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Senior Seminar

Course Description

PACING GUIDE 

 

One 9 Weeks .5 credit Course 

 

Week 1: What’s Your Why? Getting to Know You + Your Goals 

TASKS  

  • Introduction 
  • Student Goals Form 
  • Credit Checks to Identify Deficiencies 
  • My Next Move  

 

Day 1 - Introduction 

  • Syllabus Review + Teacher Introduction 
  • M+M Game 
  • Questions 
  • Red: What are your plans after high school? 
  • Blue: What is your favorite thing about school? 
  • Yellow: What are you looking forward to for your senior year? 
  • Brown: What are you worried about for your senior year? 
  • Green: Where do you see yourself after senior year? 
  • Orange: Wild Card – Choose one of the questions 
  • Senior 2024 Goals - GRADE 
  • Link to Duplicate 
  • You can transfer answers to Excel spreadsheet to keep on file for your students  

Day 2 – TN Promise 

  • TN Promise 
  • See College Usernames Worksheet for students to record usernames and passwords 
  • Put in student folder  
  • Link to apply: 
  • Students will need the following information:  
  • Student’s First Name and Last Name – as it appears on the Social Security card 
  • Student’s Social Security Number – as it appears on the Social Security card 
  • Student’s Date of Birth 
  • Student’s email address (if available) - THEC/TSAC strongly encourages students to provide a personal email address, rather than a school-issued email address. 
  • * If students have taken Dual Enrollment in the past, they already have a TSAC account, and students just need to bring your TSAC account log-in information. 

Days 3-5 – Graduating High School 

  • LA Graduation Requirements – GRADE (with Grad Requirements Checklist) 
  • Review with the class  
  • Fill out the front page of the worksheet “Do You Know What it Takes to Graduate?” 
  • Graduation Requirements Checklist - GRADE 
  • Using this and the student’s transcripts, students will review their courses/credits 
  • Look for… 
  • Any missing credits 
  • Courses still needed to graduate  
  • Please try to complete one-on-one with students  
  • Place completed checklist in student portfolio 
  • My Next Move- GRADE 
  • O-Net Link https://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip  
  • Students will follow along with directions on worksheet to complete the O-Net Interest Inventory 
  • Using the results of the O-Net Inventory, students will research careers based upon their interests 
  • Students will work on this while you are reviewing transcripts individually 

 

Week 2 – Graduating High School (cont.)/Skills for College + Career Success 

Tasks 

  • Career Path Personality Match 
  • Resume Building Worksheet 
  • Resume 

 

Days 1-3 – Transcript Review (cont.)/My Next Move  

  • Teachers continue to review transcripts with students  
  • Students not working on transcripts will be working on My Next Move assignment  

Day 4 - Resume Introduction 

  • Career Path Personality Match - GRADE 
  • Students will read many words that could be used to describe their personality 
  • You may have to help define some of these words to students  
  • After students are finished, they will synthesize their information to determine whether they’re an Organizer, Persuader, Thinker, Helper, Creator or Doer 
  • Students will then answer the questions at the bottom of the sheet comparing their dream career with their personality match results  
  • High School Resume Video from Go2College 
  • https://youtu.be/JOxVZVg6yls 
  • Students will watch a 15-minute video over high school resume writing  
  • After watching the video, students will complete Microsoft Form over video 
  • Link to duplicate 

Day 5 – Resume Building 

  • Resume Building Worksheet - GRADE 
  • Walk students through each section, letting students complete each as you go 
  • Spend time with students to create a personal, professional email address (if they don’t have one) 
  • Tips to Review with Students 
  • Contact Information 
  • Make sure email is professional 
  • No birth date or social security number  
  • Education 
  • List all Honors courses 
  • List DE/TCAT courses under separate school headings (list most recent first) 
  • List GPA (if above 2.5) 
  • List relevant coursework that pertains to career path 
  • Activities/Extracurriculars 
  • List most recent first  
  • List years of involvement  
  • List any titles held in the organization or leadership duties  
  • Work Experience 
  • Start with most recent first 
  • If no work experience, list internships (if applicable) 
  • Can still list internships, especially if it’s in desired career field 
  • List 3-4 duties per employment 
  • Resume Example  
  • Review a sample student resume  
  • Resume Construction - GRADE 
  • Using Word, students will begin constructing their own resumes 
  • Create assignment on Teams for students to turn in  
  • See attached rubric for grading 

