Karen+A

Dear English 9 Students and Guardians,

Welcome to _ High School! I am looking forward to working with each of you throughout the 2010-11 school year, incorporating what students previously learned about listening, reading, speaking and writing into the ongoing process of building a foundational knowledge of analysis, evaluation, and creation emphasized in English throughout secondary education. I will do my best to ensure student success in this essential course. I keep office hours for tutoring opportunities and respond to email and voice messages within 48 hours. I expect students to do their best, in turn, by attending and actively participating in class, completing assignments thoroughly and efficiently, and respecting peers’ opinions to create a safe, reflective academic environment free of interruptions such as cell phones, pagers, iPods, etc. More information regarding conduct can be found under the Participation/Conduct Policy section of this letter.

**First Day Assignment!** Because I am so excited to get to know my English 9 students, their goals, interests, and knowledge, I have a small summer assignment for students. On the first day of class, students will give a short presentation on their character trait song. Before class, students select a song that best represents them and send the lyrics to me via email; all lyrics must be appropriate. This activity leads us into our first unit on language, in which we will be studying style, tone, voice, imagery, colloquialisms, and poetry.//

For quick reference, these letters can also be accessed on my Moodle page.

Again, I look forward to meeting and working with you. // Ms. A Phone: 111-111-1111 Ext. 111 Email: a@Somehs.edu Class Blog: [|Class Blog]


 * About This Course**

English 9 focuses on building students’ general English skills which will be applied to coursework in English 10, 11 and 12. Students will participate in writers workshops, literature circles, authors chairs, and a year-long letter-writing project in which they are paired up with a resident at _ Senior Center to meet weekly project objectives for both English 9 and US History. They will complete weekly vocabulary activities, read a variety of texts, experiment with Socratic questioning, and conduct an author interview. During the year, students will be given the opportunity to experience moderated panel discussions, problem-solving scenarios, character role-playing, business proposal simulations, and a virtual writing lab. Key readings include, in order, //The House on Mango Street//, //The Glass Menagerie//, //Of Mice and Men//, //The Old Man and the Sea,// //Romeo & Juliet//, //To Kill A Mockingbird, Shabanu, // and //The Catcher in the Rye//. Literature circles, which will be done in collaboration with Mr. R and Mrs. G’s English 9 classes, begin with Barbara Ehrenreich’s //Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America// this semester and Bill Keller’s //Class Matters// spring semester.


 * Objectives**
 * apply reading, writing, critical thinking, listening, and speaking skills to discussions, blogs, presentations, and community-based activities;
 * evaluate the structure and meaning of different types of literature and the different modes of writing with emphasis on expository, narrative, and persuasive;
 * collaborate with and respect individual beliefs, values, traditions, and perspectives;
 * develop ethics, organizational study skills and responsibility.
 * generate writing as a continual process by brainstorming, drafting, editing, revising and publishing student work;
 * analyze and evaluate literature through the lens of modern literary theory 1900-present;
 * expand lexicons through study of vocabulary, root words and origins, understanding the syntax and semantics of the English language.


 * About Assignments**

//Essays.// While students should prepare for written essay assessments and free-writing assignments throughout the year, students will receive a unit overviews with key questions and the final essay assignments for ////The House on Mango Street//, //The Glass Menagerie//, //Of Mice and Men,// or //The Old Man and the Sea// first semester and To Kill A Mockingbird// second semester//.// Students will have multiple in-class opportunities to brainstorm, draft, revise, and edit these essays. // Quests // : Quests will be based on readings, discussions, mini-lessons, vocabulary activities, note-taking guides and assignments. Quests will be given in multiple formats, but preference will be given to the short essay response. Quests will largely focus on content from the current unit, but may refer back to previous units’ vocabulary and grammar.

//In-Class Presentations//: Students will be required to give a variety of informal (2-10 minute) presentations throughout the year. As people are given a limited amount of time to make an impression in the real world, all student presentations will be timed. The grade will be based not only on if the presentation is long enough, but if it is not too long. If the student chooses to create and/or play complimentary examples and/or visual aides, these examples may not exceed 1/5 of the presentation time; presentations are to convey what the student has mastered, not to share samples. Presentations will be graded on the following criteria:

o The presenter appropriately prepared for his or her presentation. o The presentation met the time requirements, with audio or video not exceeding 1/5 of the presentation o The presenter spoke clearly and used language and syntax appropriate to a classroom; o The presentation met the requirements of the assignment; o The presenter provided insight into the topic; o The presenter is working toward mastering clarity, performativity and poise.

//Class Participation//: This class requires continual participation from both the student and the instructor. Students who participate in every discussion session and who demonstrate punctual completion of assigned readings and listening examples; students who raise questions of substance; and, students who make meaningful connections between listening examples and readings will be rewarded.


