New classes are being offered to CHS students in the fall of 2013. These new classes include History of Popular Music, Forensics, Film and Literature, and Elementary Statistics.

History of Popular Music is a recent class that began in the 2012-2013 school year.  Mrs. Bolton, Chorus Director, will be teaching this course. In History of Popular Music, students will study various genres that create popular music. This course looks back at the history of music, analyzes the trends, and reviews previous political and social events that influenced those trends. Students will study the influence of past music trends, become more aware of the fundamentals of music and the instruments that are used today. History of Popular Music is offered in R and S track.

Andy Kuchen, a CHS senior who is currently in a History of Popular Music class, is a fan of music. “I hope to discover music and how it all started. I want to learn how older music can be compared to music from today.” Kuchen described the experience: “a small class but a nice learning environment.”

Forensics is a new course that allows students collect, identify and analyze crime scene evidence. This full year course emphasizes methods that link a suspect or victim to a crime scene. Finger printing, handwriting analysis, ballistics, blood typing, hair sample collection, and fiber examination are just some of the many activities students will learn in this class.  The prerequisites for this class are biology, chemistry, and anatomy. Ms. Greffer, science teacher and Ecology Club Advisor, will be teaching this course.  Forensics involves all areas of science and places emphasis upon application of math skills,  critical thinking and reasoning. Students learn through case studies, projects, and experiments.

At Colonia High School, several new classes are at maximum capacity. Film and Literature is one of the new classes that are attracting CHS students. The prerequisites for this class are English 9 and 10. Mr. Hutchinson, English teacher and former Assistant Producer, is the instructor for this new class.  In this course, students read well known novels and then study the film; students will study aspects of film, the nature of movies themselves, and American culture. Students also study significant changes in the movie industry and the recent influx of films based on literary texts. Film and Literature will engage students in film technology. A parent signature is required to enroll in this course.

 Elementary Statistics is also a new class that has been offered at CHS that combines statistical data with technology. This course is designed to give students a step by step approach to problem solving for students who have taken Algebra 1 and Geometry. Elementary Statistics will explain concepts intuitively and teach problem solving through examples. This course places more emphasis on conceptual understanding and understanding results. Mr. Chandler, math teacher, will be teaching this class.  Students will be expected to use computing technologies like Excel, Fathom Software and the TI-83/84 Graphing calculators. This course will challenge students to use technology for modeling data, statistics, and probability. This course will be offered in R and S track.

At this point, several of these new classes were filled up 100 percent. Mrs. Marretta, Guidance Counselor, was optimistic about these new classes and how it will benefit students. She stated, “It’s always good to have more options for students to make them well rounded.”