8th Grade U.S. History
Course Description
The 8th graders will have U.S. History for the first two quarters of the year. We will be looking at the history of the United States from the first explorers through the Civil War. We will accomplish this through note taking, primary sources, simulations, projects, and other interactive activities.
Homework
I do not give out a lot of homework throughout the year. The students will have time to finish activities in class a majority of the time. Anything not completed will be homework. There are many times that we will be taking notes for multiple days. These will all be due at the end of the unit. It is the students responsibility to hold on to these.
Tests
There are hardly any tests in this class. The students are assessed through activities and multiple writing assignments.
Projects
There will be many projects throughout the year. I always give time for these to be completed in class. If the students are not using their time wisely, this will become homework. Each student will be graded individually on their part of the project. I am always walking around and monitoring what is happening. Students will not receive a high grade if they don't participate just as students will not receive a lower grade if a partner did not do their part. There will be one bigger project in the second quarter. The students will be choosing 25 important events that happened in the United States up through the Civil War. They will be able to present these in any way they choose, (power point, poster, timeline, ext). I will talk to the students more about this in November.
Grading
The school uses the same grading scale across the board. I do not have weighted grades so points are points in my class. Students able to hand in late homework for a 5 point deduction each day it is late. Once it reaches the 50% mark, I no longer deduct points. The students are able to hand in homework up until 3 days before a quarter ends. I will mark a "0" in powerschool once it is late but will change the grade as soon as homework is in.
Reading
Reading is an essential part of a students learning. Reading helps raise test scores, develops better writing habits, and makes the college transition easier. Because of this, the students will be reading a book of their choice (at their reading level) every Tuesday and Thursday for the first 15 minutes of class. The students will be expected to have a notebook for their reading logs. At the end of the 15 minutes, the students will write how many pages they read, and a short summary of what they read. I will be collecting and grading these at random (within a two week period) and they will be graded on this.
The 8th graders will have U.S. History for the first two quarters of the year. We will be looking at the history of the United States from the first explorers through the Civil War. We will accomplish this through note taking, primary sources, simulations, projects, and other interactive activities.
Homework
I do not give out a lot of homework throughout the year. The students will have time to finish activities in class a majority of the time. Anything not completed will be homework. There are many times that we will be taking notes for multiple days. These will all be due at the end of the unit. It is the students responsibility to hold on to these.
Tests
There are hardly any tests in this class. The students are assessed through activities and multiple writing assignments.
Projects
There will be many projects throughout the year. I always give time for these to be completed in class. If the students are not using their time wisely, this will become homework. Each student will be graded individually on their part of the project. I am always walking around and monitoring what is happening. Students will not receive a high grade if they don't participate just as students will not receive a lower grade if a partner did not do their part. There will be one bigger project in the second quarter. The students will be choosing 25 important events that happened in the United States up through the Civil War. They will be able to present these in any way they choose, (power point, poster, timeline, ext). I will talk to the students more about this in November.
Grading
The school uses the same grading scale across the board. I do not have weighted grades so points are points in my class. Students able to hand in late homework for a 5 point deduction each day it is late. Once it reaches the 50% mark, I no longer deduct points. The students are able to hand in homework up until 3 days before a quarter ends. I will mark a "0" in powerschool once it is late but will change the grade as soon as homework is in.
Reading
Reading is an essential part of a students learning. Reading helps raise test scores, develops better writing habits, and makes the college transition easier. Because of this, the students will be reading a book of their choice (at their reading level) every Tuesday and Thursday for the first 15 minutes of class. The students will be expected to have a notebook for their reading logs. At the end of the 15 minutes, the students will write how many pages they read, and a short summary of what they read. I will be collecting and grading these at random (within a two week period) and they will be graded on this.