The syllabus and school policies posted on the schools website are subject to change, and any changes

will be noted on the schools website.

Teacher Aubrey Chaffin Robertson Course and Year English 9 Honors: 2017-
2018
Room Number 236 E-mail chaffina@fultonschools.o
rg

Textbooks
Prentice Hall Literature9
Prentice Hall Writing Coach9

Course Description
English 9-Honors is a survey style language arts course that introduces students to various genres of literature, myriad writing styles,
and opportunities to develop skills in listening, speaking, and viewing different forms of multimedia. The course is also guided by,
and intent on covering, all Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) expected of freshmen in the state.

Objectives/GSE Standards
Georgia Standards of Excellence for ninth grade language artsincluding standards in reading, writing, listening, speaking, and
language. The latest revisions can be found on georgiastandards.org.

Units to be covered
In no particular order, students will be expected to read:
A full-length work of fiction
A full-length work of non-fiction
A Shakespearean play
Various short works of fiction that utilize differing narrative techniques
Various short works of non-fiction that utilize differing strategies for telling a story, developing an argument, or
disseminating information
Various poems, lyrics, and other artistic forms of expression

In no particular order, students will also be expected to write:

Literary Analysis
Personal Memoir
Persuasive Essay
Research-based Essay
Various forms of creative writing (e.g., short fiction, poetry, etc.)
Various forms of informational writing (e.g., formal letter, resume, etc.)
*** The date and the matter for each assessment will be announced in advance in class. Absence from any previously announced
test, except for an excused absence, will result in a failing grade. Make-up tests may be either written or oral; they are taken outside
the regular class period. Assessments will occur weekly.

Student Expectations and Course Requirements

Students are expected to be present both physically and mentally each day in order to receive the instruction, time to practice, and
support necessary to develop into the best critical readers and writers they can be. Students must behave, at all times, in a manner
befitting a young adult entering high school, save expected lapses into hooliganism during the five minutes prior to a pep rally or on
very rare food days. Finally, students will take responsibility for the privileges afforded them in high school and return a like level of
personal behavior and work ethic.

Grading Scale
90-100
80-89
70-79
0-69

Grading Rules/Policies for Course

All freshmen language arts courses cover three grading categories:
Major Assessments (tests, papers, projects, presentations)50%
Minor Assessments (classwork, homework, reading quizzes)30%
Final Exam/End of Course Test (both cumulative)20%

Opportunities for extra help or study sessions

Student-initiated help-sessions are Mon-Fri, 7:30-8:15am in my room 236. Please ask at least 24hrs in advance to set up a help
session.

Honor Code/Plagiarism Policy

Integrity is a Johns Creek High School core value. Johns Creek students are expected to demonstrate honesty and integrity in all work
submitted to a teacher. The honor code ensures the validity of student work which guides instruction. All JCHS students are bound
by the Johns Creek Honor Code. (See pages 19-21 in the Student Handbook for more detailed explanation.)

Recovery Policy
All students and parents are strongly encouraged to sign up for the web-based program for monitoring grades - Home Access Center.
Students should check their averages frequently and see their teachers if they become concerned with their academic performance.
Recovery is for students who have made a legitimate effort to meet course goals including attending class regularly, attending help
sessions or asking for extra help, participating in class, and completing required assignments.

Provision for Improving Grades

Students may initiate recovery on summative assessments or projects when their cumulative average is a 75 or below and they have
made a legitimate effort to meet all course requirements including attendance. Attendance is considered a course requirement and
unexcused absences may disqualify students for recovery opportunities. Students may be asked to complete recovery work including
attending help sessions as a precursor to the recovery assessment. The recovery assessment may be in a different format from the
original assessment. So, that students stay focused on the content at hand and dont become overwhelmed and fall too far behind,

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they should initiate recovery on a major assessment within 10 days of being informed of the grade on that assessment. After
successful completion of the recovery assessment, the teacher may replace the original assessment grade with the recovery
assessment grade up to an 80(75 for AP/Honors). A recovery assessment grade that is lower than the original assessment grade will
not replace the original assessment grade.

