Critical Thinking
1 Semester, 2015-2016
st
Stephen.Snidero@iaaprograms.com
1-76-05460336
I.
Course description Critical Thinking Classroom Skills introduces strategies and methods
of learning in an American-based classroom by building skills in all four areas of language:
reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Students will practice their speaking and listening skills
through class discussions, whole class activities, and multimedia presentations. In-class reading
and writing assignments will help students develop better understanding of the academic
language they need to perform well in an English-only classroom. Students will develop their
vocabulary through SAT-style exercises and learn test-taking skills as they complete assignments
and in-class assessments. Students will be introduced to leadership skills as they learn to
collaborate on group assignments and complete teacher-led projects. Students will also learn
basic TOEFL skills as they work on guided reading assignments and begin to develop college
readiness skills. By the end of the course, students will have the foundation skills needed for
success in an American
II.
Course objectives
Students will learn-Turn skills learned in the reading, speaking, listening, and writing into subject
matter
 Reading- Identify the main ideas, supporting details, practice scanning and drawing
conclusions.
 Speaking- Organize thoughts, provide information from readings, express thoughts with
good use of grammar and syntax, contribute informatively and thoughtfully to question
based class discussions.
 Listening- understand daily classroom conversations, participate in listening activities;
use knowledge from previous lessons.
 Writing- use grammar ideas in writing practice. Write clear, well organized essays that
demonstrate writing ability and critical thinking. –Do research outside of class using a
variety of resources which add depth to your knowledge.
 Learn about both print and on-line source material for research. Learn the difference
between primary and secondary sources.
 Analyze source material through careful/close reading –Participate in classroom
activities completely by proper use of English and knowledge of the topic.
III.
Required text
Academic Connections 2 Published By: Pearson
Vocabulary Workshop: Level A Published by Sadlier
IV.
Policies
1. Classroom Behavior- All students are expected to have fun in a respectful manner. This
means you are expected to fully participate in any classroom activity. No teasing, name
calling, play hitting, or bullying any sort is acceptable. Anyone found to be doing this will
be given a yellow card which will negatively impact their grade.
2. Plagiarism and Collusion Policy: Plagiarism is presenting someone else's words or ideas
as your own, without proper reference. Any student found plagiarizing or colluding in
writing assignments may fail the assignment, fail the course.




You commit plagiarism when:
 You copy someone else's writing and do not put it in quotation marks and identify the
source.
You take someone else's writing, change some of the words, and do not identify the
source.
You take someone else's ideas or sequence of ideas, put them into your own words, and
do not identify the source.
Someone else writes your assignments or changes your writing and thus creates a false
impression of your abilities.
You engage in collusion when:
o You receive unauthorized help with your writing by paying or otherwise inducing
another person to do the writing for you.
3. Follow instructions. If you are not sure what you are suppose to do, ask!
4. Come to class prepared. Being prepared for class means you have paper, pen,
textbook, dictionary and completed assignments.
5. Other classes or clubs are not an excuse to miss this one. Every class is important. It is
your responsibility to manage your time.
6. Keep everything done in this class in a folder or binder. Together, we will assess your
progress throughout the semester so it is important for you to keep everything you do.
7. You may not re-write an assignment after it is graded to try to raise your grade so do it
right the first time.
8. Missing class does not excuse missing deadlines or coming to class unprepared. It is
your responsibility to find out what you missed if you are absent from class. Homework
may not be made up if you miss class so make sure you have the number of a friend in
class who you can call in case you miss class.
V.
Grading procedures and Assessment methods
Students will be graded by the following categories and scale:
Categories
Grade scale
15
Classroom Participation
(which will include attendance)15
Projects
10
Homework
10
Vocabulary Quizzes
20
Quizzes
30
Tests
A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
D 60-69
F 0-59
VI.
VII.
Student Expectations
A. Every student must be prepared for class. This means:
a. Homework is completed
b. Textbook(s) and supplies at desk
c. Student is at the desk when the bell rings
B. Every student must participate.
a. In group activities all students must speak and be active
b. Volunteer to answer questions
C. Ask questions if you do not understand.
D. Have fun!
Topics, due dates, and guiding questions
Topic
–
Key Concept
Week
–
Unit Title
Reading and listening for main ideas
and supporting details across a range
of media.
parts of a paragraph (topic sentence
and supporting details)
1-3
–
Main and
Supporting
Ideas


L2.1, L2.2, L2.3, L2.11
L3.1, L3.2, L 3.12 L3.13, L4.1
L7.3–
Focus Questions
–
Major assignments
Why and how to skim, scan, and listen
for gist? Where are the main ideas in a
paragraph or a lecture? How should I
organize a paragraph?
Write paragraph
4-6/2
–
Creating and
Organizing
Ideas
7-9/3
–
Organizing
clarifying
relationships
of Ideas
Identifying the organizational
structure of ideas and how they
relate to each other. Note taking and
an introduction to brainstorming.
Recognizing the purpose of a text.
–
L1.2, L1.8,L1.9 L2.5, L2.9, L2.13–L2.4
L 5.1 L7.1
Organizing ideas for cohesion and
coherence. Use of logical connectives
and signals to understand
organization and relationship
between ideas.
–
L3.4,L 3.5, L4.3, L4.13, L4.14, L5.1,
L7.1, L, L7.4, L7.5 L4.2
How do ideas in a text relate to one
another? How does the relationship
between ideas within a text affect the
overall text?
–
Portfolio Item #1 – Create and present a
viral marketing campaign
How can we make an essay easier to
understand?
Write 4 Paragraph essay on Near Earth
Objects
Mid Term Exam
10
–
11/12–
Summarizing
13-15
–
Synthesizing
16/18
–
Points of
View
Summarizing, recognizing asides,
digressions, major points, minor
points
L 1.5 ,L1.6, L7.2 , L2.12, L 2.6, L3.8
3.13 L4.5
How can we communicate the essence of
an essay with far fewer words?
Synthesizing information from
different sources, recognizing
abstract and concrete examples,
concluding sentences
–
L2.8 L 1.4 L2.7 L3.7 L 3.9 L 4.7
How do we integrate different sources
of material into one cohesive text?
–
Write an academic essay about
emotional responses
Give an oral group presentation
summarizing knowledge of imagination
and acting.
Recognizing difference between
How can we tell if we should believe a
facts and opinions. Recognizing
person based on their use of facts,
strength of arguments Discussing opinions, and the strength of their
opinions and supporting ideas
arguments?
–
L1.3 L 2.15 L2.19 L-1.7 L3.10 L4.6
Interdisciplinary project-Debate
19-20
–
Purpose of
text
21-22
–
Inferences
and
Conclusions
Recognizing different purposes
and attitudes in texts, writing
introductions and conclusions in
essays, consider the audience
–
L2.10 L3.11 L4.4 L7.1 L7.3
Making inferences, inferring
meaning, and drawing
conclusions. Use stress, intonation
and pauses to express meaning.
–
How can we give a well rounded
presentation to a variety of audiences?
Four paragraph essay which
summarizes multiple articles and
recordings with different purpose
–
L1.1
23
Exam