With the school year coming to an end and summer fast approaching, many students are starting to consider their summer plans. While summer is a great time to rest and relax, it can also be a good time to catch up on missed courses or reach ahead to take courses for the next school year.
While most students might only consider summer school because they perhaps didn’t do well in a course the previous year or are missing some credits, you can also use summer school to reach ahead in your education.
With Ontario Virtual School, you can complete a summer school course in as little as 3 weeks, allowing you to get a high school credit quickly while still having time for other summer activities.
Grade 9 Reach Ahead
Have you just completed 8th Grade and will be heading into 9th Grade in the fall? For many students, the transition from elementary school to high school can be both an exciting and stressful time.
For students who might be nervous to immediately jump into high school, they may want to consider taking a summer course to prepare. At Ontario Virtual School, we offer a free Preparing Grade 9 Math course. While this course does not count as a credit, it a great way for students to review the math skills they learned in Grade 8 and build on them in order to be ready to jump into Grade 9 Math in the fall.
Perhaps you are an incredibly enthusiastic student and can’t wait to get started on you high school education, then you can use the summer to earn Grade 9 credits ahead of time. By earning credits over the summer, students can open up time slots in their regular day school and have more options when it comes to selecting courses throughout the school year.
Some great Grade 9 courses to consider taking over the summer are Art (AVI1O), Healthy Active Living (PPL1O) or Core French (FSF1D). Art and Physical education are great open level courses, meant for students who may not be overly familiar with either subject. They are also a wonderful way to stay creative or active throughout the summer. Core French does require that the student has previously study the language, but is a good way to build on previous knowledge from 8th Grade and develop a sturdy foundation for learning the French language in the future.
Grade 10 Reach Ahead
For most student’s, Grade 9 is all about completing required courses that you have to take in order to graduate and building an academic foundation. Grade 10 is when students start to have a little more flexibility and course options to choose from, however, there are still required course students need to complete. Trying to balance what you want to take with what you’re required to take can be tricky and sometimes there isn’t enough space in your regular school schedule for all your courses.
By taking a few Grade 10 required courses over the summer, you can earn those credits and leave more available slots for elective subjects during the school year. Some required courses you should consider taking are Grade 10 History (CHC2D) or the required half-credit courses Civics (CHV2O) and Careers (GLC2O). These courses do not require any prerequisites and are some great compulsory credits to complete over the summer to free up your timetable.
Grade 11 Reach Ahead
Grade 11 is where students truly start to have more choice in their courses and where they will start thinking ahead to post-secondary. Grade 11 is all about taking foundational courses that you’ll need in order to take Grade 12 courses required for your post-secondary plans.
For students in Grade 11, the number of courses to choose from gets larger and it can be hard to narrow down what you might want to take. Plus, there are still a few required courses that you’ll need in order to graduate. Sometimes, when planning for Grade 11, you might find that these required courses might be blocking time slots for electives you’re passionate about or need for post-secondary.
With Ontario Virtual School, in the summer between Grade 10 and 11, you can take your compulsory Math (MCR3U, MCF3M or MBF3C) and English (ENG3U, ENG3C). By taking these courses over the summer, you can ensure that you’re getting the credit you require while also being able to take more electives throughout the school year. Being able to take more electives in Grade 11 is especially important if you haven’t quite figured out what you might want to study in post-secondary. Taking different course will give you more options and pathways to choose from when it comes to selecting those important Grade 12 courses.
Grade 12 Reach Ahead
Grade 12 is a very important year for students, both in terms of graduation and preparing for post-secondary. While some students may have planned ahead and have a clear plan for what subjects they wish to study in post-secondary, others may still not entirely know what they want to do. Maybe you weren’t able to take some courses that you needed during the school year in order to be eligible for Grade 12 courses you now want to take.
Whatever the reason, you may find that you need or want to take some courses in the summer before Grade 12. Ontario Virtual School offers all Grade 11 and 12 required courses, along with many elective options. One course that is required for all Grade 12 students is English, and University level English (ENG4U) is a required course by all university programs. By taking this course in the summer with OVS, you can focus your attention on it and work to achieve a higher grade that you might have been able to get dividing your attention amongst multiple courses during the regular school year.
You might also consider reaching ahead in the summer to take some Grade 12 courses so that you can minimize your workload throughout the year. The grades you get in Grade 12 are essential for university and college applications. For example, let’s say you’re planning on applying to an Engineering or Health Science program, which requires you to take a lot of advanced math and science courses. Trying to tackle so many difficult subjects at the same time can be difficult and stressful, by taking one or two of those courses, such as Advanced Functions (MHF4U) or Physics (SPH4U), over the summer before your senior year, you can lighten your work load and make your final year of high school just a little less stressful.
With Ontario Virtual School it’s easy to get a jump start on your education and start earning credits and planning for your next school year during the summer.