Parents, you can stay up-to-date on your students grades by creating an account and logging in to PowerSchool regularly.  Here is the link to the PowerSchool Parent Portal.

COLLEGE PLANNING CALENDAR - https://www.collegecovered.com/planning-calendar/?acmpgn=E_EAW_CSEM_BM_X_BMHS8

Is it time to get ready for college! If you’re a senior in high school or their parent, use this College Planning Calendar to stay on track as you navigate each step of the process. From applications to financial aid to making your final college choice, we have you covered.

My high school senior is stressed about graduation - and so am I

• Laura Holmes Buddenberg

If you have a high school senior living in your house, you know the big countdown to graduation is on!

It’s a time of anticipation and excitement, usually mixed with some drama and weeping and gnashing of teeth (and that’s just the parents!). 

To survive “senioritis” with your sanity and your relationship with your high school senior intact, it’s good to remember the Three P's: Patience, Planning, and Problem-Solving.

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PATIENCE

1. Seniors are experiencing many things for the last time — school sporting events and other activities, dances, clubs, friends.

It’s natural for them to be all-consumed by these things, and parents and other family members can feel like “also-rans” in a senior’s life.

At the same time, kids in the second half of their senior year really start to resist curfews and some of the other family rules.

2. Remember to be patient with your senior. This is a big transition time, and emotions can ride high. As long as kids aren’t doing anything physically, morally, or spiritually dangerous, now is a good time to revisit curfew and allow some extra freedom.

3. Family time does matter. Make the most of moments with your teen. Look for opportunities to spend some fun family time together. Let your senior know well ahead of time what the plans are so everyone is available.

4. Above all, keep your cool and do all you can to make an emotional connection with your teen. Talk often, but patiently listen more (and lecture less).

8 ways to keep your teen on track to succeed in high school

1. Attend Back-to-School Night, Conferences and other Parent Information Nights

Teens do better in school when parents support their academic efforts. Attending your school's open house or back-to-school night is a great way to get to know your teen's teachers and their expectations. School administrators may discuss school-wide programs and policies, and post-high school options that parents and guardians of juniors and seniors need to know about.

2. Visit the School Website

On the school website, you can find information about:

• • the school calendar

  • contacting school staff

  • special events like dances and class trips

  • testing dates

  • schedules for sports, clubs, and other extracurricular activities

  • student resources for life after high school

3. Support Homework Expectations

During the high school years, homework gets more intense and grades become critical for college plans. Students planning to attend college also need to prepare for the SATs and/or ACTs. Amid all these changes, many teens are learning how to balance academics with extracurricular activities, social lives, and jobs.

An important way to help is to make sure your teen has a quiet, well-lit, distraction-free place to study that's stocked with supplies. Distraction-free means no phone, TV, or websites other than homework-related resources. Be sure to check in from time to time to make sure that your teen hasn't gotten distracted.

Regularly sit down with your teen to go over class loads and make sure they're balanced, and help him or her stick to a homework and study schedule.

Encourage your teen to ask for help when it's needed. Most teachers are available for extra help before or after school, and also might be able to recommend other resources.

4. Send Your Teen to School Ready to Learn

A nutritious breakfast fuels up teens and gets them ready for the day. In general, teens who eat breakfast have more energy and do better in school.

Teens also need the right amount of sleep — about 8½ to 9½ hours each night — to be alert and ready to learn all day.

5. Instill Organizational Skills

Learning and mastering the skills of getting organized, staying focused, and seeing work through to the end will help teens in just about everything they do. But this is not usually explicitly taught in high school, so teens can benefit from some parental guidance with organization and time-management skills.

6. Offer Help With Studying

You can help your teen review material.  Even if your teen is just re-reading notes, offer to quiz him or her, focusing on any facts or ideas that are proving troublesome. Encourage your teen to do practice problems in math or science. If the material is beyond your abilities, recommend seeking help from a classmate or the teacher, or consider connecting with a tutor.

7. Take Attendance Seriously

Teens should take a sick day if they have a fever, are nauseated, vomiting, or have diarrhea. Otherwise, it's important that they arrive at school on time every day, because having to catch up with class work, projects, tests, and homework can be stressful and interfere with learning.

Teens may have many reasons for not wanting to go to school — bullies, difficult assignments, low grades, social problems, or issues with classmates or teachers. Talk with your teen — and then perhaps with an administrator or school counselor — to find out more about what's causing any anxiety.

Students also may be late to school due to sleep problems. Keeping your teen on a consistent daily sleep schedule can help avoid tiredness and tardiness.

8. Make Time to Talk About School and Stay Connected

Make efforts to talk with your teen every day, so he or she knows that what goes on at school is important to you. When teens know their parents are interested in their academic lives, they'll take school seriously as well.

It is important that you remain in touch with your child's teacher and monitor your child's progress.

Email - Email is the fastest way for you to get in contact with your child's teacher. Email is the most convenient way for all your child's teachers to communicate with you. Also, important information will be sent out via email from the guidance office. Please make sure your email is up to date in Power School. If you do not have email, then you can go to the library and set up a free email account through "gmail" (Google). Let us know if we can assist you.

