Pre-AP Geography Course Syllabus
Instructor: Mr. Nick Lowe
Email:
Room: 344
Office Hours (By Appointment): 7:30 – 8:50& 2:40 – 3:00pm
Texts:World Geography: Building a Global Perspective, Thomas J Baerwald & Celeste Fraser, Prentice Hall, 2007.
American Government, William A McClenaghan, Prentice Hall, 2006.
Teacher prepared packets and lecture notes.
Course Description: This course is an introduction to World Geography as well as the origins and fundamentals of government and political processes both internationally and on all levels in the United States. Students will learn map skills as well as how our earth is shaped over time. This class will help prepare students for our global world by looking at the cultural make-up of our world and the human impact upon it. By understanding the historical development of power, authority, and governance over time, as well as how these have evolved in contemporary society is essential to developing civic competence and creating effective citizens.
Students will be introduced to a number of strategies and skills that are designed to help students become more proficient in research and writing in a history class. Through reading and writing students will be able to develop their skills to tackle any content they see in a history class to better prepare then for upper level AP courses.
Materials Needed (On a Daily Basis):
-3 ring binder (I recommend nothing smaller than 2”)
-Spiral Notebook
-Plenty of notebook paper
-Pencil or pen
-Highlighters
-Open Mind
**Note: Other materials may be asked of you throughout the semester regarding in/out of class activities
Course Requirements: Throughout the course, you will be expected to complete the following to collectively determine your quarterly grades.
-Assessment: Each quarter students will be assessed by Unit Exams which cover class notes, discussions, videos, and supplemental readings. Exams will consists of a variety of items from multiple choice, true/false, matching, identification, and open response. There will also be several quizzes throughout each quarter to check for understanding building up to exams.
-Class Work: Each day class will consist of different activities. We will have lectures, class discussions, individual activities, group activities, and videos just to name a few things that we could have. It is YOUR job to be respectful day in and day out, and participate in these activities. If you choose not to perform class work or participate in activities, not only will your grade be affected, but you could be subject to disciplinary action.
-Projects: You will have class projects, each worth 100 pts. These projects are designed to be done outside of class, but there will be some in class time set aside for you to work on them. The basis of each project will be outlined by me, at a later date, but you will have choices as to the manner in which you display or show your data/research. These projects will be gone over in detail at a later date.
-Maintaining a well organized portfolio/binder: Students will be asked to keep up with a binder in class. This is designed to not only help the student study and keep track of assignments, but it will also be used as a way for me to monitor and grade each student’s participation in class work.
-Notes/Discussion: Notes are a valuable and easy to acquire study guide for exams and quizzes. Students who take and keep up with their notes earn significantly higher grades than students who do not take notes, studies prove it. Also class revolves around discussion; students need to be attentive and active in class discussions throughout the semester.
Grading Scale:
Homework/Activities- 10 to 20 pts 100-90= A
Quizzes- 30 pts 89-80 = B
Projects- 100 pts 79-70 = C
Tests and Finals- 100 pts 69- 60= D
Classroom Rules and Procedures:
**First off, you are to abide by all the rules set forth by the Greenwood High School Student Handbook.
Attendance Policy:
-Students are expected to be in class on a daily basis. If you are absent, it is YOUR responsibility to find out what you missed. Only if you have an EXCUSSED absence will you be permitted to make up work. You will then have one week to make up any missed assignments and two weeks to make up any tests/quizzes that you missed. If you fail to turn these assignments in during this window, they will be recorded as a zero. All make up tests will be an altered version of the test missed, and can be made up in ESS.
Tardy Policy:
-Please show up to class on time and prepared. You need to make sure that you are ready to go when the bell rings. That means notebook on your desk, pencil sharpened, and your mind focused. If you fail to meet these requirements, you will be marked tardy. YOU MUST BE IN YOUR SEAT WHEN THE BELL RINGS. ***5 tardies to my class equals a detention.***(Clothes Pin needs to be removed if you are present)
Restroom passes:
-You are expected to go to the restroom during the locker break between classes. You will have four hall passes for the semester, once they are used up you’re out…so don’t ask.
Food and Drink Policy:
-According to school policy there is NO food or drink in class. If I see any, you will be asked to throw it away. Gum will be allowed as long as it is not a distraction or I don’t find it anywhere but the trashcan. Exception is WATER.
Seating Policy:
-There will be assigned seats, so make sure that you are in your seat when the bell rings or you will be counted tardy.
Cheating and Plagiarism Policy:
-Cheating and or plagiarizing WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. Any student who is caught cheating or plagiarizing will receive an automatic zero on the assignment and parental notification. **Communication during a test/quiz will be considered cheating.** Cheating includes, but is not limited to, signing your name to work that is not your own, looking at another student’s test/quiz with the intent of copying his/her answers, looking off of another student’s homework assignment to aid in the completion of your stances may be deemed as cheating as they arise; this definition is completely left up to my discretion. Cheating will result in a zero for that assignment. Plagiarism will not be tolerated, even if it is accidental. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to, copying another writer’s words without giving proper credit – this writer may be another student, a published writer (magazines, books,…), an author of an internet site…anyone who is not YOU. A student found plagiarizing would receive a zero on that assignment.
Dismissal:
-I dismiss the class not the bell. This is something that we need to understand quickly or I will keep class past the bell to make up for distractions. Students need to remain in THEIR assigned seats until I dismiss the class after the bell.
Sleeping Policy:
-Class time is not nap time; if you have a problem with staying awake then you will be subject to disciplinary action.
Late Work:
-If you miss an assignment you will have 2 days before the zero is final. You will also be required to complete a make-up assignment on top of the missed assignment to act as interest.
Discipline Policy:
-Students will receive a verbal warning
-Students will then be instructed to stand quietly or given other disciplinary action.
-For more serious issues students will be asked to leave class or sent to the office.
Detention:
-This will be carried out after school from 2:40 – 3:10 or before school from 7:00 – 7:25. Students may be assigned multiple days, depending on their actions. It is the student’s responsibility to find a ride here or home on the days they are assigned detention. If a student does not show up for detention an office referral will be turned in and automatic in-school suspension will be assigned. This can also be given as a result of not completing class work.
WORDS:
You may be assigned WORDS for not following class room rules or procedures. If you are assigned WORDS, you are to write the word “GEOGRAPHY” 500 times and they are due the next class period after they were assigned. If you fail to complete them, your words are doubled to 1000. If you fail to turn them in again you are assigned a detention and if you fail to appear to detention you are issued an office referral.