7th Grade Language Arts

Course Overview

The 7th grade language arts class will focus heavily on critical reading and development of academic writing skills in order to prepare students for greater success as they enter into high school. Students will build their skills through writing essaysin various modes. Grammar will be taught within the context of student writing, as well as through direct instruction.

Students will be required to do independent reading each semester. Independent reading is critical for the development of a student’s skills not only in reading, but in all subject matter areas. We are a literate society – good reading skills have become a survival skill. Assessment of this reading will be based on conferences with the teacher and any projects assigned. Students will self-select the books they read, but all books must be approved prior to reading or they will not count toward meeting reading requirements.

There will be regular homework. As seventh graders, it is reasonable to expect to have a minimum total of 70 minutes, or just over an hour of homework each night. While students will not always have specific homework in this class, it is recommended to spend at least 15 minutes a night on outside reading. Time management is a critical skill which we all need to develop and practice.

Our primary textbook for grades six, seven and eight this year is the Collections series, published by Houghton, Mifflin Harcourt, copyright 2017. This is our second year working with our new textbook. I am excited to continue to explore the text with your student and encourage you to look over the text. We will also read some supplementary novels this year.

Course Outline and Grading Policy

All course outlines are, of course, subject to change and adjustment

Literature:

  1. Collections
  2. Collection 1: Bold Actions
  3. Collection 2: Perception and Reality
  4. Collection 3: Nature at Work
  5. Collection 4: Risk and Exploration
  6. Collection 5: The Stuff of Consumer Culture
  7. Collection 6: Guided by a Cause

Writing:

  1. argument
  2. personal narrative
  3. informative

Participation points:

Students have the opportunity to earn 5 points each day. These points are earned by following classroom rules and making positive contributions to the class. Students who are absent will not be able to earn these points.

Attendance:

The school attendance policy will be strictly followed. Please refer to your student handbook.

Late work:

Late work will only be accepted with a 25% penalty reduction in the final score, for the three-week period in which it was assigned. For example, a late paper which earned a 95% would be reduced to a 70%. After each grade check, any work not turned in will not be accepted and will become a permanent zero.

Grading:

Letter grades are determined by the following scale:

A93.5%-100%

A-89.5%-93.4%

B+87.5%-89.4%

B83.5%-87.4%

B-79.5%-83.4%

C+77.5%-79.4%

C73.5%-77.4%

C-69.5%-73.4%

D+67.5%-69.4%

D60% - 67.4% (The school does not give a D-.)

F59.9% and below