Pre-AP / Pre-IB Chemistry Syllabus 2015-2016
Teacher: Miss Marusik E-Mail: Room: G137
Welcome to Pre-AP Chemistry! I am very excited to have you in my class! I plan on making your learning experience in Pre-AP Chemistry be as fun & enjoyable as possible. At the same time, our curriculum is challenging – so your concentration in class & effort outside of class will be important in order to be successful!
SUPPLIES: There are some things that will be important to bring with you every day to class…
1. Scientific Calculator
· Bring with you a simple scientific calculator (such as the TI-30X IIS) or a graphing calculator. We have quite a bit of math involved in Chemistry, and we want you to be able to do those calculations at home when you’re studying!
· For fairness and security reasons, the use of programmable or graphing calculators is not allowed on quizzes or tests. For these types of assignments, you will use the scientific calculators that we will have available in class.
2. A Binder for Your Notes!!! (Either 1 or 1½ inches)
· Every unit, you will be given a packet containing the notes for that unit! It is your responsibility to keep up with these notes – if you lose them, you will need to print out another copy from our classroom Canvas website.
· The best way to keep up with these notes is to have them all together in a binder. That way, you will not lose any, and you will have them easy to access when you are studying for semester exams.
3. Pen and Pencil – Seriously, you’re in school. Bring something to write with. J
4. Closed-Toed, Closed-Heeled Shoes on lab days. You may keep an old pair in my room if you think you will forget to bring or wear them!
BOOKS:
Our Chemistry textbook will be available online this year. While we may reference the textbook at times, your major source of information will be your Notes Packet. Every unit has a Notes Packet associated with it that we hand out and go over, and is geared more toward the Pre-AP level curriculum. All tested material will come from our Notes Packets, and the textbook will only be an extra resource you can use to study. If you would ever like to reference a hard-copy of the textbook, there will be some available in our classroom. Or, if you would like a hard-copy textbook for at home, a limited number of books are available in the House 100 office to check out.
In order to log in to your online textbook, please visit: http://connected.mcgraw-hill.com/connected/login.do
User Name: AISD.<student ID #> (For example, AISD.123456 )
Password: Eagles2014
CANVAS:
Our class does utlilize the Canvas website. This tool will include an online calendar, access to classroom documents, links to videos, and so much more. You will receive a separate handout with more information on how to access Canvas for our class.
GRADING:
Tests …………..40% Quizzes / Daily Assignments………….40% Labs……………...20%
THERE IS NO “EXTRA CREDIT” OFFERED. Be sure to keep up with your grades by checking Skyward!!!
All work leading up to the final answer must be shown legibly in order to earn any credit on assignments! We want to see that you have mastered the critical thinking processes that we teach you in class. This policy is for all work turned in for a grade, including quizzes, tests, labs, and homework. NO WORK = NO CREDIT! L
LABS:
Goggles, aprons, and closed-toe shoes are required for every lab. If these safety precautions are not taken, points may be deducted from the lab, or a student may not be allowed to participate in the lab.
HOMEWORK PACKETS, VIDEOS, & NOTES:
· Many of the units have Homework Packets that include practice problems and activities that we will work on in class. Quite often, you will be given class time to work on these packets, or you may work on them at home. Certain worksheets will be assigned every class, and their completion will be checked periodically. The packet as a whole will be collected on the day of the unit exam at the beginning of class.
· There will be certain times that you will be expected to watch videos at home as part of your work in the class. It is your responsibility to watch these videos at home, fill in any appropriate examples in your Notes Packet, and possibly take an online Canvas quiz over these videos. Your teacher will communicate each unit which videos to watch, and the dates of when they should be watched.
· Occasionally, note checks may be completed to make sure you are keeping up with filling in your Notes Packet. It is the expectation during these note checks that examples done in class or in the videos are filled in, and that your notes are all together in a binder. It is your responsibility to keep up with your notes!
· Any grades taken from Homework Packets, Videos, or Note Packet checks will be counted as a quiz/daily grade.
QUIZZES AND TESTS:
· Timed (approximately 15‒25 minutes) quizzes are given almost every class period over selected problems and questions similar to the Homework Packet, or over items assigned to memorize (such as element symbols).
· Timed (approximately 1 hour) exams will typically be given three or four times during a nine-week grading period. Exams consist of both a multiple-choice section and a free-response section. Partial credit is available on the free response sections. The tests are timed in order to get you used to other timed tests, such as the SAT, ACT, AP, and IB Exams!
· All quizzes and exams are kept in your teacher’s room after being handed back for students to look over. No quizzes or exams are allowed to be taken out of the room. This is for security reasons for those people that still haven’t taken the assessments. However, you can always come into your teacher’s classroom to re-look at a quiz or test either before or after school!
· Exams & quizzes not yet made up from an absence are marked as zero in the gradebook.
ASSESSMENT RETAKES / MAKEUPS:
· If you score below a 70 on a quiz or test, you are eligible to retake that assessment. A maximum grade of a 70 can be earned on a retake assessment. The retake will not lower the original grade. Before a retake may be completed, you must obtain a Retake Ticket from your teacher. The ticket must then be presented to the scheduled retake teacher. RETAKES ARE ON TUESDAY MORNINGS AND AFTERNOONS ONLY.
