Jalen Rose Leadership Academy

Enter a Learner, Exit a Leader

AP Physics 1

Miriam Zachau Walker / +1-313-397-3333
/ +1-248-667-8482
Office Hours:4th period

Course Description

The primary goal of AP Physics 1 is for all scholars to become critical thinkers and problem solvers who will graduate from college as scientifically literate adults. Physics focuses on the study of the world around us – the laws that govern how things move through time and space, how objects interact with each other, and how we can use these physical properties to our advantage to solve problems in society. Scholars will complete individual and group projects, participate in and design their own labs, read scientific articles, and present their findings, in addition to other work.

Advanced Placement (AP) classes are significantly more rigorous than their regular or honors counterparts. Scholars will take the national AP Physics 1 exam on Tuesday May 3, 2016. Many colleges offer scholarships or the opportunity to place out of certain credits for high scores on the exam.

Course Standards

Please see the separate handout for the standards covered in this course.

Materials

Every scholar must come to class on time and prepared with all supplies every day.

  • Binder
  • Loose leaf paper
  • Black or blue pens
  • Pencils
  • A BAAT (Book At All Times)
  • Student planner – school issued

The binder may be shared with another class, but it needs dedicated and organized section for AP Physics.

Grading Scale

A+ 97 - 100%B+87 - 89.99%C+77 - 79.99%D+67 - 69.99%

A 93 – 96.99%B83 - 86.99%C73 - 76.99%D63 - 66.99%

A-90 - 92.99%B-80 - 82.99%C-70 - 72.99%D-60 - 62.99%

F 0 - 59.99%

Advanced Placement classes are weighted differently in the grade point average (GPA) to reflect the increased difficulty. Earning an A in an AP class will be weighted as 5.0 on the 4.0 GPA scale, a B is a 4.0, a C is a 3.0, and so on.

Grading Breakdown

Process Grades:

Workplace Skills 10%

Classwork 25%

Homework 10%

Product Grades:

Assessments, Projects, Labs 35%

Final Exam / Project 20%

Workplace Skills: Workplace skills are the skills necessary to succeed in learning and the professional world. Students are expected to come to class fully prepared. Fully prepared means students have all required class materials, assignments, and are on time ready to work. Prepared for class also means that students are conducting themselves appropriately and participating fully in the classroom.

Classwork:Every day, students have the opportunity to earn classwork points for completing their work in class. Classwork points are earned but are not limited to the following: completing group work, participating in whole-class discussions, completing assignments and worksheets related to the day’s lesson.

Homework: Homework is given most days and is worth 10% of student’s grade. Homework assignments are due the following day at the beginning of class (unless stated otherwise). Students will also be expected to read for homework and be prepared to discuss or use what they have read in class the following day.

Assessments:Throughout the school year, students will be given a variety of individual and group assignments (projects, presentations, lab reports, written reflections, quizzes, tests, etc.) to be completed both inside and outside of class.

There will be nine summative unit exams throughout the year. These dates are subject to change.

October 6Kinematics

November 6Dynamics

November 20Circular Motion and gravitation

January 8Energy

January 28Momentum

February 11Simple Harmonic Motion

March 4Rotational Motion & Angular momentum

March 18Mechanical Waves & Sound

April 15Electrostatics & DC Circuits

Final Exam There will be a final exam at the end of first semester, which will count for 20% of the scholar’s semester grade. Scholars are all expected to take the national AP exam on Tuesday, May 3. Following that exam, scholars will complete an extensive final project which will count as their exam grade for second semester.

Makeup Work

Scholars are responsible for getting the classwork and homework assignments if they are absent from class. Scholars with excused and documented absences approved by the main office have the right to earn credit for any missed material. The student has three (3) days to make up and turn in the work. Any tests or quizzes missed during an absence must be made up within one (1) week of the student’s return to class.If a scholar is planning on being absent, please notify the teacher as soon as possible to get assignments beforehand. All students who have missed class for any reason must see the teacher during office hours or by appointment to ensure that they understand the lesson.

