Course Syllabus
Welcome to 8th grade! English 8 focuses on giving students the skills they need to gather information, to think critically about it, and to use it for meaningful communication. These skills include reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing, and presenting. This course will challenge students to think independently and communicate thoughtfully.
OBJECTIVE: Our language arts curriculum will follow the national Common Core Standards. These standards seek to raise the achievement levels of our nation's students and focus on critical writing, reading, and thinking. For more information on the Common Core, please visit: www.corestandards.orgLinks to an external site.
CLASSROOM STANDARDS: Students should be able to come prepared to class with their materials, be on time, follow directions and turn in high school level work. Students should be school appropriate in their language and in their behavior. Kindness matters. I expect everyone to be courteous to each other in class and to show good character.
RECOMMENDED FOR DAILY CLASS WORK: Most of our work will be done on Canvas, so students must come to class every day with their laptop charged and ready to go! Required daily will also be a folder, 3-ring binder, or a dedicated section in a student’s binder for English to keep handouts and homework with an adequate supply of paper as well as a pen and pencil.
ATTENDANCE AND CLASSROOM POLICIES: Students are strongly encouraged to make up any assignments, missed tests, or quizzes within one week of the original date a test was given in class. However, I will accept late work for full credit until one week before the end of the term.
MEMBEAN: Membean practice makes up 5% of a student’s grade. Without completing Membean, a student cannot earn an “A” in the class. A student must complete 40 minutes of Membean a week with a 50% or higher accuracy score and no dubious minutes (the computer program keeps track of inactive minutes). Dubious or inactive minutes will be subtracted from a student’s total minutes and any score under 50% accuracy will result in 0 points. This means that students must give their undivided attention to their Membean sessions. If a student is having a difficult time scoring above 40% accuracy, please come and see me. Membean practice sessions cannot be made up; however, students may retake Membean tests. Tests make up 35% of a students grade and Membean tests are included in that category.
HOMEWORK: Students will have reading homework every night and may have Membean homework if it wasn't completed in class. Students are required to read one book a term and complete one book report a term. Book reports will be completed as homework. More information will be provided in class.
CELL PHONES: Cell phones and earbuds are NOT ALLOWED in class. Students will keep their cell phones in their back backs—cell phones are not allowed on a students’ person. If students use their phones during class without permission, they will be required to place their cell phone in an assigned holder, and their citizenship grade will be affected.
CITIZENSHIP: School policy will be followed concerning tardy marks for citizenship credit. Citizenship grades can be affected by certain behaviors such as: disrupting class, not bringing all the required materials to class, wasting your time, getting out of your seat without permission, writing on desks/books, using your cell phone during class, etc.
READINGS: All reading material including short stories, poems, plays, and novels are approved by the Davis School District for 7th and 8th grade. Specifically, the novel we will read in 8th grade is The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, The Diary of Anne Frank play by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, and Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes.
While every attempt is made to procure only quality, appropriate reading materials, the teacher cannot be responsible for students' selections for independent reading. This is between the students and their parents or guardians.
BOOKS: Students will be responsible for any books taken out of the classroom. A fee will be charged for lost or damaged books and must be paid in full prior to graduation. Students are also welcomed to borrow books from my classroom library. The policy for lost, stolen, or damaged books is the same as for class-assigned novels.
FILMS: Films shown this year will be the 1983 Francis Ford Coppola version of The Outsiders and George Stevens' The Diary of Anne Frank (1959), and The Wave directed by Alex Grasshoff. If you wish to opt a student out of these activities, a parent needs to notify the teacher in writing (email or a written note).
GRADING PREFERENCES
5% Membean
10% Book Report
35% Testing
50% Assignments (including writing evaluations)
GRADING SCALE:
A = 90-100 (There are no "A-"s all "A"s start at 90%)
B = 80-89
C = 65-79
D = 50-64
F = 49 and below
Course Summary:
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