COVID INFO - For indoor in-person classes, students will be required to be vaccinated against covid-19 or show proof of a negative test result within the 48 hours prior to each class meeting. Masks will be required.
Please email info@rhizomedc.org with any questions. Scholarships available.
Close Reading II: Goodness | Mondays 10-11am Jan.24 - May 23 | IN-PERSON/ONLINE/HYBRID POSSIBLE | Ages 12-14
Close Reading IV: Fairness | Mondays 1130-1245 Jan.24 - May 23 | IN-PERSON/ONLINE/HYBRID POSSIBLE | Ages 15+
Story Structure | Mondays 130-3pm Jan.24 - May 23 | IN-PERSON/ONLINE/HYBRID POSSIBLE | Ages 12-15
Mixed Arts - Sculpturama | Tuesdays 420-520pm starting Feb.8 | Ages 8-12
Literature & Composition | Wednesdays 10am-noon Jan. 12 - May 11 | Ages 14-17 THIS CLASS IS FULL
Literature & Creative Writing | Thursdays 10-11:30am Feb. 3 - May 12 | Ages 12-13
Hands-on Botany Level 2 | Fridays 10-11am Mar. 11 - May 27 | Ages 8-12 / continuing Fall students / new students with botany experience | OUTDOOR CLASS
Hands-on Botany Level 1 | Fridays 11:15am-12:15pm Mar. 11 - May 27 | Ages 7-12 / continuing Fall students / new students with little experience | OUTDOOR CLASS
No classes the week of April 11-15 (Spring Break). No classes February 21 (President’s Day).
Close Reading I: Goodness | Mondays 10-11am IN-PERSON/ONLINE/HYBRID POSSIBLE | Ages 12-14 | Sliding scale: $170-$235
Provocative reading on the question of Goodness, and how to do it! Secular close reading class ranging from The Eloquent Peasant (Ancient Egypt's take on the Golden Rule), on through Sartre, Peter Singer, and Chief Tecumseh. Chekhov, Tolstoy, Audre Lorde! The semester also covers some famous ethical thought experiments, including Phillipa Foot's trolley problem. Fun, lively, but definitely challenging, for middle-high schoolers with a philosophical streak and strong reading skills.
Close Reading IV: Fairness | Mondays 1130-1245 starting Jan.24 | IN-PERSON/ONLINE/HYBRID POSSIBLE | Ages 15+ | Sliding scale: $210-315
For continuing Consumerism students, or new participants ages 15-18: close readings and philosophical exercises on the subject of Fairness. John Rawls, Mary Otto, the famous Implicit Bias Test (results confidential) and more. New feature: learning, and trying out, the anarchic methods of the Occupy Movement.
Story Structure | Mondays 1:30-3pm IN-PERSON/ONLINE/HYBRID POSSIBLE| Ages 12-15 | Sliding scale: $250-$375
For six imaginative people aged 12-15 who like to weave a yarn---
Bring your ideas, projects or ready minds to learn the secrets of a gripping plot, no matter your medium. What makes a story go?-- The inciting incident, plus character development, setting, and Point of View. What keeps us hooked?-- The midpoint transformation, plus internal and external conflict, failure, and struggle. What makes a satisfying ending?-- The climax, plus putting our plot in moral context. Polish and Communicate-- Guiding the experience through imagery, symbolism, and detail. Throughout we will talk about Conflict, the essential ingredient for every story. We will hone a critical understanding of our own and other stories, explore archetypal and experimental plot structures, and frolic in the fertile creative ground of mixed feelings.
Mixed Arts - Sculpturama | Tuesdays 420-520pm | Ages 8-12 | 6-week sessions starting Feb.8 - $80-$110 each session
Bring your ideas to life creating unique 3D forms and environments from materials such as wire, cloth, wood and air-dry clay over several weeks. Play collaborative art games with other participants that will expand your ideas about sculpture.
