Room: 410 E-mail: Phone: 355-5466 ext.: 5410
Web-page:
Open Room Times:Monday-Thursday 7:30 -8:00 AM by appointment or E-mail for after school times.
Conference Times: Contact any White Team Teacher orGuidance for available times during the school day for a team conference. E-mail questions or any observations anytime throughout the year
Dear Parents and Guardians of White Team Science Students,
I would like to introduce myself to you. I am Mr. Gregor, The White team’s Earth Science teacher. I have been teaching her at BAMS since 1998. With that time, there have been many changes and exciting times within the classroom. I’m thrilled to introduce a new science program this year that is highly technology based and provides students with many expanded opportunities at home. Preparing students for achieving success in the workplace and the world is extremely important. Students need to learn how to become effective problem solvers in situations outside the classroom. Therefore, in this class, as we learn science we will identify how it applies to our lives. In addition to reading and discussing science content, we will design and carry out meaningful activities and draw conclusions based on our experiences. You can encourage your child by asking questions about the science we are doing in school. You might help them understand the importance of science in everyday life by showing how science is found in almost everything we do, from cooking with a recipe to fixing the family car. Your child’s success in science is important to me, as is our communication about his or her progress. Our studies will range from Earth to space and beyond. Feel free to call or e-mail me whenever you have questions or concerns. I look forward to working with you to help your child learn the skills necessary to be successful in science.
Sincerely, David Gregor
Classroom Information
Attendance: Students are responsible for all materials presented in class, including announcements and homework on days they are absent. Assignments are posted in the class, on the web, and on weekly team web pages. If a student is absent for any reason it is their responsibility to get the materials necessary from the teacher, from a responsible friend, or web-pages. All missed assignments are due starting within two days of returning to school unless extensions are made with Mr. Gregor.
Evaluation: Tests 35%, Quizzes 30%, Experiments/Data Collection 20%, and Homework/In-class projects 15%. Each nine week grade is based on total points for each category percentage, nottotal points. Quiz points are twice the value of homework points.
No Extra Credit is given at any time throughout the year.
A: 90-100% B: 80 -89.9% C: 70 – 79.9% D: 60 – 69.9% F: below 59.9%
Classroom Supplies and Information:Textbook: McGraw-Hill Earth Science. We will be using on-line textbooks with hard copy textbooks available as needed and in Learning Support classrooms. Students will have ample time to finish assignments in class using Chrome books and hard copy text. Students will have the opportunity to extend learning with on-line materials through McGraw Hill personal student accounts.
Portfolio: Students will have on-line Google classroom notebooks to keep notes and worksheets from class. If a studentwants paper notebooks, it is their responsibility to supply their personal spiral binder. All students will have a classroom folder to store any notes and material in class.
School Planner: Supplied by the school for students to record of all homework assignments. Pencils: Pencils will only be used in class for written work of those not using Chrome books.
Evaluations: Tests and Quizzes will all be taken using Chrome Books and on-line testing with instant feedback.
The three R’s of student success—rituals, routines, and redirections—Effective In-Home Time Management will help students complete their school work while maintaining opportunities for personal, unstructured time.
Rituals:Rituals are specific ways that tasks are done regularly and that do not vary or change. Because they are consistent and familiar, students do not need to think about them and can focus their attention on other, more complex matters. The rituals of successful students include maintaining a sufficient amount of necessary school supplies; packing all books, notebooks, and other supplies, which will be necessary for any class or activity; writing their names first on all papers or other work that will be turned in and keeping all work in the same place (an astonishing number of students receive no credit for work they have completed because they fail to write their name on it or because they misplace it); adhering to reminder systems they have set up for themselves (i.e., looking at schedules and “To Do” lists each day at certain times, always writing assignments in the same place, and so on.).
Routines:Routines vary but generally encourage regularity and consistency. Before, during, and after school, students tend to follow routines of some sort. Successful students establish routines that allow them time to complete their work and for recreation, personal preferences, and self-expression. A lack of balance is likely to lead to difficulties. The routines of successful students include recharging the mind and body daily with adequate sleep and healthy eating habits; being aware of what will be happening each day and establishing and referring to reminder systems that will ensure adequate preparation; attending to responsibilities first.
Redirections: The temptation to communicate with, socialize with, and otherwise engage peers during work time can seem irresistible for middle and high-school students. Even the most serious students can find themselves ignoring what they know they should be doing. In addition, the distractions of television, video and computer games, the Internet, and pleasure reading exert a strong pull away from studies. As a result, each student must devise a set of personal strategies to redirect attention from such distractions. Learning partners need to be understanding of a student’s need to devote time to self-chosen activities. In turn, they need to help students develop plans for reducing distractions and refocusing their attention when it strays from work. Such strategies might include set aside “down time” or a debriefing period between the end of the school day and the beginning of homework time; agree to keep the television, the computer, and similar appliances off during the time that your student sets aside each day to complete homework; establish a regular, quiet, comfortable place where homework can be done; encourage your student to include a picture or other item in the work area to serve as a visual reminder of some pleasurable experience he or she anticipates having once school work is completed; provide a snack or a ten-minute break when your student completes half the work or when some other natural stopping point occurs; make it a habit to “work together” whenever your student feels that working alone is an isolating or otherwise unpleasant experience.
Exciting times awaiting those in science this year! Hope each student has a great year and enjoys the experience.