Late and Incomplete Work

Missing assignments and zeros are the number one reasons scholars fail classes. In order to be a successful scholar, you must complete all work on time. Work is considered incomplete if it is less than 100% complete by the time it is due. Scholars are required to try their best at all assignments, show all of their work, and if necessary seek help from their teachers, their peers, and outside resources. Any incomplete, missing, or late assignments result in mandatory Wall Street the day the assignment is due.

Wall Street is a supervised, mandatory work completion session after school Monday through Thursday from 4:10 to 5:10. If a scholar earns Wall Street for failing to complete an assignment, the scholar is required to attend Wall Street that day. Failure to attend Wall Street results in 2 demerits. Wall Street entries are made in Power School and a phone call home will occur by or before 3:20pm each day to inform families if their scholar earned Wall Street.

Late work will not receive full credit. Work is considered late if turned in any time after work has been collected. Work turned in the following day with verification of Wall Street attendance may earn partial credit. Work more than one (1) day late will not be accepted and will receive no credit.

Scholar Expectations, Policies, and Procedures

In addition to the expectations in the student handbook, there are several classroom procedures in this class. All classroom rules fall under one of the three R’s: Respect others, Respect yourself, and Respect our classroom.

  1. Regular attendance and participation is vital to success in our class. Missing class, arriving late, or coming unprepared (i.e. incomplete homework, without supplies, without texts) will directly affect a student’s performance and his/her grade.
  2. Students are expected to come to class prepared to learn and participate, and to be respectful to their peers and all adults in our school community. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action.
  3. Adhering to the dress code at all times is mandatory. Please review the dress code thoroughly.
  4. Copying another person’s work and/or plagiarizing is cheating and is absolutely unacceptable. There is NO TOLERANCE for plagiarism. Any participation in cheating or plagiarism will result in an automatic zero for the assignment and will result in further disciplinary action. If you are unsure of how to refer to a source correctly, please see me before the assignment is due.

Procedure / Expectation
Entering Class /
  • Be in full dress code
  • Greet the teacher by name and shake teacher’s hand
  • Make eye contact and smile
  • Enter the room quietly
  • Turn in any homework in your bin and then go directly to your seat

Start of Class / All students should be in class and seated in full dress code when the bell rings. Anyone who is not seated when the bell rings will be marked as tardy and receive a demerit.
Students are then expected to take out all materials needed for class. Backpacks, purses, and other items should go neatly underneath their desk, not in the aisles, not on student labs,nor on the desks.
Read the announcements and complete the Do Now silently – Everyday there will be a Do Now on the board, make sure to read it silently and get right to work.
Sitting in Class / Students are to make sure they are sitting SMART at all times:
  • Sitting up straight
  • Making eye contact
  • Articulating responses/Asking questions
  • Responding appropriately/ Raising your hand
  • Tracking the speaker

