Sophomore English: World LiteratureMs. Cervantes

Welcome to the 2017-2018School Year!

Course Description:The sophomore English course is designed to give the student increased experience in the three major areas of language-arts literature, composition, and grammar-usage. The literature units include readings in the different literary forms designed to teach the student to become a more skilled and competent reader. Major emphasis is on Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. In composition, the primary emphasis is on paragraph development using elementary narrative and expository techniques. The grammar-usage units are designed to improve student understanding of sentence structure, terminology, and problems in usage which relate directly to writing and speaking skills. Vocabulary and spelling exercises are given in connection with the grammar-usage unit.

Required Materials: Students are required to have:

  • Writing Utensil: There will be writing implements available if needed, but there is no guarantee there will be enough for everyone
  • Bell Ringer Sheet: A bell ringer sheet will be available at the beginning of every week on the counter and due every Friday. Bell ringer sheets will only be available on Monday. Anyone who misses on Monday will have a bell ringer sheet waiting for them with their name on it in the Monday folder.
  • Notebook: There will be times when you need to write down notes or thoughts or ideas throughout the school year.
  • USB: This will be useful for when we write essays and you have to save them. The AP club sells them for $2

Textbook: There is a class set of grade ten textbooks in the back of the classroom. If there is any homework assigned, it is the students’ responsibility to get the textbook from the bookstore so they can complete the work at home. The text we use is below.

Literature: Grade Ten

Texts: The following texts are tentatively what will be read throughout the school year. I reserve the right to change these based on the needs of the students:

Night by Elie Wiesel

1984 by George Orwell

Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Various short stories, poems, and narratives from the literature textbook as well as any supplemental materials

Grading Scale: The following scale will be students’ grading scale for both semesters:

Percentage / Letter Grade
100 - 90 / A
89 - 80 / B
79 - 70 / C
69 - 60 / D
>59 / F

**Please Note: WHS requires students to have a C or higher in order to go on field trips or participate in extracurricular activities.

Rules and Procedures: This classroom follows all school rules outlined in the student handbook.

Respect

  • Students are expected to be respectful of their peers, their surroundings, and their teacher. I, in turn, will be respectful of my students. This means that students will not talk over each other during class discussions. Students are expected to listen to others who are speaking and only speak after the original speaker is finished.

Tardy Policy

  • Students are not allowed to be tardy to my class. In order to ensure an environment where learning is the number one goal, it is essential that students show up to my class on time, ready and willing to work.

Seating Arrangement

  • Students will have assigned seats to start out the school year. Behavior of the class as a whole will determine if students are allowed to sit where they would like. Seating preference is an earned privilege, not a right. I reserve the right to put a seating chart in place or move around the seating chart as I see fit.

Technology

  • Technology is not permitted in my classroom without my consent. As a result, students who are on the computers when they are not supposed to be risk the loss of privileges in my classroom. Students on cell phones or personal listening devices risk the confiscation of the device.

Bell Work

  • When there is bell work posted on the board, students will be expected to grab their book from its designated spot in the room and start once they walk into the classroom. I will give students time after the bell has rung to work on the bell work before we share it as a class.

Supplies

  • The counter will be the student supply counter. Only supplies I deem necessary for the day will be on the counter. If students use a supply, they will be expected to return it at the end of the class period. If supplies are not returned, supplies will no longer be provided.

Turning in Work

  • Students will be expected to turn in work at the time specified for each assignment. On my desk there is an inbox. I expect students to place work in the correct box for their class period.
  • Late work will be accepted up until the end of each grading period; however, 1-5% of points will be docked for every day that an assignment is late. Also, I reserve the right to grade it at my convenience once it is considered late work. Students will be told when the end of a grading period is approaching so they can turn in their work before that date.

Leaving the Room

  • During the school day, students will be permitted to leave the classroom only if I am done lecturing. Acceptable times to leave will be during assignments, during group work, and after a student has completed his or her bell work before we begin discussing it. Students must have their handbook in order to be excused.
  • **In the case of an emergency, such as vomiting, students will not be required to have a handbook. They do, however, need to let me know they are nauseous before class starts so that I am aware why they suddenly get up and run to the bathroom.

I know that this seems like a lot of rules to follow. Over all, the goal of this school year is for students to learn and to have fun doing so. My goal as a teacher is make learning fun and make sure that students are thoroughly learning the material. If students and I work together, this will be a fun and exciting school year! 

If you have any questions or comments on assignments, please contact me at