U.S. Update for the week of February 27th

[Wetzel, William]

Class webpage: www.district87.org/staff/wetzelw

 

I am usually available before school each morning by 7:20. 

 

This week:

 

Mon: Mrs. Betty Tripp Presentation

Fri: 8B Breakfast Club

Fri: Q3 Reaction is due
Fri: Chapter 12 Quiz/ Assessment (tentative)

 

Coming up:

3/5: Quarterly Cumulative Test (changed to Monday due to lab availability and ISAT)
3/6 - 3/8: ISAT Testing from 10:30 - 2:00
3/9: End of Quarter 3 for new work
3/9: Q3 Recital Due deadline

General 8B Team information:

8B Breakfast Club will meet this Friday in the IMC during Roundtable.  I will be making flatcakes for students and we always welcome donations of additional food and beverages.  Please contact Mrs. Gallucci if you would want to make a donation.

Students will take the ISAT exams on March 6, 7, & 8 from 10:30 - 2:00.  Please do your best to have students in school and rested during testing.

U.S. History Information:

Detailed information about the Learn & Teach Projects will be sent in a separate message.  I will only accept projects this week from those students who requested an extension by the Friday deadline.

Information for completing the Q3 State of the Union Reaction is available from the 'Audio Assignment Descriptions' webpage.  Students who need to watch the speech at school can make arrangements with me to watch it in my room during RT or E&R (Wed & Fri).

There may be a Chapter 12 Quiz/ Assessment on Friday this week.  I will send a message with related information on Wednesday, if the Quiz/ assessment will be on Friday.

The Quarterly Cumulative Test on Monday March 5th will include a random selection of questions from all the text quizzes we have taken this year.  Since the questions are selected randomly, the best way to study is to go back through the review activities and practice tests from throughout the year.  If you want to see all 98 possible questions at once, you can use Quizlet  to create a 98 question multiple choice practice test.

The Internet grades are up to date.  A score of '0' has been entered for those students who have not yet completed the Q3 Recital and Q3 Reaction.  As a result, the grade is an accurate reflection of where a student stands in terms of the quarterly grade.  However, since the due date for these assignments has not arrived, I will not count them when calculating eligibility.  As in prior quarters, I want to make certain that students know where they stand as they head for the finish of the quarter.  The Quarterly Cumulative Test on March 6th could also have a significant impact on student grades.

Quarter 3 is the most challenging of the quarters.  I will be offering a credit contract for a 'D' to students who are struggling with the difficulty of this quarter.  Students who complete the contract work will probably get to a 'C' anyway, but if they complete the work and don't reach a 'C', the contract will guarantee them credit.  For anybody interested, the contract will require a 'C' or better average on the quarterly assignments along with a 'C' or better average on the DV Quotes and Quarterly Cumulative Test.

Reruns from previous updates:

Students who submit a quarterly assignment or the Learn & Teach early or on time will receive an opportunity to make additions and resubmit their work for increased credit.  Students resubmitting work for increased credit should take the time and make significant changes to their work based on the assignment guidelines and the comments written on their paper or their score may not change and they will have lost the opportunity for grade improvement.

Parent Action: If you are cleaning out a closet or have other items that are working, but unwanted, please consider donating them to 8B for our P3 Auctions that are held every other Friday. 

Students who need extra time for questions or assistance before or after school should let me know.  My schedule varies, but I am usually in the classroom by 7:20 in the morning.  I have made arrangements for students to be able to come up to the room early without a pass.  After school, my availability is much less consistent.  When I know I will be available late on a given day, I will include that information in the update for the week.

If you send me an e-mail and do not receive a reply within 24 hours, please send me a follow-up.  I try to reply promptly to the e-mails I receive, but occasionally one slips by without a response from me.

Students who miss an in-class assignment should check with me, but they are usually excused from the assignment.  Students who miss a quiz, test or assessment need to make it up.  A zero will be entered in the gradebook until the assignment is completed.

I usually grade all the papers I receive during the week on Saturday and update grades on Sunday.

The class website provides access to resources to review, study, and explore areas related to the class.  Here are several highlights:
'Déjà vu Spiral': link to the main location for content information and notes from throughout the year
'Weekly Updates': an archive of all the weekly update messages from the whole year
'1112 U.S. Introduction Materials': the on-line version of the course overview packet provided to students at the start of the year
'Audio Assignment Descriptions': instructions and an audio explanation for every assignment
'Student E-mail Access from Home': allows students to log into their school e-mail account from home
'1112 Weekly Logs': a day by day breakdown of resources used in class and activities
'On-line Practice Tests': location for practice tests for tests and quizzes throughout the year
'Quia Review Games': review games for chapter quizzes and tests
'Quizlet Review Games': review games for Deja vu and chapter quizzes and tests
'Déjà vu Terms Reviews': learning and review resources for Déjà vu terms
'Textbook': Link to the on-line text

The category weighting and grading scale used to calculate quarterly grades is different in history class than other classes:

Categories:
21        Daily Work (Done in class)
21        Tests & Quizzes (Content knowledge)
21        Assessments (Content understanding)
21        Assignments (Skills/Comprehension)
11        Teaching (Content exploration & skills development)
  5        Studio Habits (Engagement in learning)

Overall Grading Scale:

89.5 - 100        A

74.5 - 89.4       B

49.5 - 74.4       C

0 - 49.4            F

A quarterly grade of 'D' will be assigned to students who do not finish the quarter with a passing grade IF they develop and complete a plan to make up missed work by the deadline provided by the teacher at the end of the quarter.

Students who score poorly in a category or categories will notice a significant impact on their quarterly grade.  The downside of this weighting and scale is that it is confusing to explain, but the upside is that it allows me to create a situation that challenges students and rewards excellent learning without creating a situation that is too difficult for those students who are not ready for such expectations.

The Bloomington Public Library offers a link to a service called tutor.com that has a great reputation as a source for help with all sorts of homework; however, I am not personally familiar with it.  If any students are using this site and want to provide me with some guidance, I will try to spread that information to the other students.

Free Tutoring by ISU and IWU students is available on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 4:00 - 6:00 at Mt. Pisgah Church (801 W. Market Street) for all subjects.  This resource is available on a drop-in as needed-- no appointment or long term commitment required basis.  If anybody uses this resource and finds it to be helpful, please let me know and I will pass on your endorsement.

If you would like to add or drop an e-mail address for these updates, please let me know.  All students receive these messages each week in their student e-mail accounts.

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Bloomington Public Schools School District87
Bloomington, Illinois