The da Vinci Program

The da Vinci Program is a three-year STEAM program (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) beginning in Grade 10. da Vinci is a differentiated program: Students may enroll at the Honors, ACP, or CP level and need not be at the same level in all da Vinci classes.

da Vinci is a multi-year cohort program:

• 10th grade da Vinci chemistry, math, and art
• 11th grade da Vinci biology, math, and engineering
• 12th grade da Vinci capstone

Details about specific da Vinci courses can be found in the program of studies within each department listing. The da Vinci program will provide students with the opportunity to build skills in experimentation, analytical problem solving, collaboration, communication, and engineering, technology, and artistic representation through student-driven learning and real-world applications. A written application is required to join the da Vinci Program. Students should see their mathematics/science teacher or counselor for more information.

The Global Justice Program

The Global Justice Program is a three-year program beginning in Grade 10. As Dr. Martin Luther King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” With this in mind, the Global Justice Program seeks to examine race, gender, socioeconomics, religion, sexual orientation, and climate. How do we deal with injustices around the world? How do we deal with injustices in our own communities? The program aims to keep students together in cohorts, where they will work on collaborative, interdisciplinary projects, as well as more traditional assessments.

The New Media Communities Program

The New Media Communities Program is a two-year program beginning in Grade 10. New Media Communities combines English and History with project-based work in media analysis and media production. In addition to rigorous work studying history and literature, students will collaborate with their friends in filmmaking, audio production, music production, graphic design, web design, and more; in doing so, we will deepen our creative strengths and gain new ones. Sophomores will learn audio storytelling and production, participating in the nationwide NPR Student Podcast challenge. Juniors will expand their knowledge from Sophomore year and focus on using documentary cinema to enhance their understanding of American history and literature. Their work will culminate in a 10-15 minute collaborative documentary project to be submitted for local and national competitions. Throughout the program, our main goals will be to foster community, challenge ourselves, and tell stories that matter to us and to the world.

WISE Program

NSHS WISE Program Website

The WISE program allows qualified seniors to spend Term 4 working on a substantial academic project of their own design on a part-time or full-time basis. Senior projects/internships are created to help the student explore a personal interest, and may include a possible career choice, a special talent, a research project, or a community service project.

The goal of the WISE program is to engage students in a different kind of learning experience outside of the classroom during the fourth term of their senior year as a way to help them transition to college or to work. The program hopes to foster independence, self-confidence, and a personal sense of responsibility for students as they take charge of their learning. Through internships with agencies in the area, WISE gives students the opportunity to obtain real-life experience in the working world and helps strengthen the ties between Newton South High School and the community.

• Full-time Project: Allows students to be released from most classes (with exceptions, such as MCAS prep) and requires a minimum of 24 hours per school week working at an internship.
• Part-time Project: Allows students to stay in some classes and requires up to 12 hours per school week working on the project/internship.

Who May Participate?

Students must be in good academic standing (cumulative unweighted grade point average of 2.0 or better) and must be on schedule to meet graduation requirements by the end of Term 3. Also, students must be deemed responsible based on their attendance (including cuts, absences, and tardies) and school behavior (including detentions and suspensions).

College and Career Center

The College & Career Center is located within the Student Center/Cafeteria and is staffed by a full-time professional school/college counselor. The College & Career Counselor works closely with school counselors, students, parents & caregivers providing comprehensive career and college planning assistance to students in grades 9-12. Students are encouraged to drop in and ask questions and explore the many resources. Families & caregivers, along with students, may schedule appointments for individual conferences. Whether a student is interested in finding a job, internship or volunteer opportunity, seeking scholarships or needs advice in applying to college, a wide variety of resources are available including Chromebooks, career-related publications, armed forces materials, gap year and standardized testing (SAT/ACT) information. Each spring and fall, the Center hosts group meetings with juniors and seniors, and respectively, with college representatives. Annual volunteer and trade fairs are held during lunches in December and March. Students are encouraged to actively engage in the Center’s programming and activities to explore how their interests and skills align with their personal and educational goals.

