Welcome to Curriculum Night Walker Intermediate School 2019-2020

Welcome to Curriculum Night Walker Intermediate School 2019-2020 Team Michigan Mrs. Becker 6th grade – ELA #anythingispossible

Discipline Policy The Walker Way: BE RESPECTFUL, BE RESPONSIBLE, BE SAFE Procedures/Rules are a part of life and are intended to make our classroom/school a respectful, responsible, and safe environment.

Discipline Policy Students will be expected to follow all procedures outlined in the PBIS expectations matrix (posted in my classroom and included in parent information packet) as well as other procedures taught throughout the year. Should a student violate any of the above, a proper consequence determined by the teacher and or the Administration Team will be issued. Consequences are as follows: verbal warning, detention(s), phone call(s) home, conference with teacher, change of seat, referral, and/or visit to the office. Compliance with procedures/rules will result in following rewards: constructive learning, verbal praise, PBIS tickets, free time, participation in end of year activities, and/or participation in various activities throughout the year.

Positive Reinforcement To encourage students to follow classroom procedures/rules, I will reinforce appropriate behavior with rewards. Rewards can be whole group and/or individual. Students can earn PAWS for our class and tickets individually. Tickets can be redeemed at “PawMart” during lunch on designated days.

Weapons Policy A student who uses, possesses, controls, or transfers a weapon, or any other object that can reasonably be considered, or looks like, a weapon, shall be expelled for at least one calendar year, but no more than 2 calendar years. The Superintendent may modify the expulsion period and the Board may modify the Superintendent’s determination, on a case-by-case basis. A “weapon” means possession, use, control, or transfer of: (1) any gun, rifle, shotgun, a weapon as defined by Section 921 of Title 18, United States Code, firearm as defined in Section 1.1 of the Firearm Owners Identification Act, or use of a weapon as defined in Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code; (2) any other object if used or attempted to be used to cause bodily harm, including but not limited to, knives, brass knuckles, billy clubs; or (3) “look-alikes” of any weapon as defined above. Any item, such as a baseball bat, pipe, bottle, lock, stick, pencil, and pen, is considered to be a weapon if used or attempted to be used to cause bodily harm. The Superintendent or designee may grant an exception to this policy, upon the prior request of an adult supervisor, for students in theatre, cooking, ROTC, martial arts, and similar programs, whether or not school sponsored, provided the item is not equipped, nor intended, to do bodily harm.

Assignment Notebook Tool for communication between classroom and home. Daily assignments are posted in class as well as on my webpage. Students should write EVERYTHING that I write on the class assignment notebook page. All assignments are handed back throughout the week.

ABSENCES / TARDIES ABSENCES. Assignments missed due to illness will be given one day per day of absence plus one day. Requests for homework should be given to the school office before 11 AM and picked up at the school at the end of the school day. Summit Hill School District 161 appreciates parents taking an active role in the child’s education both at school and at home. Students may take advantage of study hall to complete work. When a student is absent, it is the responsibility of the student to ask for his or her absent work.

Missing Assignment Policy Assignments that are not completed by the due date will count as a missing assignment and a MISSING ASSIGNMENT slip (pink slip) will go home for parent signature. Until the missing assignment is turned in, the assignment will be marked as a ‘missing’ or ‘incomplete’ in PowerSchool. Once the assignment has been completed, the grade in PowerSchool will be updated to show the final score on the assignment. The missing assignment slip (pink slip) must be returned with parent signature along with completed work. FIVE missing assignments (accumulated across all subjects) will result in MANDATORY study hall attendance for TWO days per week. Subsequent missing assignments will result in one additional day added to mandatory study hall up to the maximum attendance of 5 days per week. After 4 weeks, if a student has not had any additional missing assignments, they are no longer required to attend mandatory study hall. At any time, the parent and teacher may need to develop a plan to assist the student. LATE HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS ACCUMULATE FROM. ALL SUBJECTS PER QUARTER. STUDENTS BEGIN EACH NEW ACADEMIC QUARTER WITH A CLEAN SLATE.

