English Language Arts 7
Course Outline
Teacher: Mrs. L Schultz
Email Address: schultz.lisa@rvlc.ab.ca
Office Hours: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm (Monday to Friday)
Course Objectives/Outcomes: Welcome to grade 7 English Language Arts!
English Language Arts is the study of listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing and
representing. The purpose of the program is for students to build skill, confidence, and
enjoyment in these areas. Students will be encouraged to exercise metacognition, the process of
thinking about the way one thinks in order to identify communication and learning strategies and
processes that work effectively for themselves, as individuals.
General Outcomes
Students will listen, speak, read, write, view and represent to:
1. Students will explore thoughts, ideas, feelings and experiences.
2. Students will comprehend and respond personally and critically to oral, print and other
media texts.
3. Students will manage ideas and information.
4. Students will enhance the clarity and artistry of communication.
5. Students will respect, support and collaborate with others.
Students will be required to complete self-directed projects (research and personal), major
assignments, critical response assignments, minor assignments, visuals, and other responses
throughout the semester. Although some materials may be available in the "classroom", please
note that students are responsible for all materials required for the completion of these projects,
assignments, etc..
Specific outcomes and rationale as outlined by Alberta Education may be viewed by
clicking on the following link:
http://www.education.alberta.ca/students.aspx
Expectations:
The English Language Arts 7 curriculum is challenging and demands total concentration from
each student while in class. Students need to use their time efficiently in order to maximize
learning from materials and assignments. As well, students will have some form of homework
each night; therefore, students need to manage their time accordingly. Each student is expected
to take responsibility to keep pace by completing each lesson in its entirety. Students and parents
are encouraged to contact the teacher through email, or in tutorials for clarification or help as
needed.
Students are expected to advise teachers in advance of their absence from a tutorial, or an
evaluation item that has been scheduled (assignment or test). Students are expected to attend
tutorials to discuss concepts covered in lessons, read literature, or work in groups. We will also
cover material which will enhance the information in the online lessons. Quizzes and homework
will frequently be assigned during or before tutorials. Students who are inexcusably absent will
receive a zero on these assignments. Tutorial attendance and participation will be worth 10% of
the year mark.
Students who miss a major evaluation (unit or final exam) item must demonstrate that their
absence was unavoidable. In other words, the teacher must be notified by the parent/guardian,
or, a doctor's certificate must be provided. Failure to do so may result in a mark of zero.
Students should be attending to Language Arts at least five hours per week, with additional time
for "homework" when required. These hours are mandated by Alberta Learning.
It is the student's responsibility to find out from the teacher or other students what work was
assigned in their absence (regardless of the reason for their absence).
Students may be required to attend in-person sessions over the course of the year to learn/review
difficult concepts. Attendance is strongly recommended. You will be given advance notice of
any in-person session.
Units of Study:
Students will explore various forms of literature as well as develop skills in the art of language
in each of the units below. Some units will deal with specific themes, while others allow
students to choose.
5 Weeks
Writing Process and Composition
5 Weeks
Short Stories
5 Weeks
Novel Study "The Cay "
5 Weeks
Poetry
5 Weeks
Media and Film Study
5 Weeks
Independent Research Report
Each Month
NSG (Novel Study Guide)- You will be required
to read a novel of your choice each month. This
novel must be approriate for school and you
must be able to get through this novel in the
month that you have to read it. You will then be
asked to complete a NSG (novel study guide) as
a summary of what you have read. This guide is
posted in D2L under each unit of study. I will
also go over this with you in our first tutorial.
*Not all of the topics may be covered and/or additional units may be added according to time
availability. Most units will be 5-6 weeks long. Each will consist of lesson assignments, tutorials,
projects, quizzes, and a unit exam. Throughout the year we will also have vocabulary and
grammar lessons. *
Textbooks and Resources:
The required texts for this course are as follows:
Resource Book: Resourcelines 7/8
Anthology: Sightlines 7
Novel: The Cay
It is also strongly recommended that students purchase a Collegiate level dictionary and
thesaurus. Although online versions are available they are not necessarily always accessible.
Evaluation:
Each topic will be evaluated as follows:
Writing (essays, research assignments, creative
writing, functional writing)
40%
Comprehension (unit tests, quizzes, comprehension
40%
questions)
Vocabulary and Grammar
10%
Tutorial attendance and participation
10%
Your term work will count for 80 % of your overall mark.
Final Exam- 20%
Your final exam has 2 (TWO) parts.
Part A (Written Response) will be emailed to your Key Parent and they will be responsible
for supervising and submitting this exam to me via email the same day.
Part B (Reading) will be written on-site, not at home, and written when scheduled. Missing
a final exam (either part), unless prior arrangements have been made with the principal, or
a doctor's note can be provided, will result in a zero grade on said exam.
An exam schedule will be posted close to the end of the year.
