Welcome to English!!

WELCOME TO ENGLISH, September 2009

 

It is going to be a very exiting year in English! In our literature classes, we will explore the relationship between the individual and society in books like A Catcher in the Rye and Persepolis. How is an individual shaped by the society that he or she lives in? How too can an individual influence his or her society? How do societies accept and reject individuals? How do religion, politics, and social norms play a role?

 

Our writing classes will focus on creative and expository writing, as well as vocabulary building and grammar. The 7^th grade writing curriculum includes units on poetry, persuasive essays, and autobiography. 8^th grade will writing focus on persuasive writing as well, along with units on short fiction and journalism.

 

Your effort mark for English will be determined through the following five categories:

 

Participation

Class participation is key, both in our writing and literature classes. Discussion and group work make up a substantial part of our work in class, so please come to class with questions and comments about the readings.

 

Homework

You should expect homework on most nights, often short reading and reading response assignments. While many assignments will be short-term, there will be a number of long-term assignments and projects, particularly in writing. One of the goals in 7^th and 8^th grade is for students to learn how to manage time, so if you are given, for example, two weeks to complete an assignment, that assignment should be worked on a little bit each day for the entire two-week period.

 

Class Journal

This year you have been asked to provide a journal that will remain in class at all times. In this journal I will ask you to respond to a particular idea from the assigned reading.  It is meant to be a place for you to deepen your thinking, so my comments and grades for the journals will focus primarily on the depth of your thinking, the detail with which you answer a question and the thought you give in creating your own arguments.

 

Essays and Formal Assignments

While the journal gives you a chance to figure out your ideas, it is through revision, organization and carefully constructed arguments that each of you will develop your critical and analytical writing skills. Most essays will include numerous drafts, and creative assignments such as character monologues will be written in first and final drafts as well. The focus on revision is key in developing as a writer, so grades for each assignment will look both at the effort you put into the early drafts and outlines, as well as the way in which you use revision to create a strong and thoughtful final draft.

 

 

Quizzes and Tests

There will be quizzes, both announced and unannounced, as well as tests on the books we read and for vocabulary. Please be sure to come to class prepared each day. Tests will be less frequent. For each test, students will be given ample notice as well as in-class review sessions.

 

 

 

Materials

Please be sure to have the following by our first day of triplets:

• Two notebooks
• One 3 subject notebook
• One journal/notebook that will stay in school, at least 100 pages long
• A section in your binder for Literature and one for Writing/Grammar
• An English Folder
• Something to write with!!