This document outlines the expectations and policies for an English literature, grammar, and creative writing class for high school students. It details classroom expectations like respecting others, participation grading which counts for 30% of the final grade, attendance and tardy policies, homework and projects, make-up work policies, and contact information for the teacher. Students will study grammar, literature, and engage in creative writing assignments and be expected to apply their learning to identify parts of speech and language structures.

1. WELCOME TO LANGUAGE
AND WRITING 100 - 401
2016 – 2017 School Year
Literature, grammar, and creative writing class expectations for high school students

2. CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS
• Respect each other and yourself in all things
Don’t interrupt, follow the dress code, and don’t be dismissive
• Practices makes permanent – not perfect
Take advice, criticism, and feedback seriously to improve your skills and
broaden your knowledge.
• This class can show you different paths to improve but only you can walk them
Students will get what they put in to their work
• There’s nothing new under the sun
It’s easier to do the work and learn than to try to figure out a way to beat my system
that I haven’t already thought of and countered

3. ATTENDANCE AND TARDY POLICIES
• Each day an assignment is late costs 10
points off the final grade
• Only excused absences will be allowed
to turn in work late without penalty
• Excused absence slips are to be turned
in to me in the morning before the first
bell
• If you are tardy without excuse, you will
serve 15 minutes detention per minute
tardy after school
• Two tardies in a month get you a
Saturday detention
• Excused tardies will be turned in at the
end of the day

4. CLASS PARTICIPATION
• Participation means taking notes, making comments during discussion rounds, or
joining in group work
• Disrespectful actions cost points – if you are criticizing someone’s work, do it
respectfully
• Participation in class-wide discussions and other classroom activities counts for 30%
of your final grade.
• The grading rubric is in your syllabus in full but breaks down to 30% participation,
40% tests and projects, 20% final exam, 10% homework and classroom worksheets
• Any work that is a D or lower must be revised until it meets standards

5. HOMEWORK AND PROJECTS
English Grammar
Most work will involve identifying parts
of language, correcting their usage, and
editing for grammar based on that day’s
lessons.
You will be expected to remember things
you learned earlier. This is not a “test and
forget” class.
By the end of this class, you will be able
to identify all parts of speech, types of
phrases, sentence constructs, voice,
mood, and mode indicators, and to use
them correctly in your own written works.
Projects will be editing a single text
sample for grammar.
English Literature
You will be expected to read the
assigned works – Cliff/Spark notes won’t
cut it. I read those, too.
A sample reading from each major
movement and an analysis of it will be
part of your final grade.
For your final project, you may choose a
work from any non-romance source to
read, analyze, critique, and report on.
Your source must be approved by me no
later than week four.
Creative Writing
Don’t bother plagiarizing – you’ll be
doing most of your writing in class.
Don’t attempt to write a novel for your
final project. A novella is fine.
Most of your work will involve writing
around an assigned theme, setting, or
tone. If you have trouble, let me know
and I can offer you advice.
Drafts of your final project must be
turned in periodically as specified in the
syllabus.
Again, don’t try for a novel. I’ve done
that. It’s something that takes more than
a year to do right!

6. MAKE-UP OR RE-DOS
• If you fail a test or are absent for one, you may retake it once. The retake will be very
different from the first test in questions, form, and essay topics.
• You will receive credit for the highest grade between the two.
• If you missed an in-class assignment due to an excused absence, you may do it as
homework. You will have only one day to turn it back in for full credit.
• If you are redoing work because you received an “F,” then you will redo it until it is
done to the best of your ability based on your average in the class. Turning it in with
minimal effort just means you get to hang out with me after school until it’s up to
standard.

7. PET PEEVES
• Text or 1337 speak. This isn’t Twitter – you have more than 140 characters to
communicate.
• The Internet will not eat your homework and I can recover things from your hard
drive (but trust me, you don’t want me to have to)
• The word “stupid” and all its synonyms – you don’t know what “stupid” is until
you’ve had to fill out your very own 1040, gone through voir dire for jury duty, or
dealt with the French government.
• Brown-nosing: if you want my respect, you’ll earn it. It’s not difficult.
• Insulting my intelligence, insulting your own intelligence, or insulting the
intelligence of your classmates.

8. CONTACT AND FINAL POINTS
• My contact information is in the syllabus. If you have questions or concerns, you
may contact me through them.
• It really will be easier to just do the assignments and not look for shortcuts.
• I’m happy to spend the first day explaining why “all this stuff” is important and how
it can help you to earn $10k more per year in the real world.
• Languages are my hobby – I speak eight and can read up to forty (seventy-three if
we include computer languages).
• If you lose your syllabus, you may download it from the school website.