Edwards Communications/Social Studies 1

1.Communications 8/US History 8 Grading SciTech students take ELA (Communications) the first 3 quarters and Social Studies the final quarter. They will still show up as separate grades on the report cards.

Students earn points in each of the content areas in different ways; more on this topic will be discussed below.

The following grade weights are applied to each subject by Pittsburgh Science and Technology Academy:

Social Studies Grading Weights Category Percentage Content Literacy 45% Written Communication 20% Work Ethic 15% Oral Communication 10% Collaboration 10% Total 100% Communications Grading Weights Category Percentage Content Literacy 35% Written Communication 30% Work Ethic 15% Oral Communication 10% Collaboration 10% Total 100%

Pittsburgh Public Schools Grading Scale

Letter Grade Percentage Grade Point

A 100%-90% 4.0

B 89%-80% 3.0

C 79%-70% 2.0

D 69%-60% 1.0

E 59% - Below 0.0 Edwards Communications/Social Studies 2 Reading Material Communications Students will read a variety of fiction and nonfiction texts including short narratives, informational text, drama, poetry, functional documents, and 4 novels. The main text is Holt’s Elements of Literature: Second Course, although some readings are supplemental.

The three novels read in Grade 8 are:  Forge, by Laurie Halse Anderson  Out of the Dust, by Karen Hesse  Whirligig, by Paul Fleishman All readings are supplied by the school. US History

Core Text: The American Journey: Early Years Supplemental Text: Slavery in America Classroom Rules In the classroom, we will follow the 5 P’s that SciTech has adopted as their rules. They are:  Be Prompt  Be Prepared  Be Productive  Be Polite  Be Positive

On a day-to-day basis in class, students will be graded on a 15 point scale that measures and takes into account each of these rules. To meet behavior and work ethic expectations for class, students are expected to: be on time (in their seat when the bell rings), in dress code, ready to begin (pencil, notebook out when the late bell rings, have their laptop and/or a pencil for class, complete their QuickWrite to begin class, complete their Pair/Share of the QuickWrite, attempt to answer questions if called upon, not disrupt the learning of others, work to the bell at the end of class (no packing up early), and put all supplies away at the end of the period.

At the end of the week, I will enter student’s chart points into the grade book. No marks all week is 25 work ethic points for that week.

Middle School Policies

Support Each week on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday English/Social Studies support will be offered during Period 3 to ANY student who wants extra help or a quiet place to work. Instead of going to their regular activity, these students will receive a pass from the support teacher, and attend there instead.

Cell Phone/mp3 player/electronic Device Policy Per school policy, if a cell phone/mp3 devices is seen or heard during school hours (after 7:36 and until 2:46/1:46) it is confiscated by the teacher and sent in a sealed envelope to the office. The office contacts the Edwards Communications/Social Studies 3 parent/guardian to inform them that they must come and get their child’s phone/device. If the student refuses to turn the phone over, a disciplinary referral is sent to the office.

Also, headphones are not permitted during school hours.

Dress Code Per school policy, students are to be in dress code during all school hours. Failure to comply results in a lunch detention. After 3 lunch detentions, a referral is submitted to the office.

Moodle

The Moodle is updated each day with the agenda from class, digital copies of any worksheets done in class, notes from class discussions, homework due the next day, and places to submit classwork and homework.

Students are expected to make use of Moodle on a regular basis. All students will have their laptops in school to complete classwork; however any student who has their laptop taken or broken will have access to paper copies.

All homework will also be available digitally or on paper. When submitting homework by paper, paper quality and appearance should be professional. Unprofessional work will not be accepted.

