Course Syllabus for Academic Decathlon
Mrs. Byrd
About your teacher I am a graduate of the University of Arizona. My major was Physical Education and I currently hold a teaching certificate for
K-12 physical education. This year is my first year coaching academic decathlon. I look forward to developing a strong team and learning many
things together.
Teacher Contacts: PE office room # F126A
PE office phone #: 407-4260
e-mail address: epecharich@amphi.com
Course description:
The Academic Decathlon™ is a team competition wherein students match their intellects with students from other schools. Students are tested in
ten categories:
Art, Economics, Essay, Interview, Language and Literature, Mathematics, Music, Science, Social Science, and Speech.
Gold, Silver and Bronze medals are awarded for individual events and total scores. Winning teams advance through the local, regional, and state
levels of competition. The state champions compete at the national finals.
The curricular theme for 2006–2007 will be China and Its Influence on the World. Following is some general information on the topics in each of
the subject areas:
 SUPER QUIZ: The Super Quiz topic will be An Introduction to Climatology. The Super Quiz curriculum will include a climate case study
focused on China. The Super Quiz Resource Guide will include readings on such topics as weather and climate, historical evidence of
past climate variability, factors that control climate, climates on other planets, the greenhouse effect and human impact on climate
change, and the impact of climate change on human activity.
 LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE: The language and literature curriculum will include critical reading, one novel and six poems. The
featured novel will be The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck.
 ART: The art curriculum topic will be the art of China, and the curriculum will include the study of eighteen selected artworks. Seventeen
of the selected artworks are from the collections of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. One of the artworks is a work of architecture that is
located in China.
 MUSIC: The music curriculum will focus on the music of China. The Music Resource Guide will cover such topics as traditional Chinese
music, Chinese instruments and musical genres, the influence of Western music on Chinese music, and the influence of Chinese music
on Western music. The curriculum will include a companion CD, featuring eighteen listening selections.
 SOCIAL SCIENCE: The social science curriculum will provide students with an introduction to the history of the People’s Republic of
China. The Social Science Resource Guide will include discussion on such topics as the founding and first years of the People’s
Republic, Mao and Maoism, the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
 ECONOMICS: The economics curriculum will focus on fundamentals of economics, including general topics in macro- and
microeconomics and international trade and global economic development. The economics curriculum will also include a thematic
section focused on the development of a market economy in China.
 MATH: The math curriculum will cover topics in the fields of general math, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and differential calculus.
Your duties in this class:
 Be on time to class.
 Read and studying from notebook and be ready for the next day’s quiz.
 Challenge your self to motivate yourself and other team members to be successful.
 Always strive for more understanding.
Required materials: You will need to buy at least one big 3 ring binder or 7 if you choose to organize by subject area. Half of the class will need
to also buy this year’s literally piece “The Good Earth”.
Attendance Policy:
 If is very difficult to miss a day of class. Each class period there will be at least one quiz based off your assigned reading. Excused absences
can be made up. Unexcused can not. Quiz scores are a large part of who will make the IRHS competition team. If you are absent you are
still expected to continue with reading from your studying guide.
Tardy Policy:
Class will begin promptly each day. Please do not be late!
Grading Policy:
Grades will be posted online and updated at least every other week. www.amphi.com/teachers/epecharich
The following aspects of class will reflect your grade:
 Quiz and test scores
 Team effort
 Individual responsibility to learn the topics
 If you make the competition team, scores and medals won at competition may have the potential to raise your grade.
Cheating:
This class is a team whose over all goal is to compete and do well against other high school students. Cheating is like loosing a competition and
will not be tolerated. See your student handbook for consequences of cheating.
Other Information:
 Appointments: If you need to speak with me on a personal/private issue, please make an appointment with me and I will try to
accommodate you in any way that I can.
My goal this year:
To place in the top 10 at regional. To win at least one or two medals at regional. What is your goal?