Read more about the College and Career Center

Before entering ninth grade, each student is assigned a counselor for the entire four-year period. Counselors support students’ academic and social-emotional development with an emphasis on wellness and balance. They also help students learn about themselves - their interests, aptitudes, and talents. The department’s goal is to assist every student with the normal developmental tasks that all adolescents undertake. Planning for the future is an important aspect of counseling. This is done in a variety of ways and includes examining available options and helping students on their way to becoming independent, self-confident adults. Career and college planning constitutes a major focus of the department.

Read more about the Counseling department

The Newton South High School Library is an innovative learning center designed to support the academic goals of the school and to foster a culture of reading among our students. The physical space has resources for students to use as they explore, learn, and create while at school. The virtual space allows students to access high quality, reliable information resources (e.g, databases) and pleasure reading (ebooks and audiobooks) on a 24/7 basis. Under the guidance of professional librarians, NSHS students become effective and responsible users of a wide variety of information with the goal of becoming independent learners and critical evaluators of information. To achieve this, the library staff partners with classroom teachers to provide research-related instruction using library resources. Every fall, the library welcomes ninth grade students through library orientations. During these orientations, students learn about the resources available in the library and how to access them. Throughout the year, teachers from all grade levels and subject areas bring their classes to the library for academic research, information literacy instruction, and book selection for independent reading. All resources, including the online catalog and current research projects, are available on the library website.

Newton South Library Website

Newton Summer School

Students may take courses on a full-credit basis at Newton Summer School, which is part of Newton Community Education. Information is available online and includes details on offerings, fees, and start dates for summer courses. Most courses taken in summer school count for academic credit and appear on the student’s transcript. However, grades from summer school are not included in GPA calculations. See your counselor for specific details. The summer school provides a wide selection of courses designed to provide enrichment and to help students improve academic foundations or to retake a course they previously failed.

Newton Community Education

617-559-6999

staff@newtoncommunityed.org

9th Grade Clusters

9th Grade Clusters aim to ease the transition to high school and to promote connections between and among students and teachers. Clusters are made up of teachers in the History, English, and Science departments who collectively share students and are designed to foster consistent communication among teachers, students, parents, and counselors. The goal of the collaboration during weekly meetings is to help students meet the ninth grade expectations in History, English, and Science classes.

Advisories are a cohort of students that meet on Mondays to get to know one another and a teacher in a nonacademic setting. These cohorts, which stay together for all four years of high school, provide support for one another through the transitions that are part of high school, work on improving the school climate through community service projects, do activities that foster our school’s core values, and last, but not least, have fun together by playing games and relaxing.

Afterschool Program and Homework Club

The Afterschool Program (ASP) and Homework Club meet twice a week after school hours. Ninth and tenth grade students are formally invited to attend ASP when they earn a D or an F in a major academic course in the prior term. The program offers support in English, math, physics, chemistry, Spanish, and history. Students who are not formally invited to attend the program are also able to access the same supports on a “drop-in” basis by attending the Homework Club, which meets concurrently with ASP and is open to students at all grade levels.

Department Help Centers

Department Help Centers are located around the school and offer students the opportunity for assistance during the school day. Currently, help centers are available in English (Writing Center), Mathematics (Math Center), and Science (Science Help Center). For more information, talk to your subject area teacher or the appropriate department head.

Writing Center Schedule

Math Center Schedule

Lion Block

Lion Block meets at the end of the day on Tuesday, and is an opportunity for student clubs and activities to meet, as well as for teachers to hold optional learning and enrichment activities.

Newton South Clubs and Activities

Student Support Center

The Student Support Center is a classroom that is open for Small Studies. Rather than being in Directed Studies, which have 20+ students, students are referred to Small Studies based on a recommendation from a teacher in a subject where they are either struggling to keep up or simply need an opportunity to re-learn specific materials in order to understand the concepts. During Small Studies, students either work on assignments sent by their teachers in a small focused study group (5-7 students with one teacher) or they work one-on-one with a peer tutor (if one is available). Students have access to textbooks, computers, and a printer. The students’ progress is reevaluated every eight to ten weeks.

WIN Block

WIN Block is an opportunity for students to sign up for learning opportunities providing “What I Need” three times a week, in between the first and second instructional blocks on Wednesday and Friday and after the last scheduled class period on Thursday. It is a time when students can meet with their teachers for extra help or to make-up work, participate in social emotional learning opportunities, or elect from amongst other enrichment learning opportunities. All staff are required to be available to assist students during two of the three WIN Blocks.