Sat/Act Prep Syllabus for 2008-2009

SAT/ACT PREP SYLLABUS FOR 2009-2010

INSTRUCTORS: Mr. Scott Veith- Math Email- [email protected] Ms. Cheryl Rosenbaum- Reading and Writing Email- [email protected] Website- http://highmail.highlands.k12.fl.us/~rosenbac/

PURPOSE OF COURSE: This class is recommended for college-bound juniors and seniors planning to take the SAT and/or ACT. Almost all undergraduate colleges and universities require that prospective students take either the ACT or the SAT; most students take both. Taking this course will prepare students for all of the question types found on the SAT and ACT. We will analyze each of the test question areas and give special consideration to math and verbal refreshers and techniques aimed at relieving test-taking anxiety. Topics include sentence completions and reading comprehension for the reading section, grammar and essay writing for the writing section, and basic and advanced math concepts (including fractions, decimals, percentages, ratios, proportions) and algebraic and geometric concepts for the math sections.

FORMAT OF CLASS: Students will be taught by Mr. Veith for SAT/ACT Math and by Ms. Rosenbaum for SAT/ACT Reading and Writing. The class will be split in half and alternate weeks, meeting one week in Mr. Veith’s room and one week in Ms. Rosenbaum’s room. Therefore, 50% of each student’s grade will be calculated by Mr. Veith and the other 50% by Ms. Rosenbaum. (The exception to this will be the final exam, which will be a comprehensive exam on math, reading, and writing concepts related to the SAT and ACT graded by both teachers.) Due to this fact, however, only the weekly average for each student’s grade will appear on Pinnacle. Students should be aware that both Mr. Veith and Ms. Rosenbaum will keep a grade book in the classroom with weekly grades if there are any questions about an individual assignment.

GRADES: In general, grades for Ms. Rosenbaum will be done in a point system and calculated as followed: a weekly grammar and vocabulary packet (worth 50 points), computer lab assignments (worth 10 points), group assignments (worth 25 points), essays and projects (worth 75 points), quizzes (worth 50 points), and tests (worth 100 points). Grades for Mr. Veith will be calculated weekly, which may include assignments, daily work, cooperative learning activities, and quizzes. The final exam will each be 20% of a student’s final nine weeks grade.

MS. ROSENBAUM’S COURSE OUTLINE:

Week One: -Go over course rules/syllabus/honor policy/parent letter -Measure reading rate -Take SAT/ACT Practice #1 in The Real ACT Guide- p. 152-154 (#1-15); p. 180-182 (#1-10) in The Official SAT Study Guide- p. 88 (#1-10) -Punctuation Focus: Commas, Apostrophes (p. 263-266, p. 277-278) -Vocabulary Focus: Roots, Prefixes, Suffixes (p. 293-296) -Computer Lab Focus: www.collegeboard.com –Junior Action Plan or Senior Action Plan -Read excerpts from The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins, do questions, activity, discuss -Critical Skills Quiz #1

Week Two: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #2 in The Real ACT Guide- p. 182-185 (#11-30) -Punctuation Focus: Colons, Semicolons, Dashes, Periods, Question Marks, Exclamation Points (p. 243-248; p. 267-268) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Mythology (1), Social Sciences, From Sunny Spain, Time on Our Hands, Short but Challenging -Computer Lab Focus: www.actstudent.org - Read additional excerpts from The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins, do questions, activity, discuss -Critical Skills Quiz #2

Week Three: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #3 in The Official SAT Study Guide- p. 189, p. 390 -Grammar Focus: Subject and verb agreement (p. 155-158; p. 163-164; p. 169-170) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Medical Science, Animal World, Numbers, Legal Language, Appearances and Attitudes (2) -Computer Lab Focus: Vocabulary Building -Read excerpt from Triple Your Reading Speed by Wade E. Cutler, do questions, activity, discuss -Formal Essay #1- Student will complete essay question similar to one found on SAT or ACT -Critical Skills Quiz #3

Week Four: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #4 in The Real ACT Guide- p. 154-156 (#16-30); p. 186-187 (#31-40) -Grammar Focus: Verb forms; Pronoun forms and cases (p. 145-148; p. 183-186; p. 191) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Mystery and the Occult, Size and Shape (1), with Tales Attached, Of Loves and Fears and Hates, Science -Computer Lab Focus: Test Anxiety -Read “Look! Up in the Sky! It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s…Supermom!” by Amanda Robb, do questions, activity, discuss -Critical Skills Quiz #4

Week Five: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #5 in The Official SAT Study Guide- p. 401-406 -Grammar Focus: Comparative and superlative modifiers, Idioms (p. 61-62; p. 195-198) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Appearances and Attitudes (3), Legal Language (2), Foreign Terms (1), French, Crossword Puzzles -Computer Lab Focus: Choosing four colleges that are right for you -Read excerpt from Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger, do questions, activity, discuss -Critical Skills Quiz #5

