Am. Lit./Comp. 

Mrs. Davidson's Expectations, Policies, and Grading Standards

Am. Lit./Comp. Syllabus

I.   Expectations                           

1.    Be respectful and courteous towards faculty and students.

2. Be present in your seat with your daily materials when the bell rings, or you are TARDY.   

Exceptions:  talking to me/another teacher/office or using the restroom.

3. Be prepared: Chromebook, paper/folder, writing utensil, and class text–if we’re reading a novel, play, or story handout. (Note: you are considered tardy if you do not bring the necessary materials before the bell has rung, since you will not properly be able to attend to the day’s lesson—this is your responsibility.) 

4. Be considerate and PLEASE take your restroom breaks during the passing period. If you need to use the restroom during class, you will need to wait until we are not involved in direct instruction, and you will need to sign out/in on the sheet that's on my desk. 

5. Be mindful that all rules and regulations in the Hayden Catholic High School Student Handbook apply in this classroom and will be enforced, including the rule about cell phones—keep them out of sight and out of use (phones, muted, in the backpack, and on the floor) unless it's a passing period or lunch time: first offense=losing the phone until passing period; 2nd offense =losing the phone until end of school day; third offense=picking up phone from Mr. Tetuan.  

6. Be organized by arranging your materials on your laptop/Google Drive, as much of our work will involve digital formats.

7. Be aware that discussion and group work cannot be made up.  Students earn grades for class discussions, quizzes, and in-class writing.  I abide by the school’s attendance policy; if a student is not there to do the work or hand it in, he/she loses the points those assignments are worth. Making up work due to an absence is your responsibility.  Late work loses a letter grade per school day.  Attendance works towards the student’s advantage to stay current with coursework and to achieve a satisfactory grade.

II.  Grading Standards                 

       I use a total point system of grading, simple division. Your grade is determined by dividing your total points by the class total for the quarter or semester.  Per department guidelines, your semester final is worth ten percent of your final grade. 

    Extra credit points are not figured into the class total but are included in your total points.  Extra credit assignments are given occasionally to the class throughout the semester, but not on an individual basis.  Please do not request extra credit, as I determine when to offer it to the class as a whole.               

         If you did not do well on a particular test, you may take one retest during each semester for a maximum score of 75 percent; you must schedule the retest within 3 days of receiving the graded test.  You will also be allowed 2 weeks to do one rewrite on all traits writing assignments to improve your writing and your grade, completed on your time.

    Any work that does not meet classroom requirements will be given a “U” for Unsatisfactory; you have three days to “make it right” and resubmit for a grade.  Failure to resubmit the assignment will result in a zero.

III.   Policies                                             

       Due dates: all assignments are due by the deadlines given.  If you cannot meet a deadline, you must come in after school or during my conference hour to discuss the situation with me.  Late assignments lose a letter grade per school day; also, once an assignment has been graded and returned, it cannot be submitted late.  Furthermore, paper assignments are due by that class period's deadline; digital assignments may be due anytime that day.  It is not fair to give equal status to those assignments submitted on time and those turned in later.

       Absences & make-up work: you are responsible for meeting with me either before school, during my conference hour, or after school to retrieve your make-up assignments when you are absent.  [You may also check the weekly assignment board or our class website.] This applies for ALL absences: field trips, games, sickness, injury, etc. Moreover, if an assignment is due on a day that you’re taking a field trip in another class or are leaving early for sports, I expect that assignment to be turned in to me (or my mailbox) before you leave. During class time while learning is occurring on is not an acceptable time to check on make-up work. You will have the number of days missed plus one to turn in make-up work before it is considered late. It is to your advantage to be in attendance when we work in class on writing and group projects.  Pop quizzes and daily discussion points cannot be made up--however, if your absence is excused, you will not receive a zero.

Academic honesty: please do your own work and abide by the school’s policy. Honesty in any high school class is critical to student success. Hayden Catholic High School is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards possible related to student academic performance in their classes. Those caught cheating or plagiarizing (representing the work of someone else as your own) or using ChatGPT/AI will receive a zero on the assignment and possibly a detention–goodbye finals waiver.  

IV.   Unit development                                 

Upon completion of Am. Lit./Comp., students should form an understanding of how the American voice and culture have evolved through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in relation to their historical events through examination of the literature and through written expression that demonstrates a comprehension of the texts as well as clear, concise writing skills (KS Standards).

 Each unit consists of reading, writing (6 Traits), grammar/vocabulary assignments, and projects: we will do much of our work through Google Classroom, but occasionally we’ll use paper handouts/assignments.

Each unit of the curriculum consists of lessons that meet the Kansas and Catholic  standards for English language arts as students develop and use critical thinking through writing, close reading, and relating literature's ideas to their present and future; students will also use the MLA documentation and formatting style.

Semester projects: students will each select and read a book from an American literature, research the biography of the author, and write/orally deliver a report over their books, including the biography.  They will also keep an organized notebook for their board prompts and notes, which can be used on tests.

Currently, we do not use an assigned textbook, but we will use a variety of sources for our studies, including CommonLit. 

I. The 19th Century

A. Romanticism & Transcendentalism: 6-7 weeks (time range is approximate)

B. Regionalism, Realism & Naturalism: 6-7 weeks

  C. The Semester Book Report: 2-3 weeks

II. The 20th Century 

  A. Modernist Period: 8 weeks

B. Postmodernism:  7 weeks

  C. The Semester Book Report: 2-3 weeks

V. Mission Statement 

We Are Hayden, a Roman Catholic High School nurturing relationship with Jesus Christ while pursuing excellence in Faith, Academics, Community, Tradition, and Service.