Course Objective

My Teacher Blog:

Class sets are available for all course text assigned within the county based curriculum guides.

*Students are not required to purchase their own personal copy of the aforementioned class novels, but may choose to do so for both annotation purposes and completion of classwork/homework assignments, outside of class. Copies are readily available for discounted prices at Chamblin Bookmine and online sites, such as Amazon.

Weight of Classroom Grade:
Classwork 50%
Written Work 35%
Tests/Quizzes 15%

Home Learning: Students are required to read for at least 20-25 minutes each night (Monday – Friday) to practice fluency and comprehension skills addressed in class, in addition to other assigned reading and writing tasks including, but not limited to, unfinished class work.

*Students are expected to read one novel, on their own, for pleasure, each grading period. Dialectical Journals will be submitted at the end of each grading period to accompany this independent reading, showing evidence of comprehension and annotation of select pieces of text, emphasizing the importance of each, to the text as a whole.

3-ring binder, 3-hole spiral notebook (to be kept in 3-ring binder), composition notebook, college rule loose leaf paper, highlighters, sticky notes, pencils, erasers, handheld pencil sharpeners, and blue/black ink pens.

*Students should also have their own college-level dictionary less than 5 years old, as well as a thesaurus.

Ongoing Notebooks: Students are responsible for organizing a 1 inch, 3-ring binder with dividers/tabs and pockets to store notes, study guides, handouts and any graded papers needed throughout the school year.

Interactive Notebooks: Students are required to keep a composition notebook which counts as part of students’ quarterly “written work” grade. These notebooks will primarily house classwork, including daily warm-ups, rough drafts and some final drafts of essays, collaborative activities, etc.

Composition notebooks should be kept inside the classroom, in the assigned class period’s crate.

*Notebooks may be taken home to complete unfinished tasks, as often as needed. However, students are expected to have their notebook, in class, each meeting period for their scheduled class (A-day or B-day).

Grading Scale:

90 – 100 A

80 – 89 B

70 – 79 C

60 – 69 D

59 and below F

1. 
   Student IDs must be worn around neck with a lanyard at all times.
   
2. 
   Students must come prepared to each class period (on time with required class materials).
   
3. 
   Students will follow all classroom rules and expectations.
   
4. 
   Upon entering the classroom, students should check board for daily warm-up, opening instructions and daily objective/activities for class period.
   
5. 
   Students should sharpen pencils and collect class set materials.
   
6. 
   Students will end all discussions and out of seat movement once the bell has rung to begin class.
   
7. 
   Students are dismissed by my instruction, not the school bell or announcements.
   
8. 
   Students will pack up their belongings (clean up their area) before departing for their next class.
   

Personal pride and integrity are essential to Atlantic Coast High School’s dedication to academic excellence and are fundamental elements of the Student Statement of Commitment. Cheating is a Class II offense as defined in the Duval County School Board Student Code of Conduct. Consequences may include, but are not limited to, zeroes input in the gradebook for all students involved, phone call home, discipline referral or suspension from school. Cheating, including plagiarism, will not be tolerated. Examples of acts constituted as cheating in this specific course, include the following, but are not limited to:

• 
  Giving and/or receiving help on any individual assignment
  
• 
  Paraphrasing or copying/pasting someone else’s work, even from the internet
  
• 
  Allowing someone to copy your work is still cheating and will earn a zero, in addition to the consequences mentioned above.
  
• 
  Failure to acknowledge the source of a direct quote or phrase
  
• 
  Representation of another person’s words, ideas, or information as one’s own
  

*An academic contract will be signed by each student, as it is expected that guidelines will be strongly adhered to, throughout this academic school year

Make-up work for excused absences:

• 
  Proper documentation must be submitted in order for an absence to be considered excused
  
• 
  Student is responsible for checking the homework crate for missed assignments
  
• 
  One day per excused absence will be given for completion of missed assignments
  
• 
  Student must confer with instructor to determine the due date for their make-up work
  
• 
  Daily quizzes cannot be made up
  
• 
  Tests will be made up on non-Early Release Wednesdays after school
  

Students who miss class due to severe circumstances with proper documentation will be able to submit their assignments - without penalty. These students will be given the same amount of time to complete their assignments as the students who were present (one day per absence is allotted). It is the responsibility of the student to ask any clarifying questions regarding the missed assignments, in doing so they will be able to submit make-up work on time. Any graphic organizers missed will be available in our homework box. The due date for these assignments will be decided after consulting with the instructor. Quizzes cannot be made up, solely because they assess homework readings or other tasks assigned for homework. Make-up test days will be after school on non-Early Release Wednesdays. The test date will be arranged for a Wednesday that works for both the teacher and the student. As far as projects go, students will present their project the day of their return. A supplemental assignment will be created if the student misses the project all together.

• 
  Student is responsible for checking the homework box for missed assignments
  
• 
  All homework assignments (i.e. graphic organizers and assignments assigned for take home completion) will be deducted 10 points per day, after the due date
  
• 
  Homework assignments requiring typed work (i.e. essays and stories) will be deducted 20 points per day, after the due date
  
• 
  Projects turned in after the due date will be deducted 20% of the highest grade achievable
  
• 
  Daily quizzes cannot be made up
  
• 
  Tests will be made up on a non-Early Release Wednesday, after school
  

Any student who misses an assignment due to an unexcused absence or just fails to turn in their work, fall under this make-up category. Just as the excused absences, students are responsible for finding out exactly what they missed. Homework assignments that are to be written by hand (i.e. graphic organizers, drafts, etc.) will be deducted 10 points every day after the due date. Assignments that are typed (i.e. essays, final drafts, etc.) will be deducted 20 points every day after its due date. Projects that are not turned in on their due date will receive no higher than 80% acting as the highest achievable grade (80 out of 100). Quizzes cannot be made up solely because they assess homework readings or other tasks assigned for homework. As far as tests missed by these students, they can be made up but there is only one day (a Wednesday) towards the end of the semester in which tests can be made up. If the test is not made up on that particular day, the score will go into the grade book as a zero.

As a Safety Net for the 2017-2018 school year, after school help sessions and assignment recycling are available
Monday and Wednesday afternoons from 2:30 – 3:30.

Students must schedule help sessions at least one day in advance to ensure availability in my classroom, room 332.

Miss. Norris’ Rule of Three

1. 
   Show me the same respect that you expect me to show you,
   

2. 
   Be respectful of the thoughts, opinions, and property of each of your classmates and any guest who comes into our class,
   

3. 
   Come prepared to class.
   

I ____________________________________________ have read over Ms. Norris’ syllabus on ________ and understand the rules and policies she has set in place for the 2017 - 2018 school year. I plan to follow her rules and policies enabling all students in my class to enjoy learning the curriculum set for my 10^th grade year.

Student Signature: ___________________________________________________

Parent Signature: ____________________________/Printed Name: ______________________________