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Freshman Seminar

“Nuts and Bolts”

What Freshman Seminar is really about!

You will meet in your Freshman Seminar once every week, usually for 30-45 minutes. 

Every week, your Freshman Seminar teacher will be checking your grades and missing assignments. If you have low grades (D/F) or missing assignments, you will be required to attend a monitored study table after for the remaining Freshman Seminar period. If you do not have low grades or missing assignments, the rest of the period is yours!

If a student has multiple weeks with missing assignments and/or low grades, then they will be referred to counseling and possible a required Study Table each day.

You are required to attend every week with your Planner, Homework and a book.  Attendance is taken.

Freshman Seminar is considered a class and you will receive credit for passing.

Freshman Seminar is designed to be a place for you to connect with your Freshman Seminar teacher, the LINK leaders assigned to your group and Fairview High School.

Your Freshman Seminar teacher is a resource person for academic support or social concerns.

Freshman Seminar is a place for you to learn about and be encouraged to participate in school activities, clubs, and sports.

Freshman Seminar will cover a variety of topics to help you transition to high school as well as learn skills and habits that can help you be academically successful in high school.

Remember: Always bring your student planners, a book and any homework you have.

Each Quarter there will be a different theme for the Freshman Seminar Program.

     First Quarter: Getting the Resources for Success

     Second Quarter: Self-Evaluation

     Third Quarter: Planning for the Future

     Fourth Quarter: Check in only.  Study Table continues.

 FRESHMEN NEWSLETTER
August1.pdfAugust1Robert Vandepol Jr

 Announcements
Sept. 4th: Freshmen Football BBQ 
by Robert Vandepol Jr		 8/27/2008 11:41 AM
 
Week 2 of Seminar 
by Robert Vandepol Jr		 8/26/2008 9:09 PM
 

Freshmen seminar is a course designed to promote a successful transition between middle school and high school.  Taught by Fairview High School teachers, the course provides students with opportunities for academic enrichment and assistance, as well as the chance to improve organizational and communication skill.  Since every freshman is in a seminar class, and the classes are smaller, it gives us the perfect venue for sharing information, touching base with goals and grades, and participating in common school activities.   In addition, part of the course is dedicated future planning and course selection.

Research has shown that students feel the way their teachers treat them as people has the greatest influence on their attachment to the school and their belief in their own academic future (McLaughlin). The relationships developed in freshman seminar help to cultivate a school where teachers know students as learners and individuals, creating an environment that fosters high student achievement.

Freshman seminar goals   

  • Provide opportunities for new 9th graders to connect to an adult (the Freshman Seminar leader) to peer mentors (LINK Leaders) and to the school.
  • Support the habit of studying and accessing the supports Fairview offers.
  • Teach the concrete behaviors needed to be successful learners:
  • Attending regularly
  • Doing homework
  • Learning how to study
  •  Using time well
  • Understanding one's own needs and style as a learner
  • Knowing how the credit system works
  • Knowing how to access support and solve problems within the school
  • Teach crucial social skills for navigating the choppy waters of high school. This means dealing with peer pressure around sexual contact and substance use.
  • Encourage participation in school clubs and activities.
  • Promote ethical behavior and effective problem solving.
  • Introduce equity issues and teach how to be an appropriate member of a diverse community.
  • Teach effective communication skills for use with adults and peers.

All incoming 9th graders are required to attend all Freshman Seminar classes and will receive credit for doing so.

Freshman Seminar could include, but not limited to, the following topics:

  •  Getting to know the school
  • Infinite Campus / School & Teacher Web-sites
  • Academic Success / Study Skills
  • Clubs, sports and activities at Fairview High School
  • Resources available to students at Fairview High School
  • Safety, alcohol and drugs
  • Time and stress management
  • Diversity
  • Course selection 
  •  Future planning 
  •  Connections