Weekly Rundown for Week of December 13-31

Saturday, December 13:

• December's ACT Test Date

Monday, December 15:

• Seton Hall University's tuition reduction application deadline (October's newsletter)

Tuesday, December 16:

• Application Deadline for Triangle Youth Leadership Conference
• Activity sheet due to Ms. Kummer for anyone interested in the Herff Jones Scholarship (December's newsletter)

Thursday, December 18:

• Young Entrepreneurship Scholarship Deadline (November's newsletter)

Also, if a student is enrolled in an online course via Apex, they need to be working on it over Christmas break to ensure they finish the course on time. Students are expected to finish the course by January 9th. See Mrs. Guill or Mrs. Mullen for your progress or if you have any questions. Please note that students do not have access to their overall percentage completed. If a student has any overdue activities, that should be their current focus. 

There are a LOT of scholarships due in January, so Seniors, that is something to be thinking about and working on during the break.

We wish you all a very happy and safe holiday break. 

Sincerely,

Your HHS Counselors

Today's Deadlines & a Reminder about Saturday's SAT

REMINDER: This Saturday is December's SAT. Make sure you have your admission ticket printed and you arrive ON TIME for the test. If you need to print your admission ticket, see your counselor for assistance. Your admission ticket has a list of reminders and things to bring. Make sure you follow the directions!

Need last-minute SAT study guide help? This SAT study guide is also located on our Useful Links and Documents page. It contains info about the test, SAT test-taking strategies, a verbal skills review, a math skills review, a practice test with answers and explanations of the answers, and a list of additional resources. Definitely check it out!

...and Seniors, here is a last-minute reminder of some scholarship applications that are due today.

• Boston University's Trustees Scholarship deadline is today.
• Clemson's scholarship deadline is today.
• UNCG's Teaching Fellows Scholarship's priority deadline is today. 

Info on these scholarships can be found on previous Senior Newsletters, which are located on our Counseling website.

For future reference: HHS' website --> Staff --> Counselors --> Useful Links and Documents --> Senior Newsletters 2014-2015

Mrs. Kummer should be getting December's Senior Newsletter out this week.

We hope you had a great Thanksgiving break. Three more weeks until Christmas break! Stay focused!

-Your HHS School Counselors

Summer 2015 Opportunity for Current Juniors: Martha Guy Summer Institute for Future Business Leaders (MGSI)

The following is a Summer 2015 Opportunity for current Juniors:

Martha Guy Summer Institute for Future Business Leaders (MGSI)
The Martha Guy Summer Institute for Future Business Leaders (MGSI) is now accepting applications for their 2015 Cohort. They are looking for students who have a sincere interest in business as a college major and demonstrate leadership potential. Some candidates have an entrepreneurial spirit, or have unique or extensive part-time work experience. Interested students should demonstrate academic achievement. Students who embrace and appreciate new people, opportunities and experiences are ideal for MGSI. They should also be well-prepared to be away from home and able to manage a demanding schedule. Application deadline is February 27, 2015. Unlike most summer opportunities, MGSI combines a residential experience with out of state travel. The program concludes with a trip to Washington, DC and New York City. Each MGSI class is small. Twenty-four students from across North Carolina are selected. The group size provides a much more intimate, personal experience for each participant. “It is quite affordable considering the extensive travel, excursions and activities; tuition is $1,500 plus a meal plan fee (approximately $300 based on 2014 costs).” Need-based scholarships are available to qualified applicants. Visit http://marthaguy.appstate.edu for more information and to apply online.


This has been posted on our Summer Opportunities page on our website, as well as any other summer opportunities for students that we are made aware of throughout the year.

Weekly Rundown for Week of November 3-9

Monday, November 3rd

• Ms. Kummer's Senior Newsletter for November is now available. Seniors and their parents have been emailed the newsletter and it has been added to our website's Useful Links and Documents page. Email Ms. Kummer at kummerra@hickoryschools.net to add your email address to the group to get future Senior Newsletters. Hard copies are available in the Counseling office.

Tuesday, November 4th (TODAY!)

• Prudential Spirit Award Scholarship Deadline

Thursday, November 6th

• Last day to register for the December SAT without having to pay extra fee

Friday, November 7th

• Last day to register for the December ACT without having to pay extra fee
• Lenoir-Rhyne University Scholarship Day

Saturday, November 8th

• November SAT date! Be there on time and ready to do your best!

Coming up next week...

• CFNC's College Application Week - Click here to see what colleges are waiving their application fee that week
• Monday (11/10): Info on graduation caps & gowns in the mall 
• No School on Tuesday (11/11)
• Saturday (11/15): Robertson Scholarship deadline, Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship deadline, GA Southern Application deadline, Reception for anyone interesting in LR's Teaching Scholarship 

See previous Seniors Newsletters for info on individual scholarships or other events listed above.

