8th Grade Parent Information Night 2010

1. 8th GradeParent Information Night 2010 Groton-Dunstable Regional High School

2. Administrative Team • Shelley Marcus Cohen, Principal • John Gould, Dean of Students • Christopher Jones, Assistant Principal

3. Why have your student attend GDRHS? • Strong Academic Program • Student support • Academic & Personal • Learning Center • Extra & Co-Curricular Programs • Outstanding Athletic Program • Award winning Fine & Performing Arts department

7. ACADEMIC RESULTS • MCAS 2009 • Math: 98% Advanced & Proficient • English 98% Advanced & Proficient • Science: 90% Advanced & Proficient (new exam) • AP Exams • 33% of Groton-Dunstable Regional High School students taking these exams earn a perfect score of 5. • 35% of Groton-Dunstable Regional High School students taking these exams earn a score of 4. • 23% of Groton-Dunstable Regional High School students taking these exams earn a score of 3. • 91% of Groton-Dunstable Regional High School students taking Advanced Placement exams earn a score of 3 or better.

8. Academics (continued) • Nine National Merit Commended Scholars in 2009 • 59 Adams Scholarship winners • Where do our students attend college? UCLAVassar Harvard University Tufts University Boston University New York University Boston College Rensselaer Polytechnic Bentley College Cornell University Swarthmore Guilford

9. TECHNOLGY AT GDRHS • LCD Projector Systems in Classrooms • Teacher Laptops • Converting to PC’s • Digital Language Labs • Photography Lab • Videography Lab - T.V. Studio • Technology Education Lab • Extensive Technology Training • Fabrication Lab

10. PERFORMING ARTS SUITE • Black Box Theatre • Chorus/ Band Room • Ensemble Rooms • Practice Rooms • Drama classroom and dressing rooms

11. JV Volleyball  Girls Soccer Golf Boys / Girls Cross CountryGirls Cross CountryFootball Field HockeyCheerleading Boys Basketball Girls Basketball Boys Skiing Girls Skiing Cheerleading Hockey Baseball SoftballBoys Tennis Girls Tennis Boys Track & Field Girls Track & Field Boys Lacrosse Girls Lacrosse Athletics

12. STUDENT INVOLVEMENT • High School Leadership Team • Student Council • Student Activities Council • Student Reps to School Committee/School Council • 36 Athletic Teams • Peer Leaders/Peer Mediators • 35 Clubs and Organization

13. COLLEGE & CAREER The College planning process begins in Grade 9: • 9th, Career Exploration Class For All Students • 11th, PSATs, SATs, Define College Selection, Visits, Interviews, Financial Aid, etc • 12th, SATs, Refine/Implement plan prior to 12/1 The Guidance Department prides itself on having a close working relationship with all GD students and their parents.

14. GraduationRequirements English 4 Credits Math 3 Credits Social Studies 3 Credits Science 3 Credits Foreign Language 2 Credits Physical/ Behavior Health 2 Credits Fine Arts 1 Credit Computer Applications .5 Credit Senior Project 1 Credit or Senior Internship

15. Promotion Policy • 10th Grade - Seven (7) credits earned • 11th Grade - Fourteen (14) credits earned • 12th Grade - Twenty and one-half credits (21.5) credits earned Graduation: Twenty-seven (27) credits earned

16. GDRHS CURRICULUM • Accelerated Block Schedule • 32 Credits - 27 to Graduate • Senior Project • Senior Internship • Independent Study • Dual Enrollment

17. CURRICULUM TEAM • Shelley Marcus Cohen, Principal 448-6362 • Guidance x1380 • Doris Sirois, Special Education X1272 • Christopher Jones x1175 • Kelly Cook, English x2252 • Ellen Barkhuff, Science x1090 • Leslie Rounsaville, Math x1012 • Keith Woods, Social Studies x2050 • Jean Ellis, Foreign Language x2240

