Ms. Garcia – Room 739
Moore High School
Geometry Syllabus 2014-2015
Education is the most powerful weapon, which you can use to change the world.
– Nelson Mandela
Welcome to Moore High School and Ms. Garcia’s geometry class. I am looking forward to our upcoming school year and I am happy to have you in my class. If you ever have any questions or need further information about our class, look online at my web page at www.mooreschools.com. You may contact me via email as well: .
Grading Policy: Daily Work (35%), Tests, Quizzes, and Projects (45%), and Semester Test (20%)
Homework: You will have an assignment almost every day. There may be time to work on assignments in class if time allows. Each homework assignment is worth 10 points.
· You will receive 10 points if you do every problem, show your work, and get all of the correct answers.
· You will receive 9-7 points if you do every problem, show your work, and get a number of the problems incorrect.
· You will receive 5 points for either turning in an incomplete assignment or if you do not show your work.
· You will receive 0 points for missing and/or substantially incomplete assignments.
All assignments should have a clearly written heading/title, problem numbers, name, date, and hour. Students will grade their assignments in class to check for understanding. Homework is considered late if not turned in when collected after grading.
Late Homework:
Assignment Intervention Plan: Since assignments are given to reinforce concepts learned in class, it is in the students’ best interest to complete all assignments to ensure adequate practice and mastery of these concepts. In addition, it allows teachers to assess student mastery and provide feedback on a regular basis. The purpose of the assignment intervention plan is to encourage students to turn in assignments, and to keep parents informed when assignments are not turned in.
· If a student fails to complete an assignment on the date it is due, the student is given the opportunity to go to lunch tutoring for that subject for a minimum of 15 minutes within 24 hours of the assignment due date.
· If the student goes to tutoring and has the lunch tutoring teacher sign the assignment, it may be turned in at the beginning of the next class period for full credit.
· No late homework will be accepted from a chapter in which the test has already been taken.
Free Response Questions: These assignments will be worth 10-20 points, depending on the depth of the question. These free response questions are to challenge students to think about the concepts we are exploring in class. The goal is to strengthen students’ critical thinking skills when it comes to problem solving. Typically, students will have a few days to complete these questions.
Quizzes and Tests: A quiz or test will be given weekly. Exams are worth 100 points. The point value for quizzes will vary depending on the number of questions. If a student is absent the day of a quiz or test, they will take it the day they return to school. Students out for school activities will either take quizzes and tests before they leave or the day they return to school. It is the student’s responsibility to schedule a time with me to make up any tests or quizzes.
Class Supplies:
Students will need the following supplies to class EVERY DAY.
· 1-2 Pencils
· Assignment (if assignment is done in something other than pencil, blue/black pen… it will result in an automatic zero)
· 2-3 pieces of paper
· Notebook** Students are to bring their notebooks to class every day and notebooks will be graded on test days. I will be providing all of my students their first notebook, however it will be the responsibility of the student to replace the notebook as needed as it becomes full.
· Textbook* Textbooks will be distributed to the students a few days into the school year. Students are expected to take good care of these textbooks since they are property of the school. Students are expected to bring these to class every day unless I tell them otherwise.
· Calculator* A classroom set of calculators will be provided to all students, these cannot be taken home.We will be using the TI-30XS for Geometry and this is the calculator recommended for this course. It is beneficial for a student to purchase his/her own to use at school and at home.
· Student ID
· Agenda
** Geometry Notebooks:
· Only geometry notes from my class are to be written in this notebook.
· Each page is to be numbered and a table of contents is to be at the front (we will discuss this in class).
· All notes are clearly labeled with a title.
· Notebooks are due on the day of the chapter/unit test for a daily grade.
· If you are absent you may ask another student for the notes or get the notes from the website.
· Remember to skip page(s) to allow room for missing notes.
Supply Wish List:Kleenex, Pencils, and Paper
Classroom Rules:
· Be Polite: Please be respectful to your teacher, your fellow students, and your school property/assets at all times.
· Be Prepared: Please come to class every day ready to do work.If not, be prepared to take responsibility for your actions.
