Sequoyah High School
8th Grade Parent Information
Course Values
• 1 Semester Course = 0.50
units
• 6 courses per semester = 3
possible units
• 6 units can be earned in a
regular school year
Current 9th 10th and 11th
CLASS PLACEMENT
Units needed for placement are:
5 Units-10th Grade (including 1 Math, 1 English, & 1
Science)
11 Units-11th Grade (including 2 Math, 2 English, & 1
Science)
17 Units--12th Grade (including 3 Math, 3 English, 2
Science, & 1 Social Studies)
Minimum 23 Units to Graduate
End of Course Tests
• EOCT count 15% of final grade
• EOCT Courses:
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9th & 11th Lit/ Comp
Math 1 & Math 2
Economics & U.S. History
Physical Science & Biology
Graduation Requirements
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English
Math
Science
Social Studies
PE/ Health
JROTC
OR
• Career Tech, Foreign Language, or Fine Arts
• Electives
4 units
4 units
4 units
3 units
1 unit
3 units
3 units
4 units
English Requirements
4units
1 unit of 9th Lit/ Comp
1 unit of 10th Lit/ Comp
1 unit of American Lit/ Comp
1 unit of 12th Lit/ Comp
* Honors and AP classes may be substituted
Math Requirements
4 units
1 unit of Math 1
1 unit of Math 2
1 unit of Math 3
1 unit of Math 4
• MATH SUPPORT IS NOT A MATH UNIT
• IT IS AN ELECTIVE UNIT
* Accelerated, Honor, and/ or AP courses may
be substituted
Science Requirements
4 units
1 unit of Biology
1 unit of Physical Science or Physics
1 unit of Chemistry, Earth Science, Env. Sci. or AP
course
1 unit of a 4th year Science
* Honors or AP courses may be substituted
Social Studies Requirements
3 units
1 unit of World History
1 unit of U.S. History
.5 unit of American Government
.5 unit of Economics
* Honors and AP classes may be substituted
PE & Health
1 unit
.5 unit of PE
.5 unit of Health
* 3 units of ROTC may be substituted for this
unit
CTAE/Fine Arts/Foreign Language*
3 units Required
Based on student’s Career plan these units may
be all in one area, one in each area, or a
combination.
* Students planning to enter or transfer into a 4
year college/ university must take 2 years of
the same foreign language
Elective Requirements
4 units
If a student has taken Math support along with
their Math class – support will count as an
elective.
Academic courses that are not a part of the core
requirements will count as electives.
Hope Scholarship
• Georgia's HOPE Scholarship is available to
Georgia residents who have demonstrated
academic achievement. The scholarship
provides money to assist students with their
educational costs of attending college in
Georgia.
• Grades count day one of high school.
• GAcollege411
Hope Grant
• Georgia's HOPE Grant (a separate program
from the HOPE Scholarship) is available to
residents of Georgia who are attending
eligible colleges or universities in Georgia to
earn a certificate or diploma regardless of high
school graduation date or grade point
average. However, continuing education
programs are not eligible. The grant provides
money to pay tuition, HOPE-approved
mandatory fees, and a book allowance.
Attendance Policy
All classes will receive any earned credit at the end of
the semester, so attendance is determined each
semester. When a student is absent 7 days in a
semester, excused or unexcused, no credit for the course
is given unless an attendance waiver is granted.
Attendance waivers are only granted if all absences are
validated by the School Attendance Committee as
excused, all make-up work has been completed, and a
passing grade has been earned for the course.
Consequently, it is imperative that students bring an
excuse for every school day missed, whether for sickness
or for doctor’s appointment.
The policy for excuses is that they accept either parent
notes or doctor’s notes for sickness. Parents may e-mail
excuses to the attendance office at
SHS.attendance@cherokee.k12.ga.us.
Attendance Policy
Excuses must be presented to the attendance
office within 5 days of the absence, and this includes
both parent and doctor’s notes. No excuses will be
accepted after 5 days.
•
All medical appointments must be validated
with a physician’s note to be considered excused. In
other words, if the student says he or she is checking
out for a doctor’s appointment, it remains unexcused
until we get the physician’s note back.
•
If a student has excessive absences for health
reasons, the school may require a physician’s excuse
in order to consider the absence as excused. After 5
parent notes for either full days absent or tardy, we
may request medical documentation.
•
Parent Information Website
One of the best ways parents can stay informed about their
student’s attendance and grades is to check this website at
least once a week. If you have not registered for this
informational service, please do so with Dean Rusk by the
end of the year, and you will automatically have access at
Sequoyah next year. For parents who do not yet have an
account, you may request access to the Family Portal by
contacting the school and submitting a valid e-mail address.
When the e-mail is entered into the student information
system and the security features are activated, you will then
receive instructions on how to access the portal.
You will be able to track your student’s grades and
attendance in each class.
Please let us know as soon as possible if you see
discrepancies with your student’s attendance.
EXAMS
We have exams the last four days of each
semester. No student will be allowed to
make-up an exam without a medical
excuse. Please be aware that family
vacations, athletic competitions, are not
considered excused.
Missing an exam for anything other
than a medical emergency will
result in a zero for the exam.
Things you need
to know:
Cell Phone, etc.
Students are not allowed to have a cell phone out he from
the minute they walk on campus until 3:30. The State Law
says that students may have a cell phone in their car.
