First, we look forward to celebrating as a school tonight at our Greek Myths History Day event! Our kids are ready to showcase these timeless stories for us and we are excited to spend an evening together as a community, connecting over our shared learning this trimester. See you there, SLOCA families!
On today’s blog, we bring you another post in our Day in the Life series… of a high school student! And as we often do when sharing about high school life, this account covers two days, not just one. So if you’re curious about our high school, the workload, how students manage their time, what else they do besides school, etc., read on to hear about a typical home day AND school day in the life of SLOCA high school junior, Amelia Walz. Amelia has three younger siblings at SLOCA as well, and this is her second year at SLO Classical Academy high school:
Home Day
8 – 9 am
I wake up without an alarm, get dressed, make my bed, water my plants, clean up my room a little bit, and make some tea. I hate starting off my homeschool day with a messy room and unmade bed. It’s good to have one small accomplishment first thing in the morning.
9 – 10:30 am
I start by making a list of all the things I want to get done that day. I always do my math homework at study period so I start my home day off with Spanish. Today we have some workbook pages and we are supposed to look up a Spanish song. I take a break in the middle to have some pancakes and apples made by my brother. I get a little sidetracked texting a friend back and forth about Quidditch.
10:30 am – 12 pm
Next, I start anatomy and physiology. We have workbook reading and related notes to complete. I get sidetracked again, thinking about how Aristotle’s Law of Poetics applies to the Silence of the Lambs.
12 – 1 pm
History homework is to read a handout on Aristotle’s Poetics and annotate it which I absolutely love. It's so relevant to today's entertainment industry and I just can’t stop thinking of how it applies to different movies and characters.
1 – 2:40 pm
I read the assigned pages of A Presocratic Reader for English. I decide to read it outside, because the weather is unusually and pleasantly warm. When I’m done reading I lay outside and enjoy the sun, sky, my own thought and my dog, Leia, who decided to join me.
2:40 – 3:15 pm
I finally heat up some leftover lasagna for a very late lunch.
3:15 – 6:15 pm
We leave to go to everyone’s afternoon activities. I help teach the Montessori-based religious education for 3 – 6-year-olds at my church. On the way home, we pick up my sister up from horseback riding and my brother from archery practice.
6:15 – 7:50 pm
I chat with my mom for a little bit and have some dinner.
7:50 – 8:40 pm
I do some drawing in a coloring book and listen to a Radiolab podcast called Smarty Plants.
8:40 – 9:15 pm
I get lost on my phone for awhile.
9:15 – 9:30 pm
I finish getting ready for bed.
9:30 – 10:15 pm
My mom and brother have been listening to of A Wrinkle in Time on audiobook in the car and it piqued my interest (especially with the upcoming movie). So I read a couple chapters of that and then go to bed.
School Day
6:40 – 7:05 am
My mom opens my blinds and lets the sun wake me up. I roll out of bed at the last possible moment, because I am not a morning person, and quickly get ready. My amazing mother has packed my lunch for me so I grab that and my water bottle on the way out.
7:30 – 8:25 am
I have Trigonometry where we are working on trigonometric forms of a complex number.
8:30 – 9:20 am
I have Spanish 2 where we are talking about poems that we pick out to memorize in Spanish. I have selected Oda al Tomate by Pablo Neruda.
9:35 – 10:45 am
I have a study period, so my friends and I work on Trigonometry homework together. When we’re done, we just hang out.
10:50 am – 12:00 pm
During English, we discuss Socrates Presocratic Reader and all the mind-boggling philosophers that continue to impress with their existential questions.
12:00- 1:00 pm
Lunch!
1:00 – 2:10 pm
During Anatomy and Physiology, we begin to learn about the anatomy of the eye and ear. Instead of just taking notes on notebook paper, Mrs. Bartel has us label and color a fold-out diagram.
2:20 – 3:30 pm
During History, we practice our play Antigone for history day. I’m in the chorus and we practice our synchronized dance moves. Everyone is getting so into it even if they thought they disliked acted. Mrs. Shotwell makes sure we are very dramatic since it is a Greek tragedy.
3:30 – 4:30 pm
We drive home from school, stopping to pick up my sister again from horseback riding.
4:30 – 5:00 pm
I talk with my mom and sister.
5:00 – 5:50 pm
I have some leftover pizza and breadsticks that we made and the read a couple chapters of In Cold Blood which was so kindly recommended to my mother and me by our school librarian, Emily.
5:50 – 6:45 pm
We all leave to go to Lilly’s honors band concert. Because she has to be there early, we hang out in the car while I study Anatomy for tomorrow’s test.
7:00 – 9:00 pm
The concert is amazing and Lilly does so well. They even played a song from Lord of the Rings. (so cool!)
9:20 – 11:00 pm
Once we get home I get ready for bed, go on my phone for awhile, and then (although not the best book to read before bed) I read more of In Cold Blood while I drink some tea.
These school days were fairly typical. I love the flexibility and variety of SLOCA High School (SLOCAHS). Sometimes I am able to spend three hours working on an art or sewing project. SLOCAHS teaches me not only to value the time I spend doing work at home, which I almost always sincerely enjoy, but also to value every moment outside of my school life. I love that I can contribute to what my three younger siblings are studying (like how to pronounce Menelaus or Ajax). Most high schools teach you what to think. They give you lists and study guides so you can pass a test by repeating back information and facts. But SLOCAHS teaches you HOW to think for yourself. SLOCAHS isn’t your average high school but I wouldn’t trade it because this unique experience is so much more fulfilling.
Thank you, Amelia! It's so great to read about what goes on in and out of class for our high school students. We can tell that you are flourishing at SLOCA high school while pursuing outside interests and keeping friends and family close, too. We appreciate you taking the time to let us get a glimpse of high school life!