Make Up Work Policy

Students may make up all work missed on an excused and preapproved absence. Work assigned during the absence must be
returned to the teacher within the same number of days as the absence which was excused. Unexcused absences will result in grade
reduction. As always, students are expected to initiate any discussion regarding late, missing, or make up work.

Technology at JCHS
Johns Creek High School supports the use of technology for academic pursuits. This includes cell phones, tablets, and laptops. The
use and type of technology in a classroom is at the sole discretion of the teacher. All technology must be turned off and put away
upon entering each instructional area. Permission to use technology will be explicitly stated by the teacher.

For the 2017-2018 school year, teachers are transitioning from teachers.io to OneNote Class Notebook. Parents have the option to
access their childs account by using their student login. In order to access the students OneNote Class Notebook, parents will use
their childs student ID and birthdate for the username and password. OneNote Class Notebook offers students a collaboration space
for activities, a content library for handouts, and a personal workspace for classroom notes.

Media Guidelines
Within the curriculum there poses the opportunity for teachers to incorporate different forms of technology into the classroom. One
of these forms of technology is the showing of clips of related movies or related movies in their entirety. These films will be rated G,
PG, PG-13 or, in some cases, R. News programming and other television/internet broadcasts related to the curriculum may also be
viewed. If you have any concerns about video viewing, please contact the instructor at chaffina@fultonschools.org. Please see below
the list of possible selections and ratings:

Film Director Rating

The Hunger Games Gary Ross PG-13 for violent sequences involving
teenagers
The Hunger Games: Catching Francis Lawrence PG-13 for violent sequences involving
Fire teenagers
Little Miss Sunshine Jonathan Dayton R for language and adult themes
The Martian Ridley Scott PG-13 for some language
Megamind Tom McGrath PG
Miracle Gavin OConnor PG for some rough sports action
The Odyssey Andrey Konchalovskiy PG-13 for violent sequences and some
sensuality
Romeo + Juliet Baz Luhrmann PG-13 for some violence and sensuality
Romeo and Juliet Franco Zeffirelli PG-13 for some violence and sensuality
Super 8 J.J. Abrams PG-13 for language and some violence
Warm Bodies Jonathan Levine PG-13 for zombie violence and some language
O Brother, Where Art Thou? Ethan Coen PG-13 for violence and language
Various TED Talks

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 Signature Sheet (Return to Teacher)
This sheet should be signed and returned; it will then be kept on file in the classroom.

Acceptable Use Policy for Network and Internet Access

Students need to read and be familiar with the Technology Ethics Code, found in the student handbook.

Language Arts Media Guidelines: Within the curriculum there poses the opportunity for teachers to incorporate different forms of
technology into the classroom. One of these forms of technology is the showing of related movies. These films will be rated G, PG,
PG13 or, in some cases, R. News programming and other television/internet broadcasts related to literature or current events may also
be viewed. If you have any concerns, please indicate your concerns below. Here is a list of possible selections and ratings:

The Hunger GamesPG-13

The Hunger Games: Catching FirePG-13 Use the space below to
Little Miss SunshineR communicate concerns
The MartianPG-13 regarding media
MegamindPG selections:
MiraclePG
The OdysseyPG-13 ____________________________
Romeo + JulietPG-13 ____________________________
Romeo and JulietPG-13 ____________________________
Super 8PG-13
____________________________
Warm BodiesPG-13
O Brother, Where Art Thou?PG-13 ____________________________

TED TalksNot Rated ____________________________

____________________________
I give permission for my child to view media used in language arts if selected
____________________________
according to the guidelines listed above.
____________________________
Student
Signature_________________________________________________________________ ____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
Parent
____________________________
Signature_________________________________________________________________

I do not give permission for my child to view media used in language arts if selected according to the guidelines listed above
and understand an alternate activity will be assigned.

Student Signature_________________________________________________________________

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Parent Signature_________________________________________________________________

I have read and understand Mrs. Chaffin Robertsons syllabus. I further understand that the information in this syllabus is
subject to change, but any changes will be communicated in class.

_______________________________________________________________________ ____________________________
Students Signature Date

_______________________________________________________________________ ____________________________
Parent or Guardians Signature Date

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