Final Grade:
The final grade will be calculated as follows:
Term 1
27%
Term 2
27%
Term 3
26%
Final Exam
20%
Tutorials:
Tutorials and participation at those tutorials is mandatory and will contribute 10% to your
final mark.
Involvement in online tutorials is an important aspect to success in Language Arts. Discussion is
an integral part of the Language Arts program. Tutorials will allow students to discuss important
concepts and share their thoughts, feelings and impressions. Students may also be required to
review previous content and may be quizzed on this information. Students may also be
introduced to new material that will supplement the posted lesson.
Marks for tutorials will be based on the students ability to arrive on time and participate actively
in the discussion. Students will receive a mark of 2/2 if they arrive on time and participate as
required. Students who are either late or do not participate, will receive 1/2. A mark of 0/2 will
be recorded for missed tutorials and those for which students exhibit inappropriate tutorial
behavior. All students who are absent for a tutorial will be expected to watch the recorded
session and send in a brief paragraph summarizing the content of the tutorial in order to
receive marks for that tutorial.
Late Policy:
While a student may be allowed to go back and complete missed assignments, that student will
receive a mark on the assignment(s) in question ONLY- no feedback. Late work will be
accepted throughout the year, however, the term marks will not change on the official
report cards unless a student is able to submit that work before the term cut-off date. The
final mark at the end of the year will be adjusted to include any and all outstanding work
that is submitted throughout the year.
Marked assignments may be re-submitted in an attempt to improve a grade, but re-marked
assignments will be averaged with the original mark, each counting equally.
Exams:
In most cases, there will be a minimum of one exam for each unit. There will also be several
smaller quizzes in each unit to check your understanding of the concepts covered. Students who
fail to take an exam at the scheduled time without making PRIOR arrangements will receive a
mark of 0. It will be the responsibility of your key parent to email the teacher and indicate the
reason for missing the exam. You will have advanced warning for exams (usually 7 days or
longer) so that you can begin to make preparations.
Reminders For Due Dates and Tests: You are informed of the due dates for these things
in THREE ways:
1) On the Schedule/Calendar
2) In your Events (Located on the left side of your home page in D2L.)
3) On the Checklist
Marks:
Marks are updated weekly - bi-weekly and students and parents should be checking their email
for a grade update each week or so. This will allow students and parents to ensure that marks are
correct and as a way of keeping track of progress in the course. Once an assignment has been
marked and returned, it will usually appear in the next weeks update. These updates will
generally occur each Monday of the week.
The grade report sent to you through email will allow you to see the assignment names and the
total marks available for that item/assignment. For example, L7U1L2/20 would mean that
assignment Language Arts 7 Unit 1 Lesson 2 was marked out of 20 marks. You will then see the
mark you received for that assignment.
Some of the other symbols you may see in your grade reports are as follows:
ex - means the assignment has been excused for a temporary period. This means that this
particular assignment or test does not count for or against the student and is NOT part of the
weighted average. Receiving an excused for an assignment is at the teachers discretion ONLY
and this occurs very rarely.
0 is for a mark of zero. This means that the student failed to respond correctly to any of the
items.
Miss means that the assignment has not been submitted for marking.
Your marks are calculated based upon a weighted average. The weights are listed above. You
cannot just add up the marks listed on the marks report as these have not been weighted and are
only your raw score. Each assignment fits into a "category" and each category has its own
weight.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Student Responsibilities: In order to be successful, you should follow a daily routine that
includes the following:
1.Checking your email for new messages and assignments
2.Creating a list/schedule of work to be completed that day
3.Attending all mandatory tutorials
4.Completing the required work and seeking help where needed
5.Sending in completed assignments by the required deadlines
If you are sick, you need to have your key parent email your teachers in order to be excused
from classes and be granted extensions on assignments.
If you will be away from school you must have your key parent email your teachers prior to the
absence. You will be required to catch up on all missed assignments by the new deadlines set
with your teacher.
If you have computer problems, you need to contact tech RIGHT AWAY by calling the office.
Assignment deadlines will only be extended if you show that you have made an effort to fix the
problem right away by seeking help.
Answering Email:
I will be available to answer all email during normal work and "school" hours - 8-4 each
day. Emails sent after this time will not generally receive a response until the next morning.
Students are still encouraged to send in assignments and questions regardless of the time.
Questions can be emailed to Mrs. Schultz at schultz.lisa@rvlc.ab.ca
Assignments:
All assignments are due at 4:00 pm on the due date. Any missing work will be assigned a mark
of miss until the assignment has been submitted and marked.
*Please ensure that you read the expectations above very carefully. Each of the expectations
needs to be followed in order for you to have a productive and successful year at the Virtual
School. If you have questions about any of the policies or expectations for my class at any
time, please ask!! Remember, organization is half the key to this course. Have a great year! *