HIGH SCHOOL 101: SUMMER SURVIVAL GUIDE

TABLE OF CONTENTSI. Who Are You?

A.Explore Yourself1. Personality Tests2. Your Life Questions

B.Explore the World1. Volunteer2. Discover Your Local Community3. Discover the World Online4. KEEP READING

C.Explore Your Future1. Discover Your Interests (Interest Surveys)2. Research Your Interests

II. Preparing for High School Schedules A.Track Your TimeB.Schedule Your TimeC.Reflect

III. Preparing for High School ChallengesA.When to Ask for HelpB.How to Ask for HelpC.Who to Ask for Help

IV. ChecklistsA.Explore YourselfB.Explore the WorldC.Explore Your FutureD.Preparing for High School SchedulesE. Preparing for High School Challenges

Part I: Who Are You?

Explore YourselfThink about how you communicate, and how well you tend to understand others. Are

there topics that usually excite or upset you when they arise in conversation? Do you feel most like yourself in a crowd or alone? How do you respond to criticism? How would you like to respond to criticism?

The following surveys will help you answer these questions and introduce you to many more. A website cannot tell you who you are, but it can give you some new words and char-acteristics to consider!

← Myers-Briggs✦ Personality Pathways

http://www.personalitypathways.com/type_inventory.html✦ HumanMetrics (Jung Typology Test)

http://www.humanmetrics.com/index.htm#intro← Various Personality Tests

✦ Similar Mindshttp://similarminds.com/

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Volunteer!← Volunteer Southern Arizona

http://www.volunteersoaz.org/Whether you are looking for a way to volunteer or you represent an organi-zation that engages volunteers in your work, you've come to the right place! This site makes it easier than ever for volunteers to find a variety of ways to get involved and for agencies to promote their opportunities and programs.

← United Wayhttp://www.unitedway.org/take-action/volunteerUnited Way envisions a world where all individuals and families achieve their human potential through education, income stability and healthy lives.

Discover Your Local Community← Tucson Community Events

http://www.visittucson.org/visitor/events/community/Tucson's major events draw visitors from around the world. There are many other events going on in Tucson throughout the year. Be a local and check out one of these community events. It is the best way to experience one of Tucson's unique cultures.  

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Explore Your

World!

Discover the World Online← Kahn Academy

http://www.khanacademy.org/Learn almost anything for free.With over 3,200 videos on everything from arith-metic to physics, finance, and history and hun-dreds of skills to practice, we're on a mission to help you learn what you want, when you want, at your own pace.

← TED Talkshttp://www.ted.com/talks1100+ talks to stir your curiosity. Browse by subject, length, or rating (in-spiring, jaw-dropping, funny…)

← RSAnimatehttp://comment.rsablogs.org.uk/videos/The RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manu-factures and Commerce): an en-lightenment organisation com-mitted to finding innovative practical solutions to today’s so-cial challenges. Through its ideas, research and 27,000-strong Fellowship, it seeks to understand and enhance human capability so we can close the gap between today’s reality and people’s hopes for a better world.

← Mango Languageshttp://www.mangolanguages.com/Many moons ago, when the internet was still young, our founders set out to turn their love of languages and learning about the world into a successful business ven-ture. They were driven to make a better, more effective language learning experi-ence, and wanted to have a little fun along the way. After several years of refinement, refinement, and more refinement, Mango Languages was born. Today, Mango delivers a wide variety of language learning capabilities to people all over the world.

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← Algebra Academy: FREE!JuneFour week summer program designed to introduce students to algebraic concepts via hands-on activities. In addition, students will participate in high school, college and career preparation workshops.

← Arizona Youth University: FREE!June 6 – July 22Summer enrichment classes that explore a wide variety of subject areas. Lunch is not provided. Spaces are available on a first come, first served ba-sis.

← Astronomy Camp: $700-$975April – October 2012: Different dates are available-see websitewww.astronomycamp.orgStudents learn about how science and engineering apply to astronomy. Participants develop scientific skills of experimentation and data collection and have the opportunity to work with telescopes. Possibilities for future ca-reers in the field are explored as well. Spaces are available on a first come, first served basis.

← DigiDudes and TechDivas Summer Camps: $250Grades 6 – 8Camp 3: June 20 – 24Camp 4: June 27 – July 1 Join other campers as you create your own business or non-profit, while learning how to use technology for success.  By the end of camp you will be able to open up shop.  Not only does the Technology camp provide a healthy learning environment for boys and girls alike to learn about technol-ogy, the campers will be able to enjoy outdoor games, campus tours, and crafts.  Most importantly, our goal is to teach campers about technology in their lives, and prepare them to use computers, photography, and the inter-net to enrich their education.

