WELCOME TO 8TH GRADE SCIENCE CLASS…

with MRS. KORMAN

EMAIL

WEBSITE

school phone (919) 496-7700 ext. 202

tutoring/office hours are available before and after school on most days; check ahead for availability

Learning Objectives

I have broken the curriculum into 5 units, roughly by scientific discipline:

  • Chemistry – Composition and Properties of Matter & The Periodic Table
  • Energy – Energy Reources, Ecosystems & Biogeochemical Cycling
  • Evolution – Of the Earth and Life, Geology
  • Microbiology – Food, Microbes, Invertebrates & Transmission of Disease
  • Water – Hydrology, Oceanography, & Water Pollution

Classroom Rules

My rules are simple and easy to remember:

  • Be Prepared – with pencil, notebook, textbook, homework, etc.
  • Be Respectful - NO speaking out of turn, vandalizing property, disrupting class, bullying
  • Follow all school rules – such as dress code, cellphone policy, no food or gum, etc.

Consequences

Contrary to popular belief rules are not made to be broken, they are made to make sure that one student’s behavior doesn’t negatively impact another student. Think of school rules as an introduction to our country’s legal system with the penalties becoming more severe once you reach adulthood and depending on the infraction. There are occasions when an automatic office referral could happen but for the most part I’m generous in allowing you 3 “strikes” with consequences that look something like this:

  • A friendly reminder.
  • A phone call or email home.
  • Silent lunch.
  • Office referral.

Hall Passes

To minimize disruptions in the classroom, students will be issued three hall passes each quarter. These passes may be used to leave the classroom for any reason: restroom, locker, office, library, etc. They are not to be used when I am presenting new information or instructions. If hall passes are not used, at the end of the quarter they can be redeemed for extra points.

Weekly Schedule

In my experience students like to know what to expect from day to day in my class, so for this reason I post a daily agenda on the board and I try to stick to the following:

Monday & Tuesday – introduce new material (video, demonstrations, notes, homework likely)

Wednesday – reinforcing LAB activity

Thursday – review (homework likely)

Friday – QUIZ!

Website

Absent from class? Wondering what you missed? Wondering when the next test is? Find out at any time what exactly is going on in class by checking the calendar page on my website I will do my best to keep it updated daily. I spend a lot of time (and money) on it because it is a wonderful learning tool, so PLEASE use it if you are able!

Text Reminders

If you aren’t able to get to a computer to check my website but you can get text or email on your smart phone, I will send out reminders about homework, upcoming tests, etc via a 3rd party facilitator (meaning I don’t have your cellphone number and you won’t have mine). I encourage both students and parent/guardians to sign up by texting @mrskorm to (980) 734-3504 or you can sign up for email reminders by emailing

Bellwork

At the start of each class students will find bellwork on the board at the start of class. It will be a review question from the previous class presented in the format of the EOG exam. Students should take out their homework from the night before and their special sheet of colored paper designated for bellwork, only ONE of which will be given to each student every 2 weeks. I will come to each student to check homework while they are working on bellwork. At the end of each unit I will collect bellwork and assign a grade for it. Since it will also become the EOG study guide it is important that students do not lose it or throw it away.

Labs

Science is unique in that we can actually DO science. In my experience, students really enjoy and learn a lot from lab work. Unfortunately lab work is notoriously difficult to make up. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that students only miss class when they have absolutely no alternative, and that includes being on best behavior so as to avoid any suspensions. Most labs will be done in class on Wednesday with a makeup session during (both) exploratory classes the following Monday. I will list the labs and makeup times on the board and it will be the STUDENT’S responsibility to make it to the makeup session. It takes a great deal of time for me to set up and break down labs and it is logistically impossible for me to have several running simultaneously. Once the makeup session is over the lab will no longer be available and will become a zero in the grade book. I cannot stress enough that it is the STUDENT’S RESPONSIBILITY to get the lab made up.

Lab Safety

  • Report all accidents regardless of how minor to your teacher.
  • Use lab equipment only when the teacher is present or when you have permission to do so.
  • Never indulge in horseplay or behavior that could lead to injury of others.
  • Before beginning lab work, clean the lab bench top and your “glass”ware.
  • Use goggles and/or lab aprons when instructed to do so.
  • Never look directly into a test tube. View the contents from the side.
  • Point test tubes away from you and others.
  • Immediately notify the teacher of any chemical spill and clean up the spill as directed.
  • If you get any chemical in your eye, immediately wash the eye with water and notify the teacher.
  • Never smell a material in a test tube or flask directly. Instead, with your hand, “fan” some of the fumes to your nose carefully.
  • Use equipment only as directed.
  • No eating, drinking or chewing gum during lab work unless directed otherwise.
  • Never taste any material in the lab, unless directed otherwise.
  • Return all lab materials and equipment to their proper places after use.
  • Upon completion of work, wash and dry all equipment and clean up your area.

Grading

Each unit will yield the following grades:

  • Bellwork
  • Homework
  • 5-7 Quizzes
  • 5-7 Labs
  • Unit Project
  • Unit Cumulative Exam

Notebooks will be checked periodically (sometimes announced, sometimes unannounced) and registered as either a homework grade or a quiz grade.

A project will be assigned at the beginning of each unit. In the case of demonstrated need materials can be provided but I must be informed in advance of the due date. Late projects will receive 10 points off per day.

Final grades will be calculated using the following weighted scale:

40% Comprehensive Unit Exams

30% Classwork/Homework

30% Projects & Chapter Quizzes

Cheating

Cheating will result in an automatic zero for the assignment, quiz, or test and a referral to the school administration for disciplinary action. Examples: copying from another person’s assignment, talking during a test/quiz, using a cheat sheet and/or looking at another person’s paper during a test/quiz, having a cellphone in the classroom during a text/quiz, etc.

Supplies

  • 1″ 3 ring binder with dividers (we will label them together in class)
  • Loose-leaf paper
  • 1 subject spiral-bound notebook
  • Something to write with! Remember: Be Prepared!
  • Colored pencils – we color A LOT in science class! Lots of diagrams!
  • Pencil sharpener that collects shavings

Wish List Items

  • Tissues
  • Lysol
  • Index Cards
  • Loose-leaf notebook paper
  • PencilsPencil cap erasers

PLEASE KEEP THIS IN THE FRONT OF YOUR NOTEBOOK SO THAT YOU MAY REFERENCE IT AT ANY TIME DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR.