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Description of My Class
Materials:
Students will have with them at all times:
- A three ring binder to keep their papers neat and in order. 1 inch rings are fine.
- A spiral notebook for taking notes in class and at home. 75 pages is fine. I will give each student one notebook to start the year off.
- Several pencils.
- Pens may be used, but only black ink, and only if student has their own white-out.
- 8 x 11 Loose-leaf binder paper.
- 3x5 index cards (or larger is ok)
- School planner.
Course Objectives:
We will be following the 8th grade science standards as determined by the State of California and the Petaluma School District.
- Rules & Safety: Lab procedures, equipment and safety
- Metric System: Distance, mass and volume.
- Physics: Forces, motion, density, heat and machines. (Chapter 1-5)
- Chemistry: Periodic Table, atomic structure, states of matter and reactions. (Chapter 6, 14-18)
- Astronomy: The Earth, Sun, Moon and stars. (Chapter 22-24)
- Human Interaction: Sexual reproduction, birth control, STD’s and HIV. You should have already received a permission slip, which is REQUIRED, for this portion of the class, which will not occur until May.
Textbooks:
- Each student will be issued a textbook to cover and take home. Students do NOT need to bring their books with them to school. Keep it at home.
- Students will be assigned reading in their books frequently. Homework reading will always include taking notes into a spiral notebook.
- Damage or loss of the books will result in a TEXTBOOK FINE of up to $55. Failure to pay the fine for lost or damaged books can prevent you from being included in end of the year activities such as the Marine World trip, Fun Day, the graduation dance and promotion activities. The fine follows you onto the highschool.
Grading Policy:
- Work in this class will have a point value, which will be totaled and converted to a letter grade. Some teachers keep separate grades for each grading period, but I do not. Any grade that I report through the semester is an OVERALL percentage from the beginning of the SEMESTER, not each grading period.
- Students have a “Grade Record Sheet ” where they keep a record of the assignments I collectAugust 14, 2007age. Students will know their grade at all times.
- I will also post grades in my room by student ID number. Students will always know what their grade is according to my calculations. If the percentage that I post is not the same as the student’s calculations on their Grade Record Sheet, then they can come to me to determine the problem.
- Also, I will keep all grades posted ONLINE for parents to access off of the Web. You can click on the "Grades" icon to the left.
Assignments:
We do class work and homework to prepare for the labs that we do in class. The labs prepare the students for the tests. ALL my assignments are designed to work together.
- Class work and Homework 5-20 Pts.
- Class work and homework are given to introduce concepts before class discussion and to reinforce those concepts. These assignments usually build the knowledge to do larger assignments or labs.
- Labs 20-50 Pts.
- Lab work is very important to your grade in this class. Labs usually take several days to complete, and are important to understanding and demonstrating key concepts.
- Quizzes 0-20 Pts.
- Quizzes will be given without notice and at random to check understanding of ideas and information.
- Tests 40-100 Pts.
- All tests are given with lots of notice and lots of review. Questions for the test are taken from assignments that have been done. Failure to do class assignments will adversely affect test scores
- Spiral Notebook.
- Student notebooks will be collected and checked for completeness.
Assignments will be graded as follows:
- Heading: Points will be deducted for incomplete heading.
- Following directions: Listen to what I expect from you!
- Neatness: If I can’t read it I am not going try to decode it.
- Accuracy: Yes, I do expect you to get the right answers.
- On time: Work needs to be turned in when it is due.
Check the online rubricks for my class (work in progress).
Late Work:
Work needs to be turned in on the day it is due. I will accept work on the next class meeting for part credit.
Absences:
When a student is absent the student must make up any missed work. The student will need to find out what they missed and make it up as soon as possible. Students should ask me what they missed at a time convenient to Mr. Lang. The beginning of class is usually not a good time. The end of class, lunch and after school are usually good times to ask. I keep a notebook detailing the days activities that can be checked by students.
Science Binder:
I feel that organization is a skill that is very important for 8th graders to master before moving on to high school. I require that students keep their science work in one binder separate from other classes. This binder will be organized in a specific way to make keeping track of everything easier.The binder needs to be clearly marked with the student’s name and period, either on the outside cover, or on the inside. If a binder is left behind in my class I want to be able to easily identify its owner.
- Section 1: Current Work
- This section will include all class work that the student is working on. This will include worksheets, class assignments and lab work that have not been turned in yet.
- Section 2: Returned Work.
- Students will record all assignments that are returned to them onto the handout “Grade Record Sheet.” Work that is returned to them will be filed in this section of the binder. Do NOT throw any returned work away until you are told to do so. Your work with the score on it is your receipt for your grade!
- Section 3: Notes
- Keep the spiral notebook in this section. You will use it for class notes and homework notes. Your name and period will be on the cover of the notebook. The first half of the notebook will be for class notes and the second half will be for homework notes. If you wish to keep two notebooks, one for class notes and one for homework notes, that is acceptable. I want notes done in a spiral notebook because it will be turned in and checked off frequently.
- Section 4: Paper
- Students must have a supply of loose paper on hand at all times for class assignments.
I will have binder checks where students will display their binder to me for credit. Since they need to be in order at all times, checks will be done at random.
Rules and Procedures:
My rules are in place to make my room a safe learning environment. Failure to comply can result in loss of credit, tardies, detentions or referrals.Classroom Rules
- Follow directions.
- Listen attentively when others are speaking.
- Respect other people’s property.
- Follow all safely rules.
- Follow all general school rules.
- No hats, gum or food in my room!
- I DO allow screw-top water bottles.
Safety:
In science class safety is a big concern, especially during lab activities. Students will be using chemicals, glass equipment and fire. Any horseplay or inappropriate behavior will not be tolerated. Failure to comply will result in being removed from the room and a zero score on the lab.
Entry procedures
- Enter quietly.
- Sit at your assigned seat.
- Read the whiteboard.
- Get out what is listed.
- Put away everything else.
- Check homework list.
- When the bell rings, be quiet.
- Begin the assignment.
Assignment Procedures:
- All work should begin by putting the proper heading on the paper.
- At the top right corner of the paper students will write:
- First and last name
- Date
- Science, period
- On the first line students will write the title of the assignment & page number if needed.
- ALL NUMERIC ANSWERS MUST INCLUDE THE PROPER UNITS.
Bathroom Procedures:
- Students now have a long break between each class and I expect that they use that time to go to the bathroom.
- I do not allow trips to the bathroom whenever the students want to leave the room.
- 90% of "I need to go to the bathroom," is really, "I want to get out of class for a few minutes."
Exit Procedure:
- File your work into your science binder.
- Put your notebook and other materials into your backpack.
- Remain seated & quiet.
- I will dismiss the class.
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