Week Six: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #6 in The Real ACT Guide- p. 292-294 (#1-15); p. 320-322 (#1-10) -Grammar Focus: Use of subordinate and dependent clauses (p. 101-108) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Mythology (2), Appearances and Attitudes (4), Foreign Terms (2), Appearances and Attiudes (5), Size and Shape (2) -Computer Lab Focus: Downloading and completing four college applications -Read excerpt from They Say, I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein, do questions, activity, discuss -Critical Skills Quiz #6

Week Seven: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #7 in The Official SAT Study Guide- p. 413-414 (#1-11); p. 419-422 (#1-19) -Writing Focus: Errors to avoid in sentence structure, such as run-ons, comma splices, fragments, misplace modifiers, shifts in verb tense or voice, shifts in pronouns (p. 109- 114; p. 117-188) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Language, Speech, History and Government (1), Travel, Foods and Taste -Computer Lab Focus: Scholarships (go to www.fafsa.ed.gov) -Read excerpt from How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster, do questions, activity, discuss -Formal Essay #2- Student will complete one essay question found on one college application -Critical Skills Quiz #7

Week Eight: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #8 in The Real ACT Guide- p. 297-299 (#31-45); p. 324-327 (#31-40) -Writing Focus: Understanding writing strategies (p. 311-314) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Fun and Frolic, History and Government (2), Legal Language (3), Philosophy and Logic, Beliefs and Religion -Computer Lab Focus: Now That You’re Accepted—Financial Mistakes to Avoid as a College Student; Planning Your Future Beyond College -Read excerpt from Everything’s An Argument by Andrea A. Winsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, do questions, activity, discuss and from Suze Orman’s The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous, and Broke -Critical Skills Quiz #8

Week Nine: -Take SAT/ACT Practice #9 in The Official SAT Study Guide- p. 465-470 -Writing Focus: Understanding organization and style in writing (p. 316-317 exercise 2; p. 325-327) -Vocabulary Focus: Words from Proper Names, Appearances and Attitudes, Words about Groups, Sounds Italian -Computer Lab Focus: How to Succeed on the CPT (College Placement Test) -Read “School” by Kyoko Mori (found in The Language of Composition), do questions, activity, discuss -Formal Essay #3- Student will complete essay on “My Past, My Present, and My Future” -Critical Skills Quiz #9 -Note: Your final exam will take place on ______. Note: This course outline reflects the tentative schedule to be followed. The outline may change to suit the needs of the students. Of course, the outline might also change to include additional readings, essays, tests, quizzes, or homework.

MR. VEITH’S COURSE OUTLINE:

Students will be given practice SAT and ACT assessments on a weekly basis. Mr. Veith will then assess each individual student’s strengths and weaknesses, then plan classroom activities to improve student’s weaknesses. Based on these results, students will work on individual daily assignments, will work in cooperative learning groups, and will take weekly quizzes to check for improvement.

As Mr. Veith is an experienced teacher of SAT/ACT Preparation, a more detailed outline will be provided at a later date based on the results of the assessed weaknesses Mr. Veith notices in the use of fractions, decimals, percentages, ratios, proportions, algebraic concepts, and geometric concepts.

COURSE EXPECTATIONS:

1. You will be expected to be WELL PREPARED FOR AND TAKE AN ACTIVE ROLE in class sessions. IF YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND SOMETHING, ASK! It is preferable that you speak up and are wrong than for you not to speak at all. You will need to have all reading and work done at the assigned time or else.

2. Late work is not accepted.

3. Make-up work is your responsibility. When you return from an EXCUSED absence look at the lesson plan book for the days you missed. Then speak to either of us about making up the work. If you do not to either of us, we will simply assume you want a 0 for the assignment we did the day you were absent. We will not remind you if you need to make-up a test or quiz. You need to get your make-up work into us in a reasonable amount of time. For example, if you were absent on Monday, get your make-up assignment on Tuesday, and turn it in on Wednesday. You also need to keep in mind if you are absent on a Friday, you need to be aware that you will have a different teacher on a Monday. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT WEEK TO MAKE UP AN ASSIGNMENT!

4. If a student knows ahead of time that he or she will be absent on a day when an assignment is due (for example, a pre-arranged absence or field trip), it is the student’s responsibility to turn in the assignment prior to the due date, or send the assignment to the teacher with another student or a parent. Any work may be taken to the school’s office and put in the teacher’s mailbox.

If a student misses class the day an assignment is due but is on campus at any time during that day (for example, missing part of the day due to a half-day field trip), the student is responsible for bringing the assignment to the teacher or getting it to the teacher. Failure to do so will result in a grade of 0.

RULES:

1. Follow directions first time given. 2. Be prepared: in seat, on time, with materials. 3. Show respect for the rights, property, and feelings of others. 4. Stay on task. 5. Speak only at appropriate times.

NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES 1st time--Warning 2nd time--One detention 3rd time--Two detentions and parental contact 4th time--Referral to office Severe Clause--Immediate Referral to office

REWARDS -Verbal praise -Written praise -Stickers

GRADING SCALE 90-100= A 80-89= B 70-79= C 60-69= D 0-59= F

ASSISTANCE

If at any time you need help, please feel free to make an appointment to speak with either of us or e-mail us.