Kathleen NetheryLTHS Lead Guidance Counselor

February 11, 2013

GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS & PLANS

ACC DUAL CREDIT CLASSESCAREER CRUISING – COURSE

REGISTRATION & 4 YEAR PLANSCOLLEGE PREPARATION &

APPLICATIONSGPA & RANKCAVS IN SERVICETX CONNECTCOLLEGE ADMISSION EXAMS –

PSAT/SAT/ACT

• 26 credits to meet graduation requirements• 4x4 academic core classes

• English• Math• Science• Social Studies

• Select a graduation plan• State of Texas Graduation Exams - Exit TAKS or

STAAR (End Of Course - EOC)

Curriculum Recommended Distinguished Achievement

Lake Travis Scholar

English 4 credits 4 credits 4 credits

Math 4 credits 4 credits 4 credits

Science 4 credits 4 credits*** 4 credits***

Social Studies 4 credits 4 credits 4 credits

Other Language 2 credits 3 credits 3 credits

PE 1 credits 1 credits 1 credits

Health 0.5 credits 0.5 credits 0.5 credits

Speech 0.5 credits 0.5 credits 0.5 credits

Technology 1 credit 1 credit 1 credit

Fine Art 1 credit 1 credit 1 credit

Elective 4 credits 3 credits 3 credits

Additional TAKS TAKS

4 measures*

TAKS

4 measures**

Total Credit 26 credits 26 credits 26 credits

Graduation Plans

*Distinguished Achievement

1. AP test 3 or better

2. College course “B” or better

3. Commended or higher on PSAT

**Lake Travis Scholar

1. AP test 3 or better

2. AP test 3 or better

3. AP Test 3 or better

4. • AP Test• College course

“B” or better• Commended or

higher on PSAT

90 GPA

100 CAV hours

Combination of any 4*** IPC cannot be counted for DAP or LT Scholar Graduation Program

NEW!!! ACC courses during the school dayAll or none – can’t split upACC courses – ENGL 1301 & ENGL 1302 ECON 2301 & GOVT 2305*If taken at ACC campus or distance learning,

student must add ENGL 2322

http://www.careercruising.com/home/DirectoryURL.aspx/LKT

Narrow down choices – Junior year

Make campus visits – Junior year & summer

Check on requirements – Junior year & summer

APPLY – summer prior to senior year!!!

1. In State Public Universitieswww.applytexas.org

2. Out of State Public UniversitiesSchool website

3. Private UniversitiesSchool website

orwww.commonapp.org

Application - Fee $$$ Essays – Do all and tell that school why you are a

‘GOOD’ fit for them! BRAG!!! Extracurricular/Work/Community Service

Awards/Talents – Prioritize!!! SAT/ACT/AP Scores – send them from the test

center agency Transcript – Registrar - Courses (AP/PAP/Honors)

Rank, GPA, Grades Letters of Recommendation – 1 school ‘significant’

subject/teacher/coach & 1 from outside school (employer, youth minister, scout leader, etc…)

SUBMIT WAY BEFORE DEADLINE!!!

GPA’s are averages of semester grades of courses taken in high school.

A student’s cumulative GPA begins at the end of the first semester of the freshman year and is recalculated at the end of each semester.

Driver EducationMiddle school Correspondence courses Credit-by-exam Summer school ACC Dual Enrollment Physical Education or PE substitute

CAVS IN SERVICE

To improve your scores

Practice version of the SATFor many students, the first exposure

to college admissions testingPSAT is also a part of the National

Merit Scholarship ProgramMost importantly : a chance to figure

out areas of strength and weakness before the “real” tests!

Length is the single most important difference – 4 hours + for the SAT!

Essay section is added on the SATA handful of new Algebra 2 topics

on the Math

The SAT has three sub-sections : Math, Critical Reading, and Writing

Each sub-section is scaled from 200 - 800

The national average for each section is roughly 500

Critical Reading 125 minutes

Math 225 minutes

Writing 125 minutes

ExperimentalSection25 minutes

Writing 210 minutes

Critical Reading 320 minutes

Math 320 minutes

Total Time:3 hours, 45 minutes

Math 125 minutes

Essay25 minutes

Critical Reading 225 minutes

Math Topics on the SATBasic math concepts through Algebra IIThere is no difficult math on the SAT, but

the test itself can be difficult

Important TipsNever leave an easy question blankHard problems have hard answers!Accuracy is more important than speed

Multiple-Choice Grammar (~70% of score) Improving Sentences questions test ability to

correct sentences with mistakes Error Identification questions test ability to identify

common grammatical errors Improving Paragraphs questions test

understanding of proper diction, usage, organization, and grammar

Essay (~30% of score) Looks for strong opinion and good organization State your position, then back it up with relevant

examples

Passage-based ReadingLong and dense passagesBest way to improve skill is through

repeated practice with an active reading strategy

Sentence Completions Process of elimination is key!

The ACT has four sections : English, Reading, Math, and Science.

Each section is scored on a scale from 1 to 36The national average for each section is roughly 21

English45 minutes

Math60 minutes

Science35 minutes

Reading35 minutes

Total Time:2 hours, 55 minutes Or3 hours, 25 minutes with optional essay

Mathematics skills typically acquired through 11th grade:

Pre-Algebra Elementary AlgebraIntermediate Algebra Coordinate GeometryPlane Geometry Trigonometry

Usage/MechanicsLong prose passagesPunctuationGrammar & usage (standard written English)Sentence structure & formation

Rhetorical SkillsWriting StrategyOrganizationStyle

Reading Comprehension Direct statements & statements with implied meaning Determining main ideas Making comparisons Understanding sequence of events Drawing generalizations Analyzing author’s/narrator’s voice and method

Passage Types Prose Fiction Humanities Social Studies Natural Sciences

Science ReasoningThree passage formats:

Data Representation (graphs & tables) Research Summaries (descriptions of related

experiments) Conflicting Viewpoints (expressions of

related hypotheses or inconsistent viewpoints)

Passages cover the following content areas: biology, chemistry, physics and earth/space sciences

Basic knowledge of scientific terms and concepts needed

Writing composition skills:Well-developed point of viewConsideration of counter argumentUse of specific examplesSentence structure Strong conclusion

PSAT SAT ACT

2 hours 15 minutes 3 hours 45 minutes 3 hours 25 minutes

no science section no science section includes science

no trigonometry no trigonometry Includes trig

multiple-choice only includes essay essay optional

guessing penalty guessing penalty no guessing penalty

math accounts for 33% of your score

math accounts for 33% of your score

math accounts for 25% of your score

questions follow order of difficulty

questions follow order of difficulty

random question order

“reasoning” based “reasoning” based content-based

Big challenge: tricky questions

Big challenge: tricky questions, length

Big challenge: time crunch!

PSAT vs SAT vs ACT

Sophomore Year

Junior Year

Senior Year

ACTwww.act.org

SAT and College Searchwww.collegeboard.com

Scholarships and Financial Aidwww.ltisdschools.orgwww.fafsa.ed.govwww.fastweb.com