Additionally, we do not allow ipods or any other electronic
devices during the school day.
PE Lockers
It is extremely important that students lock up all valuables
during their PE class. We are working very hard to prevent
thefts, but open purses, wallets and cell phones left out
during PE are highly likely to be taken. Students may bring a
lock from home to use.
Other things you need to know:
Picking Up Students After School
Parents are not allowed to park in the teacher or student parking lot
while waiting to pick up students in the afternoon. Please pick your
son or daughter up before 3:00 if you are trying to get to an
afternoon appointment.
Lockers and Book Bags
Every student is assigned a locker. Our building is small enough that
most students get to their lockers several times a day. Our
classrooms are small, and there is no room for every student to carry
a book bag. USE YOUR LOCKER!
Agendas and Student Responsibility
We expect students old enough to be in high school to show
responsibility. That means that they need to write down and be
responsible for all their assignments daily. NO WORK EQUALS NO
GRADE. We do not give minimum grades in high school. You get
what you earn. Also, the agenda is your hall pass. You cannot leave
the classroom without it.
Advanced Placement (AP) and
Honors Classes
We consistently strive to offer students a challenging curriculum, including
the opportunity to take advanced classes. Honors classes are taken in
preparation for the eventuality of taking AP classes and receiving college
credit. However, before signing up to take any advanced classes, both
the student and the parent need to take into account the student’s
outside school activities and the amount of time the student has to
devote to the extra studying required for these courses. Once we do the
scheduling, and the student is committed to the class, we cannot make
schedule changes.
Tutoring
Sequoyah High School offers tutoring before and after school in all
academic areas. If your student is experiencing difficulty in any subject,
please check the tutoring schedule on the school website. In addition to
our school-based tutoring, Cherokee County BOE publishes a list of
educators who do after hours tutoring. Please contact Student Services or
your student’s teacher for a list of school-wide tutors.
9th Literature & Composition
This class is a combination of Literature and Writing
Expectations:
Freshmen students should expect homework on a weekly basis
consisting of reading, writing, and vocabulary work, at a minimum.
No late work is accepted by English teachers so it is imperative that
students keep up with nightly homework and long term essays and
assignments.
Students are encouraged to utilize the school agenda to keep up with
all assignments.
Students can expect to read a minimum of two novels per semester in
addition to other curriculum requirements.
Students need to be prepared for class each day according to
the requirements of each individual teacher.
Students will take an End of Course Test (EOCT) in 9th
Literature & Composition during May.
Extra-Curricular Activities
Freshmen students are encouraged to
participate in the clubs and sports offered at
Sequoyah High School.
Some of our offered activities are: Band,
Chorus, Drama, Photography Club, Robotics Club,
Speech and Debate, Book Club, and ROTC.
Sports: Baseball, Basketball, Cheerleading, Cross
Country, Football, Golf, Gymnastics, Soccer,
Softball, Swimming, Tennis, Track, and
Volleyball
Joining an extra-curricular activity will
make the high school experience so
much more meaningful!
Mathematics
Homework will be assigned DAILY.
It WILL be checked.
Late work will not be accepted.
Tutoring is available
 every morning from 7:45 – 8:15
 first 30 minutes of every lunch
RESPONSIBILITY
&
ORGANIZATION
•Teacher Websites
•Writing in Agenda
•Making up work from an absence
•Taking notes and keeping up with your
assignments
Choices for 9th graders
College Prep Route:
Math 1, Math 2, Math 3, Math 4
Accelerated Route:
Acc. Math 1, Acc. Math 2, Acc. Math 3
AP Statistics and AP Calculus
** 8th grade performance and test scores are
used to determine if a student qualifies for
the Accelerated route.**
Caution:
Difficult to drop Accelerated
difficult to go up to Accelerated
Science
You must have 4 units of science to graduate
1 must be Biology
1 must be Physical Science or Physics
Colleges like to see “The Big 3” on your transcript.
Biology, Chemistry, Physics
Most 9th graders will take Biology Freshman year.
It is very language intensive.
You will learn more new vocabulary words in Biology than
you will in Spanish 1
You MUST do your homework and you MUST study!
Biology teachers DO NOT take late work.
Biology teachers DO offer tutoring and help Morning, Noon
and Night. Take advantage of the help if you need it.
You can expect homework most nights in Biology.
What’s after Biology?
Social Studies for 9th Graders
• Count toward HOPE GPA- and
prepare students for other high
school required courses.
• Required for students who plan to
take AP world history, US history,
government and/or economic in
the future.
• Honors and regular levels are
available
Choose Two for 9th Grade
• Honors or regular
World Geography
• Technology and
Society- suggested
for honors level
students
• Current issuessuggested for
regular level
students
Courses for 10th, 11th & 12th
Grade Students
Required Courses
3 credits
• Sophomore year:
– World History (regular or
Advanced Placement)
• Junior year:
– US History (regular or
Advanced Placement)
• Senior year:
– Government and
Economics (regular or
Advanced Placement)
Elective Courses
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Technology & Society
Current Issues
Psychology (10th +)
Sociology (10th +)
Individual & the Law
(10th+)
US History in film- Jr. and
Sr. only
AP European History- Jr.
and Sr. only
AP Psychology- Jr. and Sr.
only
AP Comparative PoliticsSr. only