Homework submitted to Moodle should be saved under the correct format:

LastName_AssignmentName ex. Edwards_Unit 2 Communications Culminating Project

Different Kinds of Assignments Assignments are intended to help you master the content, so you should attempt to complete them all. In Communications/World History, we employ several different types of assignments. Readings—these may come from the Literature books, World History book supplemental readings assigned or novels. Some will be read in class. Some will be expected to be read at home for homework. All readings assigned at home will be available in print or online. Reading the stories and novels is essential for the class; every other assignment below is contingent on this. Quizzes – occasionally, reading outside of the classroom will be tested by delivering a pop quiz. These range from 10-20 Content Literacy points. Homework – homework will be assigned 2-3 times a week. I try to avoid assigning homework over weekends, but sometimes due to scheduling, it may be necessary to do so. All homework counts as Work Ethic points and ranges from 5 to 20 points, depending on degree of difficulty. Homework is due the following school day. If it is not completed, there is no makeup. Weekly Performance Chart – as explained above, behavior sheets will be worth 25 Work Ethic points each week. Reader/Writer Notebooks – all discussion question responses, reading notes, significant moments, author’s craft, and write about responses will be kept in a binder in the classroom or on a Microsoft Word file on the computer. Each entry is worth 5 Content Literacy points. Notebooks are graded at the end of each unit. The total point value for the notebook depends on how many individual entries are expected. Usually the total will Edwards Communications/Social Studies 4 range from 100-250 points. Much of the evidence of student learning and engaging should be present in this notebook. This is why it is such a large point total. Classwork – classwork is expected to be completed in class for Content Literacy. This is work considered separate from the Reader/Writer Notebook Absent students have the number of days they missed to make up the work. If time in class is insufficient to finish, students will be allowed to complete the work at home. Classwork usually ranges from 20-40 points depending on degree of difficulty. Discussions – 3 or 4 times a month, students will be asked to participate in class-wide discussions. These discussions will center on a provocative central question that touches an issue we are currently reading about. During these discussions, students earn 20 Oral Communication points for adding something of value to the discussion, following the expected protocol, and listening to their peer’s responses. Class Participation – during teacher-led discussions students can earn Oral Communication points by raising their hand to respond to questions or having an answer prepared when the calling of students is randomized. 10 Oral Communication points are assigned every week. Major Writing – large essays or stories will be scored under Written Communication. These assignments can range from 40-75 points. These formal pieces of writing will follow The Writing Process and will take several class sessions to complete. Culminating Assignments – the end of every unit offers students a chance to display what they have learned in the form of a Culminating Project. The projects range in degree of difficulty, student-choice and medium used to display. Some may be formal writing that will also be scored under Written Communication; others include physical projects or PowerPoints that will be scored under Content Literacy. Each Culminating Project will be worth 100 points. Classroom Jobs – throughout each quarter students must earn 100 Collaboration Points. These points are earned by completing a series of classroom jobs that range from 5-25 points each. Students can sign up for upcoming jobs on Friday. Successful completion of the job earns students those points. It is the student’s responsibility to accrue 100 points by the end of the quarter. There are more than enough opportunities for them to do this.

Curriculum-Based Assessments Once a year, in January, Pittsburgh Public Schools requires 8th grade SciTech students in to take a Curriculum- Based Assessment in Communications. This is a multiple-choice and essay test that examines students’ mastery of the curriculum studied thus far. The tests are delivered in the classroom by me. Their results will be made known to parents. Extra Credit Policy

Occasionally, extra credit will be offered. It is rare and will be much more difficult than a regular assignment. Students are expected to complete the assigned work to earn credit for the course. Missing Class As stated above, any student who misses class with a valid excuse has the number of days they missed to make up assignments. Per District policy, unexcused absences will not be allowed to make up work.

Students who have a valid tardy excuse will be allowed to make up any work they missed during the time they missed class and no punishment will be handed out. Students who come late without a pass will be assigned a lunch detention. Edwards Communications/Social Studies 5

Late Work

Homework assignments WILL NOT BE accepted late, unless the student was absent.

Major writing assignments (first draft, second draft, etc.) and Culminating Assignments will be accepted late with a 10% drop in score for each day late.