Thurgood Marshall Middle School
SYLLABUS AND COURSE REQUIREMENTS 2010-2011
English 8
Instructor: Ms. Andrea Wright
E-mail:
Parent Connect Grade Book:
Voice Mail: 858-549-5400 ext. 2213
Texts: Osborne, Elizabeth, Vocabulary from Latin and Greek Roots Book II
Phillips, Dr. Wanda C., Easy Grammar Plus
Prentice Hall Literature: Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes, Silver Level
Various texts as assigned
COURSE DESCRIPTION
English 8 engages students in a vigorous, integrated study of reading, writing, speaking and listening skills. Through inquiry-based lessons and guided discussions students will develop language arts skills and strategies that meet the California Language Arts Standards, available to the public at
This course takes a balanced approach to English, and uses block scheduling to optimize the amount of time students may spend working on critical reading and writing strategies in the classroom. During the course of the year, students will work toward establishing a portfolio of work.
The essential learning objectives of this course are as follows:
- Students will express and organize ideas clearly, effectively, and creatively in writing.
- Students will master the use language conventions: form, grammar, punctuation, and usage.
- Students will read with an analytical mind and reflect on textual evidence to develop logical interpretations and insights, leading to significant commentaries about text.
- Students will broaden their vocabulary.
- Students will speak with authority while addressing an audience appropriately.
UNITS OF STUDY
Unit 1: Poetry
Unit 2: Biographical Research and Reporting
Unit 3: Response to Literature
Unit 4: Persuasive Writing
Unit 5: Functional and Public Documents
Unit 6: Narrative Writing: Historical Fiction
MATERIALS
Materials will be available for shared use in the classroom, and, if necessary, students may check out materials at the end of the school day for use at home. However, many students prefer to provide their own supplies for personal use.
Required: / Recommended:Spiral Notebook (at least 70 pages) / Three-Ring Binder *
College Ruled Paper / Colored Pencils
Pens & Pencils / Glue Stick
Independent Reading Text
(in backpack at all times) / Highlighter(s)
Flash drive (to save compositions)
Ziplock bag (to protect books)
* The majority of student work will be completed in the spiral notebook; however, a binder is useful for organizing handouts and written drafts.
GRADING
Assignment Categories:
The overall academic grade for each student is determined by his or her performance within four major categories: assessments, classroom work, homework, and projects. Assignments are weighted according to point values. For example, short homework assignments are typically awarded five points; whereas, essays and complex projects are awarded up to 100 points.
Standard Academic Grading Scale:
Grades assigned at each reporting period are based on the following percentages, which are rounded up at the tenth decimal place:
100-97=A+ 96-93=A92-90=A-89-87=B+86-83=B82-80=B- 79-77=C+ 76-73=C 72-70=C- 69-60= D 59-lower= F
Rubrics and Rubric Scores:
Some assignments will be assessed using a rubric. This is a form that outlines the performance standards a student is expected to meet on the assignment. Rubric scores are typically based on five point scale: 5=Advanced, 4=Proficient, 3=Basic, 2=Below Basic, 1=Far Bellow Basic. A proficient score is roughly translated into the letter grade of “B”.
Electronic Progress Reports:
Please take the time to proactively check your child’s progress using Parent Connect online. You may acquire an access code by visiting the Parent Connection page at or through the main office. Once you have been assigned an access code, you and your child may monitor assignment completion and assignment grades throughout the year.
Classroom Progress Reports for Students Not Meeting Grade Level Standards:
Only students who are receiving a letter grade of a D or lower will receive additional progress reports from the teacher. These are to be signed by a parent or guardian and returned to class. Students with passing grades of C or higher will not receive additional progress reports.
Citizenship Grades:
Citizenship grades are calculated every six weeks and reflect the teacher’s observations. Behavior that interferes with student learning and positive social interaction will be reported via a behavior notification that will be emailed to parents or sent home with the student. While a citizenship rubric will be used as a guide, the teacher will use professional judgment to determine citizenship grades.
