Course Selection Information

5^th character denotes course pathway: D=Academic, W=Destreamed, P=Applied, L=Locally Developed, O=Open, U=University, M=University/College, C=College, E=Workplace

Courses ending in ‘F’ are French Immersion and have ‘FI’ in the course title.  Courses ending in ‘E’ are Advanced Placement and have ‘AP’ in the course title.

*  Students can take either HFN1OF or HFN2OF – not both as it will only count for 1 credit.

** Course will be offered in alternate years 

***Full year credit offered after school in the form of band rehearsals

Hodan Nalayeh Secondary School - Cooperative Education

What is Cooperative Education (Co-op)?  Cooperative Education is an experiential method of learning that provides students an opportunity to work outside the school, while earning 2 or 4 secondary school credits. Cooperative Education combines a subject studied in school that is related to a job placement outside of school.  For example, if a student has taken or is taking Grade 11 or 12 Biology, the student may then work in a Biology related career, such as health care, or Physiotherapy, earning two Co-op credits for the semester. Cooperative Education allows students to explore a career of interest, develop job skills, obtain career related practical experience, gather references for a resume, and develop attitudes necessary for success in the workplace.

How many Co-op credits can I earn?  Grade 11 and 12 Co-op courses and packages may be assembled for students to earn two or four credits. Two credit Co-op could be either in the A.M. (Period 1 & 2) or the P.M. (Period 3 & 4). Four credit Co-op is the full day (Periods 1 - 4) for the entire semester.

How do I sign up for Co-op?  Students must be 16 years of age and have earned 16 credits in order to enrol and participate in the co-op program.  

In my PathwayPlanner (myBlueprint): for two-credit (half day), choose COOP2; for four credit (full day), choose COOP4.

You must also complete the online Cooperative Education Application Form (bit.ly/hncoopapplication), and the Teacher References (bit.ly/coopreferenceform). Please send the online Teacher Reference Form to TWO teachers to complete online by April 1. Note: Additional application forms for specific employers will be required such as; hospital placements, military etc.  Please email Ms. Polyzotis (Co-op Head) at alexandra.polyzotis@yrdsb.ca if interested. 

Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) 

This program is designed for students who wish to pursue a skilled trade while meeting the academic requirements to graduate secondary school. Students may enrol in OYAP in Grade 11 and may continue with OYAP in Grade 12. Enrolment is limited by the availability of employers willing to take on apprenticeship trainees.

Accelerated OYAP Programs at Seneca, Humber, Centennial and George Brown Colleges

This Co-op program is offered to students in their last year of secondary school who have acquired at least 26 of the 30 credits required to graduate high school. Students work in a skilled trade while working on their level 1 apprenticeship certification in the skilled trade at a designated college. Students who are highly focused and are able to complete the secondary school Co-op requirements in conjunction with the college requirements may benefit from these reach-ahead opportunities. Students must be in good academic standing and have excellent attendance and punctuality to be considered. Students earn both high school and college level credits.

Canadian Armed Forces - Militia Co-op (PAID)

Students will earn four secondary school credits in second semester with successful completion in the Co-op program. To enrol, students must be a Canadian citizen in good academic standing, have excellent attendance and punctuality and no criminal record. Students will become active members of the Canadian Armed Forces and receive their basic training at various locations. Students receive a salary, four high school credits, and have the opportunity to either stay on full-time or as a summer/part-time reservist in the Armed Forces. Students will be required to complete a physical test, and successfully complete a Grade 10 math test administered by the Armed Forces. For more information, please visit www.forces.ca and the Co-op department.  

Dual Credit Programming

Dual Credit Programs at Seneca, Georgian, Centennial, Humber and George Brown Colleges

Dual Credit courses allow senior students to earn high school credits and college credits at the same time by attending a college delivered course on a college campus. Students who successfully complete the course will earn a high school credit and a college credit.  Dual Credit courses are offered at Centennial, Seneca, Georgian, Humber and George Brown Colleges, at various campuses. You can experience college life while still in high school, at no cost to you. This is an opportunity to try something new while exploring different program pathways. 

To see what courses will be available for the next school year, visit the school board’s dual credit website. 

How to sign up for a Dual Credit course:

1. Look at the list of college courses offered on the school board’s dual credit website and choose the course(s) you want to take.
2. Make an appointment with your Guidance Counsellor to discuss your choice.
3. Select the correct Dual Credit course code on myPathwayPlanner (myBlueprint).  The codes are found under "Dual Credits” in the course calendar.  Choose:
   • YYY4X1 to choose one college course
   • YYY4X1 and YYY4X2 to choose two college courses
4. In the spring, you will complete the online Dual Credit Application Package, and the college-specific application, and return it to the Guidance Office.
5. Wait for the Regional Dual Credit Teacher to contact you for an interview in late spring. 

Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM)

What is a Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM)?

The SHSM is a Ministry-approved specialized program that allows students to focus their learning on a specific economic sector while meeting the requirements for the Ontario Secondary School Diploma.  The SHSM program also assists in the transition from secondary school to apprenticeship training, college, university or the workplace. The program enables students to gain sector-specific skills and knowledge in the context of engaging, career-related learning environments and helps them focus on graduation and pursuing their postsecondary goals.

