Peak to Peak Counseling News and Announcements

REMINDER – 2017-2018 HIGH SCHOOL COURSE SELECTION INSTRUCTIONS

To Current 8^th-11^th Graders ​and Families​,

​As you know, course registration for the next school year is underway and teachers have been in discussions with students whom they teach and recommending them for 17-18 academic core courses. This year, all students will be choosing their student-selected courses in classroom lessons taught by counselors.

Please plan to talk with your student(s) this week to ensure that they already have or are prepared to select their additional courses in the next week. Attached, you will find the High School list of courses. Again, students should not attempt to select these courses on their own, as they will be selecting them with counselors via a lesson to ensure accuracy.

Student-selected Course Schedule:

Current 8^th grade: March 8^th-10^th

9^th grade: March 6^th

10^th grade: March 13^th

11^th grade: March 7th

Student-selected course selection applies ONLY to 2017-2018 high school students (not current 6^th and 7^th grade students). 

As a reminder, all HS students need the following courses to graduate and each student is responsible for making sure they meet these requirements:

1 semester health class (5 credits-to be taken in 10^th grade)

1 semester tech class (or digital art) (5 credits)
2 semesters PE, one of which needs to be an actual PE class (class of 2018 is exempted from this requirement), normally taken in 9^th grade (10 credits)

4 semesters of visual and performing arts (20 credits)

100 hours community service

A few notes: Students may choose to take student aide for community service up to 50 hours (2 semesters); however, we strongly discourage 9^th graders from electing student aide. We would much rather they complete an art course and a PE course. The theater courses offered in the high school no longer have prerequisites.

While selecting their courses, students will verify that their core courses are correct and write their courses down so that they can plan for Summer Reading and summer assignments.

If needed, students may log back into IC at home with their parents/guardians to confirm their selected courses:
1. Log in to IC under student (use password manager on the BVSD homepage if you do not know your log in)
2. Click the Course Registration option from the navigation pane on the left of the screen. When students/parents log in to IC, they will be able to see the core classes that have already been selected for them.
3. Any required courses that have been established and already inputted by teachers will be listed in the Required Courses list. Students cannot change any required courses listed for them.
4. Students can only request Elective Courses or Alternate Courses.
5. Click the Course Search link. A search screen will appear.
6. Courses can be searched by the course name or by the course number. Enter the Course Name (i.e., Physical Education)
7. Click the Go button. Matching course names will appear to the right.
8. Click on any course listed to view the course description.
9. To request this course as part of the schedule for next year, click the Request as Elective button (these are your top choices for electives). Alternates choices should also be requested and will be placed on the schedule if primary choices are full. Students should elect 4 top choices and 4 alternate choices.
10. When finished requesting courses, click the Print Request Summary option to print a report of the courses that were requested. Remember, there is no guarantee you will get your top choices or that there will be any space available for you to change your mind at a later date. We will do our best to meet your top requests. If you see a problem, or have a concern about a core academic class, please email your assigned counselor.

Students will be able to see their final schedules mid-August.

High School Counselor Assignments:

Kimberly Gannett Last Names A-F Kimberly.gannett@bvsd.org

Tracy Thompson Last Names G- J Tracy.Thompson@bvsd.org

Linda Bostic Last Names K-P Linda.bostic@bvsd.org

Mary Campbell Last Names Q-Z Mary.campbell@bvsd.org

___________________________________________________________________________________

REMINDER – 2017-2018 MIDDLE SCHOOL COURSE SELECTION INSTRUCTIONS

Dear Middle School Students and Guardians (current 6^th and 7^th grade only),

The time has come to sign up for next year’s course electives! Paper course selection forms will be distributed to students on Monday, March 6th in History classes. Middle school students do not register for classes through Infinite Campus; they complete paper registration forms. These forms must be returned to either your student’s History teacher or Counselor by Friday, March 10th at 3:05pm.

This year’s course selection forms will be two sided, with a computerized printout of your student’s recommended core classes on one side and a place to indicate elective choices on the other side. The core classes will show as "required courses," and it should be noted they are recommended placements, not guaranteed placements. We ask that your student ranks their top 6 elective choices on the elective side of the form, as we cannot guarantee placement in their top 4 choices. Course selection forms also need to be signed by you and your student.

Summer reading: Make sure to note the courses your student(s) are recommended for so you can plan accordingly for summer assignments.

Thank you for taking the time to complete this at home with your child! You will be able to see a final schedule in mid-August in the Infinite Campus Portal prior to registration day. If you have any questions please contact your child’s counselor.

Sincerely,

Manele Short Andrea Salvo

MS Counselor A-L MS Counselor M-Z

manele.short@bvsd.org andrea.salvo@bvsd.org

__________________________________________________________________________________

NEW – Leadership Programs

Counselors encourage students interested in leadership opportunities to consider applying to one or more of the following leadership-oriented programs and positions:

• Current 10^th/11^th grade women: HERLead Fellowship – due 3/18 http://herlead.vitalvoices.org/apply
• Current 7^th/10^th/11^th grade students: Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Program (RYLA) – due 4/30 (After applying online, contact Bill Rubin, 303-499-6711, bill@wxwax.com, to set up interview. http://www.rmryla.org/
• Current 9^th-12^th grade students: National Leadership Academy – due 4/15 http://www.nationalleadershipacademy.org/academy/#application
• Current 11^th grade students: Boys State – due 5/1 (http://www.colegionboysstate.org/index.html) & Girls State – due 4/1 (http://www.alacolorado.com/girls-state.html)
• Current 9^th/10^th grade students – Colorado Student Leadership Institute – due 4/1 http://www.costudentleaders.org/
• Multiple Opportunities – Colorado Young Leaders – ongoing - http://coloradoyoungleaders.org/get-involved/students/
• Current 9^th/10^th/11^th grade students – Youth Roots – due 4/17 - http://youthroots.org/apply/

Counselors are ready to help with any applications. We have a number of current students involved in many of these organizations, so let us know if you want to learn more about any of these!

__________________________________________________________________________________

NEW – On Campus Community Service Opportunity – Next Friday 3/17

What: Help with set-up for the Charter School Teacher Job Fair at Peak to Peak (We need help setting up tables, chairs, table cloths, signage, supplies, etc.)

When: Friday, March 17th, 3:00-5:00 PM (If you have a 7th period study hall, you can come at 2:15 PM.)

Where: Northeast and Northwest Gyms, the Cafeteria, and Auditeria.

Who: Contact Ms. Dauzvardis (jennifer.dauzvardis@bvsd.org) for more information or to sign-up.

___________________________________________________________________________________

11^th Grade: Testing Reminders

2-Night SAT Power Math Course – Wednesday, March 8^th and Thursday, March 9^th

This class is specifically geared toward students who excel in math and want to achieve the highest possible score on the SAT Math section on the March 2017 exam this weekend.

• Detailed strategies for the most commonly asked "tough" questions
• Techniques for working through the No-Calculator section more efficiently
• Ways to make even the most difficult questions easier

Register or learn more here

The MANDATORY STATE SAT test is on Tuesday, 4/11

Juniors will have Monday, April 10th off to unwind, prepare as needed, and get a good night's sleep before the test on Tuesday.

On Wednesday and Thursday of that week (the 12th and 13th), juniors will either be attending a college field trip of their choice (more details on those trips is coming soon), or will be at the Boulder Rock Club for their Balance Day activities.

Please remember that attendance is expected for all activities during this week. We are confident that all students will benefit from each unique experience.