 

Week 3: Skills for College + Career Success 

Tasks 

  • Resume 
  • Cover Letter Article 
  • Cover Letter 

 

Days 1-2 – Resume Building  

  • Resume Example  
  • Review a sample student resume  
  • Resume Construction - GRADE 
  • Using Word, students will begin constructing their own resumes 
  • Create assignment on Teams for students to turn in  
  • See attached rubric for grading 

Day 3-5 – Cover Letter Building  

  • Cover Letter Article - GRADE  
  • https://www.cmthsseniorseminar.com/employment-correspondence  
  • Students will group up for Jig Saw, and will be assigned a section of the article 
  • Student groups will then present over their section of their article 
  • After all student groups have presented, students will answer the questions in the Microsoft Form 
  • Cover Letter Example  
  • Review a sample of a student cover letter  
  • Cover Letter Construction - GRADE 
  • Students will address letter to the admissions counselor of the postsecondary institution of their choice  
  • This may necessitate some research on their part  
  • Need both the specific name and address 
  • Using Word, students will begin constructing their own resumes 
  • Create assignment on Teams for students to turn in 
  • See attached rubric for grading 

 

Week 4: Skills for College + Career Success 

Tasks 

  • Personal Brand Worksheet  
  • Common Interview Questions 

 

Day 1- Interview Introduction 

  • View the “Fail vs. Nail” Video 1 
  • Emily’s entry 
  • Overall behavior 
  • Management of personal belongings  
  • Dress  
  • Time of arrival 
  • After watching both the “Fail” and “Nail” debrief with students the differences between the two 
  • View the “Fail vs. Nail” Video 2 
  • Nathan’s entry 
  • Overall behavior 
  • Management of personal belongings  
  • Dress  
  • Time of arrival 
  • After watching both the “Fail” and “Nail” debrief with students the differences between the two 

Day 2 – Young Professionals Guest Speaking – Interview Skills 

  • Emma Cannon and guests will be speaking to all Senior Seminar classes on this day 

Day 3 – College and Career Fair at TTU 

Day 4 – Personal Branding  

  • Personal Branding  
  • Review the following information with students via attached PPT:  
  • The value of thinking about your brand is primarily to integrate the various elements that combine to create your identity – the picture you have of yourself, and the picture others have of you.  It’s a summary – and it’s important. 
  • People Naturally Form a Perception of You – Their Perception of Your Brand 
  • People form impressions of other people.  It’s impossible not to.  So, people form impressions of you.  Those impressions are your brand for those people.  Some people will know you well and some will not, but impressions will naturally form your brand. 
  • You Have a Brand.  Are You in Charge of it? 
  • If you do not build your brand, others will build it for you.  And in today’s world the web will build it for you through social media.  Today your brand can be heavily influenced by social media, but it’s not just about social media.  It’s more about your face-to-face interactions, your behaviors in general, your attitude, your appearance, who you hang out with, what you accomplish or don’t accomplish, etc. 
  • Four Keys to Developing Your Brand 
  • In general, there are four guidelines that can guide you in developing your personal brand.    
  • Pay attention and ask the right questions to open up the possibilities on the path to discovering and creating your brand. 
  • Commit to actions that will develop or demonstrate your brand. The key here is to be intentional in your actions – know what you want to do and then do it. 
  • Persevere and “hold the course” through all the challenges and confusions and uncertainty. This takes time and there will be ups and downs along the way, so the key is to keep going and keep learning and keep evolving. 
  • Talk with people you trust about #1-3 – this is really important. All your peers are faced with the challenge to develop an identity as a young man or young woman.  Those that are facing that challenge directly (not all will) can be good sounding boards for you (and you for them). 
  • My Personal Brand Worksheet - GRADE 
  • Have students to work through the questions to identify their personal brand 

