Mrs. Pearson’s Earth Science Class
BASIC INFORMATION
Mrs. Pearson
Room 207
E-mail address: pearson@longleafschool.com
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/longleafschool.com/mrs-pearson-s-earthscience-class/. All notes, handouts and homework will be found at this site.
It IS your textbook for this class.
Earth Science A and B distinction: Due to our MWF/TTh schedule, my
1st period class will be on a slightly different schedule than my 5th period
class. Therefore, I have identified my 1st period class as Earth Science A,
and my 5th period class is Earth Science B.
Tutoring hours: Thursdays 7:15 – 8:15
SUPPLIES NEEDED
 4 Composition notebooks for note taking
 Blue or Black Pen for note taking
 Colored pencils
GRADING
Overall Scale:
92.5-100:
A
84.5-92.4:
B
76.5-84.4:
C
69.5-76.4:
D
Below 69.5:
F
Quarterly weighting of grades:
25% Homework
35% Classwork and Projects
40% Quizzes and Tests
Semester weighting of grades:
1st Semester:
2nd Semester
40% Quarter 1 Grade
50% Quarter 3 Grade
40% Quarter 2 Grade
50% Quarter 4 Grade
20% Mid-term Exam
Final Grade:
40% 1st Semester Grade
40% 2nd Semester Grade
20% Final Exam
 CLASSWORK: When we do an activity in class, we will most often have an
accompanying electronic worksheet that will assist you in learning the
concept as we move through the activity. At the end of the class you will
send me your worksheet electronically so that I can check your work to see
that you are doing your work accurately. As long as you turn your
worksheet in on time (no later than midnight the day of the activity), you
may make corrections to them to receive a higher grade.
 HOMEWORK: Earth Science homework will be assignment where you will
take a concept you learned in class and either practice is some more or
explore the concept further. You will always have at least two days to
complete any homework given so that you have the opportunity to discuss
the assignment with classmates or me.
 PROJECTS: Generally projects will be long-term assignments that are
completed both in class and at home.
 QUIZZES: Approximately halfway through most of our units we will take
mid-unit quizzes. Occasionally we will have two quizzes per unit.
 TESTS: At the end of each unit we will have a unit test.
LATE WORK: Any homework or project will be accepted without penalty by 3:40
pm the day it is due. Each day it is late will result in a 10% decrease in the
maximum point value earned. Late work will not be accepted at all after 5 school
days.
MAKE-UP WORK: No make-up work will be accepted for undocumented or
unexcused absences. See the student handbook for absence classification.
Excused absences will not be penalized for turning in work, but a note must be
presented and arrangements must be made with me to clarify the modified due
date.
***If you are unable to complete your assigned work from lack of internet access, a note from a parent
will be required.
EXTRA CREDIT: I rarely offer extra credit. In order to qualify for extra credit,
you must have completed all of your classwork, homework and projects. If you
have done all those things and are still struggling, I will consider assigning an
extra credit project to help you master the concepts in a particular unit. Students
desiring extra credit should make an appointment during tutoring hours to
discuss the request with me.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: I expect you to adhere to the Honor Code outlined in
the student handbook.
RULES, ROUTINES AND PROCEDURES
Rules:
1.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
That’s my only rule, and it covers everything.
a. Respect me – Example: don’t speak when I am speaking.
b. Respect others – Example: don’t speak when another student has
the floor. Do not harass, tease or bully another. My class is a safe
place to learn, and it needs to stay that way.
c. Respect property – Example: keep our classroom clean and supplies
in working order. We have to live with it for the entire school year.
Do not touch or take anything that is not yours.
d. Respect yourself – Example: Be on time and prepared to learn (with
your composition book, calculator, iPad, math folder and pencil,
everyday.) If you respect yourself in this way, you will learn a lot this
year and gain a genuine feeling of accomplishment!
e. Failure to show Respect – If you fail to show the proper respect in my
classroom, you will be given a verbal warning. A second occurrence
of disrespect will result in me making a documentation only discipline
referral, and I will call your parent to determine a strategy to help you
better focus on your classwork. A third occurrence will result in an
administrative referral for disciplinary procedures. Further, a student
whose failure to show respect is an immediate threat to another
student, themselves or me will automatically be referred to the office
for disciplinary procedures.
Routines:
Our typical daily routine will be as follows:
1. Bell work
2. Review
3. Lesson/Activity
4. Review
BELL WORK: Bell work is what I expect you to complete before we get started
with class while I am taking attendance and doing other chores to get our day
started. Everyday I expect you to use the first five minutes of class productively.
