Language Arts Department

2014
COURSE TITLE: 9 Grade Literature and Composition TEACHER: Ms. Travis MAIN OFFICE PHONE #: 770-266-4599 MAIN OFFICE FAX #: 770-266-4598 MAHS WEBSITE: www.monroeareahigh.org
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EMAIL: Jamie.travis@walton.k12.ga.us

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This 9th grade literature and composition course is a college preparatory level course that provides students with a survey of multi-cultural literature across 9th grade literature course curriculum. During the semester, students will develop and utilize critical thinking skills and literary analysis skills on a regular basis through the reading of selected literary works, the writing of persuasive, narrative, and expository thesis essays, class discussion, literary journals, poetry explication, and research. Students will also learn grammar, essay writing skills, vocabulary, speaking and listening skills, organizational skills, and research skills. GRADING POLICY: For this course, the point system will be used. Grades are determined by dividing the number of points earned by the number of points possible for any given assignment. Each assignment will be recorded by point value. It is the student's responsibility to keep track of his/her grades. Point assignment according to the type of assignment will be as follows: Home/Class Work = 20% of semester grade Quizzes = 15% of semester grade Tests/Projects/Essays = 40% of semester grade Midterm/Final Exam = 5% of test grade End of Course test = 20% of overall grade Teachers of this course are required by the Georgia State Department of Education to administer the Georgia End-ofCourse Test (GEOCT). The GEOCT will count 20% of the student's overall grade for the course and will appear on the student's transcript. TEXTS/READINGS: Textbooks: NONEWe use our IPADs for all reading assignments and other literature sources. REQUIRED SUPPLEMENTAL READING: Students will be assigned parallel reading in addition to the summer reading assignments. For this course, students will read the following: Anthem, Odyssey, Antigone, Oedipus, Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece, The Bible, The Republic, The Catcher in the Rye, A Lesson Before Dying, Romeo and Juliet, and Of Mice and Men and various short stories and poetry as well as non-fiction texts. As always, students are encouraged to purchase personal copies of these texts to better facilitate personal annotation of the stories; that said, copies will be made available to those who prefer to not avail themselves of this option. Evaluation of these selected works of literature may include discussion, journal response, practice advanced placement tests, projects, essay tests, creative interpretation, and/or essay assignments. VIDEOS: In addition to text material, students will be viewing the following films. Some films are not rated and some are rated R. Please contact me if you have a problem with your student viewing these films in class, and an alternate assignment will be provided to your student as necessary. Of Mice and Men PG-13 Romeo & Juliet PG-13 Much Ado About NothingPG-13 Clips from TroyR