Literature & Composition | Wednesdays 10am-noon | Ages 14+ | $500 (sliding scale available)
In this class, we will read a variety of texts, focusing on short stories and essays (we’ll also read a novel or two). We’ll begin with close readings of short stories, practicing analytical and creative techniques to engage with form and content. In response to the literature, students will experiment with expository, narrative, and descriptive essay forms, with opportunities for creative writing as well. While considering principles of composition and rhetoric, we will be asking: What are authors doing in their literary works, and how do we engage with them? How can we most effectively express ourselves?
This class will help students develop their ability to express complex arguments and analyses, as well as sharpening their attention to details of grammar and style. We will focus on what makes writing effective and enjoyable to read, as well as how to feel confident with one's writing voice. Classes will involve short lectures, discussions, writing, and small group work. Students will be expected to read anywhere between 50-150 pages per week, depending on the material, as well as complete short weekly writing assignments and two longer papers.
Sliding scale available if needed.
Literature & Creative Writing | Thursdays 10-11:30am starting February 3 | Ages 12-13 | $280 (sliding scale available)
In this class we will read novels, short stories and poetry. Students will respond to the literature through discussion as well as creative and collaborative writing. We will discuss literary elements and figurative language, we will spend time in class writing, and we will play games. The goal of this class is to enjoy reading literature, collaborate with others to discover/uncover meaning, practice writing, and have fun.
Sliding scale available if needed.
Hands-on Botany Level 2 | Fridays 10-11am | Ages 8-12 with botany experience | Sliding scale: $130-200
Students will learn and practice plant identification skills, explore the plant groups that grow in different ecosystems, discuss the relationships between plants and humans, and learn practical uses of area plants. Each student will keep a nature journal throughout the class. For students who took last year’s Botany class and/or have some experience studying plants.
*This class meets OUTDOORS in different locations (all within a couple miles of Rhizome) from week to week including: Spring Park in Takoma Park; Carter Barron at 16th/Kennedy NW in DC; Rock Creek Park in the vicinity of Takoma; Wangari Gardens in Columbia Heights.
Hands-on Botany | Fridays 11:15am-12:15pm | Ages 7-12 with no botany experience | Sliding scale: $130-200
Students will learn and practice plant identification skills, explore the plant groups that grow in different ecosystems, discuss the relationships between plants and humans, and learn practical uses of area plants. Each student will keep a nature journal throughout the class.
*This class meets OUTDOORS in different locations (all within a couple miles of Rhizome) from week to week including: Spring Park in Takoma Park; Carter Barron at 16th/Kennedy NW in DC; Rock Creek Park in the vicinity of Takoma; Wangari Gardens in Columbia Heights.
About the instructors:
Leslie Bumstead: I am a writer and educator who has been teaching literature, composition, and creative writing in the DC area for ten years. I have taught in various settings: homeschooling cooperative, public high school, AIDS clinic, university, prison, and summer camp. My collection of poems, Cipher/Civilian, was published by Edge Books in 2005. Other works, including essays and translations, have appeared in anthologies and literary magazines. I love to collaborate with students and facilitate their own engagement with literature and writing.
Anna Josephson is a homeschooling parent in the District. She grew up in Alaska, where she received Socratic seminar education starting at age 12. She is a published author currently shopping her first novel.
Caroline MacKinnon is a parent, artist and educator who lives in Takoma Park, MD. She teaches ceramics classes to children and adults at the Takoma Park Community Center. She also holds art workshops for small groups in area schools and has previously run arts camps at Rhizome. She likes meeting people, making art and collecting things.
Holly Poole-Kavana was a budding botanist at a young age, and followed her interest to earn a BS in botany from Cornell University in 2000. She started studying herbal medicine in 2005 at the Pacific School of Herbal Medicine in Oakland, CA after her experiences with health care work led her to seek out new option for healing. She went on to apprentice with herbalist 7song at the Northeast School of Botanical Medicine, participating in medicine making, free clinic consultations, and wildcrafting in addition to classroom learning. She also completed the Sacred Plant Traditions Clinic II program in which student herbalists see clients in a free clinic under the supervision of experienced mentors. She practices herbal medicine in Washington DC. She has led countless plant walks and taught a range of plant-focused classes to all ages, including to several local homeschool groups.