High School Seminars

CIVA is a Colorado Springs charter high school centered around the desire to help each student discover their unique potential allowing them to thrive and mature into successful, balanced adults who are equipped to succeed and make a difference in the world.  To this end, the CIVA staff, from faculty to administration, are committed to presenting opportunities for students to grow in their confidence as they flourish scholastically, intellectually and artistically.  With rigorous academic instruction, an outstanding arts program, and opportunities to compete athletically, CIVA seeks to engage the whole student.

So, what is a seminar class in high school? CIVA provides seminars for each year of study which are small, interactive classes where students have the freedom to explore and be fully involved in grade-specific topics. Our high school seminars encourage students to engage in academic self-discovery and apply knowledge in unique ways.

As Freshmen, students engage in seminars centered around their learning styles and social and emotional health. We help students determine whether they are kinesthetic, auditory, or visual learners and how to apply this to their academic journey. By identifying a student’s learning style early on in their high school career, the student can tailor their studying methods to achieve higher success for the remainder of high school and beyond. We do not currently offer a Sophomore seminar, but Junior seminars focus on preparing for the SAT test, exploring their gifts, and how these gifts relate to their future exploration academically. Senior seminars focus on ICAP (Individual Career and Academic Plan), to ensure students are supported in the planning of their post-high school life.

Both faculty and staff incorporate the Quantum Learning System when engaging with a student. Quantum Learning is a brain-based research model that focuses on how the brain encodes information maximizing a student’s ability to learn.  By incorporating kinesthetic, visual, and auditory teaching techniques CIVA staff achieves the goal of reaching each student through their individual learning styles.

HIGH SCHOOL SEMINARS

FRESHMAN SEMINAR
Course Length: 1 Semester Grade: 9
Credit per Semester: 2.0
(Elective)
Freshman Seminar is designed to look at how the brain works, how each individual learns most effectively, and how to get the most out of one's chances for education.  This high school seminar class will draw heavily from the content of the Quantum Learning system. It will also be application oriented as it will deal with the material being taught in the world history, freshman English, and Earth science courses.

SOPHOMORE SEMINAR
Course Length: 1 Semester Grade: 10
Credit per Semester: 2.0
(Elective)
This course focuses primarily on emotional intelligence. Students will begin each day with a check-in and mindfulness exercise. Goals of the course include: Developing emotional competency through a study of empathy, building community through team-building activities, active listening strategies, and conflict-resolution skills, learning about Jungian archetypes and Meyers-Briggs to both learn about self and how to work with others based on their personality types, learn about taking a stand in situations that may be uncomfortable through nonviolent communication, and enable action with a capstone project involving making a positive change at CIVA.

JUNIOR SEMINAR
Course Length: 1 Semester Grade: 11
Credit per Semester: 2.0
(Elective)
The Junior Seminar is the first step on the direct path to college enrollment. The first part of the semester is dedicated to preparing students for the SAT. As part of the Quantum Learning system, test preparation of this seminar class includes providing students with various test taking strategies. Students will have the opportunity to take an entire SAT test one or more times in order to get a feel for the test structure as a whole and to become familiar with the timing of the test. The SAT is usually given in April. That leaves the rest of the semester for the high school students of the seminar course to start to gear up for their enrollment into the college of their choice. This usually includes a visit from multiple college representatives in the state. Students learn what to look for in a college and how to determine if a college is the right fit for them. Students begin to refine what career path they are interested in and what post-secondary education they will need in order to obtain their goals.

SENIOR SEMINAR
Course Length: 1 Semester Grade: 12
Credit per Semester: 2.0 Prerequisite: None
(Elective)
Senior high school seminar affords students the opportunity to walk through the process of what it takes to get into a post-secondary institution. Students in this seminar class start with understanding what type of learner they are and end with applying to a colleges or universities of their choosing with completion of FAFSA, applying for scholarships and essay writing in between.