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January 2016

WHS GUIDANCE NEWS Happy New Year!

Winter in Guidance is always an exciting time. Seniors are beginning to hear back from schools they applied to in the fall and others are finalizing their lists for January deadlines. Juniors are working on some college and career exploration in Advisory and will soon be receiving their PSAT scores. Sophomores are preparing for the March MCAS and our freshmen are settling into life at Watertown High School. As quarter 2 winds to a close, all students are beginning to think about midterm exams (or final exams in half year classes). Tutoring in the library is available after school for all students every Monday through Thursday from 2:30-4:00PM. There is a faculty or staff member available to help as well as National Honor Society students willing to tutor in a variety of subject areas. A little extra help before midterms can really make a difference on test day! In Guidance we are in the planning stages for our first Guidance Night, an evening where students and families will have the opportunity to attend several workshops geared towards helping students navigate high school life. Keep an eye out for more details!

Save the Date! Wednesday, February 24, 6PM Guidance Night: Workshops to Help Everyone Navigate the High School Years Students and families will have the opportunity to attend three different workshops over the course of the evening on a variety of topics from managing stress to understanding the differences between the SAT and the ACT to understanding online/digital safety. Stay tuned for more information!

We look forward to seeing you and your students in 2016!

PSAT Score Distribution CollegeBoard has notified schools that score reports for the PSATs will be available online on January 7. After scores have been released electronically, paper copies of the score reports will be sent to the Guidance office at the end of January/early February. Students will be given several opportunities to learn about interpreting their PSAT scores in Advisory, at an optional after school info session, through meeting with their guidance counselor, and through a narrated power point that will be posted online.

a number of sections to the PSAT score report that can be helpful to students. They include: •

It is important to remind students that the PSATs are a practice for the real SATs. The best preparation for the actual SATs can come from using the PSAT results and • the tools that come along with those results. There are

Test Subscores – This section shows students how they did on different parts of the test – did they have a good mastery of problem solving but struggle with some of the Algebra questions? Did they understand how to use evidence but struggle with words in context? This is helpful for students as they prepare for the SAT – they can then focus their studying and preparation on the sections that were challenging on the PSATs. Your Scores: Next Steps – This section highlights Continued on page 2

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January 2016

PSAT Score Distribution Continued from page 1

of questions that they got wrong. Were they mostly easy questions that the student may have rushed through or are they some of the more difficult ones that might need some additional review?

what concepts they already seem to have a handle on based on their test results. It then offers suggestions on things they can do to improve their skills. •

Question-Level Feedback – This provides the answers to all of the multiple-choice questions on the test alongside the student’s answer and the level of difficulty of the question. This section can be helpful to students who want to go back to the test booklet (they will get this returned to them) and see the questions they got wrong. It is also useful in analyzing the types

In addition to these resources, each student is given an access code to the CollegeBoard website. With this code, students can access additional resources, practice tests, and test preparation materials for free. CollegeBoard has recently partnered with Kahn Academy to provide even more individualized test preparation opportunities and supports to students at no cost. All of this

information can be accessed at www.sat.org/practice. Students planning to take the SATs should remember that the redesigned SAT will be administered for the first time in March 2015. Scores for this test will not be made available until mid-May. Students are also reminded that there is another test option other than the SAT – the ACT. This test is not newly redesigned and a number of resources are available to help prepare for the test. Whichever test students choose to take for college admissions purposes, a little preparation can go a long way!

Junior Year – Now What? It is around this time of year when we in Guidance begin fielding questions from juniors and their parents. “What should we be doing?” “Are we behind?” “My child has no idea what s/he wants to do – help!” It is also this time of year when we in Guidance are gearing up for junior Guidance classes, individual junior meetings, and junior College Planning Night. To help everyone feel a little less worried as we start the new year, here are a few things that you and your junior student can be doing in the coming weeks: •

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Check out Naviance. This is a great starting off point for students who aren’t quite sure what they’d like to do

after high school. There is a Career Interest Inventory for students to take that will highlight possible career interests as well as a college search tool that matches student interests with schools. •

Make a list. For students who aren’t quite sure what they are looking for in a school, making a list of “must-haves” can be helpful. Is there a particular major that the school must have? Does the size of the school matter? How about the location? Are there clubs or activities that you hope to continue at the school? How will the cost of the

school factor into your decision? From there, students can conduct college searches with narrowed down parameters on Naviance. •

Make a February vacation plan. February vacation is the perfect time to visit schools since they are still in session – develop a list of places to visit and schedule a visit!

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Think about the SAT/ACT. Many 4-year schools will require one test – check out some practice tests online to decide which test you’ll plan to take and when.

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January 2016

Financial Aid Resources for Seniors January brings both the beginning of a new year and the start of the financial aid application process for seniors. Students planning to attend any type of post-secondary school program should consider applying for financial aid and scholarships. Financial aid is done through the federal government’s financial aid website, www.fafsa.gov (this is a free site – if you find that you are being asked to pay for submitting this, don’t! You may be on the wrong site). There are plenty of places to go for help completing the FAFSA. One event of note is FAFSA Day, held on January 31 at 1:00PM at schools and community centers

around the state. Staff at these events will help you work through the FAFSA and answer your questions. We strongly encourage students and families to consider attending one of these events if they find that they are struggling with the application process. These events are free, but registration is often required. Visit www.fafsaday.org for information, locations, and to register! Some schools may also require that students complete the CSS

Profile. Be sure to check each school to find out what they require and submit it by the appropriate deadline. Lists of scholarships can be found on the Guidance News Website in the scholarship section. In addition, the Watertown Scholarship Booklet will be distributed in mid-March to all seniors. These scholarships are specific to Watertown students and are definitely worth applying to! Other search engines like Fastweb.com also offer scholarship searches that students may find helpful. Be sure to pay attention to deadlines!

Don’t forget! All students are required to complete 36 hours of community service prior to graduation. Students will need to have their hours confirmed by a supervisor at the volunteer site. Verification forms can be found in Guidance or on Mrs. Hoffman’s door (room 256) and must be returned to Mrs. Hoffman in room 256. Stay tuned for information about our annual Service Fair highlighting many of the local organizations that welcome WHS volunteers. It’s never too early to start working on those hours!

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January 2016

Upcoming Events and Important Dates No School – Monday, January 18 Professional Development Day (No School for Students) – Tuesday, January 19 SAT Testing (WHS is not a test site) – Saturday, January 23 Midterm Exams – Tuesday, January 26 – Friday, January 29 Start of 3rd Quarter – Monday, February 1 MCAS Biology Retest – Monday, February 1 – Tuesday, February 2 Coffee with the Principal & Guidance – Thursday, February 4 ACT Testing (WHS is not a test site) – Saturday, February 6 Junior Guidance Classes – Week of February 8 Junior College Planning Night – Thursday, February 11, 6-7:30PM 2nd Quarter Report Cards Distributed – Friday, February 12 Guidance Night – Wednesday, February 24, 6PM

Watertown High School Guidance Department Guidance News Website (visit for the most up to date Guidance information): https://sites.google.com/a/watertown.k12.ma.us/whs-guidance/ Dr. Barbara Gortych, K-12 Coordinator of Guidance, Mental Health & Assessment [email protected] Dr. Katja Baker, Guidance Counselor [email protected] Adrienne Eaton, Lead Guidance Counselor [email protected] Jaimie Leonard, Guidance Counselor [email protected] Lindsy Orpen, Guidance Counselor [email protected] Kim Osborne, Guidance Counselor [email protected] Linda Tracy, Guidance Secretary [email protected]

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