Desert Edge US History 2017-18
Dear Parents & Students,
Welcome to the new school year, I am Mr. Day, first off for everyone a little background on my qualifications and how I got to be part of the family here at Desert Edge. Born and raised here in Arizona, in the west valley to be more exact. My family owns a farm in the Buckeye area, which I grew up working on. My parents from a young age had me into history, by showing me actual sights throughout America, books, shows, movies, and much more, which started my admiration for historical events. I attended high school down the road from DE at Estrella Foothills, where I played basketball, which is what I’ll also be Freshman head coach and varsity assistant. For my college years I earned a double major degree of Secondary Education and History at Ottawa(KS) University. Upon finishing my student teaching under Pat McCubbins at Estrella Foothills, I taught at Maricopa High School before coming back to the west valley here at Desert Edge a year ago. I’m excited to be back in my hometown and contribute to helping along the students at being not only successful in history but being prepared for real world scenarios that will come their way after high school, which is the most important to be ready for the next step in the journey.
So with this I say a very happy welcome to Mr. Day’s American/Arizona history course, this will be a yearlong class with a pre and posttest to show your growth. As a class we will dive into who were the first to discover North America all the way to modern day events in the 21st century. Taking a look at the different cultures that have been a part of making America and Arizona what they are today. In this course you will be asked to perform many tasks, and be expected to have respect for one another and be responsible for their own work. In this class you will be asked to perform tasks that you can then use in real world scenarios. Whether it is at the college or professional level you will see a lot of assignments that are going to be aimed at preparing you for these aspects of the student’s life. We will continue on with the motto of Desert Edge High School Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships. We Are DE! Part of moving forward in the educational process starts with the three R’s.
In this syllabus you will get all the logistics of the course, what will be expected of the students on a daily basis, as well as their grading expectations and school wide policies. I request that you and the student to sign this and return by Friday August 11th. A list of movies and shows will also be part of this, if you have any problems or concerns with any that could be shown throughout the year please feel free to contact me. Below I have listed my contact information. Thank you for your time and I’m excited to get this year started with all of you.
Mr. Day
American/Arizona History
Ext. 3061
RM: A5
Classroom management plan:
Basic Rules:
- Respect the rights, opinions, and property of your teacher and peers.
- Don't be selfish!
- Follow all class expectations as said below.
Modifiers for Rule Breakers:
●1st offense- warning (I will quietly let the student know their
warning)
●2nd offense- Detention slip given quietly to student, and contact with parent(s)/guardian(s).
●3rd offense- The student will be sent to the office and a call home to parent(s)/guardian(s) may be made
Cheating:
●Zero tolerance policy and automatic detention slip will be given to the student or students involved.
●Also unable to make up assignment or assessment in question. Automatic grade is a zero.
My Classroom Procedures:
Start of class:
●Please walk in silently, sit down in assigned seat, take out Chromebook to complete bell workfor the question posted. If you finish early get out the required materials and sit silently until further directions.
●Every day when the bell rings students will be asked to do a warm-up. There will be a question on the board relating to the History we will be covering that day, or current events. Students will have about 5-7 minutes to answer this question. This will be for participation credit and will be a large portion of your overall grade in class.
●As the student you will be responsible for getting your classwork or homework checked off and stamped by Mr. Day. You can do so on YOUR time, beginning of class and during your classwork time. NOT during the lesson or when Mr. Day is addressing the class.
●Then we will go into daily notes, activity or classwork. The teacher for the class, if wanted during classwork time will sometimes play music. (Please let me know if you have any problems or concerns with certain music)
During Class:
●As the student you will have several procedures to follow and knownthroughout class. First off being when the teacher is addressing the class you are to be silently following along or taking notes.
●Students will also be expected to work within their assigned groups
●Expectation is this class is a team, we win together, we lose together, we pick each other up when needed. All of these are important to understand.
●Contributing to class is important, if called upon you are expected to make an attempt at the question or statement given to you. Other students will be there to help when called on by the teacher. You will encourage each other; we are a team.
●When working on individual assignments, if given permission by teacher, you can use headphones for music only. You are expected to finish work silently, if any questions raise your hand to be helped by teacher
●In group work all members will contribute evenly, a peer accountability sheet will be used for projects, and points given based on your involvement with the group to fix the task given.
●Follow the Rules of the classroom, and this will create a team based flow with learning that can help you succeed in real life scenarios.
End of class:
●Please do not pack up your belongings before the bell rings; this is disrespectful to your peers and me.
●All students are expected to work until the end of class, making good use of our limited time
●I will always end the last five minutes of class with checking for students’ understanding of what was taught that day. I will be your 5-minute warning to pack up, NOT you or your classmates.