18. GUIDANCE Freshmen Guidance Assignments A-F Mr. Jim O’Loughlin G-R Ms. Nancy Charbonneau S-Z Mr. Mark Hennelly

19. Block Schedule • Extended Blocks allow for more in-depth instruction • Extended Blocks allow for additional student-teacher interaction • Extended Blocks allow for a better understanding of the material • Extended Blocks allow for the opportunity to accelerate in a subject area • Semester (18 weeks) and Term (9 weeks) classes allow for a wider range of electives • Extended Blocks allow students to participate in the Internship Program

20. PROGRAM OF STUDIESCourse offerings include: Film Studies Videography Journalism Sociology Psychology Public Speaking Statistics Calculus SAT The Short Story World Literature Real Life Stories Photography 3D Design Collage Engineering Digital Imaging Web Page Marketing Conditioning Aerobics Astronomy AP Statistics AP Biology AP Chemistry AP Physics AP History AP Calculus AP Spanish AP Environmental Science

21. Readiness Grouping • College Prep 2 (formerly Standard Level) • College Prep 1 (formerly Advanced Level) • Honors Level Course Level Determinations are made by: Teacher Recommendations

22. Honors Level Who should take Honors courses? • demonstrated superior mastery of pre- requisite skills and concepts in a specific content area. • has a genuine intellectual curiosity in the subject area. The content of the course and its pace are rigorous. Students must be focused, self-directed and independently able to handle multiple assignments simultaneously and prioritize and manage their time to meet deadlines consistently

23. Advanced Level (CP 1) Who should take Advanced Level courses? • demonstrated average to above average mastery • performs at or above grade-level in the skills needed for that specific content area • is able to independently apply the concept taught. Pacing of new material allows students to practice new skills and build upon previous learned material.

24. Standard Level (CP 2) Who should take Standard Level Courses? • students who may need additional support to perform at their best. This support may include organizational assistance and/or study skills support.

25. Course Change Requests • Grade 8 teachers recommend the course level appropriate for each student. • Should parents wish to override this recommendation they will have a window in which to do this. • Course change requests will be honored through March 31st. • All requests for a change in course and/or level will be logged in at the Guidance Office as they are received.

26. Course Change Requests • Parents and students who have been granted a course level change from College Prep 2, or College Prep 1 to Honors Level understand that it may not be feasible to move their student back to a lower level should the need arise. • It then becomes the responsibility of the student and parent to access academic support or assistance in or out of school.

27. Course Grade MCAS MATH 9 Math 9 9 Basic Algebra I 10 Algebra I A 9, 10 Algebra I B 9, 10 Basic Geometry 11 Geometry 10 Geometry Honors 9 Basic Algebra II 12 Algebra II 10, 11 Algebra II Honors 10 Algebra III Honors 10 Course Grade Discrete Math 11, 12 Statistics 11, 12 AP Statistics 11, 12 Advance Algebra / Trig 11, 12 Pre Calculus 11 Java 9-12 Survey of Calc 12 Calculus AB 12AP Calculus BC 12AP Calculus AB Seminar 12AP Calculus Seminar 12 Math Courses Offered

28. Science Courses Offered • Integrated Science 9 • Biology 9 & 10 • Chemistry 10 & 11 • Chemistry II 10, 11, 12 • Molecular Biology • Anatomy & Physiology • Physics Conceptual Physics • Environmental Science • Astronomy AP • Biology AP • Chemistry AP • Physics AP • AP Environmental Science

29. GDRHS • Dedicated to meeting the needs of ALL students. • Dedicated to working with parents. • Dedicated to continuing to develop programs that meet the emerging needs of high school students in a global environment.

30. 2009 - 2010 CourseSelection Timeline Mid to Late February Math/ELA/FL Assessments Late February / Program of Studies distributed Early March March 18th Curriculum Open House Mid-March Teachers conference w/students March 31 Selection sheet signed by parent/ Course Override period closes April Master Schedule built May Confirm schedules with students

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34. COMMUNICATION • Web Site • Newsletter via the web • E-mail • Connect-Ed • Program of Studies • Handbooks & acknowledgement forms • Parent notifications

35. On behalf of the faculty & administration of GDRHS… Thank you for attending this evening!