Day 5: Individual High School and Career Plan

Daily Learning Contract

• Topic: Course Planning
• Objective: Students will synthesize self-evidence, current course evidence, three possible postsecondary preparation routes, one advanced or college-credit option, and an action and revision plan into one individual high school and career plan.
• TEKS: d(8)(B), d(8)(C), d(3)(D)
• Demonstration of Learning: Individual High School and Career Plan with student-visible 16-point rubric.

Lesson Overview

Warm-Up (5 min)

WARM-UP: What is one part of your plan that feels supported by evidence and one part that is still a question?

Students write privately. Ask for examples of evidence types rather than personal answers: assessment result, daily work, source-checked course, prerequisite, preparation requirement, or adult feedback.

Activity 1: Gather the Evidence Set (5 min)

Students open or lay out:

• Week 1 Mid-Year Career Blueprint;
• Day 1 Transition and Assessment Decisions;
• Day 2 Four-Year Course Plan Draft;
• Day 3 College Credit Options and Conversation;
• Day 4 SMART Experience Action Plan; and
• the student-visible rubric.

These checkpoints are source material. Students submit the four-page Individual Plan only; Days 1-4 are not four additional Major uploads.

If an artifact is missing, the student uses the matching Canvas guide and source card. A missing platform screenshot is not required.

Activity 2: Write the Individual Plan (28 min)

Students complete the four-page Individual High School and Career Plan in three chunks.

Use the 28-minute block as 8 minutes for Chunk 1, 10 minutes for Chunk 2, and 8 minutes for Chunk 3, with a one-minute source check after each of the first two chunks. If class ends before all four rubric criteria are represented, move the student to the recovery window rather than deleting a criterion to force submission.

Chunk 1: Direction and self-evidence

• current career direction or pathway question;
• two specific pieces of self-evidence; and
• evidence that would cause the student to reconsider.

Chunk 2: Course and postsecondary evidence

• four-year course sequence or linked course-plan draft;
• one prerequisite chain;
• one item marked for counselor verification;
• three possible preparation routes after high school;
• one route to investigate first without treating it as permanent;
• one AP, dual-credit, or other advanced option with source/date; and
• one limitation or question.

Chunk 3: Action, support, and revision

• action within seven days;
• action before the next counseling meeting;
• action during Grade 9;
• support or resource;
• backup; and
• a specific revision rule.

Time, Voice, Body (TVB): Keep source packets on the left and the plan on the right. Use Voice 0 during each writing block and a visible timer. Offer Voice 1 only during the optional evidence check.

DOK 3: Which part of the plan is most likely to change after a counselor meeting, and which career goal or skill should remain protected even if the course sequence changes?

Activity 3: Self-Score and Revise (7 min)

Students use the 16-point rubric before submission. They circle one descriptor in each row and revise one section that is at Approaches, Needs Improvement, or Insufficient Evidence.

The teacher scores evidence and reasoning. Do not score family availability, adult agreement, English mechanics unless meaning is unclear, handwriting, art, accent, or platform access.

Exit Ticket and Submission (5 min)

EXIT TICKET (3-2-1 Reflective) · Printable PDF:

• 3 parts of my plan supported by evidence
• 2 questions I will take to a counselor or trusted adult
• 1 condition that would make me revise the plan

Students submit the plan privately in Canvas as a file, text, or brief audio response. Paper submission is equal. This draft prepares students for the counselor-controlled Xello planning tasks; it does not count as Submit course requests or parent approval.

(d(8)(B), d(8)(C), d(3)(D))

Differentiation

• Support: Use the four-page scaffold with one labeled prompt per evidence job. Let students dictate one section before writing or use speech-to-text. A fictional career goal is an equal route for the three-route comparison.
• Extension: Build a second plan that protects the same goal through a different course or training route, then compare the risks.
• ELL: Use the sentence frames "My current direction is... because my evidence shows..." and "I will revise this plan if..." Score the evidence, not grammar unless meaning is unclear.