Planning for the Freshman Year @ LHS December 11, 2018 Scott Gillespie, Freshman Counselor

Counselors 9th Grade Students Scott Gillespie A-F (grades 10-12) Tim Anderson G-K, Career Center, ELL (grades 10-12) Brenda Wiederholt L-O, SPED (grades 10-12) Nikki Junco P-Z, (grades 10-12) Trilaina McCallum

Counselors are available to… Help your child with personal issues Assist your child with academic decisions Guide your child’s post-secondary planning

Graduation Requirements Total Number of Credits Needed 25.5 Credits

Graduation Requirements ENGLISH LANG. ARTS 4 credits Social Studies 3 credits ELA 9 ELA 9, Advanced ELA 9, or Gifted ELA 9 ELA 10 ELA 10, Advanced ELA 10, or Gifted ELA 10 ELA Electives Two (2) Credits Needed American History Honors Am. History World History AP World History American Government and Economics AP American Government

Graduation Requirements Science 3 credits MATH 3 credits Biology I Honors Biology I Theoretical Chemistry Honors Theo Chem. Students may select their remaining Science course among a list of options. Sequence of Courses Algebra I Geometry Algebra II Advanced Math Courses College Algebra Pre-Calculus (followed by Calculus) Prob & Stats/Trig AP Statistics

Graduation Requirements PE 1 credit HEALTH 0.50 credit FINE ART 1 credit PERSONAL FINANCE 0.50 credit PRACTICAL ART 0.50 credit ELECTIVES 9 credits

Recommended College Preparatory Curriculum English Language Arts 4 credits Math Science 3 credits Social Studies Foreign Language 2 credits

Selecting High School Courses The LPS Coursebook is the online database that houses all of the courses currently available to LHS students. Can search for courses based on: Grade Level Department Credit Type https://web.liberty.k12.mo.us/coursebook/

Selecting High School Courses Since the goal of high school is to prepare students for post-secondary success, it is our recommendation that students embrace a future-focused mindset when selecting their high school coursework. Things to consider: Career Goals College Admissions Requirements Eligibility for Extracurricular Opportunities Prerequisites for Future Coursework

Liberty Pathways To help students plan & prepare for their future career goals, LPS has created a resource for that provides students with valuable information about career opportunities, high school course planning, college programming options, and employment outlook.

Challenge & Rigor at LHS At LHS, we strongly encourage ALL students to challenge themselves academically to the greatest extent possible. Honors/Advanced Advanced Placement (AP) Dual Credit In general, advanced courses involve more personal initiative, critical-thinking, and require higher-level reading & writing skills. Not necessarily ”more work”

Benefits of Honors/Advanced Courses Academic challenge College preparation Improved ACT/SAT scores Stronger academic resume for college admission and scholarship consideration Possibility of earning college credit while in high school

A+ Program State-funded program allowing qualified students to earn two years of paid tuition at any public community college or technical school in Missouri Qualifications 2.5 GPA or higher upon graduation 95% attendance rate over 4 years Score ‘Proficient’ or ‘Advanced' on Algebra 1 EOC exam or score above 17 on Math section of ACT Good citizenship record 50 hours of unpaid tutoring within the district Applications available on LHS website

MSHSAA Missouri State High School Activities Association MSHSAA-sanctioned activities at LHS include: In order to be eligible, students must: Athletics, Cheer, Sapphires Pass at least 6 out of 7 credit-bearing courses in the semester prior to that activity. Band, Choir, Orchestra Debate/Forensics Robotics Maintain enrollment in at least 6 credit-bearing courses during the semester that activity takes place. More…

LHS Freshman Course Selection Process December 3-7: Mr. Gillespie visits both middle schools to present enrollment information to students. ____________________________________________ December 20: Enrollment forms DUE to middle school social studies teachers January 10-11; 17-18: Mr. Gillespie returns to both middle schools to review completed enrollment forms and assist students with entering course requests into PowerSchool.

LHS Freshman Course Selection Process Once all course requests have been entered into PowerSchool, LHS Counselors will mail home a confirmation of each student’s selections. This is the ONLY time students will be able to make changes to their course selections prior to schedules being created Important to review courses carefully and submit any changes by the date outlined on the letter. Final schedules are typically mailed home in May.

Course Enrollment Form Details Discuss course choices with your child and help them complete the Course Enrollment Form A teacher signature is required for all honors/advanced courses, math courses, and upper-lever foreign languages Alternates must be selected for elective classes Only one PE class is allowed per semester Study Halls are NOT offered at LHS.

How Can I Help Prepare My Child for success in High School? Help your child show up at school with a good attitude and ready to learn. Help organize time and materials. Take an active interest and get involved. Hold your child accountable to their decisions and encourage them to take responsibility for their actions. This becomes increasingly more important as students grow older and get closer to college and the world of work.

LHS will host a Freshman Transition Day on Tuesday, August 13th. More information on the specifics of this event will come out closer to the start of next school year.

Thank you For Coming!!!!