The AVID Curriculum

9th Grade

The ninth grade AVID Elective course will serve as a review of the AVID philosophy and strategies. Students will work on academic and personal goals and communication, adjusting to the high school setting. Students will increase awareness of their personal contributions to their learning, as well as their involvement in their school and community. There is an emphasis on analytical writing, focusing on personal goals and thesis writing. Students will work in collaborative settings, learning how to participate in collegial discussions and use sources to support their ideas and opinions. Students will prepare for and participate in college entrance and placement exams, while refining study skills and test-taking, note-taking, and research techniques. They will take an active role in field trip and guest speaker preparations and presentations. Their college research will include financial topics and building their knowledge on colleges and careers of interest. All AVID 9 students are required to utilize Cornell Notes in their academic classes.

10th Grade

During the tenth grade AVID Elective course, students will refine the AVID strategies to meet their independent needs and learning styles. Students will continue to refine and adjust their academic learning plans and goals, increasing awareness of their actions and behaviors. As students increase the rigorous course load and school/community involvement, they will refine their time management and study skills accordingly. Students will expand their writing portfolio to include: analyzing prompts, supporting arguments and claims, character analysis and detailed reflections. Students will also analyze various documents, in order to participate in collaborative discussions and develop leadership skills in those settings. Students will expand their vocabulary use, continuing to prepare for college entrance exams and preparation. Text analysis will focus on specific strategies to understand complex texts. Lastly, students will narrow down their college and careers of interest, based on personal interests and goals.

11th Grade

The eleventh grade AVID Elective course is the first part in a junior/senior seminar course that focuses on writing and critical thinking expected of first- and second-year college students. In addition to the academic focus of the AVID seminar, there are college-bound activities, methodologies and tasks that should be undertaken during the junior year to support students as they apply to four-year universities and confirm their postsecondary plans. Activities include accessing their Naviance accounts, performing applicable college searches, a college fair project, preparation for college entrance exams, a research paper, and a service-learning project. In addition students will draft their resumes and college essays based on the common application prompts.

12th Grade

The AVID Elective twelfth grade course is the second part in a junior/senior seminar course that focuses on writing and critical thinking expected of first- and second-year college students. Students will complete a final research essay project from research conducted in their junior year in AVID. In addition to the academic focus of the AVID senior seminar, there are college-bound activities, methodologies and tasks that should be achieved during the senior year that support students as they apply to four-year universities and confirm their postsecondary plans. Students will spend a majority of their time finalizing drafts of their resumes and essays, as well as complete their applications and in-house paperwork. Once applications are complete, our focus will change to financial aid. FAFSA, CSS Profile forms and scholarships will be completed. Once acceptance and financial aid packages begin rolling in, we will evaluate those packages and help the student decide on which 4-year post secondary school to decide to attend