Course Syllabus

The course syllabus is designed to give a broad overview of what eighth graders will be studying this year.  Included are the general class expectations and grading procedures as well as a general course description and some more specific information about areas of study.  It is not designed to be an absolute blueprint so there are not specific dates associated with areas of study.  Students have been given a copy of specific book report guidelines—those are also on the school website, along with rubrics (always subject to review and revision) for those book reports. 

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS:

I EXPECT YOU TO

`           - Come to class with the necessary supplies (books, paper, writing utensils, homework, etc. Take care of your books—they belong to the school, not to you!)

- Do your own work!

- Be on time and ready to begin.

- Keep your hands and feet and other objects to yourself.

- Respect each other!  (Leave teasing, swearing, put downs, etc. outside the boundary of the classroom, the school day, and the school-related activity.)

- Follow teacher instructions.

- Smile—School is not all that bad!

GRADING POLICY AND PROCEDURES:

Grades are figured on a total point basis within each category.  The categories are then weighted to determine the final grade.

Category Weights are:

                                Daily                                       60%

                                Quiz/Test                                40%

Each nine-weeks, a student is required to complete one book report.  Each book report is considered a 100-point test grade for that nine weeks.  Unit exams are given after many units. 

It is my experience that this grading method is to the student’s advantage, especially at the beginning of a grading period.  As the period progresses, the difference between the two methods generally gets smaller and smaller.

#NOTE:  Copied work will not be given credit.  This applies to any student copying work as well as to the person from whom the assignment was copied.

GENERAL COURSE DESCRIPTION

English II will consist of Literature, Writing, and Grammar. Literature will focus on the short story, drama, and a novel selected by the teacher.  Writing will have a literary focus. Grammar will be covered to enhance writing skills and prepare for the ACT. The course will include daily language exercises to enhance grammar and writing skills as well.  Students will also complete one book report each 9-week period.

A BIT MORE SPECIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT IS COVERED JUNIOR YEAR

LITERATURE:  American literature is the focus of study this year.  Generally we use the anthology, but novels and plays by American authors from other sources might also be read.  Poetry and short stories are covered as well as The Crucible, (or The Scarlet Letter), Of Mice and Men, The Great Gatsby ,or The Red Badge of Courage.

VOCABULARY:  Vocabulary study may be based on the literature selections read or on other specific vocabulary units.

GRAMMAR:  Specific grammar units of study include verb tenses and usage, including active and passive voice as well as moods, modals, and consistency of tense; and agreement, including subject-verb agreement as well as pronoun-antecedent agreement and clear pronoun reference.  A daily oral language lesson is part of most class days.  This allows us to review grammar skills on an ongoing basis, in a short amount of time, even when we are in a literature unit. 

STATE ASSESSMENT SKILL REVIEW  (as needed):  Students will review the skills and concepts tested on the secondary state reading assessment.

ACT ASSESSMENT PREPARATION:  Since many students will take this test this year, we will do some ACT Test Preparation as part of class.

WRITING:  Writing is a primary focus of junior English.  Writing assignments run the gamut from answering essay questions with good form to comparison-contrast essays to literary analysis to persuasive writing.  Persuasive writing  will be extensively studied. 

SPEAKING:  Oral presentations are incorporated throughout the course.

BOOK REPORTS:  A separate handout with book report specifics and due dates has been handed out and is available online on the school website.

This is a broad overview of the course.  Feel free to contact me with questions or concerns.  My email at school is dwilson@usd108.org.    I’m looking forward to a great year and hope that you are, too.

Book Reports