Opportunities for academic growth and development are what freshman year is all about. You will have choices to make and those choices will only grow as you broaden your base of knowledge and deepen your interest in particular subjects. With the guidance of your faculty advisor, you’ll think ahead and sketch out a four-year plan.
Ninth graders and other first-year students have certain requirements laid out for them. You’ll take placement tests in math and language (French, Latin, or Spanish) that will help determine which classes you can jump into. All students take English all four years, so you will take English 1. You will probably take Biology. You may take a geometry class or Algebra I. Otherwise, you will choose classes in history, world languages, the arts, and athletics.
The level of challenge you set for yourself is up to you. (For example, if you take Global Civilizations as your freshman year history course, you may be able to take AP World History as a sophomore.) You can set yourself on a path to take math senior year that is so advanced it’s beyond AP Calculus (i.e., linear algebra and multivariable calculus). No matter how difficult a path you choose, you will have openings later on to explore the electives that Madeira teachers create around their scholarly passions.
When you enter Madeira as a freshman, you must earn 12 trimesters of activity credit – at least 8 of which must be athletic/activity credits – by the time you graduate. This is where your options explode.
Starred (*) items on the following list can be taken for academic or activity credit.