-For all of you Diploma Students, start filling out your CAS forms now. Knowing from observation of other diploma candidates, it is quite inconvenient to run around at the last minute getting signatures and filling out all of the forms. Some peoples' diplomas are in jeopardy simply because they did not hand in their CAS binder in on-time. Please ensure that this is not you! Oh, and don't try to fake the hours, actually do them!

-Another note for Diploma Students: Make sure your Extended Essay is complete, edited, and turned-in before Senior year starts. We know that you have heard that Senior year is the most difficult, and you heard correctly. Senior year is SO much busier than all of the other years combined. Do the work now so you aren't stressed later!

-IB English is a tough course, but you can take several steps to ensure that you do not become overwhelmed:

          -Actually read the books. Do all of the dialectical journals and turn them in on-time. You're only helping yourself out by doing this.

          -Revise your World Literature Papers with a scrutinizing eye. These papers are under your control, whereas you cannot control what questions or topics show up on the exam. The World Literature Papers are worth 10% each.

          -You will be fine on the oral if you read all of the works (This year they were Othello by Shakespeare, Twelfth Night by Shakespeare, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, and selected poetry by Emily Dickinson and Sylvia Plath). Mrs. DeGori, despite popular opinion, is not out to kill you. She chooses the passages and she won't choose some remote passage that has no significance to the overall work (if such a passage exists!). The orals are worth 15% each.

         -Paper 1 of the Exam is the written commentary. You will be provided with two passages, one poem and one prose, and you have the choice of which one you wish to analyze. You have two hours to do this, and it's quite feasible! This paper is worth 25%.

         -Paper 2 of the Exam is the essay. You will be provided with around 6 essay questions stemming from the 4 works studied from early February until late April, which are Ivan Denisovich, 1984, Their Eyes Were Watching God, and Things Fall Apart this year. You all know how to write a somewhat-comprehensible essay by this point, so that makes this last part of the course that much easier! The only hard part about Paper 2 is that you must memorize quotes from each one of these four novels (stemming from your Dialectical Journals - see, I told you that you would need them!) in order to use in the essay. This paper is worth 25% of your final grade.

         -The IB scale is from 1-7, and a 4 is passing. Don't settle for a 4. Though passing is always good, aim for a better-than-passing grade! It IS possible, don't worry!

         -To get your IB Diploma, you need 24 points overall, as well as the completion of 150 CAS hours, the EE, and the ToK course. There is no exam for ToK, only two Internal Assessments. If you fail an exam, you must get 28 points to get your diploma, so be sure to study!

 

General Advice:

-I know you've heard that Senior Year flys by, and you heard correctly! Make sure to have fun, and be responsible, because this will be one of the most memorable years of your life.

-Know how to balance your "work" and your "play". Ask yourself if you're doing too much of one or the other. They should be in balance, so ensure that they are, and that you are keeping your own well-being in mind.

-Try not to miss too many days from school. You WILL fall behind, and you WILL fail.