Chelsea Grunenfelder

Basecamp and Traverse Director

Phone:

E-Mail: grunenfelder.director@gmail.com

Summit North Campus Olympia/Lacey, WA

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Date of Birth:

Traverse Program

Director: Chelsea Grunenfelder
(Summit North 8:30 am -12:10 pm)

The Traverse program bridges the Knowledge and Understanding stages as it prepares older elementary students, ages 9-12, for the Ascent program. Traverse tutors will lead students and their parents in learning elements of English grammar, composition, science labs, hands-on history art projects, and memory work throughout the day. Students will have the opportunity to create and give presentations throughout the year. They will also enjoy a dedicated time for group math games and activities.

Students are equipped and encouraged to include memory work at home in nine subject areas including history, math, science, Latin, English grammar, geography, scripture and hymns. Some memory work will be integrated into the core subject times each week. Following the Claritas Cycle 1 Memory Work Guide, Traverse students will keep to the same schedule as the Basecamp students.

Traverse Program Subjects

Language Arts

IEW teaches students a step-by-step process that includes note-making and outlines, writing from notes, summarizing references, formal essay models, and inventive or creative writing. Students will be expected to write a paper each week, and they will have regular opportunities to share their work in class. At least one parent is expected and required to attend the 8 IEW viewings that are shown throughout the year. These may be shown during lunch on Wednesday.

Fundamental Grammar

Students will learn the fundamentals of our language, including the parts of speech, composition rules, sentence diagramming, and parsing sentences. Homework will be suggested each week to help students practice their skills.

Science

Science in the Ancient World

Science in the Ancient World by Dr. Jay Wile is the second book in a hands-on, multilevel elementary science series that introduces scientific concepts using history as its guide. It covers the scientific advances made from about 600 BC to the early AD 1500s. Because the course covers science as it was developed, it discusses a wide range of topics including human anatomy, medicine, heliocentrism, geocentrism, sound, music, magnets, how steam is used to generate power, the motion of objects through a medium, combustion, levers, pulleys, plant growth, plant anatomy and much more. Students learn not only the science that was being discovered at the time, but also the beliefs of those who were discovering it. As a result, students can see how a person’s worldview affects his or her scientific conclusions.

The textbook is built around hands-on activities and experiments, and includes three levels of review questions so that you may choose the depth of your family’s exploration. We will complete most of the activities and experiments during our meeting time, and, for a deeper learning experience, parents are encouraged to read the book at home. A scope and sequence for lesson topics and in-class labs will be made available. There will not be any homework assignments from class.

Hands-On History and Art

This year, our history class will focus on Ancient History. We will follow The Story of the World Volume 1: Ancient Times curriculum and incorporate hands-on projects including crafting, model building, drawing, and painting. We will spotlight famous artists from the Ancient times, taking some time to observe their work. At the end of the year, students will participate in a living history museum, which includes a presentation of a historical figure they have studied and written about.