Career Technical Education

Year: 9-12
Prerequisite: None
DHS Graduation Requirement: Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: No

Course Description
Ag Mechanics I is an exciting and engaging course designed to encourage personal growth for both male and female students in a shop setting. This yearlong introductory course features general Career Technical Education (CTE) skills and procedures commonly found in industry. This applied or ―hands on‖ course will engage students in shop safety, hand and power tool identification and usage, basic plumbing, electrical circuits, SMAW (stick) welding, oxygen-acetylene welding and cutting, Plasma Arc cutting and sheet metal work. Students will construct small to medium sized projects throughout the year and perform basic welds. All assigned student projects are theirs to take home. Individuals wishing to build a personal project must have instructor approval and they must provide their own materials. Personal projects are not required and would be in addition to assigned course projects and no substitutions of assigned course projects will be allowed. This is a primary course in the CTE pathway for Agricultural Mechanics.

Class Requirements
Each student will enter at least one completed shop project (of their choosing) in the Dixon May Fair Ag Mechanics or Industrial Arts Division as part of their second semester course requirements. Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 10-12
Prerequisite: Agricultural Mechanics I
DHS Graduation Requirement: Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: No

Course Description
Ag Mechanics II is a yearlong course and is the second course in the Ag mechanics sequence. Students will continue to engage in skills learned from Ag Mechanics I and develop new skills in the following areas: small engine theory, small engine maintenance and troubleshooting, MIG welding, Plasma Arc Cutting.
Students are also expected to advance their skills in the following areas: GMAW and SMAW joints in Flat, Horizontal, Vertical and Overhead positions, Oxy/Acetylene welding and cutting, plasma arc cutting, sheet metal work, use of hand tools and power tools, electricity, plumbing, shop math, project construction utilizing layout and design techniques. Students will learn how to construct medium to large projects.
Each student will produce and pass an industry based AWS welding certification test. This performance based certification is recognized throughout the world. Students will need to purchase or supply their own materials for independent projects. This is the secondary course in the CTE pathway for Agricultural Mechanics.

Class Requirements
All students will enter at least one completed shop project into the Dixon May Fair as part of their second semester course requirements.. Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 11-12
Prerequisite: Agricultural Mechanics I and II
DHS Graduation Requirement: Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: No

Course Description
Ag Mechanics III is a course that focuses on using the student‘s prior knowledge from Ag Mechanics I and II.  Students are expected to design, develop accurate scale plans and fabricate independent projects that
directly relate to agricultural mechanics. This course is an advanced study and application of the Agricultural Mechanics industry and fabrication. Students will need to purchase or supply their own metal for their projects. This course may be repeated. This is an advanced course within the CTE pathway for Agricultural Mechanics.

Class Requirements
All students will enter at least one completed shop project into the Dixon May Fair as part of their second semester course requirements. Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. Many activities take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 9-12
Prerequisite: None
DHS Graduation Requirement: Fine Art
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (f)

Course Description
Floral Design is a UC approved introductory Floriculture class taught by a California Certified Florist. The class is based off of a student run business and the California Agriculture Education approved floral curriculum. In this class students have the unique opportunity to market and sell their own subscriptions, design the arrangements, and deliver a finished product to the customer. Students who participate in this class get a hands on experience of all aspects of the industry including major art principles and historical periods applying to floral design, tools, flowers and plants used in the industry, a wide variety of floral designs including corsage and boutonniere, business skills, pricing and marketing, floral industry processing, and delivery of finished product. This class is taught in preparation for the California Certified Florist exam and students who enroll will receive an industry recognized, career read iCEV certification. This is a primary course in the CTE pathway for Floral Design.

Class Requirements
Students must be willing to spend extra time as needed to complete required designs. Students are required to display their work or projects at the school art fair and the Dixon May Fair. Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 10-12
Prerequisite: Floral Design
DHS Graduation Requirement: Fine Art
UC/CST approved course: Yes (f)

Course Description
Students in Advanced Floral will learn professional florist skills for employment in the floral field. Students will explore the floriculture industry on a more technical and advanced level including the proper care and handling of flowers, plants, and foliage; evaluate floral materials and arrangements; utilize floral tools, supplies and products to apply design principles to floral medium; construct arrangements for all occasions; display, price and market floral designs; and preserve floral materials as students run their own floral shop. The art elements and principles of design will serve as a foundation for each unit covered. After completion of this class, students will be prepared to secure a job in the floral industry. Students will be exposed to careers in the Floriculture and Horticulture industry.
Students will automatically become members of the FFA and participation in FFA activities and supervised agricultural experience programs will be a graded component of this course. This is a secondary course in the CTE pathway for Floral Design.

