English 11

Course Name and Number

Language Arts 11 - LAE 501

Course Description

Major Concepts/Content: Language Arts 11 is a literature survey course that navigates chronologically through the periods of American literature from Native American oral traditions through contemporary works of poetry, fiction, drama, and nonfiction. Each unit explores a literary movement through a unique theme. Literature of each period becomes the basis of study for models of literary analysis and modes of rhetorical writing. Each lesson engages the student through interactive introduction to concepts and skills, guided practice of those skills and concepts, and an assessment of the student’s mastery.
Learning activities include reading, listening, discussing, writing, completing multiple-choice games and self-check activities, completing writing projects, and taking quizzes and exams. Units will include a combination of activities and assessments and will culminate in either a unit exam or a unit writing project. Students will be encouraged to incorporate media, creative expression, and research into unit projects to prepare them for life outside of the classroom in our out-of-the-box, media-centric world.

Texts

Elements of Literature, Fifth Course
John Warriner’s Holt Handbook, Fifth Course
“The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
“The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald
“Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck
“The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D Salinger

Teacher Name

Miss Elizabeth Ballard

Contact Information

DSN: 535-4151

www.missballard.com

Personal Educational Philosophy

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”
--William Butler Yeats

Materials

·  3 Ring Binder with lined paper
·  Planner
·  Dividers for each subject with Cornell Notes in each section
·  Paper/Pens/Pencils and any other supplies needed. (pouches are great to organize these supplies)

Grading Policy

DoDEA Grading Scale:
97 – 100 = A+ / 87 – 90 = B+ / 77 – 80 = C+ / 67 – 70 = D+ / 0 – 59 = F
93 – 97 = A / 83 – 87 = B / 73 – 77 = C / 63 – 67 = D
90 – 93 = A- / 80 – 83 = B- / 70 – 73 = C- / 60 – 63 = D-
The grading policy for this class is a rather simple one by which each student should be able to calculate his/her grade at any point during the marking period. Students are strongly encouraged to maintain a record of their own grades. Students will generally be told the value of the assignment when it is given.
1. Each item {test, quiz, homework, or composition} will be given a weighted grade. For example, a test may be worth 200-300 points; a quiz may be worth 50-100 points; a writing assignment may be worth 100-300 points; a homework assignment may be worth 10-50 points. {These are only estimates; actual values may vary.}
2. Your grade will be computed by adding all of the weighted points you have accumulated during the marking period and dividing the total number of points possible, to arrive at your exact average.
3. Grades on individual assignments will be given in terms of the weighted number.
Item / Points Acquired / Possible Points
Quiz 1 / 20 / 50
Quiz 2 / 30 / 50
Homework / 20 / 20
Test 1 / 270 / 300
Composition / 172 / 200
Quiz 3 / 33 / 50
Homework / 10 / 20
Total / 555 / 640
Students can take the total number of acquired points and divide it by the total number of possible points. The student’s average based on the above grades would be calculated accordingly.
555 / 640 = 86.72% or a B

Assessment

Students will be evaluated for class participation; completion of reading assignments and book reporting requirements; comprehension of literature as measured by objective, essay, and/or oral examinations; and improvement in written compositions and oral presentations, with major emphasis on critical thinking, content, organization, specificity and relevance of detail and evidence of reasoning, and with secondary emphasis on skill growth in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar, and usage.

Homework / Late Work Policy

Homework will be assigned on a regular basis. All work must be completed neatly. "Neatly" means the assignment should be completed in ink with no folds, ragged edges or blotches. Sloppy work or work without a name will receive a 0 and cannot be made up.
Students who have excused absences will receive their assignments and receive teacher help if needed to complete them. Assignments due on the day missed must be turned in the first day the student returns to class. A student with an excused absence will be permitted one-day make-up for each day of absence, although assignments can be completed in less time. It is the responsibility of the student to get the assignments from the teacher upon returning to school. Incomplete assignments will result in a zero.

Tutoring/Extra Help

I am available for help during seminar and after school by appointment.

Classroom Management

·  Students will be prepared for class and report on time.
·  Students will be respectful, courteous, and polite.
·  Students will refrain from eating, drinking, or chewing gum in class.
·  Students will utilize planners daily, by recording class assignments, homework and long-term projects.
·  Students will complete their own work and cite appropriate sources as necessary.
The consequences for not meeting these expectations are outlined below:
§  Teacher detention may be assigned either after school or for the lunch period for any minor infraction or unacceptable student behavior.
§  If a student misses detention, the detention will be doubled. Students who consistently miss detention will be referred to the assistant principal for appropriate disciplinary action including suspension.
Content Outline
Instructional activities will be provided in a general classroom setting, in the media center, and in the school and community environment. Student activities may include, but will not be limited to, writing journals or learning logs; writing persuasive and compare/contrast paragraphs; writing personal narratives, short stories, and poetry; writing and mailing personal and business letters; learning to respond to each other's writing with helpful suggestions for revision; taking several pieces of group and individual writing through a process that includes prewriting activities, drafting, peer response, revision, proofreading for spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar, and usage, and publishing; practicing writing from different points of view for different audiences; developing speaking and listening skills by responding to literature and to each other's writing and by participating in small and large group discussions and in oral presentations, individual recitations, and dramatizations; studying appropriate major works of literature intensively in class; reading, viewing, and listening independently to examples of the various genres of literature, and responding to that literature; presenting interpretations of literature orally; reading self-selected books and responding to them in journal entries, letters, group discussions, or oral or written book reports; practicing locating information in the media center using the card catalog and the Reader's Guide; and increasing vocabulary through the study of words encountered in reading and through work with the dictionary and the thesaurus.

Essential Objectives:

After completing this course, students will be able to:
§  Hone skills in reading, writing, speaking, listening, and critical thinking.
§  Apply tools for reading and understanding a wide range of texts, including non-fiction, short stories, novels, plays, journals, biographies, poetry, and speeches from diverse sources.
§  Apply analytic skills for interpreting media and texts and evaluating their effectiveness and messages.
§  Apply writing experience and tools that will prepare them for the writing tasks they will encounter in college, business, and life.
§  Apply best practices for researching, interviewing, and using media.
§  Apply and develop creativity, experience life from other points of view, and express opinions and ideas in their reading and writing.
§  Apply literature and media as powerful and relevant extensions of life.

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