●The classroom needs to be cleaned up and all students must be seated before being dismissed!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grading System:
A-90-100
B-80-89
C-70-79
D-60-69
F- 0-59
Grades will be based on the weighted scale below
Final/Midterm - 20%
Tests/Quizzes – 25%
Projects/Essays – 20%
Homework/Classwork – 35%
My Policies:
1.Materials suggested for class
◆3-ring binder at least 2 inches’ wide
◆Dividers with the following headings
●Notes
●Handouts
●Assignments handed back
●Projects
◆1 Spiral Notebook
◆Pens
◆Pencils
2.General rules:
Attendance:
●This will be taken during bell work at the beginning of class. For sweep it is the Threshold policy by last bell.
●Be sure you are in your seat at this time to avoid being marked absent.
Absences:
●It is your responsibility to find out what you missed. the missed days folder will be in the front of class.
●Make-up tests and quizzes can be given before school or after school; students are to make arrangements with the teacher.
●Bell work may be made up in the form of a current event write-up.
●Late Work: I will allow late work with a 10% penalty up until the Unit test of the section that your work is in.
Hall Passes:
●I will allow students to use the hall passes over a semester, however only one person may use the pass at a time it is Desert Edge policy to not use the restroom for the first and last 15 minutes of class and not during the teacher’s lecture.Students will come up and sign out showing they have used the restroom. If the student does not use a pass for the whole semester nor receive any detentions or referrals they can then have their lowest test score taken away.
●Students may leave to use the restroom or water fountain only!
Student Expectations
●Cell Phones/IPods are not to be used unless instructed by teacher to do so
●Again Students are NOT allowed to use electronic devices in class unless given permission by the teacher
●No Earbuds in Class
●Students who violate classroom policies should be handled as defiance and discipline procedures should be followed.
●Do not confiscate devices
●Phones will not have access to Wi-Fi
Technology Expectations:
- Students will use the computers/technology as instructed to do so by the teacher.
- Students will treat the computers/technology with respect.
- Problems with technology are not an acceptable excuse for late submission of your assignments. You MUST assume that technology will fail you at some point. You cannot and should not assume that everything will go smoothly when it comes to the internet, e-learning course management tools, and computers. It is incumbent upon you to PLAN AHEAD and not leave your projects for the last possible moment
- I will obey copyright laws and properly cite sources when using online resources.
- I will not share my passwords with another person.
- I will not harm other people or their work.
- I will not trespass in another’s folders, work, or files.
- I will not write or draw on the device or apply any stickers or labels that are not property of the District; Handle the device carefully and ensure others do the same; Not leave the device in places of extreme temperature, humidity, or limited ventilation (e.g., in a car) for an extended period of time; Secure the device when it is out of their sight. The device should not be left in an unlocked locker, a desk, or other location where someone else might take it;
- Students must bring the device to school every day to be used in class.
- Students are permitted to use the device at home, they are responsible for bringing it to school every day, fully charged.
- No Right to Privacy. The devices are District property; therefore, the District may examine the devices and search their contents at any time for any reason. Neither students nor parents/guardians have any right to privacy of any data saved on the device or in a cloud-based account to which the device connects.
*Internet access is vital to your child’s success in this class.Students who do not have internet access at home are encouraged to utilize campus resources during Power Hour and the public libraries. For information on how Desert Edge HS can help provide you with low cost internet at home, please visit the Desert Edge website, under resources or use the following link:
Movie List
Here is a list of possible movies, clips, or shows that will be shown in this course, as part of the signature below you will be giving permission that your child will be able to be present for all of these clips: The movies below all have historical relevance, and though sometimes dramatized it is a crucial point to be able to give students a visual aid in the learning process. Violence may be present in most below.
History Channel, American Military Network, and Travel Channel (anything made by this entities), America Story of Us, Crash course US History, Turn: Washington's Spies, Last of the Mohicans, The Patriot, The Constitution, How the West was Made, Into the West, Open Range, Anthropoid, WWII in Color, Vietnam in Color, The Pacific, Band of Brothers, Saving Private Ryan, Pearl Harbor, Saints and Soldiers, American Sniper, 13 hours of Benghazi, Lone Survivor, Forrest Gump, We Were Soldiers, The Boy in Striped Pajamas, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Memphis Bell, Black Hawk Down, Hawksaw Ridge, Apollo 13, 42 (Story of Jackie Robinson), Remember the Titans, Glory Road, Hoosiers, We are Marshall, 11.22.63., Dunkirk, Siege of Jadotville, ‘71, Hell on Wheels, Frontier.
Next page to be please signed and returned by FRIDAY August 11th.
Student Name: ______(print)
Student Signature: ______
Parent(s) or Guardian Name(s): ______
Parent(s) or Guardian Email AND/OR Contact number: ______
Parent(s) or Guardian Signature: ______
Date: ______