<< Back to Curriculum | Language Arts Syllabus - 8th Grade

Instructor: Mrs. Findley
Email: findleyd@seasideschool.net

1st nine weeks

Specific Course Objectives:
Reading-- pre-reading strategies such as prior knowledge, self-questioning, and predicting; strategies to clarify meaning such as rereading, paraphrasing, summarizing, graphic organizers; author’s purpose—to persuade, to inform.

Writing/Language—compound/complex sentences; coordinating and subordinating conjunctions; clauses—dependent and subordinate, prepositional; vocabulary development with emphasis on SAT vocabulary.

Listening, Viewing, Speaking-- uses responsive listening skills such as paraphrasing, summarizing, and asking questions; listens and uses information gained.

Literature—Identifies story elements: plot, setting, character, rising action, conflict/resolution, climax, theme (recurring/timeless themes in literature); connections with personal life—personal convictions.

Evaluation:
Students will be graded using a point system for determining grades. Each assignment, project, test, or homework assignment has a certain number of points possible. A test or project may be worth 100 points while quiz or homework assignment may be worth 20 points. To determine a student’s individual grade, I will simply divide the number of points earned by the student by the possible number of points in a 9-week period. That percentage will be assigned a letter grade using the following scale:

90-100	A
80-89	B
70-79	C
60-69	D
0-59	F

*There will be a nine-week exam given the last week of the grading period. This test will count to 25% of the student’s final grade (as per the Walton County Pupil Progression Plan).*

Extra Credit:
Some assignments and evaluations may have extra credit opportunities built into them. Students are encouraged to attempt all extra credit offered. Rubrics for larger assignments and projects will be assessed with rubrics that will specify how to exceed the standards and earn full and/or extra points. I will not assign additional extra credit just to pull up a grade or make-up for missed work during the grading period.

Make-up work:
It is the responsibility of the student to ask for make-up work after an absence. The students will have the same number of days to ask for and complete the make-up work as the length of the absence. If a student was absent for one day, they must ask for make-up work the next day and turn it in by the end of the next day.

Late Work:
Late work will be accepted only one day late and points will be deducted for late work (30%--see student handbook) No late work will exceed the standards according to rubrics.