We may occasionally view other curriculum-related documentaries or movie clips, none of which will exceed a PG-13 rating. Your signature on this syllabus indicates permission for your student to view these movies. Parents will be notified in writing of any non-documentary additions to the movies list, and a separate parent approval form will be sent home in that case. MATERIALS NEEDED: Notebook paper (college-ruled only) Blue or Black ink pens, only **ALL graded assignments must be submitted in blue/black ink or there is a grading penalty/deduction #2 pencilsthese are used for scantron purposes ONLY NOTE: Wide-ruled paper will not be an acceptable medium for this course. All assignments will be completed on collegeruled paper, or students will submit their assignments to me through Edmodo. ATTENDANCE AND MAKE-UP POLICY: A student who is present and actively participates is more likely to be successful; however, if students are absent and the absence is officially excused, students must make up all missed work by the final day of the unit. A zero will be given for the missed work. Students do not have the option of making up assignments for a grade if the absence is officially unexcused. Making up missed assignments due to absence and handing in that work to be graded is the student's responsibility. It is the student's responsibility to make note of these assignments. Assignments and class work should be obtained from the teacher either before or after class on the date of the student's return to school or from the teachers website. It is the student's responsibility to make arrangements with the teacher by appointment to make up any missed quizzes or tests within the prescribed make-up period allowed by school policy. Any work missed by a student as a result of an unexcused absence cannot be made up. Tests or quizzes missed as a consequence of ISS must be made up after school on the assigned date of the test or the student will be given a zero, as the test is the culmination of the unit. NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED AT ALL IN THIS COURSE. LATE WORK POLICY: NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED AT ALL IN THIS COURSE. All assignments are due at the beginning of the class period on the assigned due date. Students who are absent when a major project is due will be expected to present that project on the day of their return. If a student is not prepared to do this, the student will be given a zero for the assignment. Students who physically come in at the convenience of the teacher to make up missed homework assignments may do so for a reduced grade. Students who refuse to do class work assignments or who choose not to turn in class work assignments will not be allowed to make up those assignmentsthey will receive a grade of ONE for such participation. Research rough drafts, final drafts, and projects not handed in by the tardy bell on the due date of the assignment will not be accepted and a ONE will be given for the project. Students will not have the option of making up research projects if they have been physically present in class during the project assignment. Students have the option of emailing their project to the teacher to avoid this situation prior to the due date or to turn in the project early. If a student is legitimately absent on the due date, that student must provide official documentation in the form of a physician s note, obituary, funeral program, etc. The word of the parent will not be considered adequate, given the option to turn the work in early or by email. TARDY POLICY: To avoid being counted tardy, students must be seated and ready for class when the bell rings. Students who are in the hall or who are not seated by the tardy bell will be assigned a thirty-minute minimum after-school detention for the fourth and following unexcused tardies to class. Students are expected to adhere to the school tardy policy. TUTORING: Tutoring will be available after school and before school by appointment only. Should Mrs. Travis/Mr. Barnes be unavailable, tutoring is available by appointment from the other English teachers at MAHS. MANUSCRIPT REQUIREMENTS: All work should be completed according to assignment criteria and reflect grade level insight. Illegible work and papers without the proper identification (student name) will receive a ONE without exception to the point value of the assignment. Student name, teacher name, course, and date should appear in the upper left-hand corner of all assignments per MLA style. This is a requirement of the course. All final draft essays should follow the standard MLA manuscript format for written composition. Final drafts for all major writing assignments/essays must be typed or written in blue/black ink on college-ruled paper. Students without home access to computers can make arrangements with the media center staff to use computers and printers before or after school. Students may also use the computers at the Monroe library.

NOTE: Students will be expected to complete three to five five-paragraph essays that incorporate the use of the three-part
thesis statement during the course of the semester. These essays will be initiated in class; however, the completion of the essays will occur on the student's own time. All final essay products must be typed. Final essays written in pencil, highlighter, or in ink will not be accepted. Students will not be given the option of re-writing their essays to hand in late should they fail to meet this primary criteria. All essays will be graded based upon a prescribed rubric that will be provided to the students at the beginning of the semester. Students may not hand in a CD or a flash drive in place of an essay with the expectation that the teacher will print the assignment for them. Students may email the final draft to the teacher by the end of the school day on the due date if the student is legitimately absent and can prove the absence upon return with official documentation from a physician, etc.

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS: Expectations of students' classroom behavior and academic performance are high. Regular attendance is critical to successful completion of this course, and students with an high absentee and/or tardy rate will likely do poorly in the course. The following are the primary guidelines and expectations for this course and the classroom: 1. 2. 3. Seating will be assigned and competitive based on class average. Tardiness will not be an acceptable behavior. (see policy above) Students will be given 2 restroom passes per semester. Once used, then there is no other option for restroom breaks. No one will be allowed to use the restroom during the first thirty minutes of class except in an emergency, to be determined by the teacher. No restroom passes will be given once a student has used all of his/her passes. Students must bring all required materials to class every day. The teacher is not responsible for providing notebook paper, ink pens, extra textbooks, novels, additional study guides, or pencils for permanent student use. Students will be expected to behave appropriately within the classroom and to be respectful of the rights of others to receive an education. Students who cannot behave appropriately will be sent to in-school detention to work independently on assignments for the remainder of the class period or will be referred to an administrator. No food, drinks, gum, or candy will be allowed in class without a written excuse from a parent or a medical doctor. Water is the only acceptable drink that will be allowed in class without prior permission. Students will not be excused from class to make phone calls.