 * Grading Scale:**

A+ = 99-100 A = 95-98 A- = 93-94 B+ = 89-92 B = 85-88 B- = 82-84 C+ = 79-81 C = 75-78 C- = 72-74 D+ = 69-71 D = 65-68 D- = 62-64 F = 62 and below


 * Policies**

Attendance/Late Work/Plagiarism Policy

Attendance: During the high school years, school is a student’s primary job. In the real world, being repeatedly absent and/or late for work isn’t tolerated. I expect students to be here and on time. I will mark students as late if they are not in class when the bell rings. As my own policy, students who are absent more than 7 times throughout the semester will lose the ability to use their exam exemptions in my course. Students who are tardy more than 5 times in a semester will prepare, edit and collaborate with me on an additional research report to the class on the current topic to make up for missed time.

Sometimes, exceptional circumstances do occur, and I am willing to work with the student and his/her guardian if this happens. Every day, a student will have rotating duty of being note-taker, gathering assignments and taking careful record of everything we covered in class that day on copy paper. I will have these materials ready and waiting for absent students when they return. Absent students will have one school day from the time they receive their assignments to turn them in.

Late Work: In the real world, submitting late work isn’t tolerated. I expect students to submit assignments on time. I would rather help students deal with consequences now when the stakes are relatively low than be unprepared for genuine self-responsibility later.

Any and all work required of students is directly relevant to the mastering of the learning objectives outlined for this course. The weight of each required assignment will take into account the amount of effort required. Numerous pieces of written work are required to measure the student’s comprehension of literary history and appreciation. The ultimate goal of these written assignments is to measure comprehension of the material, which contributes to success in classroom discussions, activities, and assessments.

There are also no “extra credit” or “make up” assignments.

Plagiarism: Stealing is illegal; plagiarism is nothing less than stealing. Plagiarism is unacceptable in any form, intentional or not. If a student struggles with assignments, there are many options available to him/her. I am ready and willing to help students talk through homework problems and model study and research skills. Please remember that if you can find it on the Web, so can I.

Participation/Conduct Policy

Participation: To earn full credit in this area of the course, students must meet the following expectations:


 * Class Attendance and Promptness . Students must participate in classroom discussion with well-supported insights. These contributions must demonstrate that the required reading and/or listening examples have been completed in advance of the discussion.
 * Interaction and Participation in Class Discussion and Learning Activities . Students are expected to contribute to discussions, to respond to questions, to routinely offer ideas, and to share class time with classmates, if any.
 * Effective Listening Skills. Students will listen attentively and politely to classmates and instructors, and will incorporate the ideas of others in their own contributions to the classroom. Students will demonstrate empathy for the positions of their classmates.
 * In-Class Behavior. Students will not be disruptive in class. The class will be courteous and respectful of our time together.
 * Class Participation. Students will come to class discussions prepared. They will examples. Students will be ready to participate in class discussion so that the group can effectively use its time together.

Conduct: Classroom behavior directly affects the quality and quantity of students’ education. I believe in each student’s ability to achieve high expectations and I respect every student’s right to receiving quality instruction that prepares them for life-long success in having the skills to pursue their goals. I will not allow any student to detract from the class’s right to learn, so I have the following expectations.

I expect students to come prepared for class punctually. This means that students bring adaptive, attentive, engaging, and flexible mindsets with them to class, along with: a black or blue pen and a spare blue or black pen, subject binder filled with six tab folders and college-rule notebook paper, an assignment notebook, the textbook and unit material, and completed assignments. This also means that students use hall time to drink water and take bathroom breaks.

Cell phones and other devices unrelated to class work will be confiscated. According to school policy, first offenders can pick up their possession after school, along with a detention slip. Second offenders will be able to receive their possessions in one week’s time. A third offender will be suspended. A Word on Emergencies: Personal emergencies do happen. Students have the chance to dictate how much, or little, I regulate classroom procedures. If students conduct themselves in a way that demonstrates maturity and responsibility, unobtrusively leaving the room for personal reasons is perfectly acceptable. Use discretion. I reserve the right to rescind this privilege at any time if students’ behavior justifies it.


 * Commitment to Diverse Learners**

I wish to positively affirm the intent of the federal laws, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, sec. 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Any person enrolled in this course who may require alternative instructional and/or evaluative procedures, the integration of adaptive technology, and/or open communication due to a handicapping condition should feel free to discuss these needs with me. I can only help if I know how.

I know this has been a lot of reading for you, but now we’re ready to begin a collaborative, exciting and informative school year! I look forward to meeting you!

Parents and guardians, please enable my communication with you by providing your contact information below. Please read and discuss this Course Expectations Guide containing my expectations with your student. Sign and return the portion below by August 29th. ** *** I have read and understand what is expected from me in this class.

Student’s name: Student’s signature:

I have read and understand what is expected from my student in this class.

Parent’s/Guardian’s name: Parent’s/Guardian’s signature: Phone number: Email address: **