syllabus

=Miss Antwih= =9th Grade= =ELA= =Room 900= Greeting Students and Parents:  My name is Miss Antwih, and I will be the Literature and Composition instructor for this year. I look forward to meeting you and interacting with you over the next few months. This syllabus is designed to provide you with important information you will need to succeed in this class. This document does not include everything you need to know, but it is a good start. After reading this document, if you have question, comments or concerns, I can be reached at the following places. Email: aantwih@students.kennesaw.edu Blog: Antwih@wordpress.com Phone: 678-873-5661 Book List In each unit, students get to choose from one of 3 books to read Unit 1 Novel Study: The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison Essential Question: What has the greatest impact on our identity, our internal thoughts or our encounters with others? Performance Task- Create an I Remember Photo Journal for the main character of your chosen novel. I remember piece should include information about plot, setting, symbols, character description and theme from your chosen novel. Project will be due at the end of the unit. Student will choose from the following book list for their independent reading and to use as the focus of their performance task. Books of varying difficulty and lengths were chosen for this unit. Students will be able to choose which book they would like to read. There is an option to include literature circle discussion in this unit to encourage reading and accountability. [|A Lesson Before Dying] by Ernest Gaines, [|Copper Sun] by [|Sharon M. Draper] <span class="ptbrand" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">, <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">[|Monster] <span class="ptbrand" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">by <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">[|Walter Dean Myers] <span class="ptbrand" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">, and <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">[|Mexican WhiteBoy] <span class="ptbrand" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">by Matt de la Peña <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.33px;">The Class Novel will be **The Bluest Eye** by Toni Morrison

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Essential Question: How much influence does ones culture have on who they are? || <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Performance Task: You are a student just out of film school. You would like to pitch a movie idea to some local production companies. Create a short trailer for the book you have read. Be sure to include a song and narration that reflects the major lessons learned in the life of the main character for the book you have read.
 * <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Unit 2: Memoir, Biography and Autobiography

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Booklist:

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> [|A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier] by [|Ishmael Beah] <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> [|The Joy Luck Club] by [|Amy Tan] <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> [|__Night (Oprah's Book Club)__] <span style="color: #000000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">by Elie Wiesel <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> [|Red Scarf Girl (rack): A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution] by [|Ji-Li Jiang]

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Performance Task: You and your team mates are part of a political consultant firm who has been hired to host a press conference where your candidate gives a speech calling for the eradication of sexism, racism or classism in the speech, he outline the causes and effects of these ills on society and our children in particular. Your team is responsible for writing the speech, creating campaign flyers posters s and a press release inciting the local news stations in Atlanta. Each group will hold a mock press conference where their candidate delivers the speech and takes questions from the press core || <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> [|The Count of Monte Cristo, Part One: A Play in Five Acts] by Alexandre Dumas and Frank J. Morlock
 * <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Unit 3 Drama

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Tardy Policy <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Students are required to be in class and in their seats as soon as the bell rings for class. Attendance will be taken at this time. Anyone who comes in after attendance has been taken is considered late. Students who come to class late with a pass will have an excused tardy. Students who come late to class without a note can receive consequences ranging from detention, silent lunch or a write up. After three unexcused tardies, a message will be sent to parents via email, blog or phone call. Studen’ts timely presence is important so that students get all information. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Attendance <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">When students are absent, they must return with a note from parents. Parents can also choose to send an email. Phone calls or blog messages are not acceptable forms of communication about absences. After 3 days of unexcused abscesses, a message will be sent to parents informing them of the situation. After 6 days of unexcused absences, a referral will be made to the school social worker and a truancy officer may be assigned to go to the student’s home and investigate.

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Late Work <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">All assignments are due at the beginning of class period. Five points will be taken off each day a project is late. Projects will not be accepted after 5 days. If there is an emergency of some other extenuating circumstance please contact me before the due date to make other arrangements. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Missed Assignment-Make up assignments will only be accepted if you have had a conversation with me about the reason for the missing assignment. If you are absent from school, please check my blog or wikki for any missed work. The class Blog or wikki will be updated daily. If you are absent, you are expected to return to class with any assignments listed on the wikki. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Procedure-Journaling-Write or die! Every day the first 15 min of class will be dedicated to journal writing. Most times you will be given a prompt you must respond to. You must write for the entire 15min. Make your responses linked to something you know about. Leave the editor out of the room during this time. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Dismissal-What to do when the bell ring?. The bell is for me as the instructor. When the bell rings, it does not mean you have been dismissed. I will dismiss you when it is time for you to go. Please do not get up or move when you hear the bell ring. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Transitions-When I want your attention, I will let you know in one of two ways. There are two call and response phrases I will use to get your attention. We will discuss these attention getters in detail during our first few weeks. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Example <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Call: Ago <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Response: Ahme <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Passing out and handing in papers <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">When handing in or passing out papers, pass them to your right or left. Please do not pass them forward. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">You may leave class if you have a pass and permission <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">All students are expected to follow simple classroom procedures. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Class rules-Be respectful to self and others at all times. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">No talking during tests <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">No fighting
 * <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">PREPARING ASSIGNMENTS **<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">: You should put a heading on all your assignments that includes: your full name (first and last), the date, your class period, and the title of the assignment. Upper corner, either side is OK. Assignments should be written neatly so I can read them. Essays and other formal assignments should be typed. All other assignments may be typed or written neatly in blue or black ink. Neatness will count; if I can’t read your writing you will not get credit for the assignment and will do it again.

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Class room material

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">3 ring binder <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Note book paper <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">2-3 sharpened pencils <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">2 pens <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Assigned books and materials

<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Grading <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">A=100-90 B=89=80 C=79=70 D=69=60 F=59 and Below <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">While this is a comprehensive overview of important classroom rules procedure and expectation, it is not exhaustive. More content can and will be added over the course of the semester.