dd has several questions about 9th grade public school

[Jeannie in NJ]

my dd may be going to a vo-tech high school next year. She asked me to post her questions on here as it has been way too long since I was in high school .

 

How many classes in a day and about how long is each one?

 

Do kids have study hall? She is really worried about all the huge amount of homework that some kids have.

 

Is PE class every day? She is not excited about having PE

 

How are College Prep and Honors classes differ

 

Can anyone do dual enrollment during their jr. and sr. years with community college?

 

I think that is all for now, thanks in advance for your answers.

[tibbyl]

my dd may be going to a vo-tech high school next year. She asked me to post her questions on here as it has been way too long since I was in high school .

 

How many classes in a day and about how long is each one?

 

Do kids have study hall? She is really worried about all the huge amount of homework that some kids have.

 

Is PE class every day? She is not excited about having PE

 

How are College Prep and Honors classes differ

 

Can anyone do dual enrollment during their jr. and sr. years with community college?

 

I think that is all for now, thanks in advance for your answers.

 

My child's public school day has 6 classes that are about 50 minutes each with a few minutes between classes and a woefully short 20 minute lunchbreak. You can make one of your classes study hall. Some studies prefer working in office or library for a period.

 

Our state sadly now requires only one year of "Wellness" which is half health and half P.E. P.E. is coed these days.

 

College prep and honors classes at our school just cover a little more and move a little faster. Generally speaking, your peers in honors classes MAY conduct themselves more appropriately per my kiddo.

 

Yes, you can do dual enrollment in community college in grades 10-12 here. For 11th and 12th graders the state will pay a $300 grant per semester for one class.

[Jodi-FL]

My kids have 7 classes (only 6 are required) and each class is 50 minutes long

 

Our high school does not have study hall. if you take 6 classes instead of 7, you come to school an hour later in the morning. homework is totally dependent on the individual teacher. one of my kids has teachers that allow for some class time to do homework. one of my others has homework in almost every class almost every night. my 3rd one has a mixture of both.

 

yes, they have PE every day. but there is some book work (tests, etc) so they don't dress out every day and it's only for half the year

 

 

How are College Prep and Honors classes differ at our high school, they are the same. it's the honors and AP classes that are different. the honors classes are for the more academic (read: well behaved/college bound)

 

 

Can anyone do dual enrollment during their jr. and sr. years with community college? yes, as long as they pass the CC entrance exam. our kids guidance counselor recommended that unless they knew they were going to a state college, to go with AP courses instead (of course, they get more money based on kids enrolled in AP classes rather than dual enrolled)

[elizam]

Here in NC my ds is in tenth grade PS. I am not happy with it and I don't see where he really is, either, but that is a whole different story.

 

4 classes per semester, 1 1/2 hrs each

 

no study hall

 

not much homework, and the little he has is usually in math

 

he is not in honors or AP classes, and most of the kids in his classes are bad, make bad grades, etc. and have no plans for higher education. They are the low income kids and the p*t smokers. Sorry...just calling it as I see it.

 

Ds isn't a dumb kid, but he has ADHD and slow processing and typical schooling does not bring out his strengths. Ironically, people often think he is smart, and when he was homeschooled many assumed he was very bright, if not gifted. But he tests "average" and makes poor grades.

 

The one thing I think is good about his school is they offer "reateach retest" so you don't *have to* fail math or English or any other subjects that you have to pass to graduate. If you have the initiative to get help, they will help you.

[JFSinIL]

 

How many classes in a day and about how long is each one?

-We have 8 50 minute classes per day. One of those is lunch, of course!

 

Do kids have study hall? She is really worried about all the huge amount of homework that some kids have.

 

- Due to $$$ issues freshman here HAVE to take a study hall instead of an elective. For older kids study hall is optional. Depends if you have time to take it - if you want to go to college you may prefer to cram in more electives etc. that look good when applying to college instead of a study hall. Most kids talk and goof off in study hall here.

 

Is PE class every day? She is not excited about having PE

- mandatory everyday for all four years of high school

 

How are College Prep and Honors classes differ

- in our district we have regular or Honors or AP classed. Honors and AP are harder and graded harder. but the jerks tend not to take them - so they are a great place for former homeschool kids to hang out!!!

 

Can anyone do dual enrollment during their jr. and sr. years with community college?

- depend on the school district.

We are in Illinois.

I think that is all for now, thanks in advance for your answers.

 

Is that enough info?

[LizzyBee]

my dd may be going to a vo-tech high school next year. She asked me to post her questions on here as it has been way too long since I was in high school .

 

How many classes in a day and about how long is each one?

 

Do kids have study hall? She is really worried about all the huge amount of homework that some kids have.

 

Is PE class every day? She is not excited about having PE

 

How are College Prep and Honors classes differ

 

Can anyone do dual enrollment during their jr. and sr. years with community college?

 

I think that is all for now, thanks in advance for your answers.

 

My dd has 7 classes and I think they are about 50 minutes long.

 

PE is required only for 9th grade. They have PE 3 terms and health 1 term.

 

I think what used to be called College Prep is now Honors. AP is college level.

 

In NC, anyone 16 yo and up can do dual enrollment tuition-free if they pass the placement tests. Dual enrollment students cannot take remedial classes. Younger kids can do the gifted minors program, but they don't get the free tuition.

[BabyBre]

Ds's public high school has a strange schedule. There are 6 classes but the schedule is such that they only go to 4 or 5 most days and they alternate.

 

No study hall, but not much homework, even for honors classes. *sigh*

 

PE is every day (or most days with the crazy schedule), but it's only for 1 semester. They take Health in the other semester.

 

Honors classes at our school are harder (I think they're typically a grade ahead) and they're made up of kids who want to be there more. I heard from more than one of ds's honors teachers that there is a huge difference in the kids that make up honors classes vs. regular level classes.

 

We don't have "college prep" classes, but we have AP (advanced placement) classes for which you can take a test at the instructor's discretion to receive college credit for the class. These aren't available to freshmen in our ps, but ds just began one as a sophomore.

 

Running Start is available to Juniors and Seniors. That's where they spend their time in actual college classes on the college campus instead of at the high school...for free! Can't wait!

[Tabrett]

my dd may be going to a vo-tech high school next year. She asked me to post her questions on here as it has been way too long since I was in high school .

 

How many classes in a day and about how long is each one?

 

My dd has 6 classes a day but P.E. and chorus are A/B days. So she has a total of 7 classes. Each class is about 50 mins. Upper class men have a block schedule where they take 4 classes a semester 2 academic classes for about 1 hour 40 mins and 2 non academic classes on an A/B day schedule that are 50 mins. Really confusing!

 

Do kids have study hall? She is really worried about all the huge amount of homework that some kids have.

 

She does not have a study hall and has 3-4 hours of homework per night. Also, she has about 6 hour of homework each weekend.

 

Is PE class every day? She is not excited about having PE

 

PE is every other day at my dd's school. They only have to take it for 1 year.

 

How are College Prep and Honors classes differ

 

My dd's classes are all "honors". The divisions of classes at her schools are-College/Tech Prep-Honors-Advance Placement. Notice there are no "General Ed." classes. They renamed the classes to the above. College/Tech Prep classes are worth a maximum of 4 points while Honors and AP classes are worth 6 points. AP is really just one grade ahead for example: if you are in AP English 9th grade you are really taking 10 grade Honors English and are going to be able to take college classes your senior year at the tech school.

 

Can anyone do dual enrollment during their jr. and sr. years with community college?

 

Yes. If they have finished taking all the required general ed classes to graduate (refer to my last answer).

 

I'm in S.C.

 

I think that is all for now, thanks in advance for your answers.

nt

[Zanyan]

These answers totally depend on the school, and the school district that your dd may attend. When my formerly homeschooled son decided he wanted to go to high school, he investigated the 3 public high schools he had easy admission to (in the district, or agreement with the district), and all of them were different! Different scheduling schemes, study hall availability, etc.

 

My son, a freshman, chose a small charter high school and has block scheduling. He has 6 classes this semester. He has 3 classes per day, each 90 minutes with a 40 minute lunch break, and 5 minute breaks between classes. (The school is so small they only have 5 classrooms, so 5 minutes is enough time to get from one class to the next!). They have the A/B day scheme. Fridays alternate between A/B days, and on those days the classes are 60 minutes long each. Some kids have 4 classes one day, and 2 classes the next M-Th, and alternate 4 classes and 2 classes on Fridays - it just depends on which classes they're taking!

 

He gets to school at 8:30 and leaves at 1:30 M-Th, which is ideal for him, because he's dysgraphic and homework takes extra time for him. They do not have a formal study hall, but because of the block scheduling, the kids have more time during their regular days to get their homework done than most high school kids do.

 

They do not have P.E. classes at their school, rather, they have to fill out "contracts" stating that they participated in approved physical activities for 4 hours per week. I think they have to do this for 2 years.

 

All classes at his high school are considered "college prep" except they do offer a pre-algebra class to kids who need it, and that doesn't qualify as "college prep." The kids have to meet the University of California entrance requirements in order to graduate. For Honors classes, they offer several APs, and kids are encouraged to take classes at the excellent local community college when they are juniors/seniors.

 

So far, my son only has about 1 - 2 hours per day of homework, but I can tell that the homework load is beginning to ratchet up. :001_smile:

 

Edited to add: Each of my son's classes lasts the entire year. His school does not have the block scheduling scheme where each class lasts only a semester. The only exception to that is the completion of the health/technology requirement: One semester of health, then one semester of technology.