Description of the American school system

1. School in the US

2. US Education System
● School is required from ages 5-16
● The main types of schooling in the US are Public
Schools (87% of kids), Private Schools (10% of
kids), and Home-Schooling (3%)
● Public schools are usually larger than private
schools, and do not require a uniform like private
schools
● Most private schools in the US are Catholic schools,
and cost a lot of money
● Public school is free, but the quality of the school
depends on if the school is in a nice area
● I will be focusing on public schools in the US

3. Religion in US schools
● No religious beliefs are taught in public
schools, but religion can be studied
historically. Students are allowed to wear
religious symbols and express beliefs, but
students and faculty cannot.
● Prayer is not technically allowed in schools,
but it is often done anyway.
○ At my school there were clubs for different
religions, for example, Christian Student Union and
Muslim Student Union.

4. American High Schools
● High school in the US is 4 years.
● It is an important time for students to prepare
for the career (job) they want to get after
school, or prepare to go to university.
● Students at high schools are called Freshman
(youngest), Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors
(oldest).

5. Required Classes in Michigan High Schools
● 4 years of English classes
● 3 years of History classes
● 3 years of Science classes
● 4 years of Math classes
● 2 years of Foreign language
○ At my school the options were French, Spanish, and German
● ½ a year of Physical Education and ½ a year of Health
● ½ a year of Government and ½ a year of Economics
● 1 year of art (visual arts or music)

6. University Courses (AP)
● Depending on the school in the US, students can take certain AP classes to
get university credit. This is nice because university is very expensive so
students can take the classes in high school for free and get credit if they do
well on a test for the class.
● AP classes at my school:
○ English: AP Literature, AP Language and Composition
○ Science: AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics I, AP Physics II, AP Environmental Science
○ History: AP US History, AP European History, AP World History
○ Math: AP Calculus I, AP Calculus II, AP Statistics
○ Language: AP French, AP Spanish
○ Art: AP Art

7. Elective Classes
● Students can take elective (optional) classes as well in addition to
the required classes.
● Elective classes offered at my school:
○ Yoga
○ Painting I and II, Watercolor, Drawing I and II, Ceramics I and II, Photography,
Creative Writing, Theater
○ Choir, Orchestra, Band, Jazz Band
○ World religions
○ Anatomy
○ Psychology

8. Grading System in the US
● Students are graded on participation,
homework, projects, and exams.
● Grades are given by letters (A-F) and
also as a GPA (Grade-Point Average)
which is out of 4.0
○ Students who do well in AP classes can get
higher than a 4.0
● GPA is important for college
acceptance, scholarships, and the
ability to participate in clubs and sports
in school

9. SAT & ACT
● There is no exam required to complete
high school in the US
● Many students do take the ACT or SAT
though, to get into university
● Students must pay for the ACT or SAT
(about $50-$100)
● Both exams have multiple choice and
essay portions
● Both tests take about 3 hours to
complete

10. Yearly Schedule
● The school year lasts from late
August until late May or early June
● Students have three main breaks
throughout the year:
○ 3 days for Thanksgiving
○ 2 weeks for Christmas
○ 1 week for “Spring Break” in April

11. Daily Schedule
1st Hour 7:45 - 8:42 AM
2nd Hour 8:49 - 9:47 AM
3rd Hour 9:54 - 10:51 AM
4th Hour OR Early
Lunch
10:58 - 11:55 AM
OR 10:51 - 11:22 AM
4th Hour OR Late
Lunch
11:29 AM - 12:26 PM
OR 11:55 AM - 12:26
5th Hour 12:33 - 1:30 PM
6th Hour 1:37 - 2:35 PM
1st Hour 7:45 - 8:33 AM
2nd Hour 8:40 - 9:29 AM
Free Period 9:36 - 10:23 AM
3rd Hour 10:30 - 11:18 AM
4th Hour OR Early Lunch 11:25 AM - 12:13 PM OR
11:18 - 11:49 AM
4th Hour OR Late Lunch 11:56 AM - 12:44 PM OR
12:13 - 12:44 PM
5th Hour 12:51 - 1:39 PM
6th Hour 1:46 - 2:35 PM
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
Tuesday and Thursday
*Students have the same classes in the
same order every day

