Frisco ISD

Four Year Plan


General information regarding high school
credits and plans

4x4

What counts?

The 4x4-
4x4- before we get started….

You need 26 credits
◦ 4 English
◦ 4 Math
◦ 4 Science
◦ 4 Social Studies
◦ 1 Fine Art
◦ 0.5 Speech
◦ 0.5 Health (except for Health Science / Pre-Med
Students)
◦ 1 Computer Technology Applications (watch your
careers on this one)
◦ 2 Foreign Language (same language)
◦ 1 Physical Education (football, baseball,
volleyball, golf, …count!)
(you have room
◦ At least 4 Elective Credits
for up to 10 Elective Credits)

4-year plans are just that—A PLAN! This is
not set in stone and can be changed anytime
you want to change it.

The purpose is to get you THINKING about

the classes you must take and the classes
you wish to take and how to fit them in over
4 years.

DO NOT FREAK OUT! Anything decided today

can change. ☺

4 year plans

PAP and AP – what is this?
◦ AP is college level, PAP is high school advanced level and
gets you ready for AP.
◦ AP classes have AP tests. The tests can earn you college
credit.

Plan carefully- Plan backwards for CTE programs. Use

the CTE worksheet to help you make your plan.

Use the course guide- The course guide is on the

school website. This is how you learn what a class is about.
Go to www.friscoisd.org under View Course Descriptions (see
green course selections sheet).

Stuff to know…

Three documents to help you plan…

CTE planning worksheet (gold)

4-year plan (light blue)
◦ 9th and 10th are on one side
◦ 11th and 12th on the other side

Class choices (light green)
◦ 9-10 classes are on one side
◦ 11-12 classes are on the other side

Your handouts…
 The Four Core- Choose regular or PAP or AP

9th grade 10th grade 11th grade 12th grade

English 1 English 2 English 3 English 4 or
or or or AP English or
PAP English 1 PAP English 2 AP English Dual Credit
(college)English

ENGLISH
 The Four Core- Choose regular or PAP or AP

9th grade 10th grade 11th grade 12th grade

*Algebra or Geometry or Algebra 2 or Precalculus or
PAP Algebra PAP Geometry PAP Algebra 2 PAP Precalculus
OR
** Geometry or Algebra 2 or Precalculus or AP Calculus or
PAP Geometry PAP Algebra 2 PAP Precalculus AP Statistics
(if you are in
Alg 1 right now)

MATH
 The Four Core- Choose regular or PAP or AP

9th grade 10th grade 11th grade 12th grade

Biology or PAP Chemistry or PAP Physics or PAP Any science-
pick one

AP Biology
Food Science
AP Chemistry Forensic Science (watch prerequisites)
AP Environmental Science Advanced Animal Science (watch
AP Physics B prerequisites)
AP Physics C Advanced Plant and Soil Science (watch
Anatomy and Physiology prerequisites)
Aquatics Medical Microbiology (0.5 credit ~
Earth and Space Science watch prerequisites)
Environmental Systems Pathophysiology (0.5 credit ~ watch
prerequisites)

SCIENCE
 The Four Core- Choose regular or AP

9th grade 10th grade 11th grade 12th grade

World World History US History Government
Geography or or and Economics
or AP World AP US History Or AP
AP Human History Or Dual Credit
Geography

SOCIAL STUDIES
If you play a Sport, write your sport in TWO boxes all four
years. If you play lots of sports, just pick the sport that
happens first in the year. EX. Football players who also
play basketball will just write Football.

If you are in Band write band in TWO boxes all four years.
Most band students double block; if you single block it goes
in one box all four years.

If you want to be in Color Guard, write color guard in one box

all four years.

If you want to be on the Drill/Dance team, write dance team

in one box all four years.

PE Requirement

If you are not in band, color guard, drill/dance team,
or athletics, you will take dance or PE.

For Dance, write Dance on your card in one box one

time. You can take additional years of dance for
elective credit if you want. If you are an athlete, you
cannot add Dance for elective credit.

For PE, write one of these in one box, one time on

your card:
◦ Personal Fitness- healthy living, has a book part (1 full
year)
◦ Aerobics- just what it says..aerobic activity (1 full year)
◦ Team Sports- this class is sports for fun, like Volleyball and
Basketball and Soccer OR
◦ Weightlifting- you work in the weight room on the machines
(1 full year of Team Sports OR Weightlifting)

PE

Now add in your Foreign Language
◦ Choose from Spanish, French, ASL (sign
language) or Chinese.

If you are in your second year of middle school
Spanish put Spanish 2 in 9th grade!

You need 2 years in a row of the same foreign
language.

You need 3 years in a row for the distinguished
achievement plan.

