Mr. Thiesmeyer’s English IV – British
Literature
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English IV – British
Literature Syllabus
Mr.
Thiesmeyer
Room:
232
Conference
4th Period
Email:
jthiesmeyer@lfcisd.net
Phone:
(956) 254-5300 Ext. 1066
Web:
www.thiesmeyer.net/eng4
Course
Description: The purpose of this course is twofold:
Literary
Element – This course’s literary objective is to analyze and
interpret a sampling of British literature ranging from the Anglo-Saxon period
to the present in preparation for higher education and for personal
enrichment.
Compositional
Element – There will be a strong emphasis on effective
composition in relation to the course’s literary objectives and for the purpose
of exposing students to and preparing them for collegiate standards and
expectations.
Materials
Required:
Attendance/Tardy
Policy:
Attendance is necessary in that it is a graduation
requirement. Aside from the threat of
losing credit, students will be responsible for all work and notes that are missed
in their absence. Be careful not to let
yourself get too far behind; your education is ultimately your responsibility.
The tardy system is as follows:
The Student is tardy if not in class by the time the
tardy bell rings. Students who receive 3 tardies will
face lunch detention. Students who
receive 6 tardies will face in-school suspension
(ISS). Students who receive 9 or more tardies are subject to the following actions: out-of-school
suspension (OSS), truancy fines (up to $300), and/or loss of credit.
In my class, the door will be locked at all times and
will be closed at the tardy bell. Any
students not in class by that time will be marked tardy unless otherwise
excused.
Electronic
devices:
Cell phones, PSPs, iPods, personal laptops and other
electronic devices are prohibited unless otherwise noted. Devices will be confiscated.
NOTE ON
BYOD
BYOD: Bring Your Own Device initiative: - to
encourage the implementation of “smart” devices and laptops in the classroom.
Student owned devices are welcome in the classroom for academic use. Students using their own devices must be
connected to the school’s network and firewall. A charging station will be
available in class (you must bring your own power supplies). Use of electronic
devices outside of academic use is still prohibited.
You are responsible for your own devices.
Food/Drink:
Snacks and drinks will be allowed in my class under the
following conditions:
This is a privilege, not a
right. Abuse of these rules will result
in suspension of food/drink allowance.
Grading
Policy:
Daily Work = 50%
Test Grades = 50%
Mid Term & Final Exam = 20% of overall grade
Late work will be accepted, but penalized according to
the nature of the assignment and the reason that assignment was not turned in
by the due date. I reserve the right to reject
seriously overdue assignments.
Tests:
In-class exams will be given regularly to evaluate the
students understanding of the material presented in class. As with all
assignments, academic dishonesty* will not be tolerated: anyone caught cheating
will immediately receive a score of zero and disciplinary action will be
taken. In the event that the majority of
the class demonstrates an unacceptable comprehension on an exam, re-teaching
and/or re-testing may result. Make up tests will be given at my discretion at
the earliest possible convenience. It is
highly advised that you DO NOT MISS A
TEST!!
Essays:
All major essays will the typed and submitted following
strict MLA guidelines (will be provided).
Plagiarism* will not be tolerated.
Any student caught plagiarizing will immediately receive a score of zero
and disciplinary action will be taken.
*Note
of Academic Dishonesty: Academic dishonesty or academic misconduct is
any type of cheating that
occurs in relation to a formal academic exercise. It can include:
(Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_dishonesty)
Please
be aware that in many colleges and universities, serious infractions of
academic integrity will invariably result in academic probation or, ultimately,
expulsion. **Students expelled from a major college or university will,
more-than-likely, never be accepted into any other institution.
Journals:
Journal entries will begin (usually) one week into the
semester and will be a daily procedure on all weeks not occupied by state
exams, benchmarks, and time allotted either to major projects or
presentations. The first 10-15 minutes
of each class day will be devoted to your journal entry. Your topic will either be written on the
board, projected, or, on rare occasions, be presented in either video or audio
format. Each entry will be a minimum of
five (5) lines in your composition book or 70 sheet notebook and will be worth
20 points each, for a total of 100 points per week. Multiple entries per page are recommended,
with the date posted beside each entry.
Journals will be read by me, exclusively; however, please do not include
overly personal, sensitive, or offensive issues or the blatant use of
profanity. Journals will be graded the
following week (i.e. week 3’s entries will be graded on week 4) and will be
turned in on the completion of that day’s entry, in this fashion:
1st period
– Monday
2nd period
– Tuesday
3rd period
– Thursday
5th period
– Friday
Students who have a valid excuse will be exempt from days
missed. Please write ABSENT accompanied
by your reason for absence on the appropriate date. **Tardiness will result in
missed entries and/or incur late penalties**
Quizzes:
Once SAT vocabulary quizzes begin, they will be
administered on Fridays, following that day’s journal entry. Content for that quiz will be presented on
the Monday preceding the quiz. Quizzes
over current classroom content can occur at any time and will be completed
individually. All quizzes will be
weighted as a daily grade.
Portfolio:
The student is expected to keep a portfolio of all
written works. This includes all essays
(including drafts), journal entries, and short answer exercises. These are to be kept in chronological order,
by category, and will be evaluated at the end of the term for a major test
grade.
Classroom
Rules:
Classroom
Procedures:
***YOU WILL NOT SLEEP IN MY CLASS ----
END OF STORY ****
Consequences:
Disregard of classroom rules and procedures can result in
the following disciplinary action: verbal warnings, assigned seating,
referrals, and/or parent-teacher conferences.
Note
on zero-tolerance: Possession of any
form of weapon (firearms, knives or sharp-edged devices [excluding scissors]),
fire crackers and other explosives, illegal drugs, and un-prescribed/unreported
pharmaceuticals or engaging in physical, verbal, or psychological abuse or
terroristic threats will result in detention by campus and/or city, county, or
state police and could lead to criminal charges. K9 units will visit this
campus regularly and perform random classroom sweeps. All vehicles and property are subject to
scrutiny.
Bell
Schedule
1st
Period |
8:30 – 10:00 (90
Mins) |
2nd
Period |
10:05 – 10:55 (50
Mins) |
A Lunch 3rd Period BC (Block) ~ 3rd Period
A B Lunch 3rd Period
C ~ 3rd Period AB (Block) C Lunch |
10:55 – 11:25 (30 Mins) 11:30 – 1:05 (95 Mins) ~ 11:00 – 11:45 (45 Mins) 11:45 – 12:15 (30 Mins) 12:20 – 1:05 (45 Mins) ~ 11:00 – 12:35 (95
Mins) 12:35 – 1:05 (30
Mins) |
4th
Period |
1:10 – 2:40 (90
Mins) |
5th
Period |
2:45 – 4:15 (90
Mins) |