What SHSM programs are being offered at Hodan Nalayeh Secondary School?

Health and Wellness, Business, Arts and Culture

What are the parts of SHSM I have to complete to obtain my SHSM diploma?

• Specific mandatory and elective courses
• Two credits of Cooperative Education in a related placement
• Mandatory and elective certifications and trainings
• Reach Ahead and Experiential Learning experiences

SHSM benefits students because….

• Customized learning keeps students more engaged
• Students gain confidence in their ability to succeed while developing specialized knowledge and skills
• Students see the connections between their studies, the world beyond high school, and their future careers
• Students begin to establish relationships and networks in their chosen field
• The sector-recognized certifications and training programs can be shown to prospective employers and postsecondary educational or training institutions

How do students enrol in the SHSM program?

1.  Complete an application -  https://bit.ly/YRDSBSHSMStudentapp 

2.  Select the necessary courses for the program (Arts and Culture, Business, Health and Wellness)

Summer Programming

Summer School Co-op

This co-op program is designed for students who are unable to fit the regular full semester co-op into their timetable or for students who require two credits to graduate high school. For two (2) credits, students attend classes on weekends/weeknights in May and June and then spend 5 weeks over the summer obtaining valuable work experience.  One (1) credit coop would be completed without the May/June component.  

Summer Cooperative Education at Mackenzie Health/Cortellucci Hospital (tentative)

Mackenzie Health, in partnership with York Region District School Board, offers students enrolled in a Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) Program the opportunity to complete their cooperative education requirement for SHSM outside of day school. Students attend classes on weekends/weeknights in May and June and then spend 6 weeks over the summer obtaining valuable work experience while earning 2 high school credits.  

The Summer school co-op applications are due after the March break.

Please contact the Cooperative Education Department in Room 219 or call 905-660-1397 ext. 219 to inquire about Cooperative Education or any of the related regional co-op opportunities.

Youth Innovation By Design - Summer (July) Course (tentative)

The Youth Innovation By Design course focuses on ways in which innovators identify problems, see them as opportunities, generate ideas, and organize resources to develop and take successful solutions forward into the world, both for-profit and not-for-profit.  Students earn either an IDC4O (Grade 12 Open) or IDC4U (Grade 12 University) credit. 

1. Visit Student Tools from the button on the homepage and select myPathwayPlanner. Please use your GAPPs username and password to login.
2. From your Dashboard, click on the Plan Courses button that appears in the High School Progress/Official High School Plan box. The button will say Plan Courses only after course submission has been enabled by Hodan Nalayeh Secondary School. Hint: Clicking on Plan Courses will take you to your High School Planner - you can also access this by simply clicking on High School from the left hand navigation menu.

Opting Out of the Online Graduation Requirement (For students entering Grades 10 through 12): 

The request to opt out can be submitted along with your course selections for next year: 

1. If you have not opted out already in myPathway Planner, you will see an Online Learning Opt-Out box as the first box in your High School Plan for next school year - click this box.
   1. If you have pre-filled your course selection earlier, you will not see the ‘Online Learning Opt-Out’ box. Simply remove the course in the first box and it will appear, along with a new course box to re-add your final course.
   2. If you do not see an ‘Online Learning Opt-Out’ box under next year, no action is needed - either you have already opted out, or you will be asked to confirm your decision in a later grade.
   3. If you Opt-Out, you will still able to Opt-in at later date, if so desired.
2. Click on the ‘Online Learning Opt-Out’ link, and review the information in the description and guidance message.
3. Click Add Course if you wish to opt out of the requirement. You may also view how to Opt Out of the Online Learning Graduation Requirement by watching the video.

Add Courses for Next Year

• In High School Planner, click + [Course]. This will show you the entire course catalogue.
• Courses can be filtered by Grade or Discipline by adjusting these filters at the top of the courses screen. This will make it easier to see the courses that are appropriate for you.
• If you select a compulsory course (i.e. Math) the compulsory courses in that discipline will appear. The Grade 9 column has been set to display only Grade 9 courses in the course catalogue.
• In the Course Selection and Details screen, explore the available courses.
• Click Add Course when you find the course you want.
  • Grade 10-12 Students - If adding a Music Repertoire (after-school) course or in some cases, Dual Credit courses, it will be entered as your 9th course. After you enter your first eight (8) courses, myPathwayPlanner will display an +[ Repertoire] option to the bottom of your course selection. For Repertoire and Dual Credit courses only, click the new +[Repertoire] bubble and add the correct Repertoire/Dual Credit course to your Official Plan – leave blank otherwise.
  • Grade 12 Students are allowed to have 1 spare on their timetable each semester if they have earned 24 credits. MyPathwayPlanner has been set-up to allow Grade 12 students to submit their course selection with only 6 courses. By leaving one or two +[Course] bubbles blank, you are indicating the number of spares you wish to have.