Science & Language Arts
2023-24 is Zoology + some chemistry
2024-2025 is Zoology + Biology
2025-2026 is Botany + Ecology
Fall 2024 - Spring 2025
Science-Language Arts
$775 per semester
A 4.5-hour hands-on biology seminar, writers’ workshop and book club for curious middle school and older students
ABOUT the Science and Language Arts Seminar
In this 4.5-hour weekly seminar for middle school and older students, our acre of orchard and gardens is both the leaping off point for a rigorous study of botany, zoology, ecology, and animal husbandry, or Earth Science, depending upon the year, and the calming setting in which we analyze poetry, write essays, and dive into challenging novels. At Farm School, all our learning takes place outside.
Given the nature of an outdoor classroom spread across an acre, student need to mature enough to work in teams of students. Students must also have good self-regulation and impulse control in order to be safe and keep others safe while using tools and working with animals and plants.
What academic level is Science and Language Arts Senior?
For 2024-2025, much of our literature study will align with PCA/CPA 9th grade English Language Arts requirements. Of course, I scaffold and support for our 6th, 7th and 8th grader students. But 9th graders who are looking for work samples and text-overlap will find it here. Student should be comfortable reading at a middle school level or higher and be fluent paragraph writers. Students should be able to read cursive as well.
We will:
read memoirs (PCA unit 1),
analyze great speeches and written arguments in US history as part of our persuasive essay analysis (PCA units 3 & 4),
study world literature novels (PCA unit 5, possibly 6),
analyze poetry (PCA unit 7 & 8)
read a historical fiction, science fiction or fantasy (expository) book.
Our zoology and biology will be primarily at an 8th-9th grade level, though will not cover all of the biology commonly taught at that level due to the length of our class. We will cover far more zoology than is typically taught in 8th or 9th grade.
Each Monday is a blend of challenging investigation, project-based learning, and structured class time as well as unstructured exploration and quiet reflection.
We learn by doing, investigating, writing, reading, listening, observing, building, measuring and recording, drawing, singing, reflecting and playing.
What’s happening with the flora and fauna on the micro-farm coupled with students’ interests drive our study of biology and inspires much of our poetry analysis and some of our writing.
Thus, if Luna the mama chicken goes broody, we let her hatch fertile ducks eggs and learn about waterfowl embryo development and dig into bird anatomy and adaptations.
If the natural springs in are flowing after winter rains, then we put on our rain boots, study watersheds, and bust out the microscope to study fresh water ecosystems.
Each year’s academic content is different both depending upon what’s happening in the yard and what the students are interested in.
Morning Activities
POETRY OR DRAMA
DAILY OBSERVATION
HANDS-ON BIOLOGY
Poetry: In fall semester we start our morning poetry study with both serious and silly poetry to learn the literary devices poets employ and use them in our own writing. Then in spring we apply that foundational knowledge to Shakespeare or a Greek tragedy. Since 2021 we have explored Romeo & Juliet, MacBeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Tempest, Much Ado about Nothing, Antigone (Sophocles). Future Shakespeare/Greek tragedies may include Julius Caesar, Merchant of Venice or Hamlet. Students learn to look for puns, extended metaphors, allusions, duality, characterization, themes, and learn how to understand unusual word order and use modernized text in No Fear Shakespeare editions to help understand difficult passages and to paraphrase passages.
Daily Observation of flora and fauna: students find a quiet spot to focus exquisitely on the here and now, recording observations as a scientist, poet or artist.
Hands-on Biology: botany, zoology, ecology, gardening, and animal husbandry
Studying the physiology and anatomy of various classes of creatures from the molecular level up to full systems (endocrine, digestive, circulatory, nervous, skeletal reproductive) via lecture, songs, drawing, and review games.
Exploring botany from cellular level to structures for growth, metabolic activity, and reproduction.
Tending their plants and animals.
Integrated unit studies such as dyeing silk and spinning it into yarn from the silk worms students raise from egg to moth.
Microscope studies of plants, invertebrates, pond organisms— whatever will fit on a slide.
