For many students at North, the AVID 1/Humanities course is their first introduction to the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program. The 9th grade AVID class is an IB MYP course, serving as an introduction to the expectations of the high school AVID curriculum. This 9th grade class serves as an introduction to the expectations of the high school AVID curriculum. The course begins by thoroughly explaining how to keep an AVID notebook, and continues by participating actively in bi-weekly tutorials with the preparatory tutorial sheets. An emphasis is placed on how to take Cornell-style notes from class lectures, as well as their textbooks and independent study at home. This class also addresses practical life skills that will benefit all students in their academic and personal lives by reading The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens over a period of months in the 1st semester.
\The 2nd semester will be a continuation of AVID notebook checks and tutorial participation, while grade checks will be incorporated every few weeks to help students take accountability for their progress in classes. This semester consists of exposing students to the writing process of an MLA-style research paper. Students will spend most of the 3rd quarter practicing their research skills by citing textual support and formatting a college-style essay. In the 4th quarter, 9th graders will watch three inspirational movies that are used as a catalyst for one speech and two SAT-like essays to begin exposing students to the format of the next level of college preparation in AVID 2