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8th Grade Literacy

Kendrick Middle School


School Year: 2017 - 2018

Course 8th Grade Honors ELA


Name
School Kendrick Middle School Teacher Mrs. Michelle Talley
Name 7971 Kendrick Road Name
Jonesboro, GA 30238
School Teacher Michelle.talley@clayton.k12.ga.us
Phone 770-472-8400 Email
Number
School http://024.clayton.k12.ga.us/ Teacher http://writeonwithmrst.weebly.com/
Website Website

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS DEPARTMENT PHILOSOPHY:


Clayton County Public Schools believes that literacy is an essential skill for every child to be
successful in school, work, and life. Every child can learn to read for enjoyment and for
information when they are equipped with the appropriate knowledge, skill set, and required to
demonstrate higher levels of thinking through reading, writing, and speaking & listening. The
key ingredient to a students success is an educator who is prepared with the appropriate
resources, knowledge, and a belief that our students can excel beyond measure!

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Instruction in grade eight addresses students increasing maturity and the growing
sophistication of their abilities. Students should be able to comprehend more challenging
books and articles, basing all of their analyses, inferences, and claims on explicit and
relevant evidence from the texts. Students will expand on their ability to identify central ideas
by identifying how those themes are shaped and conveyed by particular details. Their
analysis of basic literary elements will extend to identifying connections and complexities
within narratives and how individual elements weave together to advance plot and reveal
character. The evaluation of the impact of language on tone and meaning will begin to
include more sophisticated concepts such as analogy and allusion, subtleties in point of view
such as dramatic irony, and a more sophisticated appreciation for connotative diction. These
skills will be incorporated into the students own narrative, informational, and argumentative
writing. Students will become increasingly adept at understanding an authors biases, the use
of complex rhetorical devices including logical fallacies, and tailoring his or her own prose for
maximum influence. In addition, the eighth grade curriculum embraces the three major shifts
of the Georgia Standards of Excellence:
1. Complexity: The standards require regular practice with complex text and its
academic language
2. Evidence: The standards emphasize reading and writing grounded in evidence from
text, both literary and informational
3. Knowledge: The standards require building knowledge through content rich non-
fiction
While continuing with a variety of literary non-fiction, students in grade eight will begin to
tackle more technical informational texts as well. Literary selections will include foundational
materials from mythology, cultural histories, and religious traditions. Text complexity levels
are assessed based upon a variety of indicators.

Additionally, key research concepts will include media literacy, conducting searches, and
finding and using sources. The Speaking and Listening standards require students to
develop a range of broadly useful oral communication and interpersonal skills. Students
must learn to work together, express and listen carefully to ideas, integrate information from
oral, visual, quantitative, and media sources, evaluate what they hear, use media and visual
displays strategically to help achieve communicative purposes, and adapt speech to context
and task.

More information regarding the course standards can be found by accessing the following
link: https://www.georgiastandards.org/Georgia-Standards/Pages/ELA-6-8.aspx

REQUIRED STATE ASSESSMENT:


The required state assessment for this course is the Georgia Milestones Assessment
System (GMAS). The purpose of the Georgia Student Assessment Program is to measure
student achievement of the state-adopted content standards and inform efforts to improve
teaching and learning. Results of the assessment program are utilized to identify students
failing to achieve mastery of content, to provide educators with feedback about instructional
practice, and to assist school districts in identifying strengths and weaknesses in order to
establish priorities in planning educational programs (Georgia DOE, 2014).

