STUDENT ENGAGEMENT:

As students prepare to transition to high school, they’ll eventually be looking at selecting the classes to put them on the path to earning a diploma. While they will certainly have assistance in doing this, there’s also benefit in students becoming acquainted with the courses offered, Indiana’s diploma options and the specific pathways from which they can choose in high school. Much of this unit is structured around the students’ specific high school course guide and is designed to help them better understand their options and to become better advocates for themselves as they transition to high school and through their next four years. Some high school course guides can be found here:

 

Muncie Central High School 

Marion High School 
Mississinewa High School 

 

Begin by asking students to navigate to their school’s curriculum guide. Explain to the students that much of the work they will be doing in this unit will be tied to this guide. It may be a good idea to have students bookmark the link. Ask the students if someone can explain what a “scavenger hunt” is. Build on students’ answers and make sure that students understand that the for the purposes of today’s scavenger hunt showing where you find the answers (page numbers) is just as important as finding the right answer. Today the students are going to engage in creating and participating in a scavenger hunt based upon this curriculum guide.

 

Begin with a few examples of how this might work. Ask the class for a specific examples of information that can be found in the curriculum guide and explain that you want to see who can find it and raise their hand first. While you can choose any information that you would like students to look for, a few examples might include:

 

• Find a Science course that is only recommended for 12th graders.

• How many PE credits must a I complete to earn a diploma?

• What are the three examples of Advanced Placement classes offered?

 

If students have trouble finding one or more of the pieces of information that they are asked for, walk them through the process of searching. “Is there anything in the table of contents that can help? What about section headings? How about bulleted items? Can they help?”

 

DIGGING IN:

Once students have had an ample amount of time to experience how a book scavenger hunt might work, take some time to give them an overview of the curriculum guide. In this overview, make sure to highlight the different sections of the curriculum guide and the material that each contains:

 

Table of Contents - The table of contents and will be the most important tool in navigating the information in the guide.

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Graduation Requirements - This includes different diploma options and information about graduation pathways and seals.

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Advance Placement - AP courses are rigorous, college-level courses designed to help high school students prepare for success is college.

 

Weighted Courses - Weighted courses are more difficult classes (such as dual credit or AP) that give additional grade points on a 5.0 scale.

 

Classes, Credits and Grading - These sections often cover a wide range of information including Advanced Placement classes, honors classes, earning credits, early graduation, grading, and extracurricular eligibility.

 

Course Catalog - This section includes a full breakdown and description of every single class available to take. In this section, make sure to do a deeper dive on one specific class to examine how classes are listed. Pay specific attention to understanding what “recommended grade” might mean, and defining “prerequisite” (both recommended and required).

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INTO ACTION:

Once the students have had an opportunity to get more acquainted with the curriculum guide, explain that they will be creating their own scavenger hunt based on the guide. They will need to include items from each of the specific sections of the guide, but can make their own choice regarding what they want to challenge their “hunters” to find. Students should ONLY complete the left hand side of their paper while building their scavenger hunt. The right side of the paper should be left for their “hunters” to complete after they have finished building their scavenger hunt.

 

Explain that it is okay for them to create challenging tasks for their “hunters.” Sometimes a question can be more challenging than a statement. For example: “Find the two Theatre classes that aren’t recommended for Freshmen” is an okay option, but “How many Theatre classes are not recommended for 9th graders” might be more challenging.

 

Once students have had a chance to build their scavenger hunts, ask them to pair up with another student and exchange papers. Have the students complete one anothers’ scavenger hunt forms. Remind them to include both the answer and the page number/s on the lines provided.