U.S. Update for the week of April 23rd

[Wetzel, William]

I typed this up but forgot to send this on Sunday.

 

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

 

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

 

This week:

 

Mon & Thur: MAPS Testing continues

Fri: Chapter 14 Quiz/ Assessment

Fri: STTA Letter due

Coming up:

4/30: No school
4/30 - 5/4: I will be at Outdoor Ed
5/7: Q4 QCT Test
5/7: DV Quotes, Images, & Clues Test II
5/8: U-pick Recital due
5/18: Last day of regular 8B classes
5/21: 8B PRT
5/22: Six Flags Trip
5/23: early dismissal for summer break

General 8B Team information:

The final 8B Breakfast Club for this year will be this Friday in the IMC during Roundtable.  If you are willing to donate food or drinks, please contact Mrs. Gallucci (gall...@district87.org).

We will have MAPS Testing this week on Monday(1:30) & Thursday(12:00).

U.S. History Information:

I will always be willing to offer flexibility with a deadline when a school or family emergency occurs.  Promptly notifying me of the situation is not required.  I do request that students include a reminder of the situation when they submit the work, so that they receive proper credit.

I will be out of school all next week with the Outdoor Education Program.  I may check my e-mail a few times during the week, but mostly I will be out of touch.

The grades currently posted to the Internet gradebook are more accurate than the Progress Report grades you will receive in the mail this week.  If you have concerns or questions about a grade, please contact me soon.  There is an Uncle Tom's Cabin classwork grade that is currently excused for 8th and 9th hour because they are doing the work this week during the long MAPS class period.

I made a change in the grade weights for the quarter last week since the Constitution Assessment has been dropped.  Assessments are now 16% (5.33% each) of the quarterly grade and Assignments are 37% (6.16% each).  There should not be any students with a quarterly grade that is harmed by this change (assessments are more difficult than assignments), but if there is, I will use the original weighting for that student.

The STTA Letter assignment is due on Friday.  The assignment was presented to students last Monday and related information is posted to the Audio Assignment webpage.

There will be a Chapter 14 Quiz and Assessment this Friday.  I will send out a related message that includes the assessment prompt on Thursday morning.

The U-pick Recital is due on May 8th.

The Quarterly Cumulative Test and DV Quotes, Images, Clues Half Test will both be given on Monday May 7th.  The QCT covers material from all the text chapters we have covered this year and the DV test is a repeat of the test that was given in Quarter 3.  In terms of preparation: there are practice tests posted for the DV Test, but students would have to go back over old practice tests for each chapter quiz for the Quarterly Cumulative Test.

Reruns from previous updates:

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)
32        Assignments (Skills/Comprehension)      
  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.

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