ELA 11

Mr. Rowe
jerowe@clarkston.k12.mi.us
During the first semester of ELA 11, students will learn essential skills in the following units: launching
writers notebook focusing on memoir, narrative reading with an emphasis on Macbeth, and active
reading strategies with independent reading and the novel Brave New World. Some practice for the new
SAT will also be given. During the second semester, students will focus on reading informational text and
spend considerable time on research skills culminating in a research paper. In addition, there will be a
career unit, a whole class novel (Catcher in the Rye), and additional preparation for the SAT test.
Students will be graded on individual/group projects, several written essays and reflections, class and
group discussions.

Classroom Expectations

RESPECT is my number one rule. If you show respect for yourself, others and the classroom we
will all enjoy ourselves this semester.
Our classroom is not the lunchroom. Its ok if you have covered drinks and snacks occasionally,
but if food and wrappers start appearing on the floor, this privilege will be immediately revoked.
Come to class on time, ready to learn and with a positive attitude. You are responsible for your
success, not me. Put forth the effort needed to do well.
Bring your own supplies to class each day. You may not be permitted to go back to your locker.
All of the policies and procedures listed in your CHS planner will be followed (tardies, absences,
phone, technology, passes, etc). If you are unsure of these, please take the time to read your
planner.
Our class is based on five rules:
1. You will work hard.
2. You will learn.
3. I wont waste your time.
4. I wont give up on you.
5. I expect you to think.
Check Weebly on a regular basis for all assignments, discussion boards, and assignment
submissions

Materials

Binder or folder with notebook paper to keep all handouts, notes, and assignments for this class
only
Writers Notebook--NOT a Composition Notebook. Have a regular notebook that is ONLY for this
class
Student planner
Flash Drive to make sure work is saved and backed up. It is NOT my responsibility if you lose
your work and it wasnt saved on a flash drive.

Students are encouraged to type all assignments in 12 point Times New Roman or Arial 11 font. Make
sure you always save your work and back it up along the way! That way in the rare case of a computer or
printer failure at home, you can email your work to me or bring it in to school and print it off BEFORE
class. Using Google Drive makes the most sense since it automatically saves and you can share your
document with me. No one will be permitted to print off work during class. You must do this before or
after class. If you are absent or your home printer doesnt work, assignments can always be emailed to
me to avoid a late grade. Do not come to class the day an assignment is due and tell me your
computer broke. Plan ahead and dont procrastinate. You never know what may happen.

Cell Phone Policy:

We do use smart phones at times in class for finding information, doing quizzes, reading books,
etc. All these uses are academic, NOT personal. If you are caught texting in class, looking at
emails or your Facebook account, there will be consequences.

Engagement:

You will regularly be evaluated on your involvement with your learning. This includes areas like
active listening, depth and breadth of class discussion, participation in groups, and even
completion of assignments. This is based on both teacher and self-evaluation of your
performance

Semester grade
Please Note: Students do not merely earn points on assignments just because something was put down
on paper. Students MUST DEMONSTRATE they have learned the skills being taught in order to earn
their grade. A learning continuum that demonstrates what a particular skill looks like on multiple levels will
be given. The higher the level, the higher the performance expectation. As a team we believe this system
clarifies student expectations on learning tasks, and makes visible much of the subjectivity that has long
been a part of the grading process. I do EXPECT you to THINK and to APPLY what you have learned
if you want an A or B.

Extra credit is NOT given for missed work. Do not ask me the last week of a marking
period for what you can do to raise your grade. Keep up with your grade weekly. Since we are
following a skills-based grading system, extra credit makes no sense. What skill are you trying to
demonstrate?
Summative assessments are final grades showing me you have acquired and are now
demonstrating the skills you have learned and been practicing; therefore, there are rarely
any NO REDOS on these. If you keep up with the class, you will have multiple occasions
for feedback along the way before you turn in a final assignment.
All summative written work must be submitted to turnitin.com in order to receive credit. You will
also be expected to sign an Integrity Statement attesting that this is your own work.

Your semester grade is a WEIGHTED GRADE (NOT total points) and is figured as follows:
to Summative Assessments (End of unit grades)
-- 80%
Includes evidence and student reflections of mastery of Common Core Skills, projects, papers
Formative Assessments (major grades along the way) -- 20%
Includes evidence of Common Core Skill progression, Assignments

IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT GRADES: There will be times when you will not be happy with a
grade. If you ever want to have a discussion about a grade you received, I welcome it. HOWEVER, I will
not discuss the grade with you on the day you receive back an assignment, and you must
remember that this is a DISCUSSION, not an argument. Show me evidence to support the skill
progression you are questioning.

ELA 11 Student Absences and Late Work Policy

There are 3 summative assignments first semester and these MUST be submitted
ON THE DUE DATE. You will be given one homework pass allowing you to submit
ONE assignment 3 days late, if necessary. If these three assignments are not
submitted on time, you will receive half credit for your grade. Excessively late
work may always be turned in, but only for half credit. It is your responsibility to use
class time wisely.
Assignments can always be emailed, as an attachment, to the teacher by 4:00 for full
credit.
If you are absent, it is your responsibility to seek out make-up work. It is not the teachers
obligation to seek you out for work. All calendars and assignment handouts are on my
Schoology website. Please visit this when you are out. Or exchange phone numbers with
someone so you have at least one person in class you can contact if you are absent or have a
question regarding an assignment.
For excused absences, you will have the same number of days that you were absent to make up
missed assignments, per our school wide policy. This does not include major
assignments (Major Assignments - summatives - are where students have been given 5+
school days to complete assignment); these are due on or before the assigned day,
regardless of prior absence. (Check your planner for this school policy.)
If a minor assignment is due on a day when you are absent, you will be expected to turn it in the
day that you return.
I will not accept late work during the last week of any marking period. No exceptions.

