8th Grade Journalism
Course Syllabus
Mrs. Erika Dunn
Room 142
Phone: 209-955-1477 ext. 12317
Email:
Office Hours: Tuesdays 3:00 – 4:00 pm and by appointment
Welcome
I am pleased to be teaching 8th grade Journalism at Ben Holt this year. I am excited for this class and hope that everyone is ready for a great year creating the BHA yearbook. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
Course Description
In this elective class students will be able to practice collecting school information, interviewing peers and teachers, and photography to help them create, edit, and publish the BHA yearbook and journalism projects. Students will be expected to work as a team and think creatively. This class will include learning objectives such as: design layout including our yearbook company’sweb-design tools, creative writing, advertising, editing, and photography skills.
Course goals
Students will learn about web-based layout design, photography, and journalism in order tocreate the school yearbook and journalism projects. Students will develop these skills in order to complete individual and group/team projects.
Assessment
Students earn letter grades, based on a point/percentage system:
90% and above = A
89% - 80% = B
79% - 70%= C
69% and below will be considered failing
Grade Weights
Course grades are placed in weighted categories. The weights are as follows:
Participation, Classwork, and Homework 40%
Major Assignments, Projects, and Assessments (i.e. tests, quizzes) 60%
Grades will be updated every Tuesday. I am committed to posting grades for the following:
- Quizzes – within one week
- Tests – within 1-2 weeks
- Projects– within 2-3 weeks (will be marked with collected or missing right away)
- Homework and classwork – weekly from the date collected
Classwork Expectations
Journalism students will be expected to be self-motivated and do their best every day in class, work as a group respectfully, and follow all classroom and school rules. Occasionally, students will be asked to leave the classroom to take pictures or to gather data and information for journalism purposes. When students leave the classroom, they must have a hall pass/yearbook staff badge and sign out of the classroom. It is expected that students follow all campus and classroom rules while out of the classroom; any misconduct while out of the classroom will result in a loss of photography/interview privileges that are conducted outside the classroom and will follow the classroom behavioral expectations chart.
SLO’S
In addition to the classroom expectations, students will also need to follow the Ben Holt School Vision SLO’s:
Personal Responsibility: /- Be punctual
- Prepare
- Produce and Participate
- Act with Integrity
Social Responsibility: /
- Collaborate
- Interact
- Build Community
- Take Responsibility for Actions
- Act with Integrity
Critical and Creative Thinking: /
- Ask
- Predict
- Investigate
- Answer
- Reflect
- Connect
- Revise
- Analyze
Application of Knowledge: /
- Understand and demonstrate content area skills
Effective Communication: /
- Communicate Key Ideas
- Organize Thoughts
- Present Ideas Orally, Visually, and in Writing
- Non-Verbal (Body Language and AudienceAwareness)
- Confidence
- Professionalism
- In Class Speeches
Missing/Late Work
Late work will not be accepted. Repetitive missing work may also result in parent contact. Students should feel they can advocate for themselves, but should keep this policy in mind when doing so.
Excuses
Excuses for missing work will not be accepted without prior notification. The digital age has brought up a whole new set of excuses from students. Excuses such as my computer crashed or my printer ran out of ink have replaced “the dog ate my homework” and will not be accepted.
ACADEMIC PROBATION POLICY
Students who do not maintain a minimum 2.0 GPA in all courses enrolled (including college courses), have “Ds” or “Fs” on their report card, or have outstanding Exhibition Projects, will be placed on Academic Probation after Quarter 1. Students who are placed on Academic Probation can remove themselves by demonstrating Adequate Academic Progress on the parent-signed Progress Monitoring Checks, which are done every 3 weeks in Advisory.
Students on Academic Probation will not be allowed to participate in any club, team, or other activity that is not directly tied (through class curriculum) to a course they are enrolled in.
Absences
In case of an absence, there will be an absence folder from which students will be able to recover the work they have missed. Students are responsible for checking for this work themselves upon returning to school and getting notes from a classmate. Students may make up work missed when absent if the absence is excused. The student will receive one school day for each day missed to make up that work.
Academic Honesty
Academic honesty is highly valued at all levels of education. A student must always submit work that represents his or her original words or ideas. If any words or ideas are used that do not represent the student’s own work, all relevant sources must be cited. Academic dishonesty in the learning environment could involve: having a tutor, parent or friend complete a portion of your assignments, copying work submitted by another student, or using information from the internet or printed sources without proper citation. Another aspect of academic dishonesty is turning in an assignment which was already used for another class, without being given permission to do so.
Behavioral Expectations
Every student is expected to spend his/her class time actively participating and fully engaged in the learning process. Disruptive behavior will not be tolerated, as it robs each and every student of a peaceful, fulfilling, and effective learning environment. Students are expected to treat all members of the Ben Holt community with respect outside and inside the classroom. They should follow all school and classroom rules and expectations. Students are expected to be in their seats and working when the bell rings. If students misbehave the following steps will be taken as consequences:
- Warning
- Think Sheet
- OnCourse Log/ Parent Contact
- Referral to Dean of Students
Equipment Rules:
•When in possession of any yearbook equipment, such as a digital camera, students are responsible for its care and safe keeping to the best of their ability. Do not allow any non-journalism class student take pictures or use the equipment.
•Remember that it is the student’s responsibility to respect all technology being used for class.
Supply List:
Supplies needed by Friday, August 14th.
***Students may use the same supplies purchased for any other class***
- Binder (can use the same binder that is being used for all other classes)
- 2+ Black or blue writing pens
- 2+ Red pens for correcting and editing
- 2+ Pencils with erasers
- College-ruled binder paper (100+ sheets)
- 2+ highlighters
- 2 pads of post-it notes
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Please read over the syllabus thoroughly and sign below to indicate that you have read and understand the information presented. Keep the syllabus for your future reference and return this section only by Friday, August 7th, 2015. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.
Student Signature: ______Date: ______
Parent/Guardian Signature: ______Date: ______
For future communication please provide your contact details below:
Parent Email address: ______
Parent Phone: ______Best way to contact: ______