Communications Arts High School
EXPECTATIONS FOR
YOUR SENIOR YEAR
Mr. Guerrero: AP Economics &
Government
1 semester course for grades
 1 semester course in regards to attendance
 AP Course and expectations

 reading and taking notes outside of class

Summer Reading
Mrs. Ochoa: Spanish
Available Resources
 Tutoring
 CD Tutoring program
 Salon de Sabios
 Computer Lab

Mrs. Ochoa: Spanish
eClassroom
 Study Suggestions sheet
 Online resources, especially www.classzone.com
 supplies – notebook, folder

Mrs. Ochoa: Spanish

Spanish IV AP and the AP Exam
 Why take it?
○ You can get a minor without taking a course in college
depending on the college you go to

Homework/Workload
 Will have homework every day
 Some practice or studying 30 minutes each night even
if specific homework is not assigned
Mrs. Ochoa: Spanish
 Skills
for Success
 Time management
 Organization; Balancing school and extra-curricular
 Asking for help when needed
 Academic
integrity
 Absences/tardies
Mrs. McCormick: English IV
Objectives of the course:
 To study British and world literature and to cover the
curriculum specified in TEKS.
 To prepare for the AP Literature and Composition Test in
May.
 To complete dual credit writing requirements, including the
research essay.
○ This course is taught as a college level English class and, as
such, includes a challenging workload, especially outside
reading.
○ Be prepared to schedule reading into your free time and to
receive frequent writing assignments.
Mrs. McCormick: English IV

Turnitin.com
Summer Reading Assignment:
Part One

How to Read Literature Like a Professor
by Thomas C. Foster
 common summer assignment for English IV AP students
 reading it carefully and applying its ideas to all the
works you will read during your senior year will help
ease the pressure of the AP exam
 easy-to-read introduction to patterns of symbolic
meaning in literary texts
 reading it first may help make parts of the required
novel more meaningful to you
 please highlight important information in the text
Summer Reading Assignment:
Part One
 Writing
Assignment for How to Read Literature
Like a Professor
 NOTE: Write all assignments in a new Mead Composition
Book (this is a supply requirement for the class)
 See the handout for specific instructions
Summer Reading Assignment:
Part Two
 The
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
○ winner of the 2002 Man Book Prize for Fiction.
○ The main character, Pi Patel, is a unique young man, the
son of a zookeeper. He knows a great deal about
animal behavior, loves stories, and practices not only his
native Hinduism, but also Christianity and Islam. When Pi
is sixteen, his family leaves India, accompanied by a
cargo of zoo animals, for a new home in North America.
On the way, the ship sinks, and Pi alone survives in a
lifeboat with a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra,
and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Pi must
use his wits to survive this treacherous situation.
Writing Assignment for Life of Pi
○ See the handout for details
 Annotation
 Book club meetings and discussion questions
 You are also expected to bring your copy of the
novel to class every day until the summer unit is
complete.
 Testing on the novel will follow class discussion
during the first two weeks of school.
 Failure to complete the above assignment will
be detrimental to your first six weeks grade.
Acquiring the Texts
The school has a few copies of The Life of Pi but I
encourage you to purchase your own copies so that
you can annotate and mark in them.
 In addition, having your own copy of any AP
recommended/studied text allows you to review it
before the AP test and remind yourself of characters,
setting, etc.
 Copies of How to Read Literature Like a Professor will
be available at school in July. Both books can be
found relatively cheaply in paperback at both
regular and used books bookstores as well as online.

Mrs. McCormick: AP/Dual Credit
AP vs. Dual Credit
 Expectations: homework outside of class
 AP tests are given in May
 Students can receive college credit depending on
their score
 Each university awards its own credit; there isn’t a
standard score/grade equivalency

Mrs. McCormick: AP/Dual Credit
Dual credit and grades
 Dropping a course
 Failing & possible consequences with later
financial aid
 Failing and reflection on transcript and GPA

BENEFITS OF ENROLLING IN DUAL
CREDIT COURSES:
Offers high school credit(s) toward graduation
and college credit(s) toward a degree.
 Classes are taught by ComArts teachers and are
held at the high school.
 Offers FREE tuition for two courses, 6- 8 hours of
college credit each year.
 Saves parents & students considerable amounts
of college costs.

