Syllabus

8th Grade Reading/Writing Course Syllabus

Teacher: Tim Rickerson - Reading/Writing Plan Period: 8:10 - 8:57

Welcome to 8th grade! I am looking forward to a productive and exciting year!

Course Descriptions: Reading and Writing will encompass the four major components of the Communication Arts curriculum: reading, writing, spelling/vocabulary, and grammar.

Reading: This course will develop literary skills necessary for students to develop basic/higher level thinking skills of comprehending, analyzing, and evaluating a variety of different text formats including literature, poetry, and other fictional genres as well as non-fictional journal, article, novel, and historical sources as well.

Vocabulary/spelling will be presented in a variety of contexts through exercises with synonyms/antonyms, basic comprehension strategies, and alternate forms as well as through various literary resources and reading comprehension strategies.

Throughout the school year, students will be reading a variety of novels chosen according to their interests and reading levels. Through Reading Workshop units and lessons, students will interact with their texts individually and with peers, making connections such as: text to self, text to world, and text to text. Engaging with the novels they read through Reading Workshop will help students to develop themselves as active and engaging readers.

Writing: This course will develop writing skills through the expansion of basic and advanced grammar (sentence structure, parts of speech, mechanics/usage, sentence/paragraph development, self/peer editing skills) in composing text.

Writing will also develop composing of various essay formats, including expository, argumentative, and narrative formats with an included introduction into the persuasive format as well. Learning about and composing written compositions of these formats will help students to develop their voices and skills as writers as well as their ability to critique, edit, and revise their writing.

Students will also learn about and compose other written compositions such as: personal letters, business letters, various graphic organizers, and other common methods of professional written communication.

Students will learn to:

-read, write, and evaluate fiction and poetry

-read, write and evaluate non-fictional news, journal, and other resources

-write both formally (letters, essays, reports) and informally (notes, journals)

-use a variety of note-taking methods to organize information

-analyze, evaluate, and discuss the work of various authors and genres

Text and Reference: In the classroom we will be using a variety of reading and writing material including literature textbooks, dictionaries, and online news and journal sources. A major resource we will be using this year are iPads, which will increase our access to scholarly journals, credible news sources, and research databases.

iPad Apps: There are a variety of apps we will use on the iPads throughout the school year. Here is a list of the major apps we will use with a brief description of each:

Schoology - Essentially our “electronic classroom”, Schoology contains resources, keynote presentations, assignments, links, and all other documents and reference material they will need to keep themselves up to date and informed on upcoming assignments and projects throughout the school year.

Quizlet - Primarily used for vocabulary, Quizlet contains every vocabulary set we will complete throughout the school year, providing students with an excellent means to learn and practice their vocabulary terms in a variety of exercises geared toward enriching student understanding of new words.

Socrative - This app is used for both in-class review and practice of content and administering of electronic quizzes. Although not every assessment will be administered using this app, most of our review and practice of content will be facilitated through Socrative.

iMovie - One of our more fun apps, iMovie for the iPad gives students the opportunity to present content in a technologically visual form, from presentations to news reports to story telling to trailer creation, and much more. One primary use for this app will be through IRA (Independent Reading Activity) Presentations held once a quarter in which students will present a novel they have read.

Safari/Google Chrome - These apps will be our primary method of conducting research. Throughout the school year students will research information to create projects and written compositions. In addition, students will also learn about internet safety and security, practicing safe methods of surfing the internet. We will also engage in evaluating critically what information we seek to use from web browsers to differentiate between credible vs. non-credible information.

Gmail - Students will have access to email accounts provided by the district to maintain appropriate academic communication with teachers and peers. Students will be able to also submit assignments electronically as well as needed.

Grades: The South Callaway R-II School District grading scale is as follows:

A 95-100

A- 90-94

B+ 87-89

B 83-86

B- 80-82

C+ 77-79

C 73-76

C- 70-72

D+ 67-69

D 63-66

D- 60-62

F 0-59

Specific grades in Reading/Writing will include various reading and writing assignments/projects/activities, comprehension tests/quizzes, and classroom discussion/participation. Some specific Reading grades will include vocabulary packets, quizzes, and quarterly exams, Independent Reading Activities (IRAs - book reports), and group discussion. Some specific Writing grades will include grammar worksheets and quizzes, essay/research projects, and correct citation methods in MLA/APA format.

Points may/will be deducted for the following reasons:

-student does not participate in class discussion

-student turns in assignments late

-student shows poor effort in completed assignments

-student is disrespectful and/or disruptive during discussions

**If you have any questions/concerns, or if you would like to schedule a conference, you may contact me by phone (573-676-5225 ext. 5217) or email (tim.rickerson@sc.k12.mo.us) either before/after school or during my plan time.

I am looking forward to a rigorous, productive, and overall awesome school year!

Sincerely,

Tim Rickerson