If a student and/or family members needs assistance building schedules during the Freshman year, please contact a member of the Counseling Center Staff or click one of the links below:

• Course Scheduling for Middle School Students

• Course Scheduling for Middle School Parents

• Grade 9 Four-Year Planner

• Grade 9 Course Selection Menu

• Entering Course Requests in HAC

• Course Descriptions

Penn High School strives to graduate students with the ability to matriculate to higher education, post-secondary training, or to have the skills necessary to succeed in the workplace. In order to adequately achieve this preparation, common assessments are designed to provide teachers with data about learning for each student.

Assessment happens in two formats at Penn, formative and summative. Formative assessments are given in every class, everyday, to inform teachers of a student’s mastery level in the skills and content being practiced, and the data from formative assessments is used to guide instruction. Summative assessments are given throughout the year, typically at the end of units of learning or at the end of the semester term, in order to assess a student’s level of mastery in the skills and content learned. 

• Assessment philosophy

• Penn Test Dates

• Students will receive grades that are based upon multiple forms of assessment such as tests, quizzes, projects, reports, collaborative work, presentations, laboratory reports and writing assignments.
• Teachers will explain how grades will be determined at the beginning of the course and with each assignment.
• Assessment practices will measure the extent to which a student has attained the standards of the course.
• Students will have many opportunities to produce work they can take pride in and, at the teacher's discretion, opportunities will be given for self-correction and resubmission of work.
• Students will have the opportunity to know which test items they missed and why their answers were unacceptable.
• Students will receive ample feedback to know how well they are doing and whether they should make changes in what they are doing. 

Indiana Career Explorer

Sophomore to Junior Powerpoint

Click here for PSAT Powerpoint

Class of 2017 February Newsletter

Brief Guide to Working with My College QuickStart:

Penn College and Resource Center Presentation for Sophomores

Click here for the 2016/17 Junior course menu

Click here for the 2016/17 Junior HAC Scheduling Worksheet

How Do I read My PSAT Score?

Welcome to Penn High School! 

To facilitate a smooth transition from middle school to high school by creating a freshman class with a sense of community, where each individual freshman is motivated, informed, and involved. Penn’s Academy structure provides “smaller learning communities” where students build relationships while engaged in relevant learning experiences. 

• Freshman Academy: serves all ninth graders by providing a cohesive and highly supportive first-year experience. Freshman will learn about the opportunities afforded by the four Achievement Academies available to them as upperclassmen.  
• Incoming Freshmen: We have a wealth of resources available for eighth graders and their families to help ensure a smooth transition from middle school to high school. Students and parents of Incoming Freshmen
• Sophomore Year Preps: You’ve made it through your Freshman year successfully, Now it’s time to prepare for your Sophomore Year. We’ve got you covered! We have resources on everything from picking an Academy to Course Descriptions.

There are many new things your freshman is experiencing in the transition from middle school to high school.  We want to support that transition to make the freshman experience engaging and successful. Below are tips for parents to ensure your student’s success!  As always, if you have questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact your student’s teachers and/or guidance counselor.

• Know what “house” your student is in. Get to know the house leader and teachers.
• Check out your student’s house webpage.
• Show an interest in what your student is learning at school. Ask questions!
• Review homework with your child
• Help your child organize his after school time by designating homework time each night. 
• Check your child’s work for completion. 
• Help your child use the school planner.  Teach him/her how to plan ahead, particularly for long term projects or tests that will be coming up.
• Check your child’s homework and progress on HAC (Home Access Center).  If you have questions or concerns, please go to the P-H-M Home Access Center help page.
• E-mail your child’s teachers with academic concerns or questions. They want to work with you to ensure success!
• Be sure your child is in school every day. If you know your child will be absent, help plan ahead by getting assignments in advance. The attendance office number is 258-9501.
• It’s all about mastery! We want your child to master the standards and the learning.
• Re-do’s … if you have questions, contact your house teachers.

Studies support that students who are involved in co-curricular and/or extra-curricular activities feel a greater sense of belonging and experience more academic success in the classroom.

• Clubs
• Academic Teams
   

Penn High School students come from three different middle schools (Discovery, Grissom and Schmucker Middle Schools) in the P-H-M school district. By entering the Freshman Academy, students are supported in making a smooth transition from middle school to high school, while learning how to be successful students.

A central goal of every Penn High School teacher is to develop and nurture meaningful relationships with every student. The Freshman Academy is divided into smaller houses, creating a personalized environment . Within the Penn Freshman Academy, each student is a member of a small group of 160 students called a “House.” 

There are four or five teachers in each house who teach the core classes of Math, Biology, English, and Geography/History of the World.  This allows teachers to communicate more effectively about each student and his or her unique needs, providing a very personalized education. Elective classes and physical education are taught outside of the Houses, which still gives each student a chance to assimilate with other students. 

Freshman Academy teachers who teach the same content (Math, Biology, English or Geography) meet weekly to develop and revise relevant curriculum. Teachers collaborate within each house to create lessons that engage and challenge each student. Collectively, content-specific teachers develop curriculum and determine the pace at which students work. Because teachers assess their students regularly, they are able to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of each student in each class. When students are struggling, teachers work together to re-teach critical content skills and provide additional supplemental materials as needed. Likewise, students who have mastered skills are challenged with enrichment. 

Teacher collaboration, combined with a shared roster of students in each academy house, allows the implementation of curriculum at appropriate levels of rigor. In addition to required Freshmen courses, there are also opportunities for Freshmen to take electives, which are outlined in the Program of Studies course descriptions and in the ninth-grade Course Selection Sheet.

Students in Spell Bowl benefit by developing their skills as users of language, both in spelling and reading/speaking vocabulary. We also have many competitions and opportunities to compete. This is one of Penn’s most successful teams. It has won many state titles.