Class XI Co-Curricular Courses

ADVANCED SCIENCE RESEARCH SEMINAR: three-year sequence that includes reading and discussion of peer-reviewed scientific articles with authors who visit Brearley from various New York City research institutions; laboratory experiments that may include RNA interference, Polymerase Chain Reaction and DNA barcoding. The program accepts five to seven students from Class IX at the end of each year to compose a group of 15 to 21 students. Not for credit.

ATHLETICS: the focus of the Upper School sports program shifts to competitive play. One team per season has a no-cut policy and is open to all students who wish to participate. Spots on the other teams are competitive. Coaches strive to instill the values of ethics, teamwork and sportsmanship in their athletes as they simultaneously teach them how to balance their academic needs with their physical, social and emotional growth. 

POETRY WORKSHOP: a yearlong focus on student work and a rigorous apprenticeship to the art of poetry writing. Students learn to write about what they know (e.g., family, grief, place) as a metaphor for the broader human experience. Over the course of the year, they develop their skills in using imagery, figurative language, lineation, repetition, meter, rhyme and syntax. In addition to completing writing assignments, students are expected to read modern poetry and other relevant literature to deepen their understanding of their practice. Not for credit.

JUNIOR SEMINAR (required of all students in Class XI): a yearlong class that encompasses health education, life skills, college advising and the transition to college .

AN IMMERSIVE SUMMER INTERACTING WITH TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING (AI/SITE): in collaboration with New York University Tandon School of Engineering, a rigorous interdisciplinary introduction to essential areas of college-level STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). The program runs for six weeks in the summer (open also to X–XI).