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ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Cheating is considered a serious matter. The parents of a student(s)t who has/have been involved in cheating will be notified and the student(s) will receive a grade of ONE for assignment. The student(s)t will also be referred to his/her administrator for disciplinary action. Repeat offenses will result in the assignment of in-school suspension, per school policy. For this course, cheating is defined as, but is not limited to, the following acts: Copying anyones answers to questions, exercises, study guides, class work, or homework assignments Plagiarism: Taking any information verbatim from any source, including the Internet, without giving proper credit to the author, or rearranging the order of words and/or changing some words as written by the author and claiming the work as the students own. On research assignments, failure to include parenthetical documentation within the research paper will be considered an act of plagiarism. Looking onto another students paper during a test or quiz. Having available any study notes or other test aids during a test or quiz without the teacher's permission. Collaborating on assignments when independent work is expected. Purchase of and/or use of assignments completed by students previously enrolled in the course OR from the internet. Text-messaging during a test/quiz (the assumption of cheating will be automatic on the part of the teacher, as this behavior is prohibited per school policy).

EXTRA CREDIT: Students may have the opportunity to turn in their restroom passes for 100 points in May. These points may be used to replace missed work (zeroes) or applied to any grade that is low. The grade of ONE is the only exception. Students may also earn the opportunity to volunteer to read aloud (Romeo and Juliet) for extra credit. purposes.

MONROE AREA HIGH SCHOOL

LANGUAGE ARTS DEPARTMENT SYLLABUS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

2012 - 2013

TEACHER:

Travis/Barnes
COURSE: 9 Grade Literature & Composition
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Parents, please check the boxes to the left indicating your agreement to the following:

I have read the class syllabus. I understand the academic integrity policy and the grading policy. I give my child permission to view G, PG, PG13, or R-rated movies/videos IDENTIFIED IN THIS SYLLABUS, as they are related to the curriculum of the class. I give permission for my child to read the class parallel readings noted in the syllabus. I am willing to be contacted by email. I have access to the Internet and will access the parent grade book feature to check on my child's progress. I understand that teachers will make every effort to post grades within two weeks upon receipt of student work. However, posting of grades for major papers and projects may take longer than two weeks. The teacher will not be held responsible for problems generated by the online grade book; however, it is the parents right to request a grade printout at any time during the semester. I understand that no late work will be accepted in this course, and that it is solely the students responsibility to make up missed assignments in accordance with school policy and to hand in assignments on time. I also understand that students will be given ONEs for work not turned in due to an unexcused absence unless it is turned in at a time in advance of the absence. I understand that it is the students responsibility to obtain and complete parallel reading assignments when assigne d. I understand that it is the students responsibility to obtain access to a computer/word processor and printer in order to ty pe and print assignments as necessary, and that the student has the option to use either or both the school computer labs and the Monroe library to do so. I also understand that, consequently, the student will be given a two-letter grade reduction for assignments that are not typed or written in ink as required by the course. I understand that the teacher has provided additional contact options beyond the school phone number and that students/parents may use these contact options as necessary to communicate with the teacher. I understand that the teacher has given my student permission to call her at home for help with homework assignments. I understand that it is the students responsibility to make up work and to turn in that work to the teacher in the prescribe d period of time. I also understand that it is the students responsibility to obtain make up work from the teacher an d to make arrangements with the teacher to make up tests/quizzes after school. I understand that my student will be held responsible for adhering to the school policies of dress code, electronic devices, food/drink, and tardies. I understand that my student is responsible for obtaining any work missed due to violation of these policies.

Restroom Pass 1 Time Out: _________________ Teacher: __________________

Restroom Pass 2 Time Out: _______________________ Teacher: ________________________

(Print) Student Name Student Name (print)

Parent Name (print)

Student Signature
Parent Signature

Parent phone number (Parent e-mailoptional but encouraged )

Parent work/cell number

RETURN THIS FORM WITH BOTH SIGNATURES BY January 13th, 2014. Please feel free to contact the teacher if you have any additional questions or concerns.