Marymount School

INTEGRATED HUMANITIES IX
The core of the Class IX program is the Integrated Humanities Curriculum, in which students explore interdisciplinary themes, develop independent research, critical thinking, reading, and writing skills, and gain appreciation for diverse cultures through the study of ancient civilizations and their cultural legacies. The program provides a rich and multifaceted academic experience through frequent visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and field trips to other cultural institutions in New York City. Students are continually encouraged to think creatively as they analyze and synthesize the historical, literary, religious, and artistic traditions of the world’s cultures.

Teachers of five disciplines–history, English, art history, religious studies, and visual arts-work together, with a coordinator, to integrate subject matter and thematic content among the disciplines. Interdisciplinary projects such as the Virtual Museum and the World Civilization Festival give the students a chance to apply their knowledge in creative presentations.

HUMANITIES IX
This course offers an interdisciplinary introduction to the civilizations of the ancient world, both East and West. Team-taught by instructors from history, English, and art history, the course encourages students to view the ancient world from multiple points of view and to draw connections among disciplines. The first semester begins with the civilizations of the Greece and Rome. The second semester is devoted to Asia, focusing on Islam, India, and China. Weekly visits to the galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Art to study original works of art from each culture are integral to the course. Humanities IX develops and reinforces skills in critical thinking, reading, writing, and research through a structured series of exercises and assignments, both interdisciplinary and disciplinary-specific.

Students also pursue creative opportunities, including an independent staged performance project presented at the day-long World Civilization Festival, travel narratives, and a Curator’s Showcase collaboration. Key texts explored in the course include Homer’s Odyssey, Sophocles’ Antigone, poetry of Ovid and Vergil, Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, The Arabian Nights, devotional Sufi poetry, the Ramayana, the Daode Jing, and lyric poetry from China.

Integrated Humanities Topics and Collaborations, a sample