Number of Offenses (including Tardy Notices) / Maximum Grade0-1 / E
2-3 / G
4 / S
5 / N
6 or more / U
Citizenship Rubric:
Excellent / Good / Satisfactory / Needs Improvement / UnsatisfactoryAlways courteous and respectful to adults and students / Typically courteous and respectful to adults and students / Occasionally discourteous and disrespectful (2-3 times) / Discourteous and disrespectful at times (4-5 times) / Continually discourteous and disrespectful to teachers and students
Positive attitude at all times; Rarely, if ever, requires teacher’s redirection / Positive attitude most of the time;Rarely requires teacher’s redirection / Accepts teacher’s redirection and reminders in a good spirit / Negative attitude, responds negatively to teachers’ redirection / Negative attitude; reactive or hostile to teacher’s redirection
Enthusiastically volunteers and participates appropriately in classroom activities; A positive force during independent and group work / Willingly and appropriately participates in classroom activities; Seldom needs urging to work independently or in a group / Occasionally participates fully and appropriately in classroom activities; Needs urging to work independently or in a group / Refuses to fully or appropriately participate in classroom activities; Requires frequent supervision to work independently or in a group / Undermines participation in classroom activities; Needs constant supervision to work independently or in a group; Continually off task and disruptive
Shows strong, positive leadership and frequently offers to help others, and regularly encourages peers to make good choices / Accepts leadership roles when asked, often offers to help others, and encourages peers to make good choices / Reluctantly accepts leadership roles, sometimes helps others, and occasionally encourages peers to make good choices / Refuses positive leadership roles, frequently makes poor choices and encourages peers to make poor choices as well / Refuses positive leadership roles, consistently makes poor choices and encourages peers to make poor choices as well
Consistently follows rules; 0 gum/candy infractions; 0-1 interruptions; 0- 1 tardies / Usually follows rules; 1 gum/candy infraction; 1interruptions; 2-3 tardies / Inconsistently follows rules; 2 gum/candy infractions; 2 interruptions; 4 tardies / Disregards rules; 3 gum/candy infractions; 3 interruptions; 5 tardies / Flagrantly disregards rules; 4 or more gum/candy infractions; 4 or more interruptions; 6 or more tardies
Consistently arrives prepared for class:
-Brings planner and supplies to every meeting
-Updates planner
-Acquires parent signature on time
-Completes assignments on time (0-1 missing homework assignments) / Usually arrives prepared for class:
-Brings planner and supplies to almost every meeting
-Updates planner
-Acquires parent signature on time
-Completes most assignments on time (2-3 missing homework assignments) / Often arrives prepared for class:
-Occasionally forgets planner
- Occasionally forgets to update planner or acquire
parent signature on time
-Completes assignments on time (4-5 missing homework assignments) / Sometimes arrives prepared for class / Rarely or never arrives prepared for class
Uses classroom materials wisely and encourages others to do the same / Uses classroom materials responsibly / Needs reminders to use materials appropriately / Careless with classroom materials / Destructive with classroom materials
Excellent attendance / Regular attendance / Average attendance / Poor attendance/ frequent absences / Truant/excessive absences
HOMEWORK EXPECTATIONS
There will be certain activities and assignments, which must be completed in class to receive full credit. However, it is common for assignments to begin in the classroom with the expectation that the work will be completed at home.
Studentsare given time at the beginning of each class period to note homework in their student planners. Assignments and due dates are posted on the whiteboard and on the Marshall website at under the “classes/homework” page. It is the students’ responsibility to keep a clear record of homework. On occasion the website may not be fully updated. Parents should check the planner weekly to ensure that it is being filled out.
Types of Assignments:
Independent Reading: Students are expected to read independently outside of school hours for a minimum of 30 minutes each day. Independent reading will be monitored through the Accelerated Reader Program, which identifies each student’s approximate reading level and confirms reading comprehension through computerized quizzes.
Process Writing: Students will be introduced to the “Six +1 Traits” of writing: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions, and presentation. Throughout the writing process students will be guided through pre-writing activities, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing.
Grammar (Sentence Structure, Punctuation, & Capitalization): Regular grammar lessons and activities will guide students to improve their control of language conventions and their sentence fluency. An emphasis will be placed on parts of speech, proper placement of modifiers, subject-verb agreement, and clear references between pronouns and antecedents.
Vocabulary: Students will study prefixes, suffixes, and Greek and Latin root words to build upon their existing understanding of word patterns (morphemes).
Studying for Assessments: Students must plan to review notes and materials in order to prepare for quizzes, tests, and other possible assessments.
Absences:
Assignments can only be made up for full credit if the student has an excused absence. They need to submit make-up work within one week of the absence, or it will be recorded as missing. If the student is absent on an existing due date for a major project, that assignment is due immediately upon his or her return.
Late Assignments:
Late work leads to playing catch-up and is highly discouraged! Therefore, late work will receive a score no higher than 75%. Finally, it is the student’s responsibility to insure that the teacher receives the late assignment. The teacher will not spend time asking for late assignments.
Tutoring:
Tutoring is available by request. Students are asked to sign up for tutoring at least one day in advance.
COMPUTER REQUIREMENTS/TROUBLE SHOOTING
If a student does not have a computer at home they should:
All final drafts of a student’s compositions must be typed, so plan ahead! Students will be assigned a personal folder on the school’s network to save schoolwork. They should make arrangements with the teacher to use the Media Center, Computer Lab, or classroom computer to type final projects.
If a student’s computer crashes:
As a precaution, they should ALWAYS make a backup copy of their writing on the computer, and save it on a USB drive (or flash drive) in a Word Document format (.doc). Printing occasional hard copies is also a good habit. If the data becomes corrupted or the computer crashes, it’s easier to recreate the document—even if the information is partial. Having something is better than having nothing.
If a student’s printer breaks he/she should:
- E-mail the document as an attachment to the teacher’s e-mail account.
- E-mail the document as an attachment to a homework partner; have him/her print out a copy.
- Save to a USB drive, bring it to school, and print the document.
SYLLABUS AND COURSE REQUIREMENTS 2010-2011
Confirmation of Receipt
English 8
I understand the policies of Ms. Wright’s English 8 class, and I agree to abide by the rules and procedures outlined in the syllabus and discussed in the classroom.
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Student Name (please print)Period
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Student SignatureDate
As a parent or guardian, I understand the policies of Ms. Wright’s English 8 class.
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Parent or Guardian SignatureDate
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Parent or Guardian Name (please print)
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Email Address 1
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Email Address 2
Questions/Comments:
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