Assessment and Grading District grading scale: A 90-100% - student achievement is outstanding and demonstrates continuous excellence B 80-89% - student achievement is above average F 50-59% - student achievement represents failure of student to meet minimal academic expectations C 70-79% - student achievement meets expectations D 60-69% - student achievement does not meet expectations; student needs reinforcement Adjusting the grading scale reduces the negative impact of zeros on a student’s grade. Each grade will have an appropriate and equal amount of influence on the student’s final grade. The lowest score that will be reported in PowerSchool is a 50% - if the actual grade is lower, actual grade will be reported in the comments section of PowerSchool. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTS - 25% OF STUDENT’S OVERALL GRADE IN A SUBJECT SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTS - 75% OF STUDENT’S OVERALL GRADE IN A SUBJECT

Assessment and Grading REASSESSMENTS: “Safety Net” - not a strategy Summative Reassessments - required for students scoring below a 70% Students must show readiness for the reassessment through a series of tasks to demonstrate understanding Opportunity for students that score above a 70% available For all reassessments, the most recent score will be reported as the final score Reassessment “Contract” required for any student to complete a reassessment Reassessments will be completed during study hall.

Reading Curriculum In reading we will work on writing, speaking/listening, vocabulary skills, Greek and Latin roots, and writing text dependent answers. The Collection Series will be used as well as reading novels. Students are to have an independent novel with them at all times. 6th grade ELA curriculum is aligned to Common Core Learning Standards. Students have the opportunity to participate in the 20 book challenge. We will also read a variety of novels throughout the year. We will start with Flush by Carl Hiassen. Students each quarter will give a book talk on an independent book they are reading. This will be a speaking/listening assessment as well as opportunity to encourage students to read a variety of books this year. Students will take NWEA three times a year.

Accelerated Program Summit Hill School District 161 is now providing an accelerated curriculum option in Mathematics and English Language Arts in grades 5-8. This program is as inclusive as possible to increase the overall percentage of students exposed to advanced content and academic rigor by the time they complete eighth grade. We strive to provide flexible and innovative teaching and learning environments where students have the opportunity to probe deeper into the content of the curriculum, experience different processes of learning, and create projects to encourage exploration and

ELA Goal: Increase academic rigor as students transition into English 1 or Honors English 1 in high school. The writing and grammar expectations increase in this course. Grade-level standards will be followed with the addition of a 4th quarter culminating project called a Passion Project. This may become a text extension or writing project linked to a higher Depth of Knowledge level. Students will present their projects at the conclusion of this unit. Some steps will take place within the classroom, while others will take place at home. Additional details about the Passion Project will be shared throughout the year.

R.A.C.E.S. In sixth grade we follow the acronym for R.A.C.E.S. R restate the question A answer the question C cite text evidence to support answer E explain thinking S sum it up (summary statement)

English Curriculum Students will be responsible for studying Greek & Latin roots. English curriculum will be a balance of writing and grammar. Freckle is an educational website that provides practice and assessments on a variety of target skills. Students will be exposed to Freckle each week to monitor progress towards skills and concepts that aligned with common core standards.

ELA CLASS What to expect in class: Group work/ Collaboration Independent inquiry Whole class discussions Projects to Demonstrated Learning Entrance and Exit Tickets Use of tablets What to expect at home: Preparation for all class discussions - note taking, annotating, and rereading assigned reading Extensions of any independent work Preparation for formative and summative assessments

CYCLE ROTATION Period 1 – Physical Education Monday - Friday 8:27am – 9:07am Period 6 – Lunch 11:57am – 12:37pm (Intramurals first/Lunch second) Period 7 – Cycle Rotation 12:39pm – 1:19pm MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY Music Art Skills & Strategies Technology Library / Cool Tool

Mrs. Becker’s Webpage Visit my webpage to stay updated on what is happening in the classroom/school each week Go to www.summithill.org, click on Hilda Walker (left hand side), click on Teacher Pages (left hand side), click on Mrs. Becker Notes, Important Dates, General Information, & Upcoming Assessments NOTE: Things are subject to change as needed Homework is posted on my webpage, but is subject to change – please refer to your child’s assignment notebook for all assignments. “Remind” – text / email service used to communicate upcoming activities and assessments. Not used as a daily assignment reminder.

Contact Information Phone: Call the main office to leave a voicemail message Write a note E-mail anytime [email protected]

TEAM MICHIGAN-THANK We are all working towards the same goal – YOU!!! providing the best possible environment for the students to reach and exceed any goal they set for themselves. I am looking forward to a great year and partnership! Thank you for coming to Hilda Walker’s Curriculum Night.

Please follow your child’s schedule to meet each of his/her teachers.