SA MOD SCHEDULE
academics
The heart of a Sonoma Academy education is a core body of college preparatory knowledge and skills taught by passionate, engaged teachers who are experts in their fields.
1-Mod Electives
One of the most exciting opportunities with the new 7-mod system is the way in which it will allow students to pursue their interests in deeply meaningful ways. To support this, we have developed a new curricular program that enhances and takes the place of our current Exploratory program. This new model goes far beyond what was possible with our Exploratory program. Courses are also generally all UC-approved and students can now highlight them on their transcripts and applications to colleges and universities in new ways.
These courses will provide 1 credit in the new mod system of credits and will be able to meet the A-G requirements and will be included on student college transcripts. At the same time, these courses will meet key mission objectives and provide incredible opportunities for unique pathways of learning, teacher innovation and creativity, and demonstration of passions, interests, disciplinary specialization, and much more.
Our students will have approximately 100 different 1-mod electives to choose from each year, with many spots in their schedule to fill with these courses as they create a completely individualized course of study. These courses will deepen and expand curricular choices, allowing students to pursue many educational pathways while never detracting from their core college preparatory course requirements.
They will try new things, explore ideas, deepen their passions, and much more. We are incredibly excited about the nearly limitless potential for individual student learning.
Take a look at these sample schedules for inspiration and examples of what next year’s student schedules might look like.
In the new 7-mod system we will allow and ask our students to go far beyond college prep, exceeding the standard academic core requirements and developing a truly individualized curriculum that reflects their unique interests and goals.
Our graduation requirements meet and exceed the University of California system’s A-G requirements as well as the requirements for application to four-year colleges and universities nationally and internationally. In our new system, in addition to fulfilling these requirements, our students will create their own pathways of learning, driven by their curiosity, passions, and sense of adventure.
Seminar & Advanced Studies (AS) Courses
We have always offered as deep and broad of a course seminar program as possible within the confines of our daily and annual schedule. We will continue to offer a robust selection of 3-mod seminar courses, as well as expanding our Advanced Studies curriculum as part of our move to this more dynamic schedule. Our Advanced Studies (AS) program meets and exceeds the standards of rigor, depth, and challenge that many parents associate with the Advanced Placement (AP) program. AS courses are offered in all disciplines, allowing our students to deeply challenge themselves and to demonstrate commitment and academic rigor. Complete course offerings and descriptions are available in our Course Catalog.
GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
Below we have included the graduation requirements as they are in our semester system and what they are next school year in the 7-mod system.
NOTE: In the 7-mod system, students are required to take a minimum of 3 classes per mod, and are allowed a maximum of 4 free periods in a school year. Students must be enrolled in a minimum of 24 credits each year.
We have adapted our graduation requirements to reflect the changes in the 7-mod schedule. In this new system, 1 mod of a course equals 1 credit. 3 mods equals 3 credits and is the equivalent of a semester-long course in our current schedule, which is equivalent to a 1 year credit in a traditional high school curriculum.