Have a great week,

Your HHS School Counselors 

2014-2015 Counseling Department Updates & Your First Weekly Rundown

Hello and Welcome Back! We hope the 2014-2015 school year has gotten off to a good start for everyone. We have enjoyed meeting with students and getting back in the swing of things.

As you may or may not have noticed, your HHS Counselors are truly embracing technology this school year!  We are posting updates, tips, and reminders to all students & parents via Twitter & Facebook. If you have not followed us yet, please do so. You can "Like" us on Facebook at Hickory High School Counselors, or you can follow us on Twitter @COUNSELINGatHHS. Identical information is posted to each site, but we would not mind if you wanted to follow us on both sites to make sure to catch the updates! We, as always, update our website with the announcements that are posted to Facebook & Twitter. We are also making slides with important information and reminders to students to show on the TV screens in the HHS Mall & library, as well as using our One Call system when needed to send voice messages to students and parents at home. Parents, if we do not have your current phone number(s), please let us or Mrs. Guill know, so you can be sure to receive those phone messages.

We would like to keep you well informed of what's all going on. We do that several ways, as just mentioned, but we also send information out to Seniors and their parents via e-mail with Ms. Kummer's Senior Newsletters. These typically come out around the 1st of each month & have a TON of information for seniors and their parents. (Her October 2014 edition will be posted by the end of the day!)

A new way we want to keep ALL students informed of what's going on is by a new weekly rundown of Counseling-related events. This will hopefully give you a little heads up on any last-minute things you need to put on your to-do list. But this will not be the first time you are hearing of these events and deadlines, it is just another reminder! 

Without further ado, here is your first Weekly Rundown: 

Week of September 29 – October 3: 

Tuesday, Sept. 30:

• Last day to register for the October SAT via web/phone. Eligible students should see their counselor for a fee waiver.
• Odenza scholarship application due (from September's Senior Newsletter)
• Questbridge scholarship application due (from September's Senior Newsletter)

Wednesday, October 1st:

• Service Academy scholarship deadline (from September's Senior Newsletter)
• New group of free SAT classes start at St. Luke’s. Register by calling St. Luke’s. There will not be another set of free classes at St. Luke's until February!! See September's newsletter for more info.
• Morehead-Cain scholarship applications due (from September's Senior Newsletter)

Friday, October 3rd:

• Wendy’s Heisman Scholarship application due (from September's Senior Newsletter)
• Deadline to sign up for the PSAT. See Mrs. England to sign up! 

Let us know what you think about all these Counseling updates. We hope you enjoy your three-day weekend!

Sincerely,
Your HHS Counselors

Chameleon's Journey: A Free 2-Day Overnight Grief Camp Opportunity

Research indicates that one in seven Americans lose a parent or sibling before the age of 20. Regrettably, some of those are students and support is needed to help them cope with the experience of the death of a parent, sibling, or other close relationship. Chameleon's Journey offers boys and girls, ages 7-16, a unique opportunity to meet others who have also lost someone special and together share their feelings and experiences of loss.

Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region is pleased to announce the 15th Annual Chameleon's Journey Overnight Grief Camp. The camp will be held October 11-12 at Camp Thunderbird located in Lake Wylie, South Carolina. The camp is free** to all participants. Campers will sleep in cabins in small groups of the same age-range and gender, with an adult leader present in each cabin.

Campers learn that the feelings that surface during the grief process are normal and that it is okay to laugh and play while remembering the ones they love. While taking advantage of camp recreational activities like wall climbing, zip line and canoeing, campers also learn appropriate ways to cope with grief through a variety of activities including art, music movement, storytelling, and a campfire memorial service. The activities are designed to help campers take steps towards healing.

All Chameleon's Journey camp counselors and volunteers are trained by the Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region professional staff. These staff members have an understanding of the grief process and are experienced in supporting children coping with loss.

At Chameleon's Journey parents and guardians can get the grief support they need, too. Although parents and guardians do not stay overnight, they are encouraged to attend a workshop each morning. The two workshops address adult grief and ways to help their grieving children.

The application for the camp can be found online at www.hpccr.org. Space is limited and the final postmark date for the completed application is September 19, 2014.

**Chameleon's Journey is offered free of charge to all participants through the generous support of individuals, community organizations, and area foundations. You can help ensure this camp remains available for all who need it by making a contribution to Chameleon's Journey. For information about donating, please call our Development Office at 704-375-0100, or donate online at www.hpccr.org.

