Succceed Team Social Studies

Teacher : Ms. Kindred

Welcome to Social Studies!!! I hope that you had a wonderful summer and are ready to get off to a good start. We are going to have a terrific year.

I have been teaching in Clark County for 13 years and am thrilled to be your Social Studies teacher this year.

This year we will be studying the five themes of geography and their impact throughout the world.

Information that you need to know:

We will have a very structured classroom. We are here to educate you. To effectively do this, we will have guidelines and procedures that you will be expected to follow daily. I will go over these daily for the first week of school until you understand and are practicing them.

Book: Geography Alive

Assessments: You will be assessed daily. You will be responsible for a daily geography activity. These are short assignments to get you thinking. These will be activities that you begin as soon as you are seated in your desk.. You will not be told to do these; you are responsible for getting them done. When I enter the room, we will check your answers. I will check these daily and give you credit for them on Fridays. You will also be responsible for daily participation, written assignments, periodic tests and quizzes. I use these tools to make sure that you are learning what you need to know about Geography throughout the world.

The following are the procedures that you will be abiding by while you are in Mrs. Kindred’s classroom:

Absences: When absent, students will have two (2) days to complete any missed work. It is the responsibility of the student to ask for missed work. Should a student miss a test due to an absence, the student will schedule a time with the teacher to make-up the test. This make up will not occur during class time. Please indicate (write) absent at the top of all work being completed after an absence to ensure that it is not counted as late.

Grading Scale: There will be many opportunities throughout the academic year for students to earn grades. Grades will be calculated on a point system with assignments requiring extended time and effort to complete being worth more points. Cheating will result in an automatic zero (0) on an assignment. Late work will be penalized 10 percent per day that the assignment is late. The grading scale established for this class is:

90 – 100% A

80 – 89% B

70 – 79% C

60 – 69 % D

0 – 59% F

Notebooks:

Each student will be required to keep and maintain an interactive notebook. These will be left in the classroom daily.

You should also have a 3 ring binder with paper to use for additional assignments.

Classroom Guidelines:

1. Be Prepared. Students will bring their social studies notebook, pencil/pen, homework and any assigned materials with them to class daily. At the end of class, all students will take their belongings with them.

2. No food, drink, gum or candy is allowed in the classroom.

3. Teacher’s desk area is OFF LIMITS to students.

4. Be Respectful. All students are to respect the classroom and anything and anybody in it.

5. Follow directions the first time they are given.

6. Follow all procedures and policies in handbooks and stated school-wide rules.

Consequences for Breaking Guidelines:

As a school and classroom, we will adhere to “TRACKS” guidelines.

Classroom Procedures

1. Entering the classroom / start of class

a. Enter the room quietly.

b. Move directly to your seat

c. Get out all needed items for class (pencil, notebook, assignments)

d. Place homework on your desk.

e. Work on opener listed on the board/overhead.

f. Record the day’s assignment in Agenda book

g. Remain quiet and wait for class to begin.

2. When Tardy

a. Enter the room quietly.

b. Place your tardy slip on the bookshelf beside the door.

c. After leaving the tardy slip, move directly to your seat.

d. Get out all needed items for class.

e. If you cannot figure out what is occurring in class, ask your neighbor, quietly and at an appropriate time.

3. When I need your attention

a. I will stand quietly and raise my hand.

b. When you see that the teacher has his/her hand raised, you raise your hand.

c. After raising your hand, be sure that you are not talking or making noise.

d. After raising your hand, look up and toward the teacher.

e. Wait patiently for the instructions/announcements.

4. Voice Level

a. Upon entering class each day, a voice level for the day’s activities will be listed on the board.

b. A simple numbering system will be used to let students know the expected noise level in the class

c. The voice level numbering system is:

i. Level 0 = no talking

ii. Level 1 = whispering

iii. Level 2 = normal inside voices

5. Labeling all work

a. All assignments/homework should be labeled with the following information in the upper right hand corner of the paper: name, date, class and name of assignment/page number.

6. Questions / getting the teacher’s attention

a. Should a student need to speak with the teacher or ask a question, the student should raise his/her hand and wait to be recognized prior to speaking.

b. No student may leave his/her seat or speak without permission.

7. After an Absence:

a. After class begins, raise your hand and I will come to you. Make me aware of the date of your absence and I will catch you up.

8. Classroom Discussions

a. Our class will have several times when we will be involved in whole class discussions. These discussions are great ways to increase our understanding of the topics we are studying.

b. During a class discussion or during a presentation by another student, everyone is to be silent and attentive.

c. Everyone’s opinions and ideas are worthwhile and meaningful. Everyone deserves respect for what and how they believe.

d. Should anyone be critical of, make fun of or inappropriately laugh at someone else, you will be dealt with using the disciplinary guidelines.

9. Movement around the room

a. As a general rule, the students should remain their seats during class.

b. If a student thinks that it is necessary to get out of his/her seat, permission must be given by the teacher.

c. During some classes, especially during group activities, there will be opportunities to move about the classroom. Specific instructions will be given prior to these classes.

10. End of class

a. Any work not completed during class will be considered homework that is due the following day, unless the teacher indicates otherwise.

b. Class time continues until dismissed by the teacher. The bell nor clock dismisses you from class.

c. Students must clean up their area prior to dismissal.

d. Upon dismissal, each student should push his/her chair under the desk for which the chair is partnered.

e. Exiting the classroom should occur in an orderly fashion. No pushing, shoving or running.

SPECIAL, MOST IMPORTANT GUIDELINE:

THIS CLASSROOM IS A “NO WHINING ZONE”. THIS MEANS THERE IS NO WHINING OR COMPLAINING FOR ANY REASON!!!!!!

THIS IS, HOWEVER, A “LEARNING ZONE” YOU WILL BE ABLE TO LEARN IN A CLASSROOM THAT IS CARING AND RESPECTFUL TO ALL.

YOU ARE IN SCHOOL TO RECEIVE AN EDUCATION THAT WILL HELP YOU TO ACHIEVE YOUR FUTURE GOALS. WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A GREAT YEAR!!!!!!!! I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO TEACHING AND GETTING TO KNOW EACH AND EVERYONE OF YOU!