sophomore parent night why this is this the year it all comes together!
TRANSCRIPT
SOPHOMORE PARENT NIGHT
Why this is this the year it all comes together!
VENI, VIDI, VICI
The sophomore motto really should be: I came, I
saw, I conquered.
Having experienced a year of growing pains as
Freshmen they know how hard high school can be
and this is their year to conquer those difficult
classes, earn their credits, raise grades and get back
on track if they aren’t exactly where they need to be.
WHAT ARE MY KIDS REALLY DOING THIS YEAR?
We’ve had several changes including moving to one platform for
our online classroom, all teachers are migrating to Canvas. Your
kids can login and find all of their assignments in one place.
They are also finishing up fulfilling requirements such as World
History, Health, and PE.
Some may be repeating freshman classes due to failures from
last year. If this is the case, it is likely I’ve already contacted if
you, if not please reach out to me so we can set up a meeting.
WHAT SHOULD THEY BE DOING?
Sophomore year often feels like being put on hold. You can’t
attend Walker Career Center, Cadet teach or in most cases get a
job.
So what would be a worthwhile use of a sophomore’s time
outside of school?
Community Service!
volunteermatch.org is one tool you can use to find opportunities
in Greenfield and Indianapolis, be sure to sort by distance.
WHY COMMUNITY SERVICE
In the world we live in today community service is a
requirement for most scholarships. Some are solely dependent
upon community service or most heavily weighted like the Lilly
Scholarship. The sophomore year is the ideal time to begin
getting heavily involved in community service. Honor
organizations such as National Honor Society also require
community service. We also know that those involved in any
type of activity are more likely to achieve higher grades in
school.
PREPARING FOR THE SAT/ACT
Take the SAT prep course offered here in the spring
Go to a used bookstore and purchase a study guide
Download apps for SAT prep: SAT UP, play2prep, SAT
Vobab, IntelliVocab (lite version)
Make sure your student signs up to take the SAT/ACT
twice during their junior year. Mark this down now, our
junior parent meeting will happen after your student should
have signed up!
DRIVER’S EDUCATION
Driver’s Education is not offered directly through
the school but is offered through community
education, our contact is Mr. Collier. His email is
Speaking of driving – our drop off lane in the
morning is located along side the building closest to
the pool. Dropping your kids off there will ensure
their safety!
CREDITS &DIPLOMAS
Sophomores should start the year with 12 credits.
Students with 11 credits or less are considered “at-
risk” and will likely need summer school to make up
classes not passed during the Freshman year.
To stay on track for graduation, students must earn
22 credits by the end of the sophomore year.
TYPES OF DIPLOMAS
Core 40 – requires 45 credits, tells colleges you are
“college and career ready”, standard NPHS diploma
Core 40 with Academic Honors – 47 credits, must
add 3 years of foreign language, 2 fine arts credits, 2
AP or DC credits, earn no grade lower than a “C”
and maintain a 3.0 GPA. Take four years of math, and
take advanced English courses. Any student
working toward this diploma who has questions
should come see me!
CREDITS AND DIPLOMAS
Core 40 with Technical Honors – 47 credits, no
grade below a “C”, maintain a 3.0 GPA, earn a
certification from Walker Career center. Students
must meet with me this year to complete the
requirements for this diploma.
WEIGHTED CLASSES & GPA
WEIGHTED GRADES
GRADES
We use a flat GPA calculation, then add any honors
points earned from weighted classes.
A student who takes 7 classes and earns all “A”s
will earn a 4.0 if they do not take any weight
courses.
A student who takes 7 classes and earns all “A”s
and is in Honors Geometry will earn a 4.005 GPA.
DUAL CREDIT
Dual Credit classes are college level courses that are taken for high
school and college credit.
The curriculum is determined by the college but taught by our staff.
There is an additional cost for these courses.
The grade for these courses does impact the COLLEGE GPA.
Pre-requisites for these courses are determined by the college and
include GPA minimums, PSAT score minimums and accuplacer minimums.
The high school has no control of the pre-requisites for these courses.
Students should be prepared to work at a college level.
AP COURSES
Course curriculum is determined by the College
Board, courses are taught by our staff.
College credit may by given by scoring well on the
exam at the end of the course. Earning a 3,4 or 5
increases the chance the college your student
attends will choose to give credit for the course.
Colleges are not required to give credit the exam.
Each college is different.
AP COURSES
The cost of the AP Exam varies by subject, some in the
past have been paid for by the state. The cost in the past
has been $91.
If a student is pursuing the Academic Honors Diploma
and is using the AP course for to the AP/DC requirement
they must take the exam.
AP Courses are college level courses, students should be
prepared to work at a college level.
WALKER CAREER
This begins in the junior year.
They have something for everyone, including advanced
Engineering classes for those who complete the courses we
offer here.
Think beyond traditional Voc Ed!
Students who are interested in going need to earn every
credit, those who are at-risk or who need to make up
credits should plan to see me ASAP!
WHAT IF?
My student is behind on credits?• Summer school!!!! • Call me, let’s meet!• Implement homework time at home• Pick a place at home that is just theirs to do work, NOT IN
THEIR ROOM • Have them stay after school from 2:20-3 on M, T, and Thursday,
teachers are available on these days during that time specifically to help tutor your students!
• Have them log into Canvas for your daily to show them you work, then check to see it’s done
• Email teachers and ask for help• We are all in this together!
WRITE IT DOWN
Keep track of what your student is involved in:• Sports, Band, Choir, Guard• Youth Group• Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts• 4-H• Volunteer Work• Clubs• Any other organization they are involved in
This will benefit them down the road when they apply
to college and for scholarships!
WHAT’S NEXT?
Sophomore Year• Scheduling• Testing: ECA English, ISTEP English 10, ISTEP Math 10,
ISTEP Science and (retake Algebra ECA if necessary)
Junior Year• PSAT (again!)• Accuplacer (if needed)• College Days, 1 each semester (taken by Dec 1 and May 1)• SAT & ACT• Walker Career, AP Classes, DC Classes?
THANK YOU!
Tonight’s presentation is brought to you by the
letters:
N, P, H & S
Kristen Gauly
School Counselor
317-861-4417 ext. 120