English 11
Fall 2017
Ms. D
Room: 122
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (517) 867-6196
Welcome to English 11!!! I am very excited to begin this journey with you at da Vinci High
School, and I look forward to watching you grow in knowledge. This syllabus will provide you with
everything you need to have a successful year. Please read over everything with your parent/guardian,
sign and return the last sheet by August 31st, and place this syllabus in the front of your binder.
Materials Needed
Students are required to bring the following materials to class each day:
o Pen/Pencil o Planner/ Organizer / Daily agenda
o Binder o Independent reading book
o Notebook (If you do not like any from my selection)
Contact
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about assignments or expectations.
The best way to contact me will be via email. I will not respond to emails after 8pm, which means
you must plan accordingly. Not completing an assignment because I was unavailable to
respond to your email is NOT an acceptable excuse.
Expectations
Alongside the school expectations stated in the Student Success Agreement (SSA), students will
be held to the teachers classroom expectations as well. Each student will receive a copy of those
expectations and one will be posted in the classroom.
Ms. De La Rosas Top 3:
Be punctual to class
Be prepared to learn with all required materials.
Be responsible and hold yourself accountable for
your work, actions, and behavior. This also
means accepting the consequence(s) for failing
to do so.
Rules & Norms
All school rules apply in every classroom. Alongside those rules, our classroom will have a set of
student-created norms. These norms will be established during the first week of school.
Rules exist so a class can run smoothly and learning can occur in a safe environment. As the
teacher, it is my job to uphold all rules and norms and consistently follow through with the
necessary consequences (see SSA IX).
Procedures and Routines
Alongside our rules and norms, procedures and routines will be established during the first week
of class. When procedures and routines are in place, class time is used wisely because no time is
wasted on figuring out what to do next. Students are expected to follow all procedures and
routines (see SSA IX).
Attendance Policy
In order to be successful, students HAVE to be in class every day. If they are absent, students
may need to attend Flex Friday tutoring sessions to make up missing work. They may not use
class time (see SSA II for more information).
Absent Work
Students with an EXCUSED absence will be allowed to make up missing work without penalty.
These students will be given one day to make up their work for every day missed. For example, if
a student is absent on Monday, they will get their work on Tuesday, and it will be due on
Wednesday. Students will not be able to turn their work in past the assigned date unless prior
arrangements have been made with the teacher.
Students without an excused absence will have until the original deadline to turn in absent work.
These students will have to come in before or after school or wait until Flex Friday to receive
instruction. Precious class time and their peers time will not be wasted on missing work or to
reteach a lesson.
Late Work
All due dates are given with plenty of time to complete assignments. If an emergency arises
outside of school that prevents the student from completing an assignment, they must contact me.
If the student feels that more time is needed for them to successfully complete an assignment,
they must meet with me and a fair decision will be made.
The student will have until the first Flex Friday after an assignment due date to do one of the
following:
o Turn in a fully completed assignment with a written explanation on why it is late, how
they will avoid this from happening in the future, and what score they believe they
earned.
o Turn in a written request for an alternative assignment after receiving a failing grade.
Alternative Assignment
In order for an alternative assignment request to be granted, the student must meet one of the
following criteria:
o The student put forth their best efforts and attempted to successfully complete the
original assignment, but received a below-average grade and would like to demonstrate
mastery through an alternative assignment.
o The student reviewed the original assignment and would like to demonstrate mastery of
objective through another means.
This requires the student to prepare and present an alternative assignment idea for
the teacher to approve. The alternative assignment will be held to the same
standards and deadline as original assignment.
Technology
Unless the teacher directs students to use technology for the lesson, all phones and other
electronic devices should be silenced and put away during class time. It is rude and
disrespectful to both teacher and peers to engage in another conversation and/or play on your
phone when someone is speaking. This will be the only warning. Class time will not be wasted
on monitoring phones (see SSA IV).
o First offense- student will place phone on teachers desk for rest of class period and get it
back at the end of the hour.
o Second offense- students phone will go down to the office and parent will have to pick it
up at the end of the day.
o Third offense- student will lose their phone rights for the rest of the semester.
Saying it was your parent texting you or any other excuse for being on your phone will not be
accepted. If it is an emergency or if you must speak with your parent, please excuse yourself from
the classroom to take care of your business. IT IS BEST TO HAVE YOUR PARENT CALL
THE SCHOOL IF THEY NEED TO SPEAK WITH YOU.
Parent initials: ___________ Date: ______________
Student initials: __________ Date: ______________
CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS
Employability
Be punctual to class
Arrive early, read the daily agenda, and ask for clarification before
class begins so you are.
Be prepared
Use restroom and handle all other business before class begins,
allowing your mind to be 100% present and engaged in learning.
Have all required materials out and ready.
Be Responsible
ALL expectations below fall under this category. Class time, the day,
life in general will be what you make it. So be responsible.
Noise level
During class, my fellow peers and other teachers should not be able to hear me in
other classrooms.
I will give each speaker my complete attention by ceasing personal conversations and
listening.
Movement in the classroom
I will remain seated in my assigned seat unless given permission by teacher to move.
I will only exit my seat to retrieve/put back materials, speak with teacher, or when
class has ended.
Behavior management
My behavior will resemble that of a professional, mature young adult.
I will not disrupt the classroom, interrupt the speaker, or use vulgar/disrespectful
language.
I will stay on task and engage in learning from bell to bell.
Quality of work
My teacher sets high expectations for me. And I will produce nothing but my best
work.
I am responsible for completing all of my assignments and collecting missing work.
I accept the consequence of a poor score for turning in poor-quality work.
Absent & tardy
I will enter the classroom and immediately get on task.
If I have an unexcused tardy, I understand that I will not be given extra time to do
my morning work and that I must move on to the following task with the class.
It is my responsibility to collect work and notes from absent days.
Dismissal
I understand that the teacher dismisses the classroom, and I will wait to leave until
the teacher is finished with any and all announcements.
I will continue to work/learn until dismissed.
Technology and phones
I will not be on my phone during class time
All other technology devices will only be used as a tool to aid my learning.
Eating and drinking
I understand that I am allowed to have food and beverages in the classroom as long
as I abide by the following:
Completely clean up after myself, disposing items in their proper bin.
Respect the teacher and other speakers by not eating noisy food such as chips
during lecture or group discussion.
I understand that if I choose not to abide by any of these rules, I will lose my
privilege.
Group work
I will work as a team and contribute equally when working in groups.
Teamwork means students should encourage and motivate one another as
well as provide constructive feedback.
I understand that the teacher will assign teams. And I agree to speak with the
teacher privately if I have a problem with a group or group member.
Guest speaker
When there is a guest in our classroom, I will give them my complete attention and
be respectful: pens/pencils down, make eye contact, listen, respond, and do not
interrupt.
Respect
I will not engage in or provoke any form of bullying.
I will not be engaging in any other task or conversation when my teacher is speaking
with me.
I will treat ALL items in the classroom with respect and handle with care.
I agree to abide by ALL the rules and norms of the classroom and help maintain a
positive learning environment.
I will follow ALL the classroom routines and procedures in order to maintain the flow
of learning.
I will hold myself accountable for my own actions.
I will respect the dignity and integrity of every person.
I will strive towards building and establishing positive relationships with my peers
and creating a family-like classroom atmosphere.
Student signature: ___________________________________________________
Teacher signature: ____________________________________________________
Date: ___________________________
