Dear Parent or Guardian,

I would just like to take a moment to welcome you and your student to my American History II class here at Knightdale High School. American History II is third social studies courses which your student will need to pass in order to graduate from high school in Wake County (the others are: American History I, Civics & Economics and World History). Course credit depends solely on finishing the semester with a cumulative passing average of 70% or higher. The final average will be determined as follows: 1st 9-weeks = 40%, 2nd 9-weeks = 40%, final exam = 20%.

I would also like for you to understand how each 9-weeks grade will be determined for the course:

Tests/Projects / 40%
Quizzes / 15%
Class work / Homework / 20%
Common Core Activities/Assignments / 25%

Interim reports will be sent home about every 3 weeks. I strongly encourage you to monitor grades on-line through PowerSchools, which (time allowing) I update daily. If you do not have a PowerSchools account set up, please visit the Wake County Public Schools website at www.wcpss.net for details on how to apply for one. Also, you can receive up-to-the-minute updates by following our class on Twitter @mcushst.

I would like to take this opportunity to provide you with my contact information and to invite you to contact me at any time with concerns, problems, or questions. My school e-mail address is . I can also be reached at the school between 7:30 AM and 3:30 PM on school days – the telephone number for the main office is 217-5350. I am always glad to meet with you in person either before school (7-8 AM), during my planning period (11:00 AM- 1:00 PM), or after school (after 3 PM); simply make an appointment to meet with me through the school’s Student Services office. For documentation reasons, I am unable to meet with you directly unless you request a meeting through your student’s counselor in Student Services.

Finally, I have created a syllabus which shows what our topics will be each day throughout the semester and when major tests will be administered. I hope that this will help you and your student stay up to date with where we are in class in case of unforeseen absences; the syllabus is accessible from my class website: http://jmcconnell.pbworks.com or through the www.edmodo.com site (for students who create an account). Please check it regularly – this is where I will post any necessary changes in our schedule, as well as copies of in-class handouts.

The course textbook can be found at the link provided on http://jmcconnell.pbworks.com.

Knight Time will be 25 minutes each week for the purposes of remediation and enrichment. This will give the students the opportunity to develop and show mastery of the content learned the previous week.

If you have any questions or concerns, please, don’t hesitate to contact me.

With best regards,

Jerrod McConnell

Social Studies Department

Knightdale High School