Day 5 – Interview Practice  

  • Common Interview Questions – GRADE  
  • Students will be given a sheet of common interview questions  
  • Students will answer each question in complete sentences as if they were in a real interview  
  • May take students some time to work through these questions 

 

Week 5: Why College? Types of Colleges and Options 

Tasks 

  • What is Your College Personality Quiz 
  • Different Kinds of College Fit Worksheet 

 

Day 2 – Introduction to La’Ken and Jordan/Types of Degrees/Certificates + College Fit  

  • Warm Up 
  • Have students to go around the room, and list words that come to mind when they think about college. Explain.  
  • Meet La’Ken and Jordan Video  
  • La’Ken and Jordan will take students on the journey of choosing the right college, financial aid, how to get started in college and how to go the distance in college 
  • Listed below are the short videos to watch in class, then discuss: 
  • Technical Certificates 
  • Associates of Applied Science 
  • Associate’s Degrees 
  • Bachelor’s Degree 
  • College Types and Best Fit 

Day 3 – College Fit  

  • College Fit Magnetic Statements 
  • Statements will be posted around the room 
  • Students will get up (when prompted) to stand by the statement that best reflects the most important factor to them when picking a college 
  • Each student group per factor will discuss why they chose that factor 
  • Groups then choose a spokesperson to share out big ideas and interesting comments made during the discussion  
  • What’s Your College Personality? - GRADE 
  • Students will fill out worksheet as they work through the quiz 

Day 4 – College Fit (cont.) 

  • Choosing the Best College Fit  
  • Video:  La’Ken and Jordan:  Choosing the Right College  
  • Discussion Questions 
  • What criteria were important to La’Ken and Jordan when choosing a college? 
  • What criteria are important to you? 
  • College Fit 
  • Video:  Finding the Right College Fit  
  • Discussion Questions  
  • Why does college fit matter? 
  • Why should someone apply for more than one college? 
  • How can you research colleges to find the school that’s right for you? 

Day 5 – College Fit (cont.) 

  • Different Kinds of College Fit Worksheet – GRADE 
  • Students will fill in worksheet as videos are played 
  • Video:  Academic Fit   
  • Video: Social Fit 
  • Video: Financial Fit 

 

Week 6: Hoco Week 

 

Week 7: Financial Aid 

Tasks 

  • Paying for College: Federal and State Aid  
  • Paying for College: Institutional and Private Aid and Financial Aid Packages 
  • Decoding Financial Aid Award Letters 
  • FSA ID Creation 

 

Day 1 – What is Financial Aid? 

  • NEXT Guide - What is Financial Aid? (click here to access) 
  • Review information with students  
  • La’Ken and Jordan:  Paying for College 
  • What types of scholarships/financial aid do La’Ken and Jordan mention in the video?  What other types of financial assistance have you heard of? 
  • La’Ken and Jordan both mention the FAFSA-what is it?  What is it important to file the FAFSA?  How might you get assistance filing the FAFSA?   
  • What concerns you most paying for college? 

Day 2 – Federal Financial Aid 

  • NEXT Guide – Federal Student Aid (click here to access) 
  • Review information with students  
  • Paying for College: Federal and State Aid – GRADE 
  • Encourage students to take notes during the video.  After the video, spend some time debriefing what they have seen.  Consider using the following questions: 
  • Jonathan discussed the following types of federal financial aid in the video.  Can anyone summarize the information he shared? 
  • Pell Grants 
  • FSEOG 
  • Subsidized Loans 
  • Unsubsidized Loans 
  • PLUS Loans 
  • Perkins Loans  
  • Utilize Federal Student Aid Financial Aid Glossary to help define 

Day 3 – State Financial Aid  

  • NEXT Guide – Tennessee Financial Aid (click here to access) 
  • State Financial Aid with Jonathan  