12. Examples of classes a student may take throughout high school (my classes) :
● Freshman Year:
○ French, English, World Civilizations, Biology, Algebra, Ceramics and Drawing
● Sophomore Year:
○ French, English, AP US History, Geometry, Chemistry, Photography, Drawing
● Junior Year:
○ AP French, English, AP European History, AP Calculus, Physics, Gym, Health
● Senior Year:
○ AP English, AP World History, AP Biology, AP Calculus, Economics, Government, Painting
AP= Advanced Placement / University-Level

13. Facilities at my high school
● Other than classrooms, the school had:
○ 1 theater
○ 3 music rooms
○ 2 gymnasiums
○ 1 gymnastics room
○ 1 Library
○ Pool room and locker rooms
○ 3 computer labs
○ Cafeteria
○ Football field and practice football field
○ Tennis courts
○ Baseball and Softball fields
○ Soccer field

14. Rules in US Schools
● Schools and teachers vary with how strict they
are.
○ Be in the classroom when the bell rings, if students
are late a lot, they will get detention
○ Stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance every day
○ Students are suspended (must take time away from
school) or expelled (kicked out of school) for serious
offenses
○ Sometimes no eating or chewing gum (not always)
○ No phones or laptops in class (not always)
○ Dress code: no exposed shoulders, mid-drifts
(stomach), shorts and skirts to the knee, no saggy
(loose) pants, no hats

15. The Pledge of Allegiance
Done in almost all schools across the US every day
At my school, during second hour students had to stand up and recite the Pledge
of Allegiance
“I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of the United States of America.
And to the Republic, for which it stands. One nation, under God, indivisible,
with liberty and justice for all.”
More and more students have been refusing to participate in this in recent years,
especially older students

16. Faculty at US Schools
● Principal: the person in charge of the whole school.
● Vice-Principal: “second in command” to the principal, helps the principal with
their job.
● Secretary: helps school faculty, communicates with parents, helps students,
etc.
● Teachers: teach certain subjects and give out grades to students.
● Counselors: helps students with social or emotional issues.
● ESL/ELD Teachers: give additional help to students who do not speak
English as a first language.

17. Safety Drills
Very common, which drills are practiced vary (depend on) by
school and region
● Tornado
● Active Shooter
● Fire
● Earthquake

18. Clubs
There are many types of clubs in US schools for
different things
● Religious
● Science
● Politics
● Community Service
● Charity
● Debate

19. Sports
Sports are a VERY big part of US schools
School ends at 2:30 but students often have practice or games every day of the week
from 3 - 7 PM, and sometimes tournaments Saturdays
Before games, both teams stand and listen to the National Anthem
Schools will have mascots and school colors, some schools even have a “fight song”
Sports at my school:
● Fall: cross country (long distance running), girl’s golf, football, volleyball, boy’s
soccer, boy’s lacrosse, boy’s tennis
● Winter: water polo, swimming and diving, gymnastics, wrestling, floor hockey,
basketball (girl’s and boy’s)
● Spring: girl’s soccer, girl’s tennis, boy’s golf, baseball, softball, track and field,
girl’s lacrosse
Lacrosse

20. Theater
Most schools have multiple plays throughout the year
At my school, there was a fall play and a spring musical

21. School Lunch
School lunches are provided but not great
My school also had a small store where students could buy snacks
Juniors and seniors could leave the school to go home or go to restaurants for
lunch
Students have about 45 minutes for lunch
Students are allowed to eat lunch in the cafeteria, outside, or in the library
Many clubs meet during lunch

22. Homecoming and Spirit Week
● Weeklong event in the fall
● One week of dressing up for different themed days at school
(ex. School colors day, class colors day, crazy hair day, 80s day,
90s day)
● Pep rally in the gym on Friday
● Friday night parade followed by a football game
● “Homecoming Court” of 20 seniors (10 boys, 10 girls), voted for
by other students to be in parade. No homecoming queen and
king (depends on the school)
● Saturday night dance at the school
○ There was also a dance in the winter called “Winter Formal”

23. Prom
Most fancy/formal dance at most US high schools
No prom king and queen at my school, but many schools do have them
My school had a post-prom that was an event/party after the dance until 4 AM
Only Juniors and Seniors go to prom (at some schools only Seniors)

24. Graduation
VERY important in the US
Students wear caps (hats) and gowns (as well as
additional medals or cords to show achievements,
clubs they were in, etc)
Students often decorate the top of their cap to show
what job they will be doing or what university they
will be going to