Counseling Corner
February 2019
Welcome to Second Semester!
It is hard to believe we are already in the second semester of the 2018-2019 school year! Coming up this month we will be working on course requests for NEXT FALL! Time really does fly!
We know the course selection process can be an exciting and sometimes anxious experience. In an effort to help support students with making accurate and appropriate choices for next year's classes, we will hold several events this month to help them with planning accordingly!
At P-CEP we pride ourselves on being able to offer a plethora of classes that our students want to take. In order to do that, our master schedule is built based on students' requests. For this reason, it is very important that your student request classes that are both meeting graduation requirements and electives that are of interest to them. It is important to note that students are not registering for classes, they are selecting their class requests. This means students are not guaranteed to get their top choice of classes. For this reason it is very important that students request multiple alternate classes.
Presentations By Grade Level
9th grade students will meet in their home school with counselors by their last name. During this time counselors will be reviewing graduation requirements, course options for next year and answering questions students may have.
Hours:
1st hour - Students last names beginning with A - G
2nd hour - Students last names beginning with H - O
3rd hour - Students last names beginning with P - Z
Location:
Canton students - Canton Media Center
Plymouth students - Plymouth Media Center
Salem students - Salem Media Center
February 20, 2019
10th grade students will meet in their home school with counselors by their last name. During this time counselors will be reviewing graduation requirements, course options for next year and answering questions students may have.
Hours:
1st hour - Students last names beginning with A - G
2nd hour - Students last names beginning with H - O
3rd hour - Students last names beginning with P - Z
Location:
Canton students - Canton Media Center
Plymouth students - Plymouth Media Center
Salem students - Salem Media Center
February 21, 2019
11th grade students will meet in their home school with counselors by their last name. During this time counselors will be reviewing graduation requirements, course options for next year and answering questions students may have.
Hours:
1st hour - Students last names beginning with A - G
2nd hour - Students last names beginning with H - O
3rd hour - Students last names beginning with P - Z
Location:
Canton students - Canton Media Center
Plymouth students - Plymouth Media Center
Salem students - Salem Media Center
DATES TO REQUEST CLASSES IN MISTAR
MIStar will only be open for a short period of time, and in this time students must enter their course requests. These dates are from February 19th until February 26th. Since the window on MIStar is open for just a week, we encourage you to have discussions with your students over the next week or so; this way they will have plenty of time to make appropriate choices for requests, without feeling rushed or un-prepared.
Tips on how to talk with your student about course selection:
- Talk with your student about the conversations they have had with their current teachers. It is very important that students connect with current teachers regarding which core classes may be a good fit for them next year.
Talk with your student about post high school plans. Most colleges recommend having 4 core academic classes every year of high school. They also recommend having 2- 3 years of a world language.
Is your student’s schedule rigorous enough? Is it too relaxed? Help your student find a healthy balance between overwhelmed and under challenged.
What classes has your student really enjoyed or excelled in? Is there an accelerated course next year they could take in that subject area?
Has your student entered in ALTERNATES to his/her electives? If your student does not receive his/her first choice for ELECTIVE COURSES, we want to make sure that the alternates are entered so that they hopefully will get the second choice that is listed! (Students do not need to enter alternates for core classes)
If you or your student have questions about high school requirements or course offerings, remember to view the course catalog or have your student ask those questions when he/she meets with his/her counselor
Math Placement Information:
All P-CEP students will be placed into the appropriate level math course.
When entering their courses online, students will be able to see their math placement.
IF students desire to take a different math course than what has been chosen for them, they will need to fill out a “MATH CHANGE” form available in the counseling offices.
This form should be signed by a parent and returned to the counseling office as soon as possible, but no later than May 1st.
FINAL COURSE REQUEST CHANGES MUST BE MADE BY APRIL 1st. After this deadline the creation of the master schedule will prevent changes from being made. After the closing of the MIStar window, all changes must be made through the student's counselor.
LUNCH SUPPORT
Counselors will be available to students during all 3 lunch periods February 22nd and 25th. We encourage students to come and ask any counselor questions regarding course selection and planning options during this time. It is very important that students are receiving accurate information regarding classes and planning for the next school year. In order to ensure students are receiving quality information and making proper decisions, we highly encourage students to connect with counselors.
The importance of picking the right courses:
The P-CEP master schedule is built from student requests.
Course changes are not allowed after the master schedule is built for this reason.
Schedules are adjusted for the following reasons:
- Failure from the previous semester in a prerequisite course
Completed the course already in fast track or summer school
An incomplete schedule
Approved for an Independent Study
Increase in academic rigor
If an adjustment is to take place due to the above reasons, it must happen in the first two weeks of a semester. Schedule change forms are available in the counseling office.
More Questions or Concerns?
If your student has questions after attending the counseling presentation, talking with teachers for recommendations, and looking through the course catalog, he/she should see his/her counselor during lunch on the 22nd and 25th of February. Counselors are very busy at this time with the course planning process for next year. Please understand that we have large case loads of students, therefore we receive a high volume of emails, student meetings and phone calls. Thank you for being patient with us during this busy time!
HAPPY COURSE PLANNING AND SELECTION!
Please follow us on TWITTER for great information from your Counseling Staff:
Salem Counseling - @RocksCounseling
Canton Counseling - @CantonChiefs1
Plymouth Counseling - @Cats_Counseling