· Be Prompt: Please be one time. Be seated in your assigned seat and ready to work with all materials when the bell rings. You must be inside the door before the last chime of the bell.
· Work Hard: Come to class prepared to work hard.
· Cell Phones/Electronic Devices: ABSOLUTELY NO CELL PHONES OR ELECTRONIC DEVICES IN CLASS!
Please note: My classroom will be ano cell phoneenvironment. Cell phones are a distraction and potential disruption. Having them out on one's desk, lap or other exposed location and/or listening to music is not conducive to learning mathematics. Cell phones will be silenced and put away at all times (unless I state otherwise). Violators will have their phone taken and turned into the office as per the student handbook.
**The Student Handbook will be followed and you are responsible for the information.
**No food or drink other than clear bottled water allowed in my class!
Classroom Disciplinary Action:
1st Offense: Verbal warning first and if the behavior continues, conference with the student & documentation.
2nd Offense:15-minute detention.
3rd Offense: Parent/Guardian contact (phone or email), with CC to grade principal
4th Offense: Disciplinary referral to grade principal.
* Severe Misconduct: Disciplinary referral to grade principal
**Detention will be served at my discretion; there will be a 24-hour notice to serve. Failure to serve detentionwill result in a parent phone call and then possibly a disciplinary referral.
Classroom Daily Procedures:
When students enter my classroom I expect students to:
· Have wonderful behavior :)
· Have ID on so it can be seen.
· Grab a calculator.
· Find YOUR assigned seat before the bell rings.
· Complete any bell work as asked.
· Wait for further instruction.
Class Participation: Every student is expected to participate and be an interactive member of the classroom. In order for students to learn the content they have to be involved in the learning process every day. When cooperative learning groups are used in class it is for the purpose of learning and students are expected to stay on task and use cooperative groups appropriately.
Speaking in class:Communication is important during the process of learning mathematics. Every student is expected to use conversations in order to gain knowledge in the content area. Non-instructional conversations should not take place and the disciplinary processes will be used as needed.
Leaving the classroom: Personal business should be done during the passing periods. However, I will give students 2 hall passes per semester. This includes bathroom breaks or trips to the office/counselor. Students must have their own agenda to leave the class. Their name must be written, in pen, inside the front cover of their agenda for me to sign it. An “emergency” with no passes left will result in a 5-10 minute detention at the beginning of lunch THAT DAY. Individual situations should be brought to my attention and will be discussed as needed.
Class dismissal: Regardless of the clock or bell signal, I will dismiss you.
Academic Integrity: I expect each and every one of my students to have integrity when it comes to their academic work. Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated and will result in a zero. Students will often be grading their own paper and I expect all students to be honest when completing this task.
Absent Procedures:
Students are responsible for getting their notes and assignments on days where they are absent. All notes and assignments are posted on my class website. If students do not have Internet access at home, there are computers available before and after school in the library. Assignments will also be posted in the classroom on our calendar.
Parent/Student Portal:
Please check the Parent/Student Portal for grades and attendance. It is my goal to update grades daily; grades can be viewed by parents by entering the "parent portal". Please follow this link below to be more informed and involved with your child's grades and attendance: http://www.mooreschools.com/site/Default.aspx?PageID=729
Parent/Guardian Contact:
Since few private phones are at the school, I will more than likely communicate by email. I will occasionally contact parents by phone and if parents would rather I contact by phone just let me know.
Remind App: I will be using the Remind app this year. This app allows me to better communicate with both my students and their parents by giving me an anonymous number that connects to the Remind database. This number allows all of us to communicate via text without ever having to exchange personal information. I will use this for reminders and other announcements I might have for the students. For more information on the app you can go to https://www.remind.com. If you would like to join in your child’s class notifications please email me. Also if you have any other questions about this please feel free to contact me via email.
STUDENT’S MUST RETURN THE FORM BELOW FOR A GRADE (25 points)
BY: Friday, August 22, 2014
*** I have read and understand the syllabus information***
Student Name
(Print)______(Signature)______
Parent/Guardian Name
(Print)______(Signature)______