Day 4 – Institution and Private Aid/Financial Aid Packages  

  • Paying for College: Institutional/Private Aid and Financial Aid Packages - GRADE 
  • Students will fill in questions as the videos are played 
  • Institutional and Private Aid with Jonathan 
  • Financial Aid Packages with Jonathan  
  • NEXT Guide – Financial Aid Award Offers 
  • Review sheet with students  
  • Decoding Financial Aid Letters - GRADE 
  • Using Financial Award Letter A, answer the questions on the Decoding Financial Aid Award Letters Worksheet (duplicate Microsoft Form here) 

Day 5 – FSA ID Creation 

  • Video: How to Create an FSA ID 
  • Creating an FSA ID 
  • Students will create an FSA ID using their NEXT Guide sheet to record their account information 
  • Students can store in their student folder  

 

Week 8: Local Scholarship Prep 

Tasks 

  • Recommendation Letter Request Form 
  • Local Scholarship Essay Outline 
  • Local Scholarship Essay 

 

Day 1 – Who Can Write a Recommendation Letter? 

  • Who Can Write a Recommendation Letter? - GRADE 
  • Click here to duplicate form 
  • Review with students appropriate persons to ask for a recommendation letter 
  • Here’s the information included in on the form:  
  • As scholarship forms become due, most likely, a recommendation letter will be requested. This form is to get you thinking about who you can ask to write recommendation letters for you. 
  • Whoever you ask to write a recommendation letter for you needs to know you fairly well. Anyone who has been your teacher, your coach, your youth group leader, your boss, etc., would be a good example of someone who would know you best. Don't ever ask family members to write a recommendation letter on your behalf, because most likely those letters will not be accepted.   
  • Recommendation Letter Request Form - GRADE 
  • Students will complete form electronically 
  • The importance of this is so they can email to any person that they request a letter from 

Day 2-5 – Local Scholarship Essay 

  • Local Scholarship Essay Outline - GRADE 
  • The essay doesn't need to be written on this, or even whole sentences for that matter. 
  • This graphic organizer is for you to jot down ideas for your essay. This will serve as "bare bones" for the essay to come 
  • Local Scholarship Essay - GRADE 
  • The essay needs to include paragraphs on the following along with an introductory and conclusion/closing paragraph.    
  • Essays may be typed unless otherwise noted.  Use spell/grammar check to avoid errors.  Each essay should be 1 ½ to 2 pages typed in 12 pt Arial or Times New Roman font, normal 1” margins (this should be the default on most computers) and double spaced. 
  • The TITLE of your essay will be the EXACT NAME of the scholarship you are applying for.  Example:   Rotary Interact Scholarship or Rotary College Bound Scholarship not just Rotary! 
  • The second line will be your name (unless the scholarship says not to include). 
  • Then skip one line and begin your essay. 
  • Your 3 body paragraphs much cover following: 
  • Your LA History: include your GPA and ACT, honors and dual credit classes taken, activities, honors, part-time jobs, etc. 
  • Your plans for the future:  be specific about where you plan to attend postsecondary school, your major, your career goals, etc 
  • How receiving this scholarship will help you and why you deserve it.  If you need scholarships to pay for college, include information about this. Include any financial hardship information. 
  • Once students turn in essay, teachers will need to proof and send back for revisions 
  • Students will then need to correct and resubmit 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      WeeK 7 :  Paying for College   

Tasks:  Complete TN Promise (G) (Should Already be done but we will check and make sure all have done) 

             

