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Mrs. Boggs’ Science Classroom

Rules, Procedures, and

Expectations for Success

Mrs. Boggs

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What is a procedure

Procedure: A particular course of action intended to achieve a result, a particular way of accomplishing an objective.

Procedures are the way that we do things in

science. We have certain procedures in place in

order to ensure that our time in class runs

smoothly and safely.

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Procedure for Entering Class

Students are expected to line up in a single file line

against the wall opposite of the

restrooms. Students will not

be admitted until they are in a

quiet, single file line with their

shirts tucked in ready to

actively engage in learning.

Once in the classroom,

students are to go to their

assigned seats without talking

(Level 0) and take out the necessary supplies to begin

the day.

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Procedure for Exiting Class

Class is dismissed when I dismiss it--not the bell. I

generally will not hold a class because I know there is a

schedule to be followed, but

students should not

immediately get up and try to

leave the room. Students

must make sure their desk

areas are in order and the

work area is clean for the

next class. The room will be

clean for you when you enter,

so you will do your part to make sure it is clean when

you leave!

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When students are called to exit, they are expected to

gather their belongings and

to return their textbooks

and/or other science

supplies to their proper

locations before being

allowed to exit the room. If

instructed, assignments

and/or class work need to

be turned in to the

appropriate tray (or

location) on the way out of the door. After students

leave the classroom, it is expected that they line up

outside the door of their next period class--not

anywhere else in the hall!

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Start of Class Procedures

Once students have entered

the classroom, they are

expected to take out the

necessary supplies and begin

by filling in today's agenda

information. Next, students

should complete the required

Daily Science Warm-Up which

will be displayed on the LCD

projector. It is during this

time that pencil sharpening is to be taken care of

(consider yourself warned: the sharpener does not

always work in my classroom!!).

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Once the Daily Science Warm-Up has been completed,

take out any homework that may have been assigned

the previous night or begin

looking over the section listed

in today's agenda. All Daily

Science Warm-Ups are to be

recorded on the warm-up

sheets handed out at the

beginning of the week. The

warm-ups should be placed in

your folder and turned in at the

end of each week. NEVER

throw them away, as I will give Warm-Up Quizzes

which will require that you have your old warm-up

sheets. DO NOT TRY TO USE THIS PORTION OF CLASS

TIME TO TALK. IT WILL NOT BE TOLERATED!

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Attention Procedures

Whenever I want your undivided attention you will hear my very

unconventional "call". I will announce “FREEZE". This lets

the students know that I need them to immediately stop

their conversations, work, and activities and adhere

to the following guidelines:

1. Eyes on teacher

2. Quiet

3. Be Still

4. Hands free

5. Listen

Once you hear the "call", I will call

expect students to literally freeze in

their space. This will let me know that I

have your attention. Do not continue to

work on your class work, lab activity, etc. if I have called "Freeze".

Do not follow along and continue to carry on a conversation or

discussion with your classmates. This will result in a loss of

participation points.

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When YOU need the teacher's attention......

Under no circumstances are you to shout

out my name to get my attention. This just

disrupts class and is very rude. If you

need to sharpen your pencil during the

middle of class, you need to raise your hand

and wait to be recognized. Only one person is

to be at the pencil sharpener at a time. If you are

unable to sharpen your pencil without making a mess

(including leaving pencil shavings all over the place), then

sharpening privileges will be revoked until a later date. During the

first 10 minutes and last 10 minutes of class, absolutely NOONE

will use the restroom unless it seems to be a true emergency.

Remember, you must have your agenda with you in order to use a

hall pass--only 2 per quarter (NO EXCEPTIONS!!).

All questions are welcomed in this classroom. This is a safe

place for everyone, no matter what their science ability. Do not

be afraid to ask questions. Make sure you can make a connection

between your question or comment to the topic we are

discussing. If you have some interesting science fact you would

like to share or discuss, see me before or after class.

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Grading Policy

This year in science class, we are going to be using learning targets in each unit. What are learning targets? They are what each student is responsible for knowing, but written in easy to understand language (usually starting with “I can…”). Your final grade in this class is determined by your level of mastery on each of the learning targets on a unit test. Each learning target will be worth three points,

and those points are determined using the information below: Mastery—3 (Green) The student consistently meets and often exceeds the content standard. The student, with relative ease, grasps, applies, and extends key concepts, processes, and skills for the grade level. This means that a student is able to demonstrate clear and consistent understanding of the learning targets. Developing—2 (Yellow) The student regularly meets the content standard. The student, with limited errors, grasps and applies key concepts, processes, and skills for the grade level. This means that a student demonstrates understanding

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of the target, but does so on an inconsistent or incomplete manner. Basic—1—(Red) This student is beginning to, and occasionally does, meet the content standards, or the student is not meeting them. The student is beginning to grasp and apply key concepts, processes, and skills for the grade level, but produces work that contains many errors. This means that a student demonstrates a limited understanding of the target. But, the best part of this format is that if you didn’t score as well as you would have hoped/liked on the unit test, do not despair!

