Sports and Society, Guitar Class Among New Offerings Next Year

Jesse+Owens%2C+center%2C+salutes+the+American+flag+during+a+medal+ceremony+at+the+1936+Summer+Olympics+in+Berlin%2C+Germany%2C+alongside+a+German+competitor+delivering+a+Nazi+salute.+Topics+such+as+civil+rights%2C+politics%2C+and+nationalism+will+be+covered+in+the+new+Sports+and+Society+class%2C+which+begins+in+the+fall.

German Federal Archives

Jesse Owens, center, salutes the American flag during a medal ceremony at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, alongside a German competitor delivering a Nazi salute. Topics such as civil rights, politics, and nationalism will be covered in the new Sports and Society class, which begins in the fall.

Izzy Rivera, Reporter

WOODBURY — Sports and Society, the newest class at Nonnewaug for the 2022-23 school year, will be taught by social studies teacher Kyle Brennan.

The class is a half-year course in which students will learn the ways in how sports reflect trends in society. Sports are an important part of American culture, and sports are a part of many people’s identities. 

According to the course description, it will be a debate-driven class that involves identifying interests, creating questions, researching, engaging in discussions and reflecting on classmates’ opinions. Topics in this class will include racial and gender issues, civil rights, history, and even economics, politics, and law.

“I think it’s always good to try to offer classes that include students interests and also give opportunities for strong academic possibilities,” Brennan said.

Why does this class interest Brennan?

“I was a sports studies minor at Quinnipiac University, I worked in sports for basically my whole life, and to me there’s a lot that’s reflected in society when you look at sports,” said Brennan.

The second new class that will be introduced at Nonnewaug is Guitar Class. It will be a college prep course and will be taught by one of the two music teachers at Nonnewaug. It’s a half-credit humanities class, and anyone from grades 9-12 can take this class no matter any previous experience with guitars.

Students will learn basic guitar techniques and be able to learn how to read music in group settings, according to the course description. There will be a variety of guitar literature written for students’ knowledge, and students will study music theory, lead sheet interpretation, and music terminology.

 

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