Michelle E. SellLanguage Arts - Gold 7Postlethwait Middle School Dear Gold 7 Families, I am looking forward to the opportunity of working with your student in Language Arts this year on Gold 7. I hope the following information regarding my expectations and policies will help make this year a rewarding and successful one. If you have any questions or concerns, I have 7th period planning, or I can be reached at the school (302) 698-8410 ext 110 until 3:10 Monday through Friday. My email at home is michellesell@comcast.net, and my school email is michelle.sell@cr.k12.de.us. I usually check my school email several times throughout the day and my home email at least daily. This year I am trying something new. I have created a webpage with some of my classroom information at http://crsell.educatorpages.com . This, however, is a work in progress. The Delaware State Standards will drive this year's language arts curriculum, and all grading will be "standards based." Simply put, this means that any assessment must be linked to a standard in order to be counted as a grade. While traits such as participation, organization of materials, good behavior, and neatness are highly desirable in class and key ingredients to academic success, they are not content standards and will not appear as any part of an assessment. This assures students and parents that the grades only reflect a student's proficiency in the State mandated standards. There is currently a link to the State standards on the aforementioned website. Click the Standards Based Grading tab. Grades Student grades will be composed of class assignments to assess daily or weekly progress and major assignments to assess proficiency at the end of a unit or marking period. Class work that is not completed in class and finished at home will still count as a class work grade. Class assignments may be resubmitted for revised assessment after a teacher conference but major assignments cannot. Students will always be made aware of how they are being assessed and how much an assignment is worth. Feel free to contact me regarding any assignment. Final grades will be recorded as per district guidelines: 92-100% = A - Distinguished Progress / Well Above Standards85-91% = B - Commendable Progress / Above Standards75-84% = C - Satisfactory Progress / Meeting Standards70-74% = D - Unsatisfactory Progress / Below Standards55-69% = F - Failing / Well Below Standards Assessments FOR learning to assesses practice and reinforcement of skill (homework, journals, minute essays, class assignments, graphic organizers, flash cards) Assessments FOR/OF learning to determine level of understanding of skill (short writing assignments or projects, quizzes, book reports) Assessments OF learning to determine mastery of skill - summative (major tests at the end of collections, major writing assignments) Grade reports will be generated every other week and upon request. Supplies A. Daily: Required in Class 1. Spiral Notebook (already purchased by me and remains in classroom) 2. 3-Ring Binder with at least 2 pockets 3. 2 Pens (blue/black) and 2 Pencils 4. White Lined Paper 5. Assignment book (issued on first day of school) 6. Independent Reading book (See D below) B. At Home: Necessary to complete assignments as needed 1. Dictionary 2. Index Cards 3. Colored pencils, crayons, markers, poster board, glue, craft supplies C. Textbooks: Students will be issued a textbook and most selections will be read in class; however, there will be home reading assignments as well. Textbooks are each student's responsibility and will be collected at the end of the school year. D. Independent Reading Book: Students that read become better readers. Students will be required to read 2 books independently per marking period for a total of 8 books by the end of the school year and complete a short book report for each. Book report due dates will be announced and the book requirements are as follows. 1. At least 150 pages long 2. In your reading (lexile) range according to NWEA scores 3. Cover a variety of genres (mystery, biography, realistic fiction, etc...) 4. NOT something you read in another year, another grade or another class Students are required to bring that book to class every day. Should they finish an assignment early, they can read their independent reading book. There is never "down time" in this class. Students will be given class time to check out books in the library. Homework A. Read and write most every night!B. Homework at least 3x per weekC Incomplete class work is not graded as homeworkD. May be tailored to individual student(s).E. No more than one half hour per assignmentF. No more than 10% of final gradeG. Standards based Classroom Policies - The 5 P's as per Gold 8 Team Guidelines A. Be Prompt - in your seat, writing your journal when the bell rings. Take care of personal needs before class.B. Be Prepared - arrive with the above mentioned supplies every dayC. Be Productive - work for the entire class period, stay on task, try your bestD. Be Polite - show respect for yourself and others, use manners, smile:)E. Be Positive - attitude is everything, you may not get it the first time...but you will get it. I won't give up on you, so don't give up on yourself! Violation of Classroom Policies - The 3 R's A. Request - I will request that you demonstrate appropriate behavior.B. Reminder - I will remind you once to demonstrate appropriate behavior.C. Recourse - I will issue a consequence.* 1. seating change, redirection 2. phone call home (preferable at the time of infraction) 3. detention 4. office visit*Requests and reminders may be waived in the event of serious infractions involving the safety or well-being of other students.) Absences A. Students are responsible for making up all work missed during an absence from class according to district guidelines. Students are also responsible for all material covered during their absence. It may be necessary for a student to stay after school for make-up instruction if they cannot catch up during class. After an absence, students should visit the "While You Were Out" center to catch up on assignments and pick up handouts. It is the student's responsibility to obtain work missed and make arrangements for make-up time after school.B. Students serving an in-school suspension are expected to complete class work during their stay in ISS and be caught up when they return to class. Content II A. All above rules and policies also apply to Content II class.B. Content II grades get averaged in as a 5th marking period of language arts. Therefore, it counts! C. Every Wednesday students will be given independent reading time. This is time to SILENTLY read their independent reading books. If they have make-up work in any class, they may SILENTLY work on it during this time; however, this is NOT study hall. This is an opportunity to catch up on reading or assignments. Students may not do other homework during this time. Please take the time to discuss these policies and expectations and review the student handbook. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Let's have a great year together! "--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------" Please sign below and return to indicate that you have read and understand the policies and expectations of Gold 8 Language Arts and have reviewed the student handbook. Upper portion should be kept in student's notebook for reference. (8/26/2009) ________________________________ _________________________________ ______________Print Parent / Guardian Name Parent / Guardian Signature Date ________________________________ _________________________________ ______________Print Student Name Student Signature Date