Civics and Economics 2015-2016
Ms. Rodriguez ~ Room A4
elena.rodriguez@lcps.org
House A (703) 957-4438
Welcome to Civics and Economics! I look forward to an exciting year! We will be learning about
government and the rights and duties of citizens. We will learn about what it means to be a
responsible citizen of the United States and of the global community. We will also study how
economic decisions are made in society, types of businesses, and entrepreneurship. This class,
and social studies in general, will require active engagement with current events. Let’s commit to
learning together and making it a great class!
Supplies Needed:
 3-ring binder ( 1” or 1.5”)
 Loose leaf paper (college-ruled)
 Dividers (5 Tabs) (Tab Categories: Stretch, Notes, Skill Builders, Tests/Quizzes, and
Other)
 Colored pencils
 Fine-Point Colored Markers- not Sharpies
 2 Pens ( blue or black ink). We will use pens for class work and sometimes, a #2 pencil.
(Correction Tape- optional)
 Ruler
 Glue Sticks or Scotch Tape
 Safety Scissors
Donations: Sometimes students and parents ask if there is anything that we could use for the classroom.
Donations to my classroom supplies are greatly appreciated. If you would like to donate an item, here are some
items we could use:
Kleenex/Tissues
Index Cards
Scotch Tape
Colored Pencils or Markers
Safety Scissors
Used Magazines such as Time, Economist, Newsweek, Business Week,
Money, Smart Money, Forbes, etc.
Textbook:
We will use a class set of textbooks. Our textbook is Civics Today. It can also be accessed
online (student edition) via the following website:
http://www.glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/socialstudies/ose/national.html
User Name:
CIV
Password:
7u36aMuXub
Class Format: This course is designed to last 90 minutes each class session. At the beginning of
class each day, there will be a warm-up activity. For the rest of the class there will be a variety
of activities such as writing and reading assignments, group activities, tests, quizzes, and project
presentations.
Attendance: Good attendance is critical!
 This course includes material beyond the textbook; so class notes, in-class discussions,
and activities are too important to miss, if you can help it.
 Please check with me when you return to school so you are aware of what you missed. It
is very important to understand that you are responsible for making up any missed work.
 Any missed quizzes and/or tests must be rescheduled with me.
 If you have a pre-arranged, pre-approved absence, make sure you know what the
assignments are before you leave, and complete them by the time you return to class in
order to keep pace with the class.
 If you are Tardy to class (unless you have a note from home) for any reason or if you
come to class unprepared and have to go back to your locker to get materials, you will
be marked with an UNEXCUSED TARDY. This is a disruption to class. Each day, the
Deans receive and log the Unexcused Tardy Reports from all teachers. They will monitor
this and excessive Unexcused Tardies will result in disciplinary action.
Assignments:
 Assignments are due on time. Points will be deducted for late assignments. In addition, on
the day that the assignment is due, if it is not submitted when collected in class, an email
will be sent to the Dean with this information and you will be completing the assignment
during lunch (either at the HW table or in my room, as instructed) that day.
Assessments:
Both summative and formative assessments are an important part of gathering information.
Examples of summative assessments are Unit Tests, Virginia State SOL’s, semester exams, and
projects. Examples of formative assessments are: Questions during Class, Skill Builder
Enrichment Activities, Class Notes, Checkpoints, Warm-Ups/Daily Stretches, Quizzes, and HW
Grades
The overall course grade consists of Summative Assessments (Unit Tests, Essays and
Projects)
Formative Assessments (HW, Quizzes, Skill Builder Enrichment Activities, Class Notes,
Notebook, Daily Stretch/Warm Ups, Projects, and others) are evaluated and recorded.
These demonstrate participation and practice. These do not factor into the final grade.
Categories
Summative Assessments include Tests and Projects. Summative Tests will make up the most
significant part of a Final Grade. Tests make up 70% of the Final Grade and Projects are
worth 30% of the Final Grade.
Formative Assessments are informal. They help us adjust our instruction during the learning
process. They help us to figure out what we may need to review again. They provide us with
important information about where a student is in the process of learning an objective. We can
make adjustments at any time. These informal observations and assessments are recorded for
feedback and communication purposes, but are not factored into the Final Academic Course
Grade. The purpose of these is to provide practice and the ability to demonstrate progression
towards proficiency in all of the Virginia Department of Education's Standards of Learning
(SOL) for Social Science. Our goal is to achieve ‘Proficiency’, at a minimum, for each of these
Standards.
Class participation and oral participation is very important. Please ask questions! You should also
try to answer a question when called upon, even if you are not sure of the right answer. You have
to try at least to guess or you can refer to your notes to find the answer. This is a very important
part of Formative Assessment. Your class participation will be noted in the gradebook (Phoenix)
as Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory. Parents will be aware via this separate category, whether a
student participates in class or not. In addition to providing teachers with important information
about a student’s progress, it also encourages the development of communication skills as
important life and work skills.
Do not be afraid to ask questions or ask for extra help. Please ask for help with anything that
you do not understand. I am always available for extra help during Resource, or before/after
school by appointment.
You can also let me know if there is anything that is interfering with learning. My role is to help
you learn and provide the best environment possible! Your responsibility is to participate, ask
questions, set goals, and be part of your learning process.
Common Sense: All school rules listed in your agenda will be observed.
 Do not expect to leave the room during instruction. While I am at the board giving
instructions or explaining a lesson, DO NOT raise your hand in the middle of a lesson to
ask permission for the restroom. For each of your subjects, you will have 3 bathroom
passes available to you each Grading Quarter, as recorded in your agenda.

Please come prepared. Bring all of your supplies to every class. If you have to leave the
room to go to your locker and get something, this will be counted as an Unexcused Tardy
to class (as mentioned earlier).

If you run out of supplies during the course of the school year (paper, pens, pencils,
colored pencils, glue, or tape), you must replace them. I have purchased a full set of all of
these, as emergency backup, but you cannot rely on these alone. If any student has a
challenge with purchasing supplies, please see me one-on-one.

Please turn OFF electronic devices, including cell phones and IPods, and keep them out of
sight unless we are doing a class activity with them or you have SPECIFIC PERMISSION
from me. Specific permission means: I have asked you to take out your device or you have
asked me for permission to use it.

Gum chewing is not allowed in my class. If you have to be continually reminded of
this, I will note this in your gradebook comments and it may also result in a detention.
Every teacher has a different policy on this. Please be mindful and respect each
classroom policy on this.

Eating a snack may be allowed only after you have asked for permission first.

Please clean up after yourselves before leaving class.

Any student who continually disrupts the learning environment may be placed in another
work area temporarily or may be referred to the Dean for disciplinary action.

Behave in a mature and respectful manner always!