Colleges really like to see 3 years!

Foreign Language

Now add in your Health and Speech requirements.
• Both of these go in the SAME box as they last one semester each. Most
students take this in 9th grade.
◦ If you took health in 8th grade, don’t put this on your card.
◦ You can take these classes in summer school if you want.

If you are interested in the Health Science program at CTE,

you can take health science 1 instead of health, but you
must first take medical terminology and biology.
◦ Health science lasts for a full year, so it needs its own box. You must be
in 10th grade or older to take health science.
◦ Medical terminology last only half a year so it needs a buddy class, like
speech.
 Med term and speech>health science 1>health science 2 (double blocked)

Health and Speech


Now choose your Fine Art and place it on
your plan.
◦ You can choose from the following:
Art, Theater, Technical Theater (requires application),
Band, Choir, Dance, Floral Design (10th), Digital Graphics
and Animation, Orchestra, Music Theory, AP Art History
(10th)

It is OK to take band, choir, art, orchestra and

theater for all 4 years if you want, but you only
have to take a fine art for one year.

FINE ART

Now choose your Technology Credit and place it
on your card

Choose from:
◦ BIM- Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access
◦ DIM- Photoshop
◦ DGA- Animation
◦ Computer Science- Programming class (Alg 1 prereq)
◦ Computer Maintenance- The insides of a machine
◦ TV Broadcast- filming and editing
◦ Yearbook (requires application)
◦ Intro to Engineering- beginning engineer class at CTE,
but you have to finish Alg 1 first
◦ Architectural Design- at CTE, has prerequisite

TECHNOLOGY

Now look at the open boxes and fill in your Electives. Electives
are classes you elect or choose to take. You can pick anything
you want! Think about classes you would like to try or classes
that might be related to your career choice down the road.

CTE classes have a pathway or an order to them.

◦ Use the gold CTE flyer as a guide. Plan backwards!

Look at the light green course selection handout to see what

year you can take the different classes. Be careful here.

Use the course guide on the web to see what the classes are
about.

Electives

Fine Art – 1.0 (Band may be single or
double blocked – if double blocked it is 2
credits)

Communication Applications (speech) 0.5

Health 0.5

PE 1.0 (sport teams will be double
blocked – which is 2 periods – but will
count for only 1 credit)

Computer Tech 1.0

Foreign Language 2.0 for Recommended
and 3.0 for DAP

Electives: between 10-13.5 (depending
on DAP and/or what you took in middle
school)

Communication Applications 0.5
(grade 9-12 or even as summer school
course)

Speech – Need 0.5 credit


Health in middle school for high school credit
= 0.5 credit

Health 0.5 credit

Students wanting to study medicine / health

science need to take Health Science
(earliest available is 10th grade) for 1.0 credit
– AND this is a prerequisite to participating
in Health Science at CTE Center

Health – Need 0.5 credit


French I

French II or Pre AP French II

French III or Pre AP French III (DAP diploma)

Spanish I

Spanish II or Pre AP Spanish II

Spanish III or Pre AP Spanish III (DAP diploma)

American Sign Language I – note that not all colleges

accept ASL as a foreign language – check with your
college choices!

American Sign Language II

American Sign Language III (DAP diploma)

Foreign Languages (2-

(2-3 yrs)
Each Physical Education course is one
semester in length which equals to 0.5
credits – available from 9th grade and up
(except Partner’s PE)

Foundations of Personal Fitness

Aerobic Fitness I & II

Individual Sports / Team I & II

Weight Lifting Conditioning I & II

Partner’s PE – Application Needed (grades
10-12 only)
Physical Education – Need 1 Credit

BIM I (Business Information Management) – grades 9-12

Broadcast I & II – grades 9-12 (sequence of 2 courses)

Computer Maintenance – grades 9-12 – (must have
completed Algebra I or PAP Algebra I)

Computer Science – grades 9-12 (must have completed
Algebra I or PAP Algebra I)

Digital Graphics and Animation – grades 9-12 – (will
also count as Fine Arts credit requirement for graduation)

Digital and Interactive Media – grades 9-12

Introduction to Engineering & Principles of
Engineering & either Aerospace Engineering or Civil
Engineering or Digital Engineering – grades 9-12 –
(sequence of 3 courses – must complete Algebra I to
begin series)

Web Technologies – grades 10-12

Yearbook I & II – grades 10-12 (sequence of 2 courses)

Computer Technology Application

– Need 1.0 credit

THESE blue 4-year plans are due THIS
FRIDAY to your ILA teacher.

They MUST BE completed in pencil,

completely filled out, and SIGNED BY A
PARENT/GUARDIAN.

Love,
Your counselors