Tune In, Take Away: Free Resource Share to Kickoff the School Year Strong

Webinar recording will be placed here after August 6th, 2024.

We are excited to bring back this popular webinar as we kickoff the 2024-25 school year. Although this blog post can stand alone, it is meant to accompany the webinar, was offered on August, 6th, 2024.

Recording | Passcode: t37i$MAr

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Aspiration to Action Intro

Sign up / Sign-in: https://contigoed.org/aspiration-to-action

Key features:

• Summary/Audio

• Community Warm-Up

• Audio Summary

• Opportunities to practice and check your understanding

• Advising in Action videos

• Add’l Resources: (Lesson Plans, PPT, Handouts, Workbooks)

• Resource page

• Case Study students

Individual Advising Resources 

Advising Toolkit 📄

• Description: suggestions for meeting outcomes; counselor pre-work; student pre-work; question banks and content guidance; links to resources 

• Location:  Aspiration to Action → Resource Library → General 

Concluding Activity Packet / Advising Workbook 📄

• Description: packet with student facing handouts; activities focused on aspiration and application topics to be completed independently by students 

• Location:  Aspiration to Action → Resource Library → General 

Application Workbook

Aspiration Workbook

Group Advising Resources 

Suggested Approach:

Understanding Transcripts & Utilizing Transcripts 📄

• Description: microcourses; lesson plan, student handout; PowerPoint 

• Location:  Aspiration to Action 

• FOCUS GRADES: 9 - 12

• Understanding Transcripts

  • Read a transcript, identifying critical elements of the transcript along the way.

  • Identify trends in students’ grade point averages (GPAs), which can affect college admissions decisions.

  • Connect a transcript to the “5Ps of College Admissions”.

• Utilizing Transcripts

  • Ask probing and clarifying questions that illuminate student strengths.  

  • Explore career resources that help students link academic strengths and interests to possible careers and/or fields of study.

• Resume: List of Involvement

  • Connecting co-curricular involvement to the 5 Ps of college admissions.

  • Explaining the depth, breadth, and impact of co-curricular involvement.

  • Strategies for assisting groups of students in mining for co-curricular involvement,

  • Resources for assisting groups of students in writing impactful co-curricular involvement statements.

Application Bundle of Microcourses 📄

• Description: microcourses; lesson plan, student handout; PowerPoint 

• Location:  Aspiration to Action 

• FOCUS GRADES: 12 

• Postsecondary Pathways

  • Identify viable postsecondary pathways that lead to early career opportunities.

  • Locate postsecondary opportunities in your state, county, or city.

• College Match

  • Define college match and college fit.

  • Explain how college wish lists are created, with an emphasis on match.

  • Compare college and university admission criteria to academic credentials to determine eligibility.

• College Fit

  • Define college fit.

  • Explore various aspects of college fit.

  • Evaluate colleges for individual fit.

• College Entrance Exams

  • Connect college entrance examinations to the 5 Ps of

  college admissions.

  • Explain the structure and format of the SAT & ACT.

  • Sketch out a testing roadmap, including registering for exams, and figuring out when and where students should take them.

  • Activate free test preparation resources.

• College Essays

  • List general personal attributes that colleges ask about in essays and personal insight type questions.

  • Match general personal attributes with particular essay and personal insight type questions.

  • Generate specific examples linked to personal attributes.

  • Visualize student attributes to create a narrative that forms a story relevant to their identity.

• Counselor Letter of Recommendation

  • Discuss the purpose of the counselor recommendation.

  • Contrast the purpose of the teacher recommendation with the counselor recommendation.

  • Identify effective elements of counselor recommendations.

  • Develop approaches and strategies for writing effective letters.

Aspiration Bundle of Microcourses 📄

• Description: microcourses; lesson plan, student handout; PowerPoint 

• Location:  Aspiration to Action 

• FOCUS GRADES: 11

• Future Plans

  • Common types of postsecondary credentialing.  

  • Linking a student’s interest with potential jobs and careers. 

  • Helping students explore a particular job or career of interest.

• Motivations

  • Differentiate between intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. 

  • Identify benefits that are both extrinsic and intrinsic motivators for a variety of postsecondary pathways.

• Enrichment Opportunities

  • Types of enrichment opportunities. 

  • Effective search strategies to find enrichment experiences that connect to students’ personal and professional interests and strengths. 

  • Tips and strategies for setting up an effective enrichment program on your campus.  

• Self-Control & Mindfulness

  • Self-control techniques “change your environment” to help students avoid distraction and meet goals. 

  • Mindfulness techniques that can help students center their minds to bring themselves to a state of calm. 

  • Scenarios when students can activate self-control and mindfulness strategies. 

• WOOP

  • Identify goals and wishes that are worth pursuing.  

  • Identify barriers and obstacles that might get in the way of those goals and wishes. And, 

  • Develop a plan and strategy, utilizing Contigo Ed resources when applicable, for overcoming them.