Lassiter High School

Reaching Excellence and Climbing Higher

Language Arts Department

Spring Semester 2013

COURSE TITLE: 9th Lit/Comp INSTRUCTOR: Mrs. Roth EMAIL:

LEARNING GOAL: This year Cobb County is following the Common Core Georgia Performance Standards (CCGPS). These standards provide a consistent framework to prepare students for success in college and/or the 21st century workplace. More information can be found at http://www.corestandards.org/.

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is designed for the college-bound student. This student should have a serious academic attitude, demonstrating a high degree of self-discipline and self-motivation commensurate with the independent work required. Our units of study include poetry, short story, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Following the Georgia Performance Standards, we will strive for a balance of writing compositions, reading comprehension, applied grammar, and speaking opportunities. Additionally, the development of vocabulary, listening, and research skills will be blended with those units listed above. Students must also complete an End of Course Test (EOCT) covering information studied both this semester and the Fall Semester portion of this course. Instruction this semester will include a review for this test.

GRADING POLICY: Major assignments: essays/reports, tests, projects …………..…40%

Minor: class work and homework……….…………………….25%

Vocabulary: …………………………………………………..10%

EOCT: End of Course Test………………………………….20%

Final Exam: cumulative of semester ……………………………5%

TEXTS/READINGS: Our texts include the student’s summer reading copy of I Am Scout, To Kill a Mockingbird, issued textbook Elements of Literature, Sadlier-Oxford Vocabulary Level D.

FILMS: We will watch some of Romeo & Juliet, To Kill a Mockingbird, and occasionally other curriculum-related films or film clips. By not contacting me directly with issues or protests, you indicate permission for your student to view these films and clips.

MATERIALS NEEDED: 3-ring binder, loose paper, blue or black pens, #2 pencils, dividers, Post-it notes and highlighters. Students will also need a flash-drive for document storage. I will not provide any of these materials, even if it prevents the student from completing a test. Students will not be allowed to leave class to retrieve books or materials, or to store them in the classroom.

TARDY POLICY: To avoid being counted tardy, students must be seated and ready for class when the bell rings. If you are late for class, you must check in with the Late Arrival System (LAS). See your student handbook for specifics about the disciplinary action for tardies.

ATTENDANCE AND MAKE-UP WORK:

A student who attends class and actively participates is most likely to be successful. However, if you are absent, please check the website for make-up work. See your student handbook (agenda) for specifics on Lassiter’s make-up work policy. 10 pts. per day will be deducted for major assignments. No minor assignments will be accepted late.

EXTRA HELP: I am available most days before school by appointment to give you extra help. Please try to schedule appointments at least one day in advance.

MANUSCRIPT REQUIREMENTS:

·  All work should be completed with care and reflect grade level insight. Illegible work and papers without the proper identification will receive a zero.

·  Student name, date, teacher name, and hour should appear in the upper left-hand corner of all assignments per MLA style.

·  All final draft essays should follow the standard MLA manuscript format for written composition.

·  Major writing assignments should be typed. For your convenience, the writing center and the media center computers are available before and after school for word processing.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY:

Cheating is considered a serious matter. The parents of a student who has been involved in cheating will be notified and the student will receive a grade of zero for the test or evaluation period, and a grade of U in conduct.

For this course, cheating is defined as, but is not limited to, the following acts:

§  Copying anyone’s answers to questions, exercises, study guides, class work or homework assignments

§  Taking any information verbatim from any source, including the Internet, without giving proper credit to the author, or rearranging the order of words and/or changing some words as written by the author and claiming the work as his or her own, i.e., plagiarism.

§  Looking onto another student’s paper during a test or quiz.

§  Having available any study notes or other test aids during a test or quiz without the teacher's permission.

§  Collaborating on assignments when independent work is expected.

SYLLABUS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

TEACHER: Jacqueline Roth

Please CONTACT ME via email IF YOU DO NOT agree with any of the following:

q  I have read and understand the academic integrity policy.

q  I have reviewed the class syllabus and understand the grading policy.

q  I give permission for my child to view G, PG or PG13 films if they are related to the curriculum of the class.

q  I give permission for my child to read the listed texts.

q  I give permission for my child to use web 2.0 programs such as Prezi, Glogster, and Google+.

q  I am willing to be contacted by email.

q  I have access to the internet and will access the Pinnacle parent feature (once it is available) to check on my child's progress. I understand that teachers will make every effort to post grades within 2 weeks of accepting minor assignment, but that posting of grades larger papers and projects may take extend beyond the 2 week timeframe.

q  I am aware that make-up work can be found on the blog: http://lhsblogs.typepad.com/roth