You will have the opportunity to receive additional practice or re-teaching over the target and then re-take the learning target assessment. There is

no limit on the number of times that you re-take a test or a certain time frame that you have to complete the re-testing—but beware!! The longer you wait to take care of those targets that you haven’t mastered, the harder it will be to continue to build upon that

knowledge as we continue to work along in class. There will be time provided for re-teaching/re-testing during Academic Plus class as well as in afterschool tutoring. We will work together to make sure that students have every opportunity to master the content needed in order to be a successful 6th grade science student!

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Cooperative Learning Groups

This science class is set up to allow students to work in

groups. These groups will be selected by the teacher and

will be rotated approximately every six to nine weeks

(depending on the topics being covered). While in the

cooperative "teams", students will be assigned specific

roles, which will rotate among group

members. These roles allow each

group to be the best that they can

possibly be. Each student is

responsible for their respective group

members, so when grouped with a

friend, think twice before deciding to

talk during class. Group work

requires that the voice level should never be above a

Level 2, and groups across the room shouldn't be able to

hear specific conversations. This helps in group

situations because by keeping the voice levels down

within groups, it prevents other groups from

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eavesdropping and "borrowing" one group's ideas and

answers and passing them off as their own.

Each group will have a combination of the following roles

assigned to them at any time:

Team Leader

Materials Manager

Communication

Specialist

Recorder

Time Keeper

Safety Officer

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Restroom Privileges and Hall Passes

Let me make this clear: My class time is not time for your

bathroom or water break. Use the restroom and get

water during the designated breaks. A

student is only allowed two (2) bathroom

passes per nine week grading period. Once

they are gone--too bad, so sad. So plan

accordingly--don't waste the passes and

have it come back and bite you later in the

quarter. A student never knows when a

true need arises and there aren't any

remaining passes to use! Also note: a student must have

their agenda in their possession in order to use a hall

pass--NO EXCEPTIONS!! Any time that a student leaves

the classroom for ANY reason, it will be recorded. If

patterns arise in any given student's requests to leave the

room, a parent conference will be requested to discuss

the situation further.

Only one person will leave the classroom at a time to use

the restroom or to get water. During quizzes and exams,

students will NOT be allowed to leave the classroom

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unless called out by the office. Do not ask! Students with

allergies or those who constantly need to blow their nose,

do not plan on leaving to get tissues every class period.

Take care of business and come prepared to deal with

whatever normal allergy stuff that exists—and not by

asking to leave!

Students will only be allowed two (2)

hall passes per quarter. These passes

are to be used to go to the restroom

or get a drink. Students must have

their agenda in their possession when

they want to leave the classroom. NO

AGENDA = NO HALL PASS. No exceptions. Please be

warned--students will not be allowed to use their passes

to go to their lockers and retrieve class work or

homework. I expect responsibility from my students,

which means they should have their materials with them

for each class. Any unused passes can be redeemed at

the end of the quarter for up to two (2) percentage

points added to your final quarter grade! Use them

wisely!!

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Attendance,/Late/and Make-

Up Work Policy and Procedures

It is important for students to attend class. When

students are absent, they are missing

explanations on the material being

covered in class--things that cannot

be replicated or made-up. It is my

job to clarify and explain complex

science concepts. If you aren’t here

to hear these discussions, then you

are missing a vital part of the learning experience in my

classroom. An absence causes students to work harder

at understanding the information required to be

learned. In other words, you need to be in school so

you do not jeopardize your grade.

Even when a student misses a single class (and not the

entire day) for Drama, doctor's appointments, nurse

visits, field trips, band rehearsals, etc., it is imperative

that you check the agenda to find out what you

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missed. It is also best practice to follow the "buddy

system", in which case you have a friend who helps

you gather your work and notes while you were out.

In the event of an absence, students can obtain the

daily agenda in the binder found below the "While You

Were Out" sign. Students are responsible for

recording this information into their agenda books for

the day(s) in which they were absent. Any handouts

received will labeled in the agenda with an entry

number (i.e., E4) and then

filed in the blue hanging

file in the corresponding

folder. It will be listed in

the agenda whether or

not it is homework. Also, if

there are any papers returned and a student was

absent, the papers will be placed in the "Papers

Returned" drawer found next to the daily agenda.

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In terms of homework due

on a day in which a student

is absent, there are two

rules of thumb to follow:

If the homework was assigned PRIOR to the

date a student was absent, and was due while they

were out, then this assignment is due immediately

upon their return. I RARELY put homework in the

agenda and expect a one day turn around--I have a

busy after school schedule and I know that you do too.

Typically, an item will be listed on the agenda about

two days before it is actually due. Therefore students

have had ample notice and know exactly when the

assignment was due. Just because a student isn't at

school on the due date, it doesn't give them extra

time.

If the homework was assigned DURING a student's

absence, then BMS school policy states that student

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will have however many days that he/she was out of

school to complete their make-up work. For example,

if a student is out four days and

during that time a vocabulary

assignment was given, then

that student has four days after

their return to hand-in their

make-up work.

