Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Welcome to ELA Regents Prep with Sarah and Camilla

Use this blog to check on any assignments you may have missed. Here is our syllabus. You can also get a copy in the classroom, if you do not already have it.

Course Description
This course is designed for students who are continuing to develop their literacy skills in the areas of reading comprehension, literary analysis, and written expression. These skills prepare students for the English Regents exam, and for further college readiness courses. In this class, we will read and analyze various genres of literature including novels, short stories, essays, speeches, and poetry. Students will learn how to effectively write and respond to literature in various forms, including essays, creative compositions, poetry, short response writing, and journaling. Students will be assigned weekly homework to support on-going reading and vocabulary development.

Grading Policy:
50% Class work and participation.
30% Assessments and essays. These essays are mandatory in order to earn credit for the cycle.
20% Homework, to be turned in each Thursday.

Attendance Policy:
In order to earn course credit, students must be present and participate in class at least 80% of the time. Each excused absence may be made up by attending two ½ hour lunch tutorial sessions with either teacher during 5th period. In addition, all missed assignments must be satisfactorily completed in order to earn credit.

What we expect from you:
We expect that you will come prepared to class to take part in the learning objectives and activities we plan. You will be expected to follow the classroom procedures and routines as explained and shown to you in class. If you have ongoing concerns, questions, or feedback we hope you will seek either of your teachers out at a lunch time tutoring session or via email. Each cycle you will be required complete all assignments, including reading several stories for homework, and writing and revising a minimum of 2 major essays.

What you can expect from us:
We are committed to helping each student reach his or her academic goals and overcome their academic challenges while completing the course requirements. You can expect timely feedback from us on your work, and we will be available each day to meet with you during lunch time tutoring sessions, or you can meet with us by appointment after school.