SAT tips from BrainWorks

Students at Hickory High had the opportunity to participate in a BrainWorks SAT prep class for three days after school in April. The following were some tips provided by BrainWorks staff that we would like to give to all of our students in hopes that it will help them when they take the SAT. 

1. Guess when you can confidently eliminate one answer choice on the multiple choice questions.
2. Predict your answer before looking at the answers. 
3. Math:  you will have 3 math sections.  They are all multiple choice except for the 10 grid-in questions.  There is no penalty for getting a grid-in question wrong.  Math problems are presented from easiest to hardest, so pace yourself accordingly.  If you don’t know how  to do a problem, skip it and move on.  You get the same point value for the easy ones that you do for the hard ones.
4. Review geometry formulas
5. Reading comprehension:  make notes as you read the passages.  Words to notice:  descriptive words, opinions, differing opinions, repeated words, contrast words.  Often the main idea will be followed by an illustration of the main idea.
6. Reading comprehension:  eliminate answer choices.  There is usually a ‘good’ answer that is the trap.  You are seeking the ‘best’ answer.
7. Every word counts:  sometimes just one word in an answer choice can make it wrong, it may sound great, but that one word makes it invalid or incorrect.
8. Vocabulary:  make your own predictions before looking at the answer choices!!!
9. Vocabulary:  use word charge, sentence tone, contrast/agreement words, punctuation, and prefixes/roots/suffixes.
10. An intro + 2 supporting paragraphs + conclusion = strong essay
11. Intro:  remember the ‘magic’ sentence:  Two distinct examples of this idea are ----------------- and -----------------.
12. Supporting paragraphs need to contain at least 3 facts – who/what/when/where
13. Organization and logical flow of ideas are critical
14. Do:  vary your word use and sentence structure.
15. Don’t:  use contractions, slang, abbreviations, repeated word use.
16. Grammar:  remember the hierarchy of errors  (verb, pronoun, etc.)
17. Memorize the correlating conjunctions:  either/or, neither/nor, as/as, not only/but also, just as/so, both/and
18. Comparative and Superlative forms of words:  
1. Comparative when comparing two things: "er" ending (ex: happier, fuzzier). Also use "better" and "more." 
2. Superlative when comparing three or more:  "est" ending (ex: happiest, fuzziest). Also use "best" and "most." 
19. Know when to use:  fewer (countable) vs less (non-countable), between (comparing 2) vs among (comparing more than 2)
20. And most of all  RELAX! Remember to breathe. Practice deep breathing to promote relaxation and reduce stress by breathing deeply, pushing out your diaphragm, holding it for 5 seconds, then exhaling for 5 seconds. 

BrainWorks offers one-on-one SAT tutoring and various classes throughout the spring and summer. Check out their website (http://www.brainworkslearningcenter.com) for more information.

See your counselor if you need assistance registering for tests. Also, if you believe you would qualify for a fee-waiver, please see your counselor to assist with test costs.

You have been preparing for these tests for a long time and should be prepared. Try not to stress too much.  We wish you the very best when taking your tests!

Sincerely,
Your HHS Counselors 

9 weeks down, 9 to go!

Students,
We have made it to the half-way mark. In two weeks our Spring Break will begin and we can return ready to knock out the rest of this school year! Hopefully everyone got their report cards and were not surprised by their grades.

For those of you were thrilled with your grades, congratulations! We are proud of you and hope YOU are proud of you! Your hard work has paid off! Keep it up, let's see how great you can do these next nine weeks!

For those of you who were not-so-thrilled with your grades, all hope is not lost. There are NINE more weeks left. NINE. That will end before you know it, but is just enough time to fix things!

The lowest grade you should have gotten in a class on your report card is a 60. (Let us know if it was lower.) If you made a 60-69 in a class, a discussion needs to be had. Talk to your school counselor. Talk to your teacher. Find a tutor. DO SOMETHING. All hope is not lost. I repeat, all hope is not lost. There is a way you can pass your class, it'll just take some dedication and motivation. Hopefully thinking of having to re-take the course and getting a failing grade is motivation enough.We know that sometimes classes are just hard. The material is difficult, and if you signed up for a higher-level class, material is quickly covered and more work is required.  We don't want you to fail and have to re-take classes anymore than you do. Trust us! Let us help you to figure out what needs to be done to help you succeed. That is what we are here for. But it WILL take work and these next nine weeks may be hard. But the hope is that you put in the work, do what you have to do, and pass ALL of your classes.

Just don't lose hope! You still have time!

And if you've missed any days due to sickness, doctor visits, funerals, court dates, etc. PLEASE bring us a note so we can excuse your absence(s).

We hope the rest of your semester goes well. If you need anything, let us know. We are here to help!

Sincerely,
Your HHS School Counselors