. Games studied and played include mainly Badminton, Tennis, Volleyball, Pickle Ball, Ping Pong (table tennis). Open to all skill levels. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.
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Personal Fitness

Drawing on knowledge from their elementary and middle school physical education experience, students will deepen their understanding of fitness components and principles. Students will examine and evaluate influences that affect their personal fitness choices. Students will be guided through short- and long-term fitness goals and the selection of physical fitness activities to prepare them for careers health and wellness. The course includes opportunities for a variety of personal developmental activities including Yoga, Pilates, Aerobics, Weight Training, Circuit Training, Body Resistance Training, and Individualized programs. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.

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Soccer

Soccer is the most popular global and lifelong sport in the world that one can participate in for the rest of his or her life. This soccer course uses fast paced and high energy styles of game play to explore tactics within the game. Examples of tactics covered include: attacking the goal, maintaining possession, creating and setting up an attack, and defending space.This class uses a combination of both small sided and larger team play throughout the semester. This course will help improve your cardiovascular fitness, endurance/stamina, speed, awareness, and agility. All students are welcome to take this course regardless of prior playing experience or fitness level. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.
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Tap

Beginner Tap ( Fall and Spring)

This introductory course emphasizes the development of rhythm and technique. Tap vocabulary is stressed. Students will demonstrate artistic expression through dance ideas and concepts, therefore exploring aesthetic, historical, performance, and dance criticism. Students will also work on improvisation and work in small groups to learn new concepts.

Intermediate Tap A (Spring Only)

Students will continue to refine tap skills introduced in Beginner Tap A & B. The intermediate/advanced student must have mastered all of the beginning level skills and will progress to choreographic principles and more difficult rhythms and syncopation. The elements of dance will be studied in greater depth with applications directed at solving movement problems. Basic movement skills and techniques will be refined to achieve greater technical and artistic competency. This dance form will be studied closely to understand its stylistic, cultural, and historic significance. Prerequisite is Beginner Tap A & B or audition. 

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Volleyball

Within this course you will learn and participate in the sport of volleyball both at the competitive and recreational levels. This course has been designed for students of all skill levels to grow and improve their volleyball skills so that they can participate in this sport throughout their lives. Students will be given leadership roles as an opportunity for growth in personal and social responsibility. This course instructs students in basic individual volleyball fundamental skills, offensive and defensive strategies, tactics, and current rules of play. Students will perform in drills, game situations and tournaments. Open to all skill levels. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.

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Weight Training

This course is designed to give students the opportunity to explore the relationship between strength training and athletic performance, as well as other health benefits gained as a result of training. Topics will include: basic principles of strength training, instruction in the use of training equipment (resistance tubes, med balls, machines, free weights, etc.), integration of other fitness components (speed and agility) into a strength training program, development of individualized strength programs, and development of sport-specific strength training programs. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times.

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Yoga

The increasing demands of teenage life require effective skills to deal with a multitude of physical, mental, social and emotional issues, such as, fatigue, stress, being over committed, and maintaining a healthy weight. Yoga is designed to unite the physical, mental, social and emotional aspects of an individual through conscious breathing and movements to effectively deal with the daily demands of life. An individual capable of dealing with life’s demands also maintains a high level of wellness. In this course, students will learn basic yoga poses, relaxation techniques, meditation techniques, principles of effective communication, anatomy, and self-reflection. Students can take course an unlimited amount of times. 

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Last Updated: 10/19/18