Lesson Plan Template

School Counselor: St. Thomas The Apostle School Date: September

Activity: The Importance of GPA/Calculating GPA
Grade(s): 8

ASCA Mindsets & Behaviors (Domain/Standard): Academic

M 4: Understanding that postsecondary education and lifelong learning are necessary for
long-term career success
B-LS 8: Actively engage in challenging coursework
B-LS 9: Gather evidence and consider multiple perspectives to make informed decisions
B-SMS 3: Demonstrate ability to work independently
B-SS 6: Use effective collaboration and cooperation skills

Learning Objective(s) (aligns with Competency):

For students to learn what a Grade Point Average is and how to calculate it.

Materials: Handout: Calculating Your GPA, pencils, calculators

Procedure:
1) Warm-Up (5 minutes): Introduce yourself, describe what a school counselor is and
what you do.

2) Lesson(25minutes):
Write GPA on the board. Ask the class: What does GPA mean? What do the letters stand
for? Write Grade Point Average on the board. You may need to define average if the
students dont remember from math class.

Ask : What letter grades can earn in high school? Write on the board:

A, B, C, D, F (in a vertical column)

When we figure out GPAs, each letter grade has a point value assigned to it. How many
points do you think an A is worth? Write on the board.
A= 4 points
How many points is a B worth?
B= 3

How many points is a C worth?

C=2How many points is a D worth? D=1How many points is an F worth? F=0 points

So lets look at a mock report card and figure out a GPA. What classes show up on
report cards? Write these on the board:
Literacy (Reading, Language Arts) MathScienceSocial Studies

An elective (choose on to write down)Another elective (choose another to write down)

Does lunch show up on a report card? (NO) Why not? (We dont get a grade for
lunch.)

Lets pretend this is my report card. Lets assign grades. Have the class help you assign
grades making sure to use all possible grades A, B, C, D, F.

Now lets figure out my GPA. The first step is:

a. Write down the points. (Write this on the board and go through the grades writing the
points next to each grade)

The second step is:

b. Add the points up. (Write this on the board and add up the points.)

The third step is:

c. Divide by the number of grades received. (Write this on the board and divide the total
points by 6 because they receive grades for 6 classes)

So what is my GPA? (whatever the result was.)

What does this number mean? A decimal means that the whole number was divided into
10 little parts. (Draw 10 little lines between the 2 and the 3. ) So a 2.3 is three little
lines above the 2, or just above a C grade. When we talk about GPAs, we always talk
about them using numbers like 3.8 or 4.0 or 1.7 or 2.5. We dont talk about GPA using
letter grades.

Go over last two questions and their implications. Have students reflect on how they are
doing in comparison to the mock GPA presented.

3) Closure(5-10minutes) Answer any questions.

Plan for Evaluation: I will be able to evaluate the effectiveness of this workshop on
actual academic improvement students are able to take away and implement in the
different courses they take.

Process Data: All 8th grade students will participate in a 50-minute lesson on
understanding how to calculate GPA and the importance of their GPAs in high school in
relation to applying to colleges in the future. Process the learned information from
students regarding misconceptions and what they were able to learn through the lesson.

Perception Data: Students will display comprehension of GPA calculation through

completion of worksheets. Students will understand implications of GPA as they
transition from middle school to high school. Students will understand importance of
GPA when researching prospective schools for college in the future.

Outcome Data:
100% of students will understand the importance of their GPA entering high
school
100% of students will understand how to calculate their GPA
Increase % improvement regarding academic achievement and standardized test
scores

Follow Up: Follow up in a month with another workshop around test-taking skills for
students that might be failing or underachieving in one or two classes. Also, individually
follow up with student academic progress and check in with 8th graders on their high
school choices and what they need to finish to apply and be admitted for the following
school year.

Needs Assessment Identification:

Q9- Students have strong test-taking skills.
Q11- What percentage of your students do you feel require additional academic support
that they are not currently receiving (tutoring, homework help, etc.)?
Q13 - Students understand what it will take to go to college.

ASCA National Model Domain: ACADEMICS

Test taking skills and additional academic support
Strong test taking skills
-57.14% neither agree/disagree,
-28.58% disagree/strongly, disagree
Students needing additional academic support
-50% agreed 0-25% of students need more support
-42.86% agreed 25-50% of students need more support

In relation to the needs assessment, I looked closely at Questions #9,11 &13. Questions 9
& 11 are in relation to test taking skills and the lack of efficacy that teachers believe their
students possess in relation to academics. By focusing on the importance of their grades
we can start having better dialogue with students on how that not only effects their ability
to get admitted to high schools they like, but as well as impacts their post-secondary
aspirations. By allowing students to further evaluate how they are currently doing in
classes is how we are able to help them assess how to improve and refocus to being
improving in classes they might difficulties with. This leads to question #13 which
emphasizing an understanding of what it will take to go to college, a huge portion being
their grades, as well as any involvement they might have as well. By focusing on GPA we
can reframe the importance of our students grades and the importance of getting good
grades in middle school, high school, and the opportunities that it leads when deciding to
consider colleges to attend in the future.