SDA Commons — Self-Directed Academy¶
South High School · Fargo Public Schools · Grades 9–10
New to SDA? Start here.
- Read Week by Week — the step-by-step guide to running a studio from Day 1 to Exhibition Day.
- Open your Studio Packet — your essential question, sources, and recommendations for this studio.
- Check the Reading Library — 101 texts organized by era, standard, and what they teach best.
This wiki is the knowledge infrastructure for the Self-Directed Academy. Students use it to understand how the program works, find skinnies, navigate standards, and access the reading library.
What Is SDA?¶
SDA is a competency-based pathway inside South High. Instead of earning credit by sitting in class for a semester, you earn it by demonstrating that you actually know something. That demonstration happens through six-week learning cycles called Studios.
You are enrolled in two courses simultaneously: English I or II, and either World History or US History. In SDA, these aren't separate — they're one integrated program. A single studio produces evidence for both your English standard and your Social Studies standard.
The core equation:
Standard = PBC = Task → Elevate
A standard is the official description of a skill or concept. Every standard in SDA maps to a Project-Based Competency (PBC) — a concrete thing you produce to show you know it. That PBC is a task you can actually do. And the goal is never just to complete the task — it is to elevate: to get better, to go deeper, to do something worth sharing.
SDA Is Not a Choice Board¶
If you've been in a class where the teacher gave you a grid of activity options — "write an essay, make a poster, or record a video" — and you picked one, that's a choice board. SDA is not that.
The difference is structural, not just stylistic:
| Choice Board | SDA Studio | |
|---|---|---|
| Where does the question come from? | Teacher picks the topic | You name something that genuinely interests or bothers you — then trace it into history |
| How do you start? | Check a box | Write a 9-part Studio Contract; Reese reviews and approves it |
| What gets graded? | The activity you completed | Evidence of the standard — separate from the deliverable you build |
| Who sees your work? | Your teacher | Public exhibition — real audience in Week 6 |
| Does everyone get the same options? | Yes, same menu every time | Your autonomy grows: Trailblazer → Maverick → Phoenix |
The biggest difference: before you start a studio, you write out what a 2.0, a 3.0, and a 4.0 looks like for your specific studio. Not a generic rubric. Yours. That forces you to understand the standard before you begin — not after you're graded.
In one sentence: A choice board differentiates how you prove what the teacher decided mattered. SDA starts earlier — with whether the question means anything to you — and holds you to a standard through a contract you helped write, in front of an audience beyond the teacher.
The Three Spaces¶
SDA runs through three interconnected spaces.
Space 1 — The Studio¶
A six-week learning cycle. Shared essential question, your own inquiry angle, 4–5 active standards, and a public exhibition in Week 6. See Student Workflow for the week-by-week breakdown.
Space 2 — The Commons¶
This wiki. The Skinny Library, Reading Library, studio packets, and all shared resources live here.
Space 3 — The Command Center¶
The teacher-facing dashboard. It tracks your ownership level, your standard scores, and your studio progress. Your scores flow there from Headrush.
Standards in SDA¶
Every studio has 4–5 active standards:
| Slot | Standard | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Social Studies | 1 WH or USH standard | Content anchor for the whole studio |
| Reading | R.2, R.4, R.7, R.8, or R.9 | Primary source + literary text analysis |
| Writing | W.3 (explanatory) or W.4 (argument) | Alternates each studio |
| Research | IR.1 + IR.2 + IR.3 + IR.4 + IR.5 (bundled) | Active every single studio |
| Communication | C.1 and/or C.6 | Assessed at the Week 6 exhibition |
The Proficiency Scale¶
All standards are scored on the NDSBL 1.0–4.0 scale:
| Score | What It Means | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| 4.0 | Beyond the standard — inferences and applications that go further than what was taught | A (95%) |
| 3.5 | Beyond the standard with partial success | A- (91%) |
| 3.0 | Meeting the standard — this is the target | B (83%) |
| 2.5 | Solid 2.0 knowledge + partial 3.0 knowledge | B- (78%) |
| 2.0 | Foundation knowledge — vocabulary and basic processes, missing the complex ideas | C (73%) |
| 1.5 | Partial 2.0 knowledge | D (63%) |
| 1.0 | With help, partial understanding of 2.0 content | F (50%) |
Student Ownership Levels¶
You are always at one of three levels. Your level determines how much structure you get and how much independence you have.
| Level | Name | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trailblazer | Structured support. Advisor helps narrow your inquiry angle. Proposals require approval before you begin. |
| 2 | Maverick | Growing independence. You propose your own angles, collaborate freely, make more of your own calls. |
| 3 | Phoenix | Full agency. You can propose entirely self-designed studios. Flex scheduling available. |
Levels are reviewed every two weeks. You apply to move up. See How to SDA for the full breakdown of what each level requires.
Key Pages¶
| Week by Week | Step-by-step studio guide — what you do each week |
| Studio Packets | Your essential question, sources, and recommendations |
| Reading Library | 101 texts organized by era, standard, and skill |
| Skinny Library | Standard-by-standard reference cards |
| Glossary | SDA terms defined |
SDA Commons Wiki · South High School · Fargo Public Schools · Built June 2026