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8th Grade Language Arts
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Course Philosophy
The 8th grade school year represents a period of transition. It is the final preparatory year before
high school and lays an important foundation for the reading and writing expected of students. Our
objective is to significantly increase students' academic ability and performance in the areas of
reading, writing, speaking, viewing, and listening in accordance with the State Core curriculum.
Grades
Grades are a reflection of how well students meet academic participation goals through personal effort
and responsibility. High scores are achieved by students displaying their best efforts. Academic
evaluations are based on preparedness, daily assignments, homework preparation, writing projects,
tests, etc. as well as attitude and personal contributions to the learning environment.
The grading scale for the 2009-2010 year is as follows:
92 - 100 A
83 - 91 B
74 - 82 C
65 - 73 D
64 - 0 F
Honesty and Accountability
All work, unless specified as group-work, must be the individual work of each student. Assignments
should be complete when the student comes to class. Cheating results in a zero for all students
involved.
Tardies
Students are tardy if they are not in their seat when the bell rings. Tardy students do not receive
points for starter activities and are subject to the school tardy policy.
Reading
Students are required to bring a book of their choice to class each day. In addition to classroom
reading, students will be required to read 100 minutes outside of class each week.
Assignments
Assignments should display the student's most professional work. Professional work is defined as the
neat, appropriate display of the student's best effort. Daily assignments may be hand-written; formal
assignments, such as papers, must be typed. If a last-minute printing problem occurs, students are
required to turn in a hand-written assignment with a parent note to receive credit.
Make-Up Work
Work missed due to an excused absence will be accepted up to one week after the student returns
unless the due date was assigned in advance - work assigned in advance must be turned in on the day
the student returns.
Expectations and Rules
Students must respect the right of others to learn. Students who choose to disrupt the classroom will
receive warnings concerning their conduct, parent phone calls and or conferences, and possible office
referral.
Respect
The underlying principle governing our class is RESPECT! Respect for yourself, respect for others, and
respect for your surroundings. It would be impractical and impossible to generate rules for every
situation, but we can govern our interactions by realizing that in a classroom situation the wants of the
individual must be tempered by the needs of the group, that we are here for the important purpose of
learning, that our actions not only affect us but others around us, and that we are ultimately responsible
for our own actions and work.
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