The following information should help you understand what is expected of you in this course. If you or your parents have any questions about this material, don't hesitate to ask me about it.
CLASS CONDUCT
1 Be safe.
2 Be nice.
3. Be on time.
ABSENCES
1 For the policy concerning absences, see the student handbook. .
2 After an excused absence due to an illness or personal day, it is the responsibility of the student to contact the teacher during or immediately after your absence to determine what assignments have been missed and what if any class or lab work must be made up.
3 If you know that you will be away for a prolonged absence, you should make arrangements with the teacher before you leave so that you can keep up with the work.
LATE WORK
1 Late work turned in before the assignment will be accepted , but a late penalty may be charged. Late work turned in after the assignment has been handed back to other students will NOT be accepted for credit. Special cases will be given fair consideration if you can demonstrate that you have made an honest, good faith effort.
SUGGESTIONS
1 Come to class prepared. In most cases this means bring your text book, notebook, something to write with and a calculator. People who come to class unprepared will lose points on their quarterly average.
2 Avoid being absent from class. Most students find that the material is much more difficult to learn when they have not been in class. From my experience, there is a direct correlation between excessively missing classes and lower grades. If you are involved in extra curricular activities, these activities should take place at other times besides the school day.
3 If you don't understand something, get help immediately. This course's material is sequential, which means later concepts build on earlier concepts. Don't wait until the day before a test to get help. I am available for help most days after school , during my preparation period, and for a few minutes before school.
4 Find a peaceful and comfortable place at home to do your homework. It's much easier to learn without distractions. Although you may enjoy listening to Nine Inch Nails, Eminem and Metallica, it might be easier to concentrate in silence. If you must have music on while studying, I would recommend something instrumental like Classical or Jazz. Oh and by the way, TURN OFF THE TV!!!!!!
5 It is very important that you do all your assigned homework. This includes reading the text and problem sets. Some of your quarterly grade based on your homework and most students who regularly do homework also do well on tests. Copying homework from a classmate may get you a better homework grade but usually results in poor test scores so please do your own work. If you are having difficulties, please get some help.
6 Take good class notes. Your memory may not be as good as you suppose. Review your notes daily. This helps you to be more familiar with the material. This is especially helpful if you had difficulty understanding the concepts. In most cases this only requires 5 to 10 minutes per day.
7 Don't give up. For many people, learning is a difficult chore. Persistence will usually pay off in greater understanding. Have confidence in yourself. If you believe you can grasp the difficult concepts and keep trying, you will find that you actually will start tounderstand them.
GRADING
1 Tests and Quizzes - 50 - 60 % of your quarterly grade. Tests are usually announced about a week in advance. Quizzes may or may not be announced.
2 Laboratory - 15 - 25 % of your quarterly
grade. You must purchase a bound lab notebook in which you will do all
of your lab writeups. This notebook
will be kept by the instructor at the end
of the year.
3 Homework - 10 - 15 % of your quarterly grade. Homework includes assignments from the text, supplementary problems and study guides (Chemistry).
4 Notebook - 5 % of your quarterly grade.
An organized notebook must be kept to provide ready access to notes, handouts,
homework and old tests.
Your notebook must be a 3 ringed binder
and should be divided into the following sections:
A Notes and handouts
B Homework and study guides
C Tests and quizzes
D Lab handouts
Your notebook will be collected at the end
of each quarter.
5 Journals - 5% of your quarterly grade. You will be keeping a journal that will be handed in once per week. You will be supplied a list of questions to answer or you can make your own entry.
6 Exams - Both midyear and final exams each count 25 % of your semester grade and 12.5 % of your final grade.
Both you and your parents should read this information. Please bring in a note signed by you and one of your parents or guardians stating that you have read and understand this material.