Expectations and Responsibilities 2014-2015
Mrs. Whitaker’s Social Studies Class
The following information will be very helpful to you this year and should be the very first paper that goes, and stays, in the front of yoursocial studies folder. Please refer to this whenever you have a question about your assignments and/or class policies. I am looking forward to a wonderful year and I hope you are too.
Preparation & Participation: You are expected to come to class each day with all the necessary materials. In addition to materials you can buy at a store, you should also bring along a good attitude and desire to learn something new. A good attitude goes a long way and having one is an easy way to start earning an A average.
Homework: Everyone’s favorite subject…..homework! Yes, you will have homework, which should be written in blue/black ink or pencil, about 1-3 nights a week. We will follow the policy outlined in the brochure you have received entitled, “Gifted Program, Sixth Grade.” A copy of this policy has been provided for you on the back of this sheet.
A portion of your report card grade will reflect your homework average. Homework that is overly sloppy or illegible will not be accepted. Due to the fact that homework assignments are reinforcement for what we are learning in class, they will be reviewed in class the next day, and will not be accepted late. Homework is graded on the amount of effort put forth in completing the assignment, not necessarily whether you have ALL correct answers. You will receive either a check plus (3 points), check (2.5 points), or a check minus (1.5 point) for homework assignments.
Homework Central, an area on the front chalkboard, is where assignments will be written each day. You can keep track of your own missing assignments, of any variety, by visiting the “Self Service Center” located on the wooden bookshelves just under “Homework Central”. Dividers are labeled with the days of the week and contain handouts and instructions for missed assignments. After the week is out, those assignments will be dated, have instructions attached, and will be placed in a bin, known as “The Big Dig,”beneath the “Self Service Center” on the same shelf. Students can access this bin at their leisure to retain copies of missedand/or lost work. Homework written on the “Homework Central” board is to be copied in your agenda.
Tests & Quizzes: From now until the end of the third marking period, you will be permitted to make corrections to traditional style (multiple choice/short & extended responses) tests and quizzes, earning back ½ credit on all correctly revised answers. These correction points will only be added if your test has been signed by your parent/guardian. Once your tests and/or quizzes have been returned, they should be kept in your folder for future reference.
Folders: You will need to keep a folder for this class. A good, organized folder can really keep you afloat. Organization is a little thing that can make a HUGE difference and many times, you’ll need to rely on your handouts, supplied in class, to study for assessments. Folders will be collected and checked once a marking period.
National History Day: NHD is a yearlong educational program that engages students in the processes of discovery, analysis, and interpretation of historical topics. Students produce dramatic performances, imaginative exhibits, multimedia documentaries, research papers, or websites based on research related to an annual theme. You will be learning how to do historic research by becoming miniature history detectives. The skills learned from this program will be used for the rest of your academic life. Next to unit assessments, only NHD work is worth as much, when calculating grades. An optional school competition is held in the spring to determine which projects will represent P.S. duPont at the state level competition. From the state competition, national contestants are chosen. It’s a lot of work, but it sure is fun to see students soar! Far more details will be discussed as we progress through the year.
Projects: There will be various mini-projects assigned throughout the year, which will match the units we are studying at the time.
Grades: Grades will be calculated using a “total points” format. This means that at the end of the marking period, all points earned by students will be divided by all points possible in order to arrive at an average. Assignments such as homework and classroom activities will count for far fewer points than quizzes. Tests, NHD, and projects will be worth more points than most quizzes.
The purpose in providing homework to our students is for practicing skills that have been recently learned in class, developing positive study habits, and providing teachers with a meansto analyzestudents’ strengths and weaknesses within the taught curriculum. Students can expect to receive daily homework assignments in ELA and Math, while Social Studies and Science will have fewer assignments given. All assignments within each of these four classes will be posted on-line on the teacher’s webpage.
In an effort to help our students take more ownership of their learning, we have developed a unified homework policy that will be in effect for the four core academic classes (Math, ELA, Social Studies, and Science).
- It is the student’s responsibility to independently complete assignments and to turn them in on the due date given.
- No assignment will be given credit if it is late unless a student has been absent, in which case the district’s absence policy is in effect. The district’s policy states that for every day a student is absent, he/she has the same number of days to make up missed work.
- Since students are not allowed to return to lockers once the class bell has rung, if a student has left his/her homework in the locker, he/she may return to the locker at the end of the period to retrieve the assignment and turn it in without penalty.
Parents can and are encouraged to monitor student progress through the Home Access site which will be updated weekly with graded assignments. If a consistent problem with turning in homework is noticed, we will be in touch with parents, and a conference may be called to devise a collaborative path forward to rectify the situation. Our end goal is to make sure students aredeveloping superlative academic practices for their future years in school.