BENEFITS OF ENROLLING IN DUAL
CREDIT COURSES (cont.):
Average tuition, fees & books for 6 hours (2
classes) = $1000/year
 Shortens the length of time to complete a degree
program.
 Students are allowed access to Northwest Vista
(NVC) and ACCD services, events, and facilities.
 Only courses being charged tuition are courses
offered at NVC: Criminal Justice, Pharmacy &
Med. Terminology

DUAL CREDIT COURSES:
(some also offered as Pre-AP & AP)
MATH: Algebra 2, Pre-Calculus, Calculus AB/ BC,
Statistics, College Algebra
 SCIENCE: Biology, Environmental Science
 English 3 and English 4
 Spanish 3
 Courses offered at the Northwest Vista campus:
TUITION REQUIRED (bus transportation provided)
Criminal Justice, Pharmacy, and Medical
Terminology

FACTS ABOUT DUAL CREDIT
COURSES
Courses are more academically challenging than
traditional high school courses, will include
different requirements for each course, and will
result in a SEPARATE college grade for each
course.
 Grades earned in dual credit become part of the
PERMANENT ACADEMIC RECORD and will be
recorded on the college transcript.

FACTS ABOUT DUAL CREDIT
COURSES (cont.)
Students must attend their Dual Credit class
regularly and may be withdrawn for lack of
attendance and/or lack of progress.
 Students who make a D or an F in a Dual Credit
class will not be allowed to continue in the Dual
Credit program.

FACTS ABOUT DUAL CREDIT
COURSES (cont.)
Students are responsible for knowing and
adhering to the drop deadlines for withdrawal on
the Alamo Colleges Academic calendar (should
his/her grade fall below a C).
 Students must maintain a GPA of 2.0 and remain
in good standing to continue in the Dual Credit
Program.

FACTS ABOUT DUAL CREDIT
COURSES (cont.)
If a student plagiarizes a paper or colludes or
cheats in any dual credit class, the student will be
subject to the discipline policies and procedures
of the college; severe cases may result in failure
of the course and suspension from the dual credit
program.
 Courses are generally transferable, but it is not
the responsibility of the college to ensure that the
dual credit course is transferable to the
college/university the student plans to attend.

Mrs. Malik: Independent Study
Mentorship (ISM)
 Independent
Study Mentorship with the key
word being independent
 Major goal is to promote independent
learning and being responsible for themselves.
Mrs. Malik: Independent Study
Mentorship (ISM)
 Responsible
for finding mentor
 Mrs. Malik can provide possible names
 Responsible
for own transportation
 Must be professional and courteous as you are
representing the school and the program
Mrs. Malik: Independent Study
Mentorship (ISM)
 Select
a topic that you are truly interested in.
You will be researching it in depth for a full
year.
 Topic must require post secondary education.
 Blocking with English once the 2nd six weeks
starts
 Speeches every six weeks
 Research paper on topic
Mrs. Malik: Independent Study
Mentorship (ISM)
 Meetings and attendance
 Go during ISM period ON ISM days
 Mrs. Malik cannot excuse an absence or tardy for
another class due to a meeting
 Meetings are due the 3rd and 5th Monday of each
six weeks (2 per six weeks).
 Students may have additional meetings.
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 1st
Six Weeks: college prep: resumes,
applications, reading a degree plan
 Apply Texas
 We will begin in class so that teacher can help
 REMEMBER
passwords and social security #
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 FAFSA
 we will do the PIN in December; they can
begin in January
 Entrance
Exams
 ACT vs. SAT
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 Letters
of Recommendation
 Give teachers at least a week to write them
 Provide recipient information and a copy of
your resume that we will write in ISM class
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 Deadlines/Admissions
 Deadlines are very important
 “Received by” vs. “Postmarked by”
 Deadlines includes ALL components
○ E.g., for a college application, it will include all of the
required components such as the actual application,
essay, transcript and letters of recommendation (if
required)
Mrs. Malik: College Admissions
 Early
Decision:
 is binding if you are accepted
 Early
Action:
 student turns in all parts early and the
university sends the admissions decision
early; these deadlines are usually in
November
Mrs. Malik: College Admissions
 Regular
Decision:
 application due dates are much later and most
acceptance letters are sent out around March 1st
 Rolling
Admissions:
 applications are reviewed as they are received and
letters are sent out once a decision has been made
 If
you have questions about an application
or your status, CALL the university. Check
your status regularly.
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 Transcripts
 At Taft
 May order and pick up before school, after school and