You should use this time to:
a. Take out iPad, your composition book and have your supplies ready
to go.
b. Copy down any assignments you see written on the agenda board.
c. Work on any warm-up problem I have assigned for the day
d. Get notes from a classmate if you were absent the day before.
REVIEW: A summary of what we did yesterday.
LESSON/ACTIVITY: New material is introduced at this time.
REVIEW: A brief review of the lesson is given.
PROCEDURES:
1. Raise your hand if you have a question, need to get out of your seat, or
need to speak to your neighbor. The exception to this policy is during bell
work time when you necessarily must be out of your seat to accomplish
some of the tasks you are assigned, or if we are doing an activity where
being out of your seat or talking with your classmates is required. I will
indicate when this is the case.
2. Tardiness: You will be considered tardy to class if I have closed the door to
the classroom and you are outside the classroom and you do not have a
note from a teacher or the office. If this happens you will stay in my room
after class is dismissed. I will give you a pass to your next class or will
walk you there (if it is close by.) In other words, you lose the privilege of
socializing with your classmates between classes.
If you are tardy a second time, in addition to holding you after class, I will
call your parents and advise them that you have been tardy two times. A
third time will result in documentation for administrative purposes. You will
be referred to the administration if you are tardy a fourth time. Hopefully,
no one will be tardy more than once.
3. Restroom usage: You should use the restroom between classes. If it is
absolutely necessary to use the restroom during class, you may use my
hall pass, if we are in the practice portion of our classroom time or it is
otherwise not a disruption to the lesson. If you are using the bathroom
more than once a week during class, I will need to check with your parent
to see if there is a possible medical issue present.
4. Absences: If you are absent, it is YOUR responsibility to:
a. Check the website for any electronic handouts and notes you may
have missed
b. Be prepared to hand in any project that was due on the day you were
absent.
c. Be prepared for any test or mid-unit quiz you missed on the date of
your absence.
d. Classwork will not be made up. Your classwork grade will just be
made up of fewer grades if you are absent when I collect a class
handout. For example, if I collect 10 classwork assignments for the
quarter, and you missed one of classwork assignments, your
classwork grade would only be made up of 9 grades total. Each
assignment would be worth more of your classwork grade.
If you are absent for a prolonged period of time, please have your
parents contact guidance or administration so that we can make
arrangements to have instruction/assignments arranged for the time you
are absent.
How to be a Success in Mrs. Pearson’s Earth Science Class
1. Keep this document in your electronic Earth Science folder at all times for
future reference. You WILL need it!
2. Complete all assignments. It will help you in two ways – it will increase
your grade, simply by adding points to your grade, and it will increase your
test scores because you will have learned more during the unit.
3. Participate and pay attention in class. If you do this you will learn more.
(And class will go by faster!)
4. Study for quizzes and tests. I will not give pop quizzes. I will always give
several days notice for mid-unit quizzes and tests. Therefore you have
plenty of time to prepare for a unit test.
5. Be on time to class. If tardiness is an issue we will discuss why it is
occurring and if you are having some logistical problem, we will work
together to solve it. If there is no logistical problem, you will lose the ability
to leave my room at the end of class and you will be dismissed to your next
class, with a pass, only after the NEXT class has begun.
6. If you miss a class, be responsible and find out what you missed. Check
my website to see what was covered, and for missed homework. Get
notes from a classmate, copy from the website or make arrangements with
me to stay after school to copy mine.
7. Come to school regularly. This class will move at a rapid pace. If you miss
school frequently, you will have a difficult time keeping up. If there is a
serious illness that requires you to miss a substantial number of days in a
row, please have your parent contact the guidance office so that we can
make appropriate arrangements for you.
8. Be prepared to FAIL PRODUCTIVELY! I’m serious. While I don’t want you
to fail your test at the END of a unit, if you are not taking risks and testing
your hypotheses during our units, you are not trying. It is only when we try
something and fail that we learn and grow. If you do everything perfectly
you haven’t learned much. Don’t be afraid to be wrong. We’ll spend a lot
of time “talking” about the science, but this will only work if EVERYONE
participates and thinks.
Let’s listen to Oprah on the subject:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMWFieBGR7c (5:03 – 9:32)
I have read the syllabus and agree to uphold to the policies and expectations.
Signature of Student
Date
_____________________________________________ __________________
Signature of Parent/Guardian/Caregiver
Date
_____________________________________________ __________________