Scheduling for Current Freshmen It’s hard to believe it but we are ready to start scheduling for next year. Making Informed Choices for Sophomore Year!!

Your Sophomore Year! Its time to start selecting your courses for your sophomore year! Think of today as a preliminary, practice run at selecting your classes. The courses you select today are not final so don’t get stressed! Counselors will start meeting individually with students next week to discuss their choices and make adjustments as needed. Today we will review your course options in each subject. Today’s information will give you a broad overview. Your subject teachers will be able to provide much more in-depth information. Please take their recommendations seriously! They are the experts! Today we will review the courses choices you have in each subject for next year. I am going to ask you to make choices on your worksheet as we go along. However, understand that today’s worksheet is for practice only. The goal for today is to prepare you for when you meet with your counselor next week. I also want to stress that I am only going to talk very briefly about the courses for next year. Your current teachers will provide you with much more in-depth information about the courses available to you in their specific subject areas.

Sophomore English classes English 10 Honors English 10 Academic You will have two choices in English: Honors or Academic.

English 10 Honors This class may be recommended for students currently performing well in English 9 Honors, and love to read and write! This is a rapidly paced course with additional depth. Honors English 10 can be a great choice for students who are performing well in English 9 Honors and really enjoy reading and writing. Like other honors-level courses, this class moves at a pretty fast pace and has high expectations.

English 10 Academic In Loudoun County Public Schools, the “academic level” is considered “college-prep” and is a great choice for many students, especially if you are taking honors or AP in other subjects! Often recommended for students currently in English 9 Academic. Academic English 10 is a great choice too. It is important to note, that in Loudoun County, academic classes are rigorous and considered “college-prep” courses. Even if a student is ready for an honors course, it is recommended they take into consideration their overall course load and after-school activities. Please select an English course on your worksheet now.

Health & Physical Education 10 All Sophomores will take HPE10 All sophomores will receive classroom Drivers Education as part of the HPE10 curriculum All 10th grade students will take health & physical education. As a HPE10 student, you will automatically be enrolled in classroom drivers education as well. Please select HPE10 at this time.

Social Studies AP World History Academic World History/Geography 2 Your choices for social studies are Advanced Placement World History, and Academic World 2.

AP World History Advanced Placement classes are of the same rigor as a first-year college course! This may be a good class for students who are ready for a challenge. This class is fast-paced and requires substantial preparation outside of the classroom. You will have the opportunity to earn college credit by taking the AP World History exam in May AP World is a very fast paced and demanding course. Students are expected to perform at the same level as a first-year college student. This is a really big step for a sophomore. AP students have the opportunity to earn college credit when they take the Advanced Placement exam in May.

Academic World History 2 In Loudoun County Public Schools, the “academic level” is considered “college-prep” and is a great choice for many students, especially if you are taking honors in other subjects! In World History 2, students expand their ability to think clearly and carefully about social and historical forces that have shaped the world Academic World 2 is a great choice too. Like other academic courses, it is important to note, that in Loudoun County, academic classes are rigorous and considered “college-prep” courses. Even if a student is ready for an honors course, it is recommended they take into consideration their overall course load and after-school activities, and in this case if you have time for the work demanded in AP World. Your current history teacher will be able to answer questions and give you insights about the 10th grade courses. Please make a selection at this time.

Math Functions Geometry Algebra 2 Algebra 2 with Trig Precalculus Math Analysis AP Calculus AB AP Calculus BC AP Statistics Stats & Discrete Math Computer Math AP Computer Science There are many math classes to choose from, especially as you progress through high school. There is a very helpful chart in the program, of studies that will help you select a math class based on the course you are in now.

Math Follow your current math progression and recommendations from your teacher It is important to note that many students who do not follow their math teacher’s recommendations often perform poorly If you have questions about this please talk to your math teacher! The Briar Woods counseling department strongly suggest that you follow the recommendation of your current math teacher. Many times, students who do not follow their teacher’s math recommendations perform poorly . Your math teacher will be able to give you much more in-depth information about the courses available next year. However please make a preliminary selection at this time.

Science classes Academic Biology or Research Biology – study of living systems including cellular organization, classification of organisms, genetics, ecosystems, etc. Chemistry – investigate the structure, properties and reactions of matter. It is recommended that you are also in Algebra 2 or higher. Like math, it is advised to take your science teacher’s recommendations very seriously! If you are currently in Earth Science, your options will be Academic Biology or Research Biology. Research biology focuses on data driven research questions and students are expected to have a basic understanding of descriptive and inferential statistics taught during research earth science. Students should have a strong mathematical foundation and work ethic to ensure success in this rigorous, fast paced course. If you are currently in Biology, you have several options including Chemistry, Research Chemistry, Conceptual Physics, AP Biology and Environmental Science. While Chemistry is the most common selection for students currently in Biology, your current science teacher will provide you with more information. Please make a preliminary science selection at this time.

Personal Finance & Economics These two semester classes are graduation requirements for all students Students can take the year-long AP Economics class as an alternative to Personal Finance & Economics All students must take personal finance and economics. These semester classes can be taken in the 10th, 11th or 12th grades. If you decide not to take these classes next year, you will have an extra space for an elective. You are also permitted to take Advanced Placement Economics in place of personal finance and economics. Your counselors will review these options with you at your scheduling conference.

World Language For many of you, one of your electives may be a World Language course. Benefits of continuing your language: Colleges view world languages as core classes. The more you take, the more they will be impressed! Students who take 4+ years are eligible for the Foreign Language Honor Society Level 4 and 5 language courses are considered honors and receive the .5 GPA “bump” Many students will take a World Language class as one of their electives. Remember that World Languages are a requirement for the Advanced Studies diploma, as well as a requirement at most 4-year colleges. Please make a World Language selection at this time, or select an elective in it’s place.

Electives!!! Select a year-long course or two semester classes Choose from an area that interests you! Refer to the elective sheet You can find descriptions of every class online in the Program of Studies Please refer to your list of electives to finish the pre-scheduling process. You should select enough electives so you have 7-periods of classes for next year.

When selecting courses… Graduation requirements Take classes that interest you! Challenge yourself but be careful not to over-extend yourself! Are you involved in sports or activities? Are you diligent with your studies? Remember that balance is the key when picking your schedule Once the school-year begins, we will not consider “level-changes down” until the first marking period interims are issued! Make sure you understand what you are committing yourself to! Remember, it’s important to take classes that truly interest you rather than sign-up for classes you think someone else wants to see. While it is very important to challenge yourself, we want you to be careful to not over-extend yourself. Talk to your parents about the overall course-load that is right for you. Next year, we will not consider level-changes until the marking period one interims are distributed, so please make sure you are committed to the courses you register for.

What’s next? Keep your worksheet and review it with your parents. Remember: today’s activity was designed to get you ready to meet with your counselor. Through the months of February & March, counselors will meet individually with every BWHS student to review their course selections, answer questions, and make adjustments if necessary At that time you will receive a copy of your course requests along with an updated transcript to review with your parents The deadline to finalize course requests is June 16, 2017. We cannot make changes after that date! As discussed, today’s activity was designed to get you ready to meet with your counselor next week. When you meet with your counselor you will be expected to select your courses for next year. Don’t stress though – you will have until June 16 to make changes! We hope you found this activity helpful. Have a great day!