AVID Journal Prompts Advancement Via Individual Determination

Journal Instructions Write you journals in the journal section of your AVID binder. You need to practice your BEST writing skills! Journals are not just “work” to do at the beginning of class, they are more than that. These journals are meant to help you reflect on your goals, academics, and critical thinking skills. You need a MINIMUM of 3-5 sentences. You need to use EXAMPLES in your answers.

8 th Grade Tuesday, August 6th 1. What do you know about AVID and what are you hoping to get out of AVID this year? What are areas you struggle in? Give examples.

8 th Grade 2. “Never put off today what you can do TOMORROW.” =) Do you procrastinate or wait until the last minute to do homework or projects? Why do you think you do it? How does procrastination make you feel? Give examples.

8 th Grade 3. Last year, what was your most difficult subject? Why was it difficult, and what are your plans to do better in that subject THIS year?

8 th Grade 4. Has AVID changed your views about going to college? What is your opinion about college in the future? Is it something you want to do? Are you scared of it? Overwhelmed by it? Excited by it? WHY? Clip of the day to make you smile:

8 th Grade 5. How were your organization skills last year? Were you good at keeping an organized binder? Why or why not? Deep down, what are your thoughts about organization? Do you think it’s important or unimportant and WHY?

8 th Grade 6. How well did you keep up with Learning Logs last year? Did it help you keep track of your grades and why or why not? WHY might it be important to always know your grades in each class?

8 th Grade 7. Were there any guest speakers that you remember from last year and WHY did they stand out to you? How do you feel about guest speakers in general? Are they helpful? Do you know of any parents or friends of parents who might want to come in and speak about their career?

8 th Grade 8. Recall at least one assignment or activity that you did in 7 th grade that caused you to “think really hard”, or in other words, caused you to think more critically on a higher level? How do you think doing this activity helped you become a higher-level thinker?

8 th Grade 9. One third of all students in high school drop out and don’t go on to college. Why do you think this is? What are the factors that may cause a student to drop out? What are you going to do in the next five years so that you graduate high school and go on to college?

8 th Grade 10. At this point in the quarter, what are your biggest challenges academically, socially, and personally? How are you going to meet these challenges and overcome them the rest of the quarter?

8 th Grade 11. Benjamin Franklin is famous for having said, “People that are good at making excuses are seldom good for anything else.” What do you think he meant by this? Do you tend to make excuses in school? How do you think this hurts you?

8 th Grade 12. Have your academic and career goals changed at all since last year? What are you doing THIS YEAR to help you reach your academic and career goals?

8 th Grade 13. Do you think you are a role model for other students, and if so, in what way? Academically, personally, morally, or socially? Describe. In what ways could you be a better role model? Why?

8 th Grade: 14. Do you play “violent” video games like Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto, Alpaca Evolution, Destiny, etc.? Do you believe violent video games makes kids less sensitive/less concerned about violence towards others? Why or why not? What emotional or social effects do you believe violent video games have on you or other people?