Singing & playing advanced science songs & playing review games
Afternoon Activities
BOOK CLUB
PROJECT TIME
ART OF THE ESSAY
WORD STUDY
Book Club: We study one novel a month with students helping to select the novels we read. Since 2019 we have read:
Classic dystopian or satirical works such Animal Farm, The Giver, Ender’s Game, Fahrenheit 451;
Realistic fiction such as The Pearl, The Wanderer, Holes, Hatchet, My Side of the Mountain, Flipped;
Historical fiction such as Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, Green Glass Sea, A Long Walk to Water, Esperanza Rising, Book Thief, Code Name Verity, The White Camel of Fez, Johnny Tremain;
Mysteries such as The Hound of the Baskervilles;
Fantasy and sci-fi such as Alcatraz and the Evil Librarians, Wizard of Earthsea, The Martian (classroom edition), Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Rithmatist, Girl Who Drank the Moon, Artemis Fowl, and Anya and the Dragon, The Graveyard Book, Steelheart;
Non-fiction such as How We Got To Now, Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology, They Called Us Enemy and Boys in the Boat (HS edition), The Elephant Whisperer
Students study and evaluate the author’s use of literary devices and characterization. We tease out explicit and implicit themes. Students also annotate their copy of the novel to help them cite textual evidence in both our literature study circles and to support their thesis in their essays.
Writers’ Workshop - Art of the Essay: The writing focus of the Senior Science and Language Arts seminar is the essay, particularly response to literature and persuasive essays, but we also fine tune students’ ability to write summaries, as summaries are often embedded in any well-written academic paper, descriptive and narrative paragraphs, and expository articles. Ms. Lisa uses step by step modeling throughout the writing process, templates, and one-on-one writing conferences to help students grow where ever they are in their progression as a writer.
Word Study: We learn Latin & Greek roots and prefixes to unlock the hidden meaning of English words through mini-lectures, games and competitions. And we participate in Word Master analogy competitions. These develop attention to subtle connotation and context usage and relationships between words thus are a delight for gifted kids who like puzzles. (As a plus, this is excellent GRE practice.)
Project Time happens second semester: Students select projects to work on as a team. Projects have included
aquaculture (catfish, bluegill, koi, and crayfish),
bonsai trees,
fort construction,
sericulture (silk worms) & butterfly habitat,
annual and perennial edibles,
student newspaper,
vermiculture (raising composting worms)
flip book animation
rock band
theater group
t-shirt design/crochet
Pricing, ages, homework supplies, and other details
Making wreaths after learning how to prune grapevines
Writers’ Workshop one-on-one teacher conference
For a detailed supply list visit our supplies and learning outdoors tips page
Ages
11+ Middle school and up. This class is best for 7th graders and older BUT precocious 6th graders who are emotionally mature, have good self-regulation, and are reading and writing well above grade level are admitted on a case by case basis.
(FS doesn’t have any classes for elementary students, unless they are ready for Math 7.)
Weekly Homework
Students read about 50-90 pages of our book club novel,
Annotate as they read or respond to literary discussion questions,
Make Latin & Greek stem flash cards,
Sometimes memorize a short poem from our FS poetry collection.
Prerequisites
Middle school reading level, able to write a paragraph without run-on sentences.
Pricing— $775
12-week semester
If paying with private funds one may pay in three installments: $260 due August 1, September 1, and October 1st for first semester. December 1, January 1, and February 1 for second semester.
ABOUT MS. LISA CLARK-BURNELL
Relevant Education and Experience
I have a BA in English and Political from UC Santa Barabara. While an undergraduate, I was a university writing tutor for disadvantaged graduate and undergraduate students, assisting them with writing assignments in all disciplines. Upon graduating with highest honors and multiple awards, I then earned a CLAD multiple subject teaching credential with supplementary authorization in Social Studies and Language Arts from San Jose State University. In 1996 I began teaching middle school language arts, social studies, and math, first in the Bay area and then in Carmel Valley. While at these middles schools I concentrated on designing language arts and history curriculum.
In 2005 I took a hiatus from teaching middle school to stay home with my children. During that period I co-founded and directed Salem Harvest, a non-profit that connects farmers and backyard growers with volunteer pickers to harvest fruits and vegetables that would otherwise go to waste in an effort to end hunger. I also began honing my organic gardening expertise and animal husbandry skills, diving deep into permaculture and restorative agriculture. In 2012 I returned to teaching but this time as a homeschooling parent.
In 2019, at the request of my own kids and other parents, I started teaching classes in my areas of expertise for homeschool students.
For more information about Farm School and why I offer the classes I do, see the About page.
Monarch caterpillar in our native plants habitat
Red-headed parrots eating pecans
Mallard ducks foraging for food below pecan tree
Resident but elusive barn out made an appearance for the first day of Farm School
Artichokes
Grevillea in pollinator garden
CA Bumblebee dusted in peanut senna pollen
Red-eared slider turtle that wandered into the neighborhood
Farm School's miniature Dexter cattle for milk and meat