2. Grades will be based on effort, participation, mastery of the content, and performance on homework assignments. The percentages below total the overall grade in each subject area. Grades are weighted as follows:

3. Effort 20%

4. Participation in class discussions and group work 20%

5. Mastery of Content (Tests/Quizzes)20%

6. Performance on homework assignments20%

7. Attendance10%

8. Special Projects 10%

9. Student effort, participation, and attendance are a large part of student success. Because of this, I am assigning grades to this to signify the importance of continuously demonstrating effort through active participation in class activities and assignments.

10. Rubrics increase student achievement because they tell students specifically what the teacher is looking for in assignments detail by detail. The rubric that will be used for grading essays is listed below. It is taken directly from the Chicago Public School website. It is:

11. http://intranet.cps.k12.il.us/Assessments/Preparation/Elementary_Test_Preparation/Elem_Chapter_6/Elem_CH6-IGAPRubric/elem_ch6-igaprubric.html “…The rubric is developmental in nature and is used across grade levels to document progress in each feature. A six-point scale is used: quot;
1 quot;
denotes the absence of a feature; quot;
6quot;
denotes full development of a feature. Each score point clearly illustrates the developmental level for each feature. Because writing skills are rated in these increments as proficiency develops, students can see which areas need further work and know what to do to master them. Writing samples with a score of 1, 2, or 3 in any feature are developing (i.e., not all the elements of the feature are there yet). Writing samples with a score of 4, 5, or 6 are developed (i.e., all elements of each feature are there in varying degrees).”<br />. <br />“Focus - the clarity with which a paper presents and sustains a clear main idea, point of view, theme or unifying event. <br />Support/Elaboration - the quality of detail illustrating or explaining the writer's reasons or subpoints. This judges specificity of detail, depth, accuracy and sufficiency. <br />Organization - the exhibition of a clear structure or plan of development with points logically related within paragraphs (cohesion) and throughout the paper (coherence). <br />Conventions - the use of standard written English. Scores take into account that the paper is a draft and does not necessarily require that it is perfect. A quot;
2quot;
is assigned if the paper demonstrates control of sentence structure and grammatical errors are minor; a quot;
'I quot;
is given if grammatical errors are of such a magnitude that they interrupt clarity, paper does not show control of sentence structure, or there is insufficient writing to determine if student has control. <br />Integration - a measure of how effectively the writer has orchestrated the fundamental features to achieve the assigned task. It is not an arithmetic average, but reflects the view that the paper as a whole is greater than the sum of its parts…”<br />Make Up Work Policy<br />Students will not receive a zero for work not completed; they will receive an incomplete. Students will be expected to make up incomplete work before a grading period is over. Students are responsible for arranging to complete make up work due to absences or other issues. <br />Report Cards and Progress Reports<br />At the end of each quarter, students will receive a report card that provides a summary of progress. Midway through each quarter, a progress report will be sent home to communicate how students are progressing academically in each content area. Report cards and progress reports will be sent home on the following dates:<br />Quarter 1 DatesAugust 4-November 5Quarter 1 Progress ReportSeptember 5Quarter 1 Report CardNovember 12Quarter 2 DatesNovember 6-January 21Quarter 2 Progress Report December 5Quarter 2 Report Card January 28Quarter 3 DatesJanuary 22-March 25Quarter 3 Progress ReportFebruary 20Quarter 3 Report CardApril 1Quarter 4 DatesMarch 26-June 3Quarter 4 Progress ReportMay 15Quarter 4 Report Card June 10<br />Projects<br />Students will participate in two projects. The projects will take place over the intercession vacations. The projects will encourage the child to explore and create a Reading and Math project. It is due on the first school day back from vacation. For the reading project your child will be asked to compare themselves with a favorite character being studied in their reading series. Their job will be to tell how they are like one of their favorite characters and then tell how they are different. Answers should be written in a five paragraph essay format. The essay should be typed, double spaced, neat, and be consistent with the above rubric included for writing. For the Math project, your child will be given an extended response math problem to solve. They are required to produce a replica of the problem, solve the problem, and give an explanation that tells what they did to solve the problem. The explanation maybe handwritten. All work should be neat and presentable. Intercession dates are:<br />September 26-October 13, project due October 14, April 2-April 17, project due April 20<br />Homework <br />The purpose of the homework is to give children the opportunities to practice the lessons that they have learned in class at home. This should assist students in achieving the learning experiences presented in class. Homework will be given Monday through Thursday. There will be no homework given on Friday. All homework should be done by the next class day. Late homework will be accepted with a parent note. Homework will be reviewed, discussed, and collected each morning. Students will be provided with written feedback on homework assignments. Comments will tell the child’s progress and offer motivation to continual achievement in the class. <br />Class Schedules<br />