***Finally, if you ever have a problem, need extra help, or are confused with anything, please
contact me as soon as possible for help. The best way to contact me is by email at
jerowe@clarkston.k12.mi.us
***Remember to check my Weebly website on a regular basis for assignments and handouts that
can be downloaded at home.

CHS PLAGIARISM CONTRACT

Plagiarism is a very serious problem in U.S. schools and colleges. It is our intent with this brief paper to
make certain that all students and their parents understand what plagiarism is, and that the
consequences for plagiarizing are very serious.
Plagiarism is the intentional or unintentional presentation of anothers work as ones own. Anothers
work includes everything from published books and other media to a siblings or friends assignments. In
short, the ideas, vocabulary, sentence structure, and overall organization of a paper, project or
assignment must be the students own. Plagiarizing any part of an assignment will result in complete loss
of credit for the assignment. Depending upon the extent of the plagiarism, students may be failed for an
entire marking period. There will be no option to rewrite a plagiarized assignment or to substitute extra
credit work for it. Plagiarism includes:
Copying titles, unfamiliar vocabulary, phrases, sentences, paragraphs or graphics from any source
without enclosing them in quotation marks and, immediately after, crediting that source;
Close paraphrasing of any source by: 1) switching the order of, substituting, or changing a few words in
a phrase or sentence without crediting that source directly after the paraphrase; and/or 2) changing a few
words or sentences in a paragraph from any source, without crediting that source directly after the
paraphrase; and/or 3) changing the order of paragraphs from any source.
Presenting unique ideas as your own for example, putting completely in your own wording unique
ideas that are not common knowledge, without crediting that source directly after presenting the unique
idea. Common knowledge is defined as information and ideas that could be found in more than one
source.
Avoiding plagiarism is not difficult if you want to avoid it. If you are not sure whether you are plagiarizing
something or not, list the source from which you obtained the information in parentheses right after the
questionable section. Be sure to include this source and its complete bibliographic information in a Works
Cited, List of Sources, or Bibliography attached to the end of the paper or project. Students must keep all
research notes and drafts of their assignments until the final graded assignment is returned to them.
Students must be able to turn in to their teacher all of their notes and sources for an assignment if a
teacher questions the source of a students words or ideas.

All major papers will be submitted to turnitin.com, a plagiarism cite purchased by

Clarkston Community Schools. Writing a paper for one class and submitting it to
another class IS PLAGIARISM.
I have read the information above on plagiarism and I understand it. I understand that if a student

plagiarizes any part of a paper, project or assignment s/he will receive no credit (a zero)
for the entire project. I have kept a copy of this sheet for myself, OR I am aware I can find it on the
teachers website.
I understand the student will be submitting an Integrity Statement for all major assignments
identifying that the work being submitted is their own work.

Students Name (print)_____________________________________

Signature of student _______________________________________ Date____________

Signature of Parent ________________________________________Date____________

ELA 11 Syllabus Return Form

Please return the following by_______________________
1. Plagiarism Contract-Teacher Copy SIGNED
2. This page SIGNED
STUDENT: (initial each)
_______ I understand the policies and expectations above and will work toward my success in this class.
_______I understand that despite an absence, major assignments are due on the due date, since they
can always be emailed to the teacher.
_______I understand the change from accumulation of points to standard-based grading.
Student
signature___________________________________________________________
PARENT/GUARDIAN:
I have read and reviewed the Class Expectations / Course Outline information and discussed it
with my student
I have read and understand the English Language Arts Department Policy regarding plagiarism
I understand the homework and grading policies, especially in regards to absences, and
that major assignments are due on the due date, since they can be emailed to the teacher.
I understand that ELA 11 is a skills-based graded course, not do a worksheet get points
type of grading. Students MUST DEMONSTRATE they have learned the skills being taught
in order to pass.

YES / NO (Please Circle One)

I give my son or daughter permission to make his or her

own selections of independent reading material throughout the year. The only criteria will be ageappropriate material and a length of at least 150 pages.

Parent(s) / Guardian(s) Signature

_____________________________________________
Parent/Guardian Phone Numbers: home and/or work; with the best time to reach you. In case of a
problem, please provide me the order you would like me to use to contact you (ie. who to call first or
second, what number to use, or what email to use).
1. ___________________________________________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________________________________________
May I contact you via Email? (Please circle one)

YES

NO

If so, Parent/Guardian Email address:

_______________________________________________________
_______________
I use the site Weebly for my website. To be able to see what is happening in class as well as
assignments, you will need to sign in with a Parent Code. Let me know if you would like this, and I
will email it to you. That way you can see what your student is doing while the privacy of other
students is kept since you will not see their names.
I use Remind to help students remember assignments. You can also sign in and get text
messages for class. Youll find the info on your students syllabus
Please check your Parent Vue account on a regular basis. Every couple of weeks I send out an
email alerting you to what is happening and any due dates.
_____________________________________________________________
Thank you! I am looking forward to a great year with your son/daughter.

Sincerely,
Mr. Jeremy Rowe (ELA 11 Teacher)