  • Review Page 38 from NEXT Guide – What is Financial Aid? (click here to access) 
  • La’Ken and Jordan:  Paying for College 
  • Discussion Questions (Microsoft Form-duplicate here) 
  • What types of scholarships/financial aid do La’Ken and Jordan mention in the video?  What other types of financial assistance have you heard of? 
  • La’Ken and Jordan both mention the FAFSA-what is it?  What is it important to file the FAFSA?  How might you get assistance filing the FAFSA?   
  • What concerns you most paying for college? 
  • Institutional and Private Aid with Jonathan 
  • Video Debrief (Duplicate Microsoft Form here) 
  • What different types of institutional and private aid are available?  (Ex:  academic need-based scholarships, scholarship for service and or special characteristics, scholarships from local foundations or banks) 
  • Where are some places that you can search for scholarships? 
  • What advice does Jonathan have about searching for scholarships?  
  •  Financial Aid Packages with Jonathan  
  • Video Debrief (Duplicate Microsoft Form here) 
  • What is the difference between a grant or scholarship and a loan? 
  • If you receive your financial aid package and have questions, who should you contact? 
  • Why is it important to review your financial aid package carefully? 
  • When comparing financial aid packages, what is important to take into consideration? 
  • Decoding Financial Aid Letters  
  • Using Financial Award Letter A, answer the questions on the Decoding Financial Aid 
  •  Award Letters Worksheet (duplicate Microsoft Form here) 

 

Students submit TN Promise application 

  1. RECORD on Page 40 of NEXT GUIDE 
  1. Please read this first before heading to website… 
  1. YOU MUST KNOW THE FOLLOWING to provide the most accurate information to get the best results. 
  1. Student’s First Name and Last Name – as it appears on the Social Security card 
  1. Student’s Social Security Number – as it appears on the Social Security card 
  1. Student’s Date of Birth 
  1. Student’s email address (if available) - THEC/TSAC strongly encourages students to provide a personal email address, rather than a school-issued email address. 
  1. IMPORTANT:  Applying for a scholarship (example: the Tennessee Promise) is not complete once a student portal account has been created. 
  1. Next, you must re-enter your Username and Password and answer the challenge question.  Once you have accepted the “User Agreement”, click the “Apply for Scholarships” button and then click the appropriate scholarship program to complete and submit the online application. 
  1. Video on TN Promise 

 

  1. FSA ID  (wait and do this when they are actually doing FAFA) 
  1. Students will go ahead and create their FSA ID 
  1. This is a helpful video to watch before you allow them to begin making their ID 
  1. How to Create an Account and Username (FSA ID) for StudentAid.gov - YouTube 
  1. Once the FSA ID has been created, use page 47 in NEXT Guide to record information 
  1. That page has also been attached here if student does not have a NEXT Guide 
  1. Also attached are flyers to guide discussion about whether they need to include a parent in the FAFSA process and if yes which parent(s) 

 

 

 FAFSA Completion—FAFSA opens in early DECEMBER for this one year (it will go back to October in future years). 

I HIGHLY recommend doing all seniors STUDENT part of FAFSA before XMAS Break.  The new FAFSA will then email parents to put in the parent part; to encourage parents to do this I would do a call tree and email.    

 

My thoughts on how to do this---do those in 2nd term Senior Success during Class one day with those teachers doing them.  Have this team pull the seniors who had SS 1st term and do theirs the day prior or day after and cover their classes to do this (they will know this process best) 

 

 

Week 8    Local Scholarships 

 

All Write Essays and Do Recommendation Request 

Review the Local Scholarship Packet and have them identify ones they can apply for; they can have these ready 

 

 

Keep Week 9 for catch up!! 

 

CRITICAL SENIOR TASK TIMELINE 

August:  Do TN Promise App at start of school –use FAST to ensure 100% apply 

September:  College App Month (most colleges offer FREE Apps in this month) 

December 1:  TTU Scholarship Deadline 

December TBA-March 1:   FAFSA Frenzy—opens DEC TBA and must be done by March  --I would do ALL Seniors’ Student Parts in December as soon as it opens during the school day; new FAFSA will send email to parents to do their part.  Use fast to assure all do FAFSA 

Feb 28:  Local Scholarship Entry Deadline 

 

March—Have all seniors submit 8 Vol Hours to www.tnachieves.org    they can count job show—if they haven’t don 8 hours, have opportunities for them to do these on Junior ACT Day (I usually had a project at school for those who lack transportation to get out to businesses)