at lunch only
Can take up to a week
May want to order a couple to have on hand
Forms can be found in Mrs. Malik’s room or front office
Parent Consent form only one time (if under 18); forms
can be found in Mrs. Malik’s room or front office
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 NW
Vista
 Mrs. Malik will show the students how to log into ACES
and how to order a transcript online
Mrs. Malik: College Prep
 Final
documentation for College
 In May, we will put together a folder/portfolio to take
to college orientation
 Students will be given an order form for their final
CAHS transcript and will be shown how to order the
Vista transcript for the college they will be attending
Mrs. Whitus: Electives
 AP
Art History
 Yearbook
 Advanced Video
 Digital Graphics & Animation
Mrs. Whitus: Nonacademic Items
 Yearbook
 $70, price will increase to $75 in the Spring
 Senior ads
○ Order in the Spring
○ Prices range from $70-$250 (quarter
page-full page)
Mrs. Whitus: Nonacademic Items
 Senior pictures
 Must take by December 1 for inclusion in yearbook
 No cost for yearbook senior picture
 Yearbook senior picture must be taken by Prestige,
but you DO NOT have to buy any pictures from
them
○ two dates here at school in the Fall:
 Saturday, September 22
 Retakes Saturday, October 27
○ or set up appointment at their studio: 690-1476
 Picture packages from Prestige: $100-$600
Mrs. Whitus: Nonacademic Items
 Class
ring
 Order from Josten’s in the Fall
 Range of prices from $100-$1000
 Prom
 $50-$65; price of ticket increases as it gets closer
 tux rentals: $100-$250
 dresses: $200-$400
 Senior
Banquet
 Free for students, $25 for each guest
Mrs. Whitus: Nonacademic Items
 Graduation Expenses
 Cap and gown
○ $25
 Graduation Announcements
○ Order from Josten’s in the Fall
○ Packages vary from $75-$200
 Parking at Alamodome: $10
 Project
Graduation
 $55-$70
 Ticket price goes up as year goes on
Summary of Optional,
Nonacademic Expenses
(based on 2011-12 costs)
 Yearbook: $70-$75
 Senior pictures: $0 - $600
 Senior ad in yearbook: $70 - $250
 Class ring: $100-1000
 Graduation invitations: $75-200
 Cap & gown: $25
 Prom tickets: $50-$65
 Senior Banquet: free for students, $25 per guest
 Project Graduation: $55-70
Resources



Eclassroom
Each teacher offers tutoring—talk to your teachers!
Salon de Sabios
 After school from 4:20-6:20 on Tuesdays and Thursdays
 A place to study, use the computer lab, make up a test or
quiz
 in the past, a Spanish teacher has been available every
Thursday to help students


Lunch Lab and Lunch Study Hall
Students are expected to print homework
assignments at home, not in the labs
Resources

Go Center
 See Mrs. Crowson for scholarship information before
school or at lunch
 She will also help to contact schools if there are
questions that we cannot answer
 She schedules college reps to speak throughout the
year during lunch. Take advantage of this
Counselor
 Planners


QUESTIONS?