English 1 syllabus – Shadow Creek HS

Course Title: English 1

Course Description: There are four basic components to the Freshman English CP1 course: literature, grammar, vocabulary, and composition (writing). The primary goal: to make you intelligent, active readers and effective writers.

Teacher: I am Rachel Easley, and I received my Bachelors from the University of Houston where I majored in English with a specialization in creative writing. #GoCoogs! This will be my seventh year teaching. All six years prior to this academic year were in HISD where I taught middle and high school English. I absolutely love ELA, and teaching young scholars to enjoy and understand the art of expression through writing and reading is a passion of mine.

My other passion is athletics. My time at U of H was spent bouncing between the classroom and the track preparing for meets, or watching my fellow student athletes compete in just about any athletic competition. That same spirit of competition and knowledge of sports led me to the coaching field where I will be assisting with basketball and the head girls’ track coach.

Materials: Each student will need at least 2 composition books designated for English 1 ONLY.

Something to write with (you may borrow from me, but I will need it back.) Your student will also need the following: Colored pencils, 2 glue sticks, a set of notecards, post it notes (the sticky kind),pens, and pencils.

*In addition to the short stories and mentor texts that I will provide in class, there are two selections we will be reading this school year. We will be reading “The Glory Field” by Walter Dean Meyers and“Twelve Angry Men” by Reginald Rose. These selections can be found at Barnes and Noble or ordered online.

Our year at a glance…
1st Grading Period -
Fiction and Expository / 2nd Grading Period –
Literary Nonfiction
Genre Connections
Expository Organization
3rd Grading Period –
Poetry
Drama
Expository / 4th Grading Period –
Persuasive
Research Skills

Assessments: Students will be notified in advance for all summative assessments. Formative assessments will be taken in some form daily.

Grading: All essays will be graded using a writing rubric. Students will be given a copy of all rubrics prior to writing. The grading scale will be 50/50. Fifty percent of our averages will come from major grades, and the other 50% will be from daily/minor grades.

*It should be noted that punctuality and class participation are all important and will be factored into grading.

Late work: If there are 3 missing assignments at any point during the quarter, you will be given a tutorial slip and will stay in tutorial until all 3 of the missing assignments are turned in or the end of the quarter is reached. This means that an assignment/test from first quarter cannot be turned in after the first quarter is finished. For each day that an assignment is late, 10 % will be deducted from the grade. After 3 days, the highest grade that a student can earn on the assignment will be a 70.

Test Retakes: Failing tests is not an option. If you fail a test, you must do make up work of the teacher’s choosing. Once you have completed this, a make-up test will be granted. You have until the end of that grading period to retake your test. If you do not make up the test by that time, the test grade will not be changed. It is to your advantage to make it up as soon as possible.

Optional retakes for non-F tests. If you want to retake a test and you did not fail it, you can. You must do the make-up work and complete the retake by the end of the quarter. Don’t make this a cop-out. Studying for tests is important and blowing off a test just because you can retake it will not help you. Remember, in college, there are rarely retakes.

Tardies: You are late to class if you are not inside the classroom when the bell rings. If you are late to class you must:

1. Walk in quietly making as little noise as possible.

2. Sign-in at the Tardy Sheet. (Name, date, time) If you have a pass leave it in the folder.

3. Take your assigned seat.

4. Join the activity in progress. If you don’t know what the class is doing, check C.H.A.M.P.S. for “help” and act accordingly.

*If you arrive more than 10 minutes late, you will receive a “T-10” which results in an absence.

Absences: In the event of an absence, the student is responsible for getting your make up work. Please make an effort to have all make-up work turned in three class periods from the day you were absent. All notes should be copied from a classmate.

Contact Information: E-mail:

Important sites: Remind 101 Class Code

First Period / mseasle
Second Period / azkda
Fourth Period / 9b2469
Fifth period / A9hbad

In order to become part of the Remind 101 community, you will need to download the app onto your smart device, or access it online at Once you have signed up for Remind, simply input the class code for your specific class period, and voila!

Rules and procedures: Rules and procedures are fundamental in life. We follow rules and procedures in our daily lives, and our learning environment will be no different. These rules and procedures ensure a positive atmosphere in the classroom. They contribute to a controlled and learning environment for everyone.

There is a specific way I want you to enter the classroom. I expect you to follow these procedures:

*Enter the classroom quietly without running or pushing. Please put away cell phones and remove ear buds before entering. Take your assigned seat. Begin the warm-up from the board in your notebook.

There are three rules that will be posted in the classroom that we will all adhere to:

  1. Treat one another the way you would like to be treated.
  2. Use positive language.
  3. Follow C.H.A.M.P.S. at all times.
  4. Come in prepared to learn.

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I have read and understand the syllabus for Ms. Easley’s English 1 class.

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Student signature Date

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Parent/Guardian signature Date