Coming to attention / *The teacher will signal your attention asking all students to bring their conversations to a close. She may also raise a hand or count down from 5
*Stop talking and working immediately
*Look at the teacher
*Listen for instructions
*Continue working when instructed
Using Technology, Changing Classrooms / Throughout the year students may spend time in the Technology Lab or using laptops in class.
All technology must be used in accordance with the teacher’s directions and the Student Code of Conduct. Inappropriate or irresponsible use of technology may result loss of technology privileges, loss of workplace skills points, demerits, or more serious consequences.
When changing rooms students are expected to do so silently. When the switch is taking place students are expected to collect all of their belongings and form a single file line silently in the classroom. We will then proceed to move across the hall silently in order to not disturb those that are still in class. Students are expected to enter the lab, proceed to assigned computers and wait for instructions.
Personal Needs / Personal needs, such as going to the bathroom, should be taken care of beforeclass begins. You should not leave your seat during class time, unless with permission from the teacher. No one may leave the room at any time unless in case of emergency.
Assignment Headings / Every handwritten assignment you turn in should have the heading S-T-A-N-D, if your paper does not “STAND” it will not be accepted. S-T-A-N-D is an acronym for:
S-subject and hour number T-teacher A-assignment N- name D-date
Example:
Russell Harris AP Physics (5th period)
October 8, 2015 Ms. Zachau Walker
Homework: Newton’s Third Law Concept Questions
Every formal typed assignment should use APA style formatting. We will spend asignificant amount of time reviewing APA style in class before the first formal paper is due.
*Assignments without appropriate heading information will automatically receive a zero. Once papers are returned, students will not be able to make up assignment.
Participating in Class / Students are expected to follow all instructions and participate in all activities and assignments. To volunteer to answer a question, students should raise their hand. It is expected that students silently wait their turn, while respecting whoever is currently speaking.
Asking a question / *Raise your hand
*Wait silently to be called on
*When called on, ask your question
Discussion / *Listen attentively to classmates’ points, noting anything important
*Only one person should be speaking at once
*Use a professional tone and volume
*Raise your hand to signal that you would like to participate
*While waiting to speak, scholars should still be silently listening
Exchanging Papers / *Exchange papers with the person at your table
*If you don’t have a partner, exchange with the closest person to you
*In groups of 3, exchange your paper so each person has a different person’s paper
*Provide accurate and respectful feedback – scholars should support each other toward success
Finishing Classwork / If students finish classwork early, they are expected to take out their BAAT (see “Materials Needed above). At no time should students proceed to talk or disturb their classmates.
Turning in papers / *Pass all papers down the row, the teacher/student helper will pick-up
*At 4-person tables, 1 person will pick-up and place papers in the basket
*Independent work should be turned in independently into the basket
*All homework assignment will be due the following day of class
Classroom Cleanliness / Students are expected to keep the room clean and throw away all of their trash. At the end of each class students are responsible to remove all trash from underneath and on top of their desks.
Dismissal / Scholars are dismissed by the teacher after the tone sounds. The tone does not dismiss students. Students should tuck in their chairs before leaving the classroom and that all furniture has been returned to original positions. No materials should be packed up before the bell rings.
School-wide announcements / *Stop talking and working
*Listen to the announcement
*Then continue working quietly
Greeting / Each class, someone will be responsible for greeting guests to the classroom. We will use the procedure STEP IN as guests knock on the door:
S-Shake hands and make eye contact with the guest.
T-Tell them your name, name of the teacher and class
E- Explain what you are working on in class
P- Pose a unique question
  • (“What brings you to the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy?” “what was your favorite subject in school?” or anything else that is appropriate and unique to you as a greeter) then ask the guest if they have any questions.
IN- Invite them into the room and obtain any extras of the handouts to present to our guest.
Greeting is a privilege. Good greeting earns merits.
Emergencies and Drills / Follow the instructions of all teachers and staff
Fire drills:
*Line-up silently at the door
*Walk in single file line calmly out the nearest indicated exit
*Remain silent and ready for instructions while waiting in line outside
*Return to the classroom in a silent single file line
*Continue working upon return to classroom
Labs and Projects / All laboratory instructions are to be followed carefully at all times. Because we do not have a separate laboratory area, scholars must be cognizant of the classroom space and attentive to the directions. Any time students compromise the safety of the experiment or project, they will lose their workplace skills points for the day and may be assigned up to 4 demerits depending on the severity of the incident.

Signatures (Due tomorrow, Wednesday, September 9th)

Should I have any questions/concerns regarding the syllabus, I will contact Ms. Zachau Walker before I provide my signature. Once I sign the syllabus, I am acknowledging that I have read and understood the syllabus for AP Physics and will adhere to all policies and procedures set forth in this document.

I also understand that all materials for this course are needed in every class and should be with every student no later than Monday September 14, 2014.

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Print Student NameSign Student Name

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Print Parent/Guardian NameSign Parent/Guardian Name

Parent/Guardian Contact Information:

Phone Number(s)______

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Email Address(es)______

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Preferred Method of Contact:______