Name_________________________________________________________________________________ Date___________________________
Classroom Management Plan
Freshman English
2015- 2016
Course Number: 1110-02
Ms. Desai and Ms. Hall
barbaradesai.blogspot.com
Course Description
(1120) Freshman English (Grade 9) – CP Level 2
This literature based course is designed to study the four genres of literature: fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry. Students taking this course should be reading at grade level. Instruction is designed to develop techniques for reading and writing more effectively, and to develop proficiency in vocabulary and grammar study. This course is designed to promote success on the MCAS. Completion of a research paper is a requirement in the freshman year.
Expectations: Freshman English is a critical year because of the transition from middle to high school and preparation for the MCAS. We expect you to arrive on time to class, be respectful, participatory, and to have all assignments done on time. For extra help on assignments, we will be available after school—just let us know and we can set up a time to meet.
Classroom Procedures: Arriving to class on time is expected on a daily basis as tardiness will not be tolerated. On day that homework is due, you will place your completed word in a designated tray upon entering the classroom. If you do not have your work, we may ask you to submit a note explaining why and include a plan to remedy the problem. This means that on any day that homework is due, you will hand something in regardless of whether you managed to complete your work or not.
Discipline: We expect and insist that all students show respect for their peers in the classroom. English is a subject in which we will explore topics that may be controversial and it is important to exhibit thoughtful and courteous behavior towards others. We must respect each other’s beliefs, opinions, belongings and space. Inappropriate or disrespectful behavior or language will not be tolerated in the classroom.
Attendance and Tardiness: Attendance will be taken every day at the beginning of class and tardiness will not be accepted.
Continual tardiness will result in an automatic write up and a call home to discuss strategies for getting here on time. Please refer to the NCAHS policy as outlined in the Student Handbook.
Extra Credit: Extra credit is offered periodically during a term, though not in place of assigned work.
Grading Policy:
Homework 25%
Tests 25%
Essays 25%
Reading and Quizzes 20%
Participation 5%
TOTAL→ 100% Term Grade
✯Rubrics will be distributed when an assignment is given, so that you know what our specific expectations will be.
Late Work:
- Any assignment handed in late will be subjected to a grade deduction. Work loses 10 percent a day for each day it is late. Homework may not be turned in for late points.
- If you are absent: It is your responsibility to get class notes and any homework that may have been assigned that day. A window of one week will be given to makeup missed quizzes or tests and students are responsible for making arrangements to come in after school to complete this work. If you are absent on a day when a major project or essay is due in class or on the day of a test, you will be expected to turn it in/take the test when you return.
Supplies for Success:
- One 1 and ½ inch heavy duty binder w/ 4 dividers.
- One college ruled 1 subject notebook for journaling
- College ruled loose-leaf paper for your binder.
- Highlighter and post-its.
- Access to a computer/internet.
- 1 package of 3x5 index cards
Contacting Ms. Desai and Ms. Hall:
Attendance and Tardiness: Attendance will be taken every day at the beginning of class. It is possible to fail
this course with FIVE ABSENCES. The absence policy and rules regarding excused absences can be found in the Student Handbook. Remember, “The early bird catches the worm” so get to class on time! Students arriving to class tardy on a regular basis will receive a call home or demerits.
SCHOOL PLAGIARISM POLICY:
Plagiarism will not be tolerated. As described in the Handbook Policy: Students are expected to be honest in all of their academic and vocational work. Plagiarism is defined as stealing or use without acknowledgement of the ideas, words, formulas, textual materials, online services, computer programs, etc. of another person, or in any way presenting the work of another person as one’s own. This means that they will not engage in any of the acts listed in the Handbook Policy. Please refer to those pages for a detailed description. If a student is found guilty of plagiarism, they will receive a failing grade for the assignment.
Students are required to sign and return the Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Policy page from their handbooks. It is recommended to read through the policy thoroughly, as your signature indicates understanding.
Name________________________________________________________________________________ Date__________________
DUE: Fri 9/8
Directions: Read the management plan online at barbaradesai.blogspot.com. (Click on the “Freshman English” link on the right.) Read it over carefully with a parent or guardian at home. Once you have both done so, please sign your names below, remove this section from the management plan, and return it to us as your first homework assignment.
I, ____________________________ the parent/guardian of __________________________________, have read and acknowledge the classroom policy and discipline expectations explained above.
Student Signature____________________________________ Parent Signature__________________________________
Parents/Guardians: On the space below, please provide any information that you think would be beneficial to your son or daughter’s success in English class this year.
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Photo Release Statement:
Throughout the school year there may be times when we take photographs/videos of students' work, students performing an activity or discussion. Those photographs and/or videotaped images will be used within the Aggie community to serve as samples to other students, evidence of learning for teacher evaluation, etc.
Please check here _______ if you do NOT wish to have your child photographed.
Please check here _______ if you do NOT wish to have your child photographed.
Thank You,
Barbara Desai
Amber Hall
Ms. Desai and Ms. Hall
Freshman English
Course Description
(1120) Freshman English (Grade 9) – CP Level 2
This literature based course is designed to study the four genres of literature: fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry. Students taking this course should be reading at grade level. Instruction is designed to develop techniques for reading and writing more effectively, and to develop proficiency in vocabulary and grammar study. This course is designed to promote success on the MCAS. Completion of a research paper is a requirement in the freshman year.
