Course Descriptions for World History 9 and English 9

World History 9

Morris 2013-2014

World History is a required three-semester class combining Western Civilization I, II and III and History of the Twentieth Century.  Students will learn about and gain an appreciation of the roots of what has become commonly known as Western Civilization, from ancient Greece and Rome through the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Reformation and Enlightenment.  They will also explore how the western world developed into the Twentieth Century, and how it interacted with the civilizations of Latin America and Africa.

Basic Course Outline

Trimester One
Unit I             History Themes
Unit II            Ancient Greece
Unit III           Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Age
Unit IV           The Roman Republic
Unit V             The Roman Empire
Unit VI           Rise of Christianity and Fall of Rome

-------------------------------------------------End First Trimester
Unit VII          The Middle Ages
Unit VII          The Renaissance
Unit VIII        The Reformation
Unit IX           The Enlightenment, Scientific Revolution and Age of Exploration
Unit X             Absolutism and French Revolution (ending with death of Napoleon)
---------------------------------------------------End of Second Trimester

Unit XI           The Industrial Revolution
Unit XII          The Russian Revolution
Unit XIII        Colonialism
Unit XIV        Africa
Unit XV          Latin America

Required Materials for this Class
  1. One composition notebook (pages are sewn in).  This book will be used for all journals, notes, and other writing assignments and will be graded at least once a month.   This notebook will be worth 100 points per month—50 for notes and 50 for journal/other.
  2. Textbook—McDougal Littell Ancient World History: Patterns of Interaction. 
  3. Writing utensil/planner.  No-brainer on these.
  4. Loose leaf paper
  5. Colored pencils for maps/projects

Grading
Points are assessed as follows:
ü  Notes and Journal--- 100 points per month
ü  Quizzes—anywhere from ten to sixty points, depending on content
ü  Tests— roughly 100 points   (about every two weeks)
ü  Book Homework—anywhere from 4 to 8 points
ü  Other work as assigned (group work, projects, papers, maps, etc)—varies but usually under 50 points.
ü  Trimester Final Exam—200 points
ü  Trimester Final Project—25 to 100 points
ü  The grading scale is the standard 90-80-70-60


Expectations

My expectations are fair and few
  • Be on time.  Tardies will be assessed
  • Be prepared.  Bring notebook, writing utensil daily. 
  • Golden Rule.  Treat your fellow classmates and teacher the way you would like to be treated.  Other than tardies, all other issues are dealt with on a case-by-case basis, with the object being to help you improve as a student and a young adult. 

Success
Our common goal is your success.  I will do my part to prepare you to succeed by being prepared every day myself.  Note taking will help you learn the material and also give you a study tool.  Class discussion and other in-class activities will help make the material relevant.  Before tests, a review sheet containing all information on test will be given to students.  Review Jeopardy will be played the day before a test to firmly set the material in your brain.  Students are allowed to retake quizzes and tests.  The grades of the original and re-test will be averaged.  Once a week, on Monday, I will hold student-teacher conferences one-on-one with each student to discuss grades, missing work, and come up with strategies for success.  You can also check your grade any time from home on Powerschool. 

Make-up Procedures
Make-up work is accepted for full credit at the rate of one day late per day of excused absence.   After that, the grade will decline to half credit and then to no credit after several weeks.  I will always listen to student pleas for exceptions under special circumstances.

Staple this syllabus into your notebook. It is worth ten points.  If it is loose in the notebook, it will be a zero. 



 ______________________________________________________________________________


English 9

Morris 2013

English 9 is a class required for graduation that emphasizes writing, reading and grammar with the goal of making students better writers and readers.  To accomplish this goal, thematic units will be used to teach grammar, types of composition (descriptive, informative, critical and comparative), and literature.   Students will do a lot of writing, including creative writing, and will write at least one research paper.  Literature covered will include nonfiction, epic poetry, short stories, poetry and plays.  Through reading, students will build vocabulary.  Readings are chosen to encourage debate and critical thinking.  Thematic blocks in English 9 include: The Hero’s Journey, Matters of Life and Death, Looking into Lives, the Power of Love, Conformity and Rebellion, and Identity and Culture.  Longer works read and discussed will include Homer’s Odyssey, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and George Orwell’s Animal Farm.  Shorter readings will also be common.  Students will also select two books per trimester, with teacher approval, to read and report on.

Class Materials
·         Bound composition book.  This will be used for daily journaling and other writing assignments and is to be used for this class only.  Book must be bound, to avoid losing the pages, as the composition book will be graded monthly and must be complete.  Journal will be worth 100 points per month.  All notes will be kept in the journal as well.
·         Looseleaf three-ring binder for Student Portfolio.  Binder should be at least ½” thick and no more than 1” thick.  Students will be responsible for putting writing samples and other work in it as the class progresses and the Portfolio will be graded.  All daily work should be kept in the binder (can be in a flap) at least until the student has verified its entry on Powerschool.
·         Looseleaf paper and a writing utensil.  Pencil may be used for work with the exception of final drafts of papers, which must be double-spaced and either written in ink or word processed.
·         A book approved by the teacher to be read on a daily basis for ten minutes per day in class.  Daily reading will be worth five points per day or 25 points per week.

Expectations
·         Be positive.  Attitude is everything.  Show up each day with a good attitude, ready to learn.
·         Be on time.  Tardies will be kept and school policy followed.
·         Be polite, be kind.  Golden Rule.  Treat others as you want to be treated.  Failure to follow this policy harms the entire class and will not be tolerated.  Phone calls home, detention, Saturday School, and behavior contracts will be the result of unacceptable behavior.

What You Deserve from Me
·         100% commitment every day to give you the best learning experience I can
·         Respect.  Students deserve to be treated with respect at all times.  Issues will be dealt with one-on-one in a way that attempts to solve the problem as easily as possible.
·         Punctuality.  Students deserve to have their work graded in a timely manner and posted on Powerschool so that they can track their progress.

Mr. Morris’s Class Website.  There will be a class website for this class at http://morristigers13.blogspot.com
This site will contain much of the information needed on each daily lesson, including journal prompts, video clips, and assignments.  This is a great resource for days when you are gone due to sports or illness.  Return this sheet signed by Friday for ten points.  It is your first assignment.







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