· In order to earn a retake ticket for a failed test, you must make arrangements with your teacher to go over your original test, and make “corrections” to your test. The “corrections” are for learning only, and will not add points to your test grade. Once your have completed this task, you teacher will then issue you a retake ticket for the test.
· All retakes must be completed by Tuesday of the week following when the grade was posted on Skyward. For example, if a quiz grade was posted on a Tuesday, you would have until Tuesday of the following week to complete the retake.
· Students who are absent for a quiz or test must make up the assessment by the Tuesday following the absence. A Makeup Ticket must be obtained from your teacher to be presented to the scheduled retake teacher. MAKEUPS ARE ON TUESDAY MORNINGS AND AFTERNOONS ONLY. Extensions for retakes will not be given, unless there are extreme circumstances.
· For Tuesday retakes and makeups - if you are coming in the morning, please allow enough time to complete your assessment – you will not receive a pass to class if you do not allow enough time, and you will not be allowed to come back and finish once you have started the assessment. For afternoon test makeups, please arrive no later than 3:45 pm. Tests are typically 1 hour, and quizzes are typically 15‒25 minutes.
· For daily grade retakes/makeups, please make arrangements with your teacher. Late work or assignments not turned in will not be eligible for retakes.
· Labs are made up by scheduling a time with your teacher, and must be made up within ONE WEEK of the originally scheduled lab date. All lab set ups will be torn down after one week and you will receive a zero for the lab if not made up. This is due to the safety and quality of the chemicals used in the lab.
ABSENCES and ASSIGNMENTS:
· You are responsible for getting your work when you are absent. You can look at your printed calendar, the Canvas calendar, or come to tutorials to find out what you have missed! You are strongly encouraged to come into tutorials to ensure understanding of missed concepts.
· If you are absent due to a school function, you should see your teacher in advance of the absence to make arrangements for work missed.
· If you are absent the day before a test, you will be expected to take the test during the scheduled class time unless extenuating circumstances are approved by your teacher or new material was covered the day you were absent. If no new material was covered on the day missed ‒ for example, a lab was done the class before the exam ‒ then you will be required to take the test.
LATE WORK & CHEATING:
Late work will be accepted ONE CLASS PERIOD after the original due date. After that time, the assignment will remain a zero in the gradebook. Late work will be graded up to a maximum score of 70%.
Your teacher will make a clear distinction between work that must be your own and work that may be shared. Make sure you also make that distinction. Cheating, copying or helping another person during a test or quiz, and plagiarism will have severe consequences – such as an office referral or dismissal from National Honor Society.
UNITS THIS YEAR:
FIRST SEMESTER UNITS: / SECOND SEMESTER UNITS:Unit 1: The Laboratory / Unit 8: Writing Chemical Reactions
Unit 2: Chemistry Calculations / Unit 9: Compound Stoichiometry
Unit 3: Matter & Its Changes / Unit 10: Reaction Stoichiometry
Unit 4: Atomic Theory & Structure / Unit 11: Gas Laws
Unit 5: Atomic Models & Periodic Trends / Unit 12: Solutions
Unit 6: Chemical Bonding / Unit 13: Acids & Bases
Unit 7: Nomenclature / Unit 14: Thermochemistry & Nuclear Chemistry
Unit 15: Kinetics & Equilibrium
TUTORIALS:
All of the Pre-AP teachers are willing to do what they can to help you be successful in Pre-AP Chemistry! In order to provide you with as many opportunities as possible to get help, we have a shared tutorial schedule… which means you can go to ANY teacher to get help. Sometimes, it is better to go to a different teacher other than your own, as you can hear something explained a different way. We offer tutorials before 1st period, during 1st period, during 8th period, and after 8th period.
In order to help you make your tutorial time as beneficial as possible, be sure to bring your Notes Packet and Homework Packet with you! This way, we as teachers have a starting place from which to help you. J
The tutorial schedule is posted outside the door of all Pre-AP Chemistry teachers. Please respect your teacher’s time and go to the teacher that has the scheduled tutorials during a certain time!
Miss Marusik’s CLASSROOM RULES
When in Chemistry, we work on Chemistry!
Wherever you are, you should always be all there. Show me that this class is important to you by making sure your other classes’ work is put away. I want to know you are focusing all your attention to being successful in Chemistry when you’re here!
Make sure the work you turn in is your own.
I value your learning over your grades, and you should as well. Please take pride in both your work and in yourself to not make the choice to cheat or plagiarize – this includes accessing unauthorized resources during tests/quizzes, sharing answers with others, letting others borrow your homework packet, or copying lab answers/conclusions from others. These choices will have disciplinary consequences, and can also hurt your membership in National Honor Society.
No use of electronic devices unless given permission.
Again, I want to know that this class is important to you! If you are playing on your phone or listening to your iPod during a lesson, it appears to me like you don’t care about being successful in my class. I will let you know when are appropriate times to access these devices – but unless I do, I don’t want to see them being utilized in my class.
Show integrity & respect in your choices and actions.
We all have choices – make them good ones! I expect you to be kind to your other classmates, as well as towards myself. Also, paying attention in class and avoiding side conversations show me that you respect me as your teacher. Remember, you earn respect by showing respect.