KEEP READING← Arrowhead Library System College Bound Reading List

http://als.lib.wi.us/Collegebound.html← Read Aloud America Composite Book Lists

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Grades 6-8: http://www.readaloudamerica.org/books_G68.htmGrades 9-12: http://www.readaloudamerica.org/books_G12.htm

Discover Your Interests← Check Out a College.com Career Interest Survey

http://checkoutacollege.com/explorecareers/interestsurvey.aspxYou are more likely to look forward to going to work each day when your career matches your skills and personal interests. And that can open doors to even more opportunities.This career assessment tool takes 10 to 15 minutes to complete. It will help determine your skills and interests and then suggest one or more career fields that matches them.

Research Your Interests← The Career Project

http://www.thecareerproject.org/A free and interactive career profile database. research thousands of real careers through the eyes of the peo-ple who work them.

← Kids.govhttp://www.kids.gov/6_8/6_8_career-

s.shtmlAlphabetical list of job descriptions written for sixth to eighth graders.

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Explore Your

Future!

Part II: Preparing for High School Schedules

Track Your Time

What do you do all day? Use the following chart to list your daily activities, or purchase a planner and record what you did and for how long you did it at the end of the day. Do this for a week, and then identify which activity dominates your sched-ule. Do you spend most of your time talking to others? Playing sports? Working with animals? Sleeping?

Schedule Your TimeNow that you know what you do during your days, start taking charge of

what you do during your days. Use the following chart to plan to spend at least an hour a day doing something that you do not usually do. Experiment with dif-ferent times of the day, or different activities, to discover that for which you will and won’t change your personal schedule.

ReflectHow did you feel at the end of days you didn’t plan? How did you feel at

the end of days you did plan, but did not actually follow through? What about the days you planned out, and then performed what you’d planned to do? What makes it easier for you to change your natural schedule?

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Part III: Preparing for High School Challenges

When to Ask for HelpPromoting from eighth grade to

high school is a major transition. You are entering a new environment full of new rules, new subjects, new levels of homework and social structures. Every-one in your situation feels uncertain sometimes, even frightened. Fear can become anger and frustration very quickly, and those negative emotions cause social, academic, and behavioral problems. Whenever you feel worried, stressed, uncertain, or any other negative feeling, whether you know why or not, ask for help. Every adult was once your age, and remembers how it felt to be a new freshman.

How to Ask for HelpDon’t wait until you’re on the verge of an outburst of some kind. Ask for

help early, and don’t be discouraged if the first person you ask doesn’t have an answer. That person will take you to someone who does have an answer. Try to identify what is making you upset, too: where are you when you feel upset? With whom are you talking, or are you alone? What are you thinking about most often?

Who to Ask for HelpEvery adult at the high school will either know how to help you or who to

send you to for help. Specifically, your faculty advisor, any of your classroom teachers, the front office people, or the community director are great first choice for advice or encouragement. If you are in need of academic or education aid, try your public library. Don’t be intimidated by the librarians; just be sure you know what you want to ask before you get their attention!

Your parents, guardian, or relatives are also wonderful resources for con-versation partners. Sometimes all you need it a friendly face or sympathetic ear, sometimes you need an expert to help you understand a detailed problem, sometimes you need someone who has lived through what you’re just beginning to experience; these people are all around you, and all you need to do is ask for their assistance.

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Part IV: ChecklistsExplore Yourself

← How do you communicate?← When are you most comfortable?← What makes you most uncomfortable?← How do you deal with discomfort?← What stresses you?← What do you do when you’re stressed?← What excites you?← What do you do when you’re excited?← What irritates you?← What do you do when you’re irritated?← With whom are you most comfortable?← What is your Myers-Briggs Personality Index?← Talk to your family or friends about what you’ve learned about yourself.

Explore the World← Choose one topic from Kahn Academy and investigate it.← Watch a TED talk video.← Watch an RSA Animate video.← Read about the volunteer opportunities available to you, and consider applying for a

position.← Investigate a summer camp that sounds interesting to you.← Talk to your friends about something you did on this checklist.

Explore Your Future← Take the Interest Survey.← Investigate the suggested occupations that result from your interest survey.← Read about an occupation you’ve never heard of before.

Preparing for High School Schedules← Take ten minutes every evening for a week and record what you did all day, and for

about how long you did it. (Ex: slept for six hours, played Angry Birds for three hours, talked to Esperanza on the phone for an hour, etc.)

← Plan out a schedule for one day, changing something you do regularly. (Ex: sleep for eight hours, play Angry Birds for two hours, walk the dog for one hour, etc.)

← Consider the difference in how you felt at the end of the day after either planning or not planning your schedule.

Preparing for High School Challenges← List the things that worry you when you think about high school. (Ex: Bullying, Too

much homework, etc.)← Research and list the contact information (phone numbers, email, etc.) of the people

who might help you in those situations.

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