Power School - From our school website (www.socs.k12.in.us) you can check your child's progress at any time. Click on the "Parents" tab, then "Power School Parents Portal". Log into your child's Power School account. If you need your account information, let your child's Academy Teacher or Guidance Counselor know.

Progress/Report Cards - Every 4 1/2 weeks, your child should be bringing home a progress/report card. If you do not see one, please ask your child where it is or contact your child's teacher/guidance counselor.

What Parents can do - High School Year by Year

9th Grade – How to Guide and Advise Your Freshman

When a student becomes a freshman, everything starts to "count." Freshman grades are used in determining a student's GPA, and freshman courses, grades, and credits all

become part of a student's transcript. Freshman activities, honors, and awards can also be listed on college and scholarship applications.

1. Monitor Academic Progress.Sit down with your son or daughter at the beginning of each grading period and help him/her set realistic academic goals for that term.

2. Encourage involvement in a wide variety of activities. Encourage your son or daughter to participate in activities outside of school and to also do some volunteer work. Most college and scholarship applications ask students to list their high school activities. Many applications also ask for evidence of leadership. Tip: During your child's freshman year, have them start keeping a record of all his/her activities. This information will be very helpful later when your son or daughter is required to list activities and honors on college and scholarship applications.

3. Help your child select appropriate 10th grade courses. In February of your student's freshman year, review your child's four-year high school plan, and make sure that your child selects the most appropriate courses for his/her sophomore year.

4. Plan meaningful summer activities.

    10th Grade – How to Guide and Advise Your Sophomore

      In addition to working hard in school and being involved in a variety of activities, sophomores need to start identifying their abilities, aptitudes, and interests.                     Sophomores should also be looking for ways to further develop their talents and skills.

• 1. Continue to monitor academic progress.

  2. Continue to encourage involvement in activities and the development of leadership skills.

  3. Make sure your student is in attendance the day that Wayzata HS offers the PLAN test at the high school.

  4. Consider having your child take the PSAT/NMSQT. The PSAT/NMSQT is a national test that's administered by high schools in October. Although the PSAT/NMSQT is a test primarily for juniors, many sophomores take it for practice.

  5. Select courses for the 11th grade. In February of your student's sophomore year, review your child's four-year high school plan, and make sure that your child selects the most appropriate courses for his/her junior year. Encourage your student to think about taking an Advanced Placement (AP) or dual credit course if they have not already done so.

  6. Explore and discuss college options. Gather information, go to college fairs, and make informal visits to colleges. Think about your child's aptitudes, interests, and abilities, and help your child view his/her interests and abilities in terms of possible college majors.

  7. Plan summer activities.

  8. Have your student update their activities list.

    11th Grade – How to Guide and Advise Your Junior

      The junior year is when students should seriously begin examining their college options. Juniors should take college tests, make college visits, and start searching for scholarships.

• 1. Continue to monitor academic progress. Since most college applications are completed in the fall of a student's senior year, the last grades on a student's transcript are usually his/her junior year grades. Junior year grades are, therefore, the most important grades in high school.

  2. Encourage involvement in activities and the development of leadership skills.

  3. Have your son or daughter register for the PSAT in October. The PSAT is a national test that's administered by high schools in October. It is divided into five sections: two Critical Reading, two Math and one Writing. College bound juniors should take the PSAT for the following reasons: It's, good practice for the SAT, It gives students an idea of how they will score on the SAT, Students can see how their academic skills compare to those of other college bound students, Students whose scores are exceptionally high are recognized by the National Merit Foundation. This recognition can lead to scholarships.

  4. Think about and explore college options. 

  5. Make sure your son or daughter registers for the ACT and/or the SAT early in the spring.

  6. Make college visits.

  7. Select courses for the 12th grade. In February of your student's junior year, review your child's four-year high school plan, and make sure that your child selects the most appropriate courses for his/her senior year. Encourage your student to think about taking an Advanced Placement (AP) or dual credit course if they have not already done so.

  8. Look for scholarships.

  9. Have your student update their activities list.

  10. Meet with the high school counselor to go over your child's record and to discuss college planning.

  11. Help choose meaningful activities for the summer.

  12. Narrow the list of college choices.

  13. Have your son or daughter establish an email address for them to use when communicating with colleges.

    12th Grade – How to Guide and Advise Your Senior

      The senior year is when everything comes together, and students see the rewards of their hard work and planning.

• 1. Continue to monitor academic progress.

  2. Continue to explore college options and set up a calendar for the year. Use this calendar to record test dates, application deadlines, college visitation days, etc.

  3. Have your son or daughter sign up for the ACT (September, October or December) or SAT (September, October, November) if necessary.

  4. Oversee completion of college applications.

  5. Complete financial aid and scholarship application forms. Information on financial aid. Remember the new FAFSA submission date is October 1st. Deadline is March 10th.

  6. Don't forget about the May 1 National College Decision Day, which is the date students must notify the college they plan to attend in order to guarantee their spot.