2013-2014 English I Syllabus

1. Ms. Longoria English 1 2013-2014
Dear Parents & Students:
Welcome to your 9th
grade English class! I look forward to teaching all of you this year. Outlined below are the
expectations, policies and requirements for this course.
Please visit my Web site for extended information on any subject: longoriaenglish.weebly.com
I. Policies
a. Late Work- Late work will be accepted within 1 week of the original due date. The highest you
can receive on late work is a 70. The student must place the late work in the designated folder for
their class period.
b. Absences- If you are absent, it is your responsibility to get the work you missed before school or
during lunch on the day of your return. Absences must be excused in order for you to receive
make-up work. The student will have one week from the day the work is received to turn in the
make-up work. The student must place the make-up work in the designated folder for their class
period. For unexcused absences, you will receive zeroes for all work due and completed on the
day of the absence.
c. Retakes- Retakes on quizzes or tests will be allowed if you earn below a 75. You must complete
the retake within 1 week of receiving graded test/quiz. Retakes can only be completed before
school from 7:45 a.m. to 8:45 am or from 3:45 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. after school.
d. Tardies- If you are late, you will be marked tardy. No exceptions! You will be automatically
assigned detention afterschool for every tardy you receive. If you are tardy every period, you will
attend detention 4 different times. When you reach your 4th
tardy for the semester, you will be
written up.
e. Heading- All assignments must have a proper heading in MLA style (name, teacher, section,
date- I will go over this in class). Points will be deducted otherwise.
f. Grading Policy- Daily grades are worth 30%, test/quiz grades are worth 40%, projects are worth
20% and your nine weeks exam is worth 10%.
g. Progress Reports and Failures- If you are failing this course at progress report time, I will
schedule a parent meeting and you may be assigned tutoring (before or after school) until the
next progress report or report card.
h. Exemptions- You can be exempted from your final exam if you have a 90 or above for your
semester average AND You have 3 or less absences for the semester. (Remember you will lose
credit when you have reached your 6th
absence for the semester.)
i. Extra Credit- From time to time, you may have opportunities to gain extra credit on your nine
weeks average. Extra credit will be offered to the entire class so please do not ask for
individualized extra credit.
j. Passes out of Class- You will be allowed out of class if you have your ID and my pass is
available. You will need to sign-in and out every time you leave class. You will not be allowed
out during a test/quiz or while I am lecturing, giving notes or reading aloud. If you abuse this
privilege, you will lose it.
k. Cell Phones- Students will be expected to keep cell phones put away at all times. If a student is
caught using a cell phone for the first time, the student will be expected to sign a cell phone
agreement stating that the student agrees to place the shut off cell phone at the designated cell
phone station at the beginning of each class and will be able to pick it up at the end of class. If
the student is caught any additional times, the cell phone will be taken to the office where there
will be a fee and a three-day waiting period to get the phone back.

2. Ms. Longoria English 1 2013-2014
II. Requirements
a. You must bring paper, pen, and your binder to class every day. I do have some materials for you
to use, but you will have to learn to leave them in my class.
b. You must have one 3-ring binder (1-inch) solely for this class. You will need to have 5
sections in your binders along with an Agenda Page at the front of your binder. The
sections include: *Warm-ups, *Vocabulary & Lit Terms, *Cornell Notes, *Grammar, and
*Returned Papers. I will check binders approximately once every two weeks for a grade.
c. We will go to the lab from time to time to conduct research so you will need access to the
internet.
III. Expectations (Rules) and Consequences
a. Be Polite- You must respect me and any other adult that may be in the class, your peers and their
property, and any property belonging to the school. Failure to do so will result in a teacher-
student conference for a first offense, a parent conference for a second offense, and a referral for
any following offense. Severe offense will immediately result in a parent phone call and referral.
Absolutely no bullying, derogatory language or slurs will be tolerated in class. Immediate
referrals will be given to students that violate the offensive language policy.
b. Be Prepared- It is your responsibility to come prepared to class with all our materials. Showing
up to class unprepared consistently will result in a parent phone call.
c. Be Productive- We will be doing a lot of reading and writing in this class but I will make sure to
go at a pace where everyone feels comfortable and like they are learning. I will try my best to
limit homework, but you will have a daily reading assignment. As long as you pay attention and
do your work in class, you should have no problems passing or getting a grade!
d. No Electronics- Electronics are not allowed in class at any point. Any electronics (cell phones,
IPODs, headphones, etc.) spotted during class will go through the process mentioned above in
the cell phone section.
e. Be Clean- No food or drink and in the classroom. Please pick up after yourselves if you’ve
forgotten something.
f. The Bell Does Not Dismiss You, The Teacher Does – Please remain in your seats until Ms.
Longoria dismisses you.
This semester we will begin by reading short stories, studying literary terms, and reviewing writing basics. We
will then transition to reading a novel (The House on Mango Street and Of Mice and Men) and writing literary
essays.
Sincerely,
Ms. Thalia I. Longoria