Class Requirements
Students must be willing to spend extra time as needed to complete required designs. Students are required to display their work or projects at the school art fair and the Dixon May Fair. Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 9
Prerequisite: None
DHS Graduation Requirement: Life Science
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (d)

Course Description
This one year course, organized into major units, integrates biological science practices and knowledge into the practice of sustainable agriculture. The units will address the following questions: What is sustainable agriculture? How does sustainable agriculture fit into our environment? What molecular biology principles guide sustainable agriculture? How do we make decisions to maximize sustainable agricultural practices within a functioning ecosystem? Within each unit, specific life science principles integrate with agricultural principles, as students gain knowledge of how the two disciplines inform each other. This is a primary course in the CTE pathway for Agricultural Science.

Class Requirements
Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 10-12
Prerequisite: Living Earth or Sustainable Agriculture Biology
DHS Graduation Requirement: Physical Science- This course meets the same graduation and UC/CSU requirements as Chemistry and the Environment.
UC/CSU: Yes (d)

Course Description
This course explores the physical and chemical nature of soil as well as the relationships between soil, plants, animals and agricultural practices. Students examine properties of soil and land and their connections to plant and animal production. Using knowledge of scientific protocols as well as course content, students develop an Agri-Science research program to be conducted throughout the first semester of the course. To complete that whole project each student will investigate and test an Agri- science research question by formulating a scientific question related to the course content, formulating a hypothesis based on related research, conducting an experiment to test the hypothesis, collecting quantitative data, and forming a conclusion based on analysis of the data. The result of this research program is an in depth research and experimentation paper that is technically written, based on scientific protocol, and cited using APA formatting. Additionally, students develop and present a capstone soil management plan for agricultural producers, demonstrating their knowledge of the soil chemistry content learned throughout the course. This is a secondary course in the CTE pathway for Agricultural Science

Class Requirements
Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: recommended 11-12
Prerequisite: Living Earth or Sustainable Agriculture Biology and a Chemistry course, minimally concurrent
DHS Graduation Requirement: Life Science
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (d)

Course Description
This course will provide the student with principles in Animal Science focusing on the area of mammalian production, anatomy, physiology, reproduction, nutrition, respiration and genetics. This course is intended to successfully prepare those students who plan on majoring in Agricultural Sciences at a college or university. Frequent opportunities are given to develop and apply rational and creative thinking processes of observing, comparing, organizing, relating, inferring, applying and communicating.
Also, there is an emphasis on developing values, aspirations, and attitudes that promote the student’s understanding of personal involvement with the scientific discoveries of the future. There are ample opportunities for hands-on class participation with animals in this class to enable students to demonstrate their knowledge of restraint, handling, behavior, etc. Additional emphasis will be placed on industry practices to include record keeping, public relations, and communications. Students will have a basic knowledge of animal anatomy and physiology, nutrition, breeding, and genetics. Students will be able to properly handle livestock of varying species. Students will gain an understanding of issues facing animal agriculture. Students will be prepared to enter a career or coursework related to animals and/or agriculture. Students will gain hands-on experience working directly with animals. This is an additional course in the CTE pathway for Agricultural Science.

Class Requirements
Students enrolled in any Agriculture course are automatically FFA members.. FFA Participation and an FFA Project account for a nominal 10% of a student‘s overall semester grade. There are a multitude of activities that take place monthly to accommodate students.

Year: 9-12
Prerequisite: None
DHS Graduation Requirement: Fine Art and Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (f)

Course Description
This course teaches beginning through advanced multimedia techniques involved in project planning, production elements, project completion and presentation skills. Students work individually and in groups to create dynamic graphic design, original digital art, short video clips, and structured web pages using industry standard professional software. Students expand their knowledge of graphic editing, graphic design, video production, and web design. Throughout the course, students will maintain an electronic portfolio of their work.
Students will explore areas of personal and professional career growth and skills, and will create a digital portfolio of projects. This is a primary course in the CTE pathway for Multimedia.

Year: 10-12
Prerequisite: Multimedia 1 or Teacher Recommendation
DHS Graduation Requirement: Fine Art and Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (f)

Course Description
This class takes the knowledge and skills acquired in Multimedia I to the intermediate and advanced levels. Students will explore a wide spectrum of design projects including 2D and 3D art, special effects for digital publishing, typography, page layout, create motion graphics and video game content, portfolio web site design and much more. Students will also have the opportunity to become an Adobe Certified Associate, an industry standard in the graphic design and media fields. An Adobe Certified Associate credential certifies entry-level skills to plan, design, build, and maintain effective communications using different forms of digital media. This is a secondary course in the CTE pathway for Multimedia.