CURRICULUM OVERVIEW:
The following academic concepts will be covered. THIS IS ONLY A GUIDE AND IS
SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

CURRICULUM OVERVIEW
Unit Unit Theme/Topic End of Unit Timeframe
Performance
Task
Collection Culture and Expository
1 Belonging Essay Each unit is seven weeks of
Collection The Move Towards Literary instruction
3 Freedom Analysis
Collection Approaching Argumentative
4 Adulthood
Collection The Value of Work Narrative
6
Collection Anne Franks Legacy Expository
5 Essay

The end of unit Collection Performance Tasks require students to develop a variety of writing
and speaking products, working through the process of planning, producing, revising, and
presenting for each task.
BOARD-APPROVED INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
Title of the Literature Anthology Georgia Collections 8
ISBN-13/EAN: 9780544090958
ISBN
ISBN-10: 0544090950
Replacement Cost
$66.65
www.myhrw.com
Online book and/or resources
Websites, Programs, and Resources will be listed in our Google Classroom.
Remediation Tools
Online student access code TBA
(school specific)

GRADING SYSTEM: Clayton County Public Schools believes that the most important
assessment of student learning shall be conducted by the teachers as they observe and
evaluate students in the context of ongoing classroom instruction. A variety of approaches,
methodologies, and resources shall be used to deliver educational services and to maximize
each students opportunity to succeed. Teachers shall evaluate student progress, report
grades that represent the students academic achievement, and communicate official
academic progress to students and parents in a timely manner through the electronic grading
portal.

GRADING CATEGORIES *GRADE PROTOCOL


o Homework 10% A 90 100
o Quizzes 15% B 80 89
o Classwork 45% C 71 79
o Projects / Performance Tasks 15% D 70
o Tests 15% F Below 70

DISTRICT EXPECTATIONS FOR SUCCESS


STUDENT Semester progress reports shall be issued four and a half, nine and
PROGRESS thirteen and a half weeks into each semester. The progress of
students shall be evaluated frequently and plans shall be generated
to remediate deficiencies as they are discovered. Plans shall include
appropriate interventions designed to meet the needs of the students.
ACADEMIC Students will not engage in an act of academic dishonesty including,
INTEGRITY but not limited to, cheating, providing false information, falsifying
school records, forging signatures, or using an unauthorized
computer user ID or password.
HOMEWORK Homework assignments should be meaningful and should be an
application or adaptation of a classroom experience. Homework is at
all times an extension of the teaching/learning experience. It should
be considered the possession of the student and should be collected,
evaluated and returned to the students.
MAKE-UP WORK When a student is absent because of a legal reason as defined by
DUE TO ABSENCES Georgia law or when the absence is apparently beyond the control of
the student, the student shall be given an opportunity to earn grade(s)
for those days absent. Make-up work must be completed within the
designated time allotted.
CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS FOR SUCCESS
CLASSROOM 1. Raise hand and wait to be recognized BEFORE speaking.
RULES 2. Follow directions the first time given.
3. Stay in assigned seat unless given permission to move
4. Be courteous! Do not talk while the teacher or another
student is presenting material.
5. Stay on task.
CLASSROOM 1. M.Y.O.B. Mind your own business
EXPECTATIONS 2. Be respectful of others.
3. If it is not yours, then do not touch it.
4. Be prepared every day for class.
5. Have a positive attitude!
Consequences Warning
Complete behavior writing assignment
Class isolation (call period/school day)
Parent/Guardian contact/conference
Detention
Office referral
MATERIALS AND 1. 1-inch binder and continuous supply of notebook paper
SUPPLIES 2. dividers
2 pocket folder
3. Agenda (provided by school)
4. coloring utensils
5. pencils, pens (blue or black)
6. highlighters
7. Glue sticks
DETENTION TBA
POLICY
LATE WORK Students may receive a 1-day grace period for any late
POLICY
assignments. The highest grade given for late assignments is
70%.
MAKE-UP WORK Students will have the opportunity to turn in late work. Student
POLICY
will have the same amount of time to return work equivalent to
See page 13 in your days missed. For example, if you have missed three day of
Student Handbook
school, when you return, all missing work is due 3 days later.
Please contact me if you have any questions. It is your
responsibility to see me if you do not understand when your
missing work is due! All assignments will be housed in our
Google Classroom.
Homework Policy Student are expected to write down assignments as they are
assigned in their agenda/academic planner. STUDYING is a
homework assignment every day. Homework is written on the
board daily
Parent Participation Please join our class community on Class Dojo and Remind to
receive updates, and to chat with Mrs. Talley as needed.

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