Primary Course Materials:
No Fear: Romeo and Juliet
Night (Elie Wiesel)
Animal Farm (George Orwell)
Literature and Language Textbook
Course Objectives:
- Students will be able to make inferences from a variety of texts and demonstrate their understanding with specific evidence when speaking and writing.
- Students will be able to reflect on literary themes covered throughout the course and relate them to their own lives, generation and culture.
- Students will be able to research responsibly by identifying reliable internet and book sources.
Course Outline (Sequence and units are subject to change at my discretion)
(One week) Review 1: Summer Reading Essay Prep—The first major assessment for freshman English is the summer reading essay. On the Friday following the first full week of school, students will compose an in class essay in response to a writing prompt of their choice in connection with the novel(s) read during the summer. In the week leading up to this initial writing assignment, we will review strategies and expectations for outlining and drafting a formal essay.
Assessments
Essay Outline (HW)
Quote Collector Chart (HW)
Summer Reading Essay (Essay)
Common Core Standards Addressed:
- As a class, we will review expectations for formal essay writing including structure, detail, and evidence to support the writer’s claims.
- Students will plan, organize and clarify their topics in connection with the available prompts using graphic organizers.
Unit I: The Short Story—(Fiction) Students in Freshman English will explore a variety of short, fictional stories in our first literary based unit where the focus will be on honing analytical and critical thinking skills as we discuss and write about contemporary and classic literature.
Assessments
Quiz: Vocabulary
Quiz: Literary Terms
Common Core Standards Addressed
- Students will prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
- Students will work to determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone.
- Together we will analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and developed, and the connections that are drawn between them.
- Ultimately, students will produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
Unit 2: Persuasive Writing + Reliable vs. Unreliable Sources—Students will select a topic that they are passionate about to argue its importance in relation to their own lives (i.e. bullying in schools, the right to work, school uniforms, freedom of expression, etc.). Together we will look for articles related to their topics in which both facts and opinions are used to promote the writer’s opinion. Students will then develop short editorials showing both sides of the argument they select.
Assessments
Participation: Discussion
Essay: Persuasive Argument
Short Essay: Opposing Argument
Mini Project: Identifying Reliable vs. Unreliable sources
Common Core or Standards Addressed
- Students will write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
- Students will introduce precise claim(s), distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and create an organization that establishes clear relationships among claim(s),
- Together we will evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.
Unit 3: Romeo and Juliet (Drama)—Students will be introduced to the life of William Shakespeare and his contributions to the modern English language through an exploration of his early career and writing as we read the play and discuss the creation of archetypes that exist in literature, classic American fairytales, and even popular movies!
Assessments
Participation: Reading a Role
Quiz: Shakespeare Bio + Elizabethan Drama
Quiz: Characters + Plot
Common Core or Standards Addressed
- Students will analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.
- Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
- Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
- Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
Students will take a Mid-Term Exam in both Level I and Level II Freshman English
Unit 4: Night (Non-Fiction)—Students will read the harrowing story of Elie Wiesel’s real, personal experience of surviving Auschwitz, the most infamous Nazi death camp during WWII. Reading for the unit will include interviews with survivors and an article on Oskar Schindler.
Assessments
Participation: Discussion
Quiz: Wiesel and Death Camps
Quiz: Vocabulary
Quiz: Reading
HW: Reading + Journals
Essay: Exploring Non-Fiction
Common Core or Standards Addressed
- Students will analyze a particular point of view or cultural experience reflected in a work of literature from outside the United States, drawing on a wide reading of world literature.
- Students will propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
- Students will read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
Mini Unit 4 (a): Schindler’s List(Non-Fiction)—Students will view the film Schindler’s List after a thorough examination of the camps as captured in Night. Students will use the film to choose a topic for the research paper and write a short essay on Schindler and the opportunity of survival he created during this horrific era.
Parental consent is required in order for your child to view this film because it is rated R for violence, language, and some sexuality.
Assessments
Quiz: Viewing Packet
HW: Reaction Journal
Short Essay: Comparative Writing
Common Core or Standards Addressed
Students will analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums, determining which details are emphasized in each account.
As a class we will respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.
Students will analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
Unit 5: The Freshman Research Paper—Students will demonstrate organizational skills to research a topic related to the Holocaust as we collect research, draft, and cite information relevant to each topic.
Assessments
Participation: Daily Research Notes
Quiz: Outline
HW: Collected Evidence
Essay + Test Grade: Research Paper
Common Core or Standards Addressed
- Students will gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the usefulness of each source in answering the research question; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.
- Through collaborative or individual assignments and projects students will use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products, taking advantage of technology’s capacity to link to other information and to display information flexibly and dynamically.
- Students will develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts, extended definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the audience’s knowledge of the topic.
- In addition, students will demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
Unit 6: Animal Farm (Fiction)—As a class we will explore the use of satire in Orwell’s work to understand the use of fantastical elements in an attempt to critique world events and inspire activism against Totalitarian governments. 
Assessments
Quiz: Orwell + Literary Terms
Quiz: Vocabulary
Quiz: Reading
Major Assessments: (Failure of any of the following assessments may result in a failing grade for the term)
Summer Reading Essay
Mid-Term Exam
Romeo and Juliet Line Memorization and Recitation
Freshman Research Paper
Final Exam