Year: 11-12
Prerequisite: Multimedia 2
DHS Graduation Requirement: Fine Art and Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: No

Course Description
Multimedia Studio is for students who have completed Multimedia 2 and who are seriously interested in the practical experience of Graphic Design, the Digital Arts and the Multimedia field. Multimedia
Studio students will complete advanced graphic design projects, digital art projects and Multimedia projects that are assigned or independently developed. Students will also develop a professional portfolio for use in entering a career path in a graphic design, digital art or Multimedia career field. Some of their portfolio will include completed graphic design or digital art jobs for the Dixon High School community and for community businesses/organizations. Students will work on the course during a Multimedia Art 1 or Multimedia Art 2 class but will be independent from the class.

Year: 10-12
Prerequisite: 2.0 GPA, Multimedia 1 recommended but not necessary
DHS Graduation Requirement: Fine Art and Vocational Elective
UC/CSU approved course: No

Course Description
The Dixon High School Yearbook is a student-produced account of clubs, sports, academics, student life, and people at Dixon High School. In this class, students will address the techniques and knowledge needed to produce and manage a professional publication. The central focus of the course is related to a successful production of the school yearbook. This class is primarily a workshop where we will combine both work on this year‘s yearbook along with the learning of new skills and concepts. Students will work on building a publication and learning essential skills in all of the following areas: yearbook and journalism basics, writing copy, graphic design, photography, and business. Editor positions are available for students interested in taking on a leadership role for the yearbook production.

Year: 10-12
Prerequisite: Successful completion of Integrated Math 1, AP/Honors Contract
DHS Graduation Requirement: Computer Science
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (d)

Course Description
AP Computer Science Principles is designed to introduce students to various aspects of computer science and computational thinking. Topics covered include abstraction, data and information, the internet, programming, algorithms and the global impact of computing. There is a heavy emphasis on creativity and problem solving, as well as communication and collaboration. The course is designed to develop skills that can be applied within a variety of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields, and not just within
computer science. Students are encouraged to take the AP exam in the spring, and will complete the AP performance tasks in class.

Class Requirements
The course will be heavily project-based, with a focus on problem solving. Students need to be prepared to complete challenging tasks and work well with others. There will also be a significant amount of reading and writing relating to course goals and preparation for the AP exam.

Year: 11-12
Prerequisite: Successful completion of Integrated Math 1, Successful completion of AP Computer Science Principles strongly recommended, AP/Honors Contract
DHS Graduation Requirement: Mathematics
UC/CSU approved course: Yes (c)

Course Description
AP Computer Science A is a course covering object-oriented programming and problem solving using the Java programming language. The course material covered is similar to that of an introductory college- level course in a Computer Science major. Topics covered include program design, implementation and analysis; algorithms, and data structures. The course is intended for students with a strong interest in pursuing Computer Science or a related major in college, and will cover material necessary to prepare for the AP exam. Students are encouraged to take the AP exam in the spring.

Class Requirements
The course will be heavily project-based, with a focus on problem solving. Students need to be prepared to complete challenging tasks and work well with others. Students should be ready to complete programming assignments outside of class if needed.

Year: 12
Prerequisite: Successful completion of AP Computer Science A or teacher approval
DHS Graduation Requirement: Computer Science
A-G Approved: Yes (d)

Course Description
Advanced Topics in Computer Science is for students who have demonstrated strong interest in computer science and are considering pursuing postsecondary studies in the field. Students will follow the Project Based Learning (PBL) model to complete projects in a variety of areas, including: app development, game design, data analysis, hardware design, 3D design and modeling and graphics and animation. Students will collaborate with each other, as well as with local businesses and community groups. Students will also present their projects in a variety of formats.

Class Requirements
Students need to work with a high degree of autonomy. They need to be prepared to complete projects outside of class time as necessary.

Year: 9-12
Prerequisite: None
DHS Graduation Requirement: Elective
UC/CSU Approved: Yes (f)

Course Description
This course provides an overview of the game development process including important historical perspectives, content creation strategies, and production techniques. Students will acquire traditional and digital art skills through various units while learning to produce 2D and 3D games. In addition, students will gain awareness and knowledge of programming languages and scripting. Students will develop problem-solving skills, artistic perception, critical thinking, goal and time management, and be able to work independently as well as collaboratively.