Welcome to Downing Middle School!
I teach Social Studies and English; so please make sure you check the correct subject for assignments.
******************************************************
Week of: September 1-5, 2008
******************************************************
6th Grade English
Note of importance: It is a great idea to begin practicing & learning prepositions and common helping verbs now. In the past, students have found lessons easier when they could eliminate the preposition and prepositional phrase.
Monday, September 1
School Holiday ---use this time to study prepositions and common helping verbs. Textbook pages 12 & 148.
Tuesday, September 2
Identify and use complete subjects and complete predicates in writing.
Identify and use simple subjects in writing.
Textbook (TB) pages 6-9
****TEXTBOOK DAMAGE FORMS DUE TODAY! ALL TEXTBOOKS MUST BE COVERED AND CHECKED BY TODAY!
Wednesday, September 3
Identify and use simple predicates, verb phrases, compound subjects and compound verbs in
writing. TB pages 10-15
~~Sentences Homework--Pick up in class-due Thursday.~~
Thursday, September 4
~~Sentences Homework Due--
What is figurative language and how can it enhance writing and poetic styles?
Friday, September 5
*** Marble Composition Journals due in class by today*** Decorate it to reflect your
personality. Make sure your name is visible on the cover. Be creative; it's about identity.
Identify and use different kinds of sentences in writing.
Explore a variety of identity poems, create a draft, and examine the school and community
properties that surround identity. This is the intro for the Poetry Project for this grading period.
Stay tuned for additional information.
• Please make sure you have a composition journals for English class. It will be kept in my classroom, so you cannot share it between English and reading class.
******************************************************************************************************************
6th Grade Social Studies
This course elective is designed to help students who might need extra help in reading and English and to compliment both of those classes. I will work to identify the areas of weakness and remediate in that area with skills to support key concepts in language arts. Each day students will have an opportunity to work on assignments but this will NOT be a study hall. Students will also receive instruction to remediate and bridge the level of understanding of material taught in class as well as having some opportunities to finish testing and retest. No additional homework will be given but please expect to see assignments and projects throughout the week in both subjects. Parents, please ASK to see your child’s homework to verify it has been completed.
Students will be graded on three key elements: ACTIVE participation, use of planner, and bringing appropriate materials to class.
• ACTIVE participation will be extremely important during activities and classroom instruction. Active participation = Active learning. Each week students will earn 50 points for this area (10 points daily).
• Use of planner is a very important tool that many of our students simply do not use on a daily basis. Students must fill out their planner in this area COMPLETELY. This will also let you know as a parent what assignment will need to be completed or when the next project or unit test will be given. Students will earn 25 points each week for this area (5 points daily).
• Bringing appropriate materials to class will enable us to work on assignments and reteach key concepts that were covered in class. Without materials, no work will be accomplished. This means bringing ALL materials that will be needed. If a student does not bring materials to class, you will be contacted by email. Each week students will be given 25 points (5 points daily) for this area.
*************************************************************************************************************
Guidelines for turning in papers/assignments
• You will need a full heading at the top of every paper in the upper right hand corner. On the first line of the heading include your first and last name. The second line should have the date, and the third line should have the period you are in my class.
• I will not grade a paper that does not have a name on it and it will be subject to being one day late. Please make sure that when you get a paper or start an assignment, the FIRST thing you do is put your name on your paper.
• All papers should only be written in blue or black ink. I will not accept anything written in any other color, as I reserve the right to grade in other colors and you need to get used to writing in pen.
• Typed papers must be completed according to the guidelines found on the DMS website under student information for “Downing Process Papers.”
Being absent and late work
• If you are absent, it is your responsibility to come to me and ask me for your work. The agenda for each day is on the side board and is left there for a week at a time, so that there won’t be a problem knowing what we did while you were gone.
• If you are absent one day, you have one day to make it up. If you are absent two days, you have 2 days to get it into me and so on. Please try to get it in as soon as possible so that I can have as accurate of a grade as possible for you and for your parents.
• In an effort to assist 6th graders with the transition to middle school, Downing teachers use one late work policy for the Fall Semester and a modified version for the Spring Semester.
Fall Semester 2008
If a student does not have his/her work the day it is due, the student will have these options:
1. Late work may be turned in the next day with a 30 point deduction.
2. A late paper pass may be used on late work turned in the next day. The late pass can ONLY be used the following day and must be used on the student’s first missed assignment (1st late assignment).
3. Extended Academic Time (EAT) - If a student does not turn in his or her late work the following day, an EAT form will be sent home. Your student will return this form the following day signed when he/she shows for EAT. (This is two days after the assignment was originally due and is the third chance to hand in the assignment). If a student does not show for the detention to complete the missing work, he or she will receive a zero for the work. There are no exceptions. This includes detentions or other activities.
Spring Semester 2009
During the Spring Semester, students will no longer have a late paper pass. Therefore, if a student does not have his or her work the day it is due, he or she will have these options:
1. Late work may be turned in the next day with a 30 point deduction.
2. Thursday Night School (TNS) will be assigned for students who choose to not hand in late work the next day. Please note that students are required to attend Thursday Night School in order to complete and earn credit for work that is more than one day late, and they must stay for the entire two hour period.
3. Only teachers can assign TNS on an as needed basis.
In summary, for the Spring semester, students will not have a late paper pass, and there will be no Extended Academic Time.
Work must be turned in on the day it is due for full credit. If it is not turned in during our class period when I ask for it, it is late. Late work can only get a 70 as the HIGHEST grade, so if there are any errors on your paper, it will be marked down from a 70. Major grades, of course, will be allowed to be made up to a 70, per LISD policy, as long as it is an excused absence.
Education Gateways makes no warranty for SchoolNotes.com.
Information on this site is generated by the users. The views
expressed are not necessarily those of Education Gateways or its members, and
Education Gateways is not responsible for user's conduct on SchoolNotes.com.
