2026 Course List

What makes California unique?This no-pressure, creative history class, middle school students will explore the stories, people, and ideas that shaped the Golden State—from early settlers and the Gold Rush to pop culture and innovation. Students will learn through discussion, hands-on activities, and a mix of group and individual projects. Creative expression is encouraged as students design, build, write, and collaborate while connecting California’s past to its present. California Dreaming is perfect for curious students who want to explore history in an engaging, imaginative, and relaxed environment.

Did you know that bread is a foam? Or that butter is inside-out whipped cream!? This course provides students with the hands-on opportunity to explore the relationship of food from preparation and cooking to consumption, through both a biochemical and historical lens in order to better understand our modern food system. Through the strengths of blending a traditional lab course with hands-on experiential learning in food sciences, students will understand the scientific basis of various recipes and appreciate the art of integrating science into cooking and dining.

Important Note: This course is specifically designed for omnivores. However, the science of cooking welcomes experimentation and students will be allowed to substitute some of the ingredients for food preparations or ask friends to assist with the tasting of your assignments. Alternatively, you may skip that specific assignment provided that you have fulfilled all other qualifying requirements to pass the course. Please speak with the instructor if you have any concerns about how your food allergies may potentially affect participation in this course.

For those interested in mastering the art of negotiation, thinking strategically, and developing a greater grasp of geography, this class is for you. With rising tension throughout Europe at the turn of the century due to imperialism, nationalism and the thirst for supremacy on the continent, conflicts emerged among the seven European powers. Diplomacy, a game of alliances and promises kept and broken, attempts to recreate the diplomatic type-roping to solve, perhaps, the impending crisis through the art of negotiations. As one of the major powers - England, Germany, Russia, Turkey, Italy, France and Austria-Hungary - a skilled diplomat will realize when help is needed from others and when not to trust his/her “so called” allies. Remember, you are a diplomat first, a commander second. To fortify skills as a negotiator, students will study several texts that define artful negotiations and provide background information regarding previous European conflicts. Let the games begin.

Students will explore guitar, bass guitar, drums, piano, and voice both individually as well as in a rock band setting playing a variety of popular music styles. Iconic and standard notation, composing and improvising, and songwriting will all be introduced. No previous experience is required!

CSI’s Leadership and Design Thinking class draws upon the curriculum from Cate School’s leadership program and the teachings of Stanford University’s d.school. Through the model of service-leadership, students explore their own values and styles of being a leader, all while developing greater empathy for others. Through the creation of greater group and self awareness, students engage in leadership as a deliberate practice. With these tools, students also start to explore the world of design thinking, a process which draws on methods from engineering and design, and combines them with ideas from the arts, tools from the social sciences, and insights from the business world to solve challenges and problems in an empathetic and creative way.

In this week of wellness we will explore a variety of practices that will help to ground and relax you. By learning about the brain and the science behind mindfulness, you will learn how to create space between your reactions and your responses when you become stressed. We will focus on self-care and ways to regulate the nervous system through gentle stretching, yoga, mindful meditation, time in nature, and journaling. These practices will help enhance your brain fitness and overall well-being. Wear comfy clothes so you can move freely.

Students will participate in a creative writing workshop with a special focus on the visual arts. Rather than using written prompts, we will generate content from selected imagery, designed to evoke students to tap into their visual imagination. Each day of the workshop will focus on one particular aspect of the writing process- brainstorming, setting, plot structure, crafting dialogue, and revision- as students will hone and polish their short story over the course of the week, working from the germ of an idea to a finished piece.

Think you don’t like poetry? Think again. In this fast-paced creative workshop, we strip away the boring rules and focus on the power of raw expression. Designed for both total beginners and budding writers, Poetry Bootcamp treats language like a muscle that needs to be exercised. Through a series of creative drills, sensory challenges, and performance games, students will discover that poetry is everywhere—from the lyrics in their headphones to the rhythm of a conversation. 

Learn what all those knobs do! This class is an introduction to recording in a professional studio. Students will learn how to record with industry standard recording equipment such as: SSL in-line analog console, Pro Tools, outboard gear, cue mixing system, TT patch bay, and more. Topics that will be covered include: microphone techniques, mixing tips, signal flow, and processing. Students will set up, record, and mix both vocals and instruments.  Throughout this class, you will gain insight and experience into how hit records are made! This is a technical class but open to beginners excited to dive in! You do not need to be a musician, but you must love creating music!

There is so much beauty in the world, a lot of it underpinned by circles, spirals, and lines.  In this class we will create artwork and explore patterns.  We’ll use math tools, from rulers to Desmos graphing technology, just to be creative (like Piet Mondrian, for example!).  This class would suit all students, regardless of their proficiency in the subject, and would be especially welcoming to anyone who finds math intimidating or anxiety producing.  Math can simply be pleasing and fun.

Step outside and learn to see the world like a writer. In this immersive course, students will explore the art of nature writing through observation, sketching, and reflective journaling. We’ll venture outdoors to notice birds, plants, weather, and small hidden details, learning how to slow down and capture what we see with words and images. Students will experiment with sensory writing, short poems, sketches, and mini-essays inspired by the natural world. Along the way, we’ll read short mentor texts by writers who turn walks into wonder. By the end of the course, each student will leave with a personalized field journal—a record of their curiosity, creativity, and connection to place.

Let’s make some zines together! A zine (pronounced ZEEN) is a small booklet used for a variety of types of expression–personal, educational, political, artistic, etc. You don’t need to be a great artist to make zines–some are text-based, some collage, some hand drawn, many a mix of all of these things. You just need to have something to say or share! We’ll learn a bit about zine history and look at some existing zines for inspiration, but most of our time will be spent making and sharing our own zines.