English III Syllabus
2008-2009
Mr. M. Haag – Room 3023
Course Description:
English III consists of grammar and vocabulary skills, selected readings in American literature and a variety of critical discourse requiring higher order thinking skills. Students will become familiar with proper writing skills, literary genre, and a structured approach to the discipline of language arts.
This course, required of all juniors, will focus on the student's skill development in the areas of writing, language, literature and reading comprehension by using the reading process. Students will study various genres of literature primarily by American authors. Students will develop their skills of written and oral communication more deeply in accordance with the TEKS for all junior students.
Materials:
Glencoe Literature: American Literature
Grammar and Language Workbook
Writing Research Papers
The Pearl, The Crucible, A Raisin In The Sun, The Great Gatsby, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Ethan Frome, I Heard the Owl Call My Name, Tuesdays with Morrie
Standard color blue/black pen (no other ink colors will be accepted)
3-ring 1" notebook
5 tab dividers
Writing journal – must be purchased from Mr. Haag for 25 cents.
loose leaf paper (wide rule or college rule)
(If you cannot afford to purchase these materials or cannot get to the store, see me immediately!)
Requirements:
Each student will work independently, in groups, and as part of the whole class at the appropriate times.
Each student will bring appropriate materials to class each day.
Each student will participate daily and not interfere with his/her classmates' reading and writing.
Each student will maintain a notebook.
Students will need access to a computer for use throughout the year. Computers are available in the library, Internet lab or Wilson County Public Library.
Attendance:
It is imperative that students have excellent attendance and punctuality. Students cannot afford to miss all or any part of a class unnecessarily.
Students will sign in daily. Make sure to sign in—it is the proof of class attendance.
When absences cannot be avoided students will be required to complete all work missed. Students are responsible for all material presented. Upon return to class it is the responsibility of the student to initiate the make-up process. In addition, assignments are often available on Mr. Haag’s Web site. Feel free to consult the lesson plan for the day and/or email teacher for missed work.
No late work is accepted. "Late" means any time after the assignment has been collected or past the time the assignment was due. In addition, almost all of the major grades in this course will be due on the due date, whether the student is physically in class or not. Also, papers with no names on them will not be graded.
Tardiness is a distraction in class and will be dealt with accordingly. Please refer to the FHS Tardy Calculator policy.
If a student is more than 10 minutes late to class without a pass he/she will receive a discipline referral for being excessively late and a lunch detention.
More than 9 absences will result in the loss of credit, no matter what grade has been earned. Students may attend Saturday school to make up the time missed.
Class Expectations:
1. Be in the classroom with all necessary materials when the tardy bell rings.
2. Be respectful.
3. Behavior should be task oriented.
4. Follow all teacher directions.
5. Dismissal from class is by the teacher – NOT BY BELL.
Consequences for off-task behavior:
1. In class reminder.
2. Private discussion about behavior.
3. Loss of classroom privileges or teacher assigned consequences.
4. Teacher assigned lunch detention.
5. Parent contact.
6. Behavior Report
7. Major disruptions will supersede these consequences and result in an immediate office referral.
Evaluation:
The six weeks average will be weighted as follows:
Daily Assignments: 50%
Major Assignments: 40%
Nine-week checkpoint assessments: 10% (The English department will not give a checkpoint assessment the fourth quarter).
The semester average will be weighted as follows:
Semester exam will be worth 20%.
Nine week averages will be worth 80%.
All assignments which are turned in for grading must be written in standard color blue/black ink. (The only exceptions are journals and scantron forms). If the assignment is written in any other ink color or in pencil, 20 points will be deducted.
All assignments must be legible. If the teacher cannot read the assignment, it will be returned to the student without a grade.
Academic dishonesty on any assignment will result in a 0 and a discipline referral. Keep in mind that the teacher subscribes to Turnitin.com and will submit all written assignments for plagiarism reports.
No extra credit will be offered during the course. Please do not count on extra credit to improve the course grade. Working consistently throughout the course is the way to be successful.
All 11th grade students will write a paper (essay) each quarter.
Computer Access/Electronic Submission:
Students will need access to a computer. Many assignments will be typed.
The library is open before and after school each day if a student needs access on campus. Otherwise, he/she will need to have access to a computer off campus.
Students may also want to have a disk on which to save their work. Templates and examples may be available for students who have disks with them in class. In addition, all students will be required to submit their written assignments in hard copy as well as electronically (on disk, CD or email).
The computers on campus are equipped with Microsoft Word, so if a student uses any other software he/she needs to be aware that it will probably not be compatible with the computers on campus. Therefore, he/she will need to plan ahead in terms of editing and printing.
Also, keep in mind that all major writing assignments are due on the due date whether the student is physically present in class or not. Plan ahead and make arrangements for submission. No exceptions will be made.
Food and drinks: Students are not allowed to eat in class. Only water is allowed.
Notebook:
Students will want to organize the notebook in a meaningful way so that he/she is able to find his/her work quickly. This will help the student avoid zeros, turn in assignments on time, be successful on notebook grades and study for exams.
In addition, the notebook will be graded twice a quarter for organization and completion. Students are to structure their notebook into five sections: Vocabulary, Grammar, Daily, Tests/Major, and Writing.
Students are to bring the notebook to class everyday. This is part of being prepared. Students are not allowed to leave their notebooks in the classroom.
Grammar:
Students will be issued a Grammar and Language Workbook. These are provided for the students to use each Monday in class.
Students are to bring the workbook with them to class each Monday. The assigned lessons are to be completed in class and due before the student leaves class. The assignments are to be done on the original workbook pages (no handwritten copies or Xerox copies will be accepted). If a student fails to come to class prepared, he/she will not be able to complete the assignment. Remember, no late work is accepted.
If a student loses his/her workbook, a replacement copy may be purchased for $5.00.
Journal:
Students are required to purchase a Writing Journal from Mr. Haag by the first Friday of school. The Writing Journals costs 25 cents and will be used for the journal assignments done each Friday. The spiral will be kept in class.
Journal writing assignments will be given each Friday and completed in class in the spiral notebook. If a student is absent, he/she will be exempt from the assignment, no make up is required.
Students will be given their spiral/journal the last week of school to take with them.