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Elk Grove Unified School District

MSATLife After High School Syllabus

School: Valley High School Room: C-7
Teacher: Ms. Sanford Email: kSanford@egusd.net
Class Website: www.sanfordscholars.weebly.com Phone: 916-689-6500 ext. 6554


Course Title: MSATLife After High School

Course Description
The purpose of the MSATLife After High School course is to prepare students for post-secondary success. This
new elective at Valley High School was designed to teach students fundamental skills they will need once they
graduate such as: interpersonal communication, creating a budget, learning about personal strengths and
weaknesses, and how to create short-term and long-term goals. The course embeds project-based learning to foster
student engagement and interest.

Course Objectives
Students will define the responsibilities of becoming an adult.
Students will learn the four areas of growth.
Students will create short-term and long-term goals
Students will practice interpersonal communication skills.
Students will learn how to solve conflict.
Students will generate a proposed budget that will reflect their future goals.
Students will engage in mock interviews and provide feedback to their peers.
Students will produce a transition portfolio that will include information on employment and careers.
Students will utilize a variety of multi-media to create and present their projects (i.e., PowerPoint, Virtual
Posters, audio/video recordings).

Classroom Expectations
Students are expected to adhere to the rules and guidelines of Elk Grove Unified School District as noted in the
Valley High School Student Handbook. It is expected that you will be prepared each day, excited to learn, and that
you will be an active participant in your education!

Behavior Expectations:
Be Prepared Be Positive Be Polite Be Punctual

Homework/Grade Expectations
One aspect of becoming a successful student is the ability to organize work and ensure that assignments are
turned in on time. It is your responsibility to ask for help with any class assignments prior to their due date.
If you are absent, you have three options to get the missed work:
Check the class website to download the assignment.
Make an appointment, either before or after school, to review your work/progress.
Ask a classmate to get the assignment to you.
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Tardies:
Should you arrive late to school, you must have a note signed by your parent/guardian, which you should
take to the office to get stamped prior to coming to class. Enter class quietly, and hand me your pass
before taking your seat.

Missed Assignments
Please be aware that all regular assignments must be completed in order to receive extra credit.

Make-up Work (Excused Absence):
You have three days to submit make-up work without a grading penalty, and it is due at the
beginning of the class period.
If work is turned in after three days, a 10% grading penalty will apply for each subsequent day late.
Missed presentations will need to be scheduled with Ms. Sanford.

Late Work:
Late work will be accepted up to the end of the month in which it was assigned, unless prior
arrangements have been made. For example, an assignment given on September 6
th
, and due on
September 9
th
, will not be considered late as long as it is turned in during September. This
accommodation has been implemented to allow students extra time to manage the myriad
assignments from their other courses.

Missed Tests or Quizzes:
Must be made up within one week before or after school. It is the students responsibility to make
arrangements to make up this work.

Late Work Passes:
At the beginning of each quarter students will receive 2 late work passes that may be used on
any minor assignments throughout the quarter. The passes will enable a student to turn in an
assignment anytime during the quarter for the possibility of full credit. Lost passes WI LL NOT be
replaced.
If a student does not use the passes, the complete privilege pass sheet may be turned in at the end of
the quarter for 20 extra credit pointsprovided that all outstanding work has been completed.

Passes Out of Class
Students will be allowed only two bathroom passes per quarter. Once the passes have been used,
students will not be allowed to leave class unless there is an emergency. Please plan accordingly.
If a student does not use the passes, they may be turned in at the end of the quarter for 20 points of
extra credit (see above).

Food and Drinks
Students are allowed to have something to drink in my classroom as long as it does not disrupt the
learning environment. If a student abuses this privilege, it may be taken away.
I do not allow food in my classroom unless it is for a project or in special circumstances.

Class Website
The purpose of the class website is to have a place where students can find the resources they will need
throughout the year. For access, go to: www.sanfordscholars.weebly.com
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Student Evaluation

Everyone starts out with an A.
Semester work comprises 80% of the course grade. Assessments account for the remaining 20%.
Grades are an evaluation of your current academic skill set. As such, it is unrealistic to expect an
A on every assignment.
Grades are based on skill masterynot effort.
Assignments not turned in on time will be entered as zeroes in School Loop until the assignment
has been turned in for credit.
Students will keep every assignment that is returned to them as part of their portfolio of work.
Students may be asked to re-do work in order to improve their grade. This is an opportunitynot
a punishment.

Below is a description of each letter grade and the percent of mastery needed to earn each grade:

A
Work completed is above and beyond what was expected. Student demonstrates mastery of
the assessed skill.
100% 90%
B
Work completed is of great quality. Student demonstrates a high proficiency of the assessed
skill.
89% - 80%
C
Work completed is of good quality. Student demonstrates proficiency of the assessed skill.

79% - 70%
D
Work completed is of okay quality. Student is working toward meeting the requirements of
the assessed skill.
69% - 60%
F
Work completed is of poor quality. Student needs to begin working toward meeting the
requirements of the assessed skill.
59%

o I view grades as a measure of how well a student is doing at any one point in time, which
means there can be opportunities to improve upon them.
o Students who have not mastered a skill are encouraged to resubmit a corrected copy of the
assignment.
o Any assignment that has been resubmitted must be turned in by the end of the current unit
of instruction.
o I encourage open dialogue about assignments, grades, and skill mastery so that students
understand what their mastery level is on any given skill set.

Grades are weighted as follows:

Percent Category
25% Participation
50% Assignments and Presentations
25% Transition Portfolio




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Final Thoughts

Students will be required to have many skills once they graduate high school above and beyond academic
content knowledge. Learning how to set goals, plan and keep a budget, communicate with a variety of
different people, and how to solve conflict are just a few of the skills students will need for post-
secondary success. To that end, this course will prepare students to strengthen their current skills and
refine any weaknesses as they consider their future prospects.

The assignments in this course have been chosen to engage students, incorporate technology, and provide
numerous opportunities for students to prepare for life after high school. Students will be expected to
work diligently, stretch their current academic skills sets, and be a true scholar, which means that the
learning may be challenging at times. That is to be expected! So, get ready, be excited, and lets journey
toward great things as we learn together.

Ms. Sanford
















Syllabus adapted from http://www.d300.org/~michellemarconi
Your time is limited, so don't waste it living
someone else's life. Don't let the noise of
others' opinions drown out your own inner
voice. And most important, have the
courage to follow your heart and intuition.

Steve Jobs