All make-up work should be

turned into the "Make-Up

Work To Be Graded" drawer

located next to the daily

agenda. Do not hand it to me--I will lose it! Please

place it in the appropriate drawer to ensure that it gets

graded and entered into the course grade book.

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Attendance/Late/Make-Up

Work Policy and Procedures

It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to

get any and all work that you

missed during an absence from

school. I will not ask you about

it, I will simply put a zero in the

grade book for any assignment

that you failed to turn in. This

is the biggest hurdle for

students making the transition

from elementary to middle school. You are beginning

to become young adults, and we are going to treat you

like young adults. With this title comes responsibility--

one of which is to take charge of your academics and

complete any work that you miss.

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Class Handouts Procedures

A lot of the work we are going to do this year revolves

around the usage of handouts. The textbook is used as

a supplemental tool as we

explore science. Since science

textbooks are not distributed

to each individual student, we

will use handouts to help

create our own personal

textbook/reference guide.

Handouts will be distributed

during class by the Materials Manager of the

cooperative learning groups. Handouts will be the

responsibility of the student—be sure to follow all

directions in terms of where handouts should be

placed (folder versus notebook). If the handouts are to

be turned in, they are to be placed in the appropriate

location by either the student or by the team's

Materials Manager (whichever way is instructed).

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Any extra handouts (in case of absence or

misplacement) will be placed in the blue hanging file

found below the Periodic Table of Elements. There is

a clipboard hanging

beside the blue file

which lists the handouts

and their corresponding

folder. It is the student's

responsibility to replace

any missing handouts

and make sure that their

notebooks are always complete and up-to-date.

These handouts are vital study aids for any upcoming

learning target quizzes or tests. Sometimes they are

the only source of reference for a topic in class. The

extra handouts will be on file until the end of the

unit. At that time, they will be removed to make

room for new handouts.

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Oops...I forgot my (fill in

the blank) Policy

It is normal to forget supplies ON OCCASION. When

that happens, I have a sheet you must

sign in order to borrow something

(pen or pencil). If you forget paper,

you may take a sheet of paper from

the black tray found below the

Periodic Table of Elements.

When I notice a pattern in your lack of supplies, I will

contact home and require your parents/guardians to

provide me with supplies that will remain in my

classroom only to be used by you OR I will sell you

supplies for a predetermined price, whichever method

that is decided upon from the contact home.

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Science Notebook Requirements

All students are required to keep a notebook specifically

for science

Notebooks will be assessed for

content and neatness, as organization is

the key to maintaining success in science

class. This notebook will be

graded/assessed at the conclusion of

every unit.

We will be using an Interactive Notebook method of

record and data keeping in this science class. Many of our

daily activities have been modified to be able to be included

in our notebooks to help create a more centralized study

guide for our assessments.

During this course, we will use two composition

notebooks. They will be used as follows:

1 notes & activities for the entire school year

1 for Vocabulary, Daily Science Warm-Ups, and Journal

Entries (to be used all year)

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The order of how the notebook will be set-up is very important as to

help eliminate confusion throughout the school year. For the notes

and activities notebook, they should be organized as follows:

1. Notebook Cover Page—the front of your

notebook should clearly display your name and

class period as to avoid misplacement.

2. Notebook Inside Cover—a copy of the

Classroom Rules and Notebook Procedures

handout should be glued in place.

3. Table of Contents Pages—these will be

inserted in the first few pages of the notebook to

ensure accuracy and to help students keep

organized

4. Left side pages—this side of the notebook will include notes and new

information taken from class lectures and reading material. Traditionally

viewed as the “INPUT” portion of the learning process.

5. Right side pages—this side of the notebook is designed to be used as

a place for students to demonstrate knowledge or practice new skills

being learned in class. Typically referred to as the “OUTPUT” portion of

the notebook.

6. Notebook inside back cover—Science Buddies handout to be glued.

This will be used to show how we will rotate partners throughout the

school year.

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Journal Procedures

Students will write in a journal to help improve their

academic writing skills. Students

might be asked to complete journal

writing after completing the Daily

Science Warm-Up, it may be a

snapshot question, or possibly write

in it as an exit slip.

Students will be expected to

write in COMPLETE sentences and

use proper punctuation. I love to text my family and

friends on my cell phone, but I know when it is

appropriate to use this skill--and academic writing is

NOT the time to show-off your texting prowess! No

shorthand--I want to have you practice writing using

proper English and the writing skills you have learned

in your previous writing courses.

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Journal Procedures

Journals will be left in the classroom at all times and

will be stored by class period.

Journals in this class will be

included in the composition

notebook being used for

vocabulary and Daily Science

Warm-Ups. This was

included on the school supply

list. The Materials Manager

is responsible for picking up

the journals at the beginning

of class each day, while each individual student will be

responsible for returning their journals at the end of

class.

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Classroom Expectations

1) Follow all directions--

the first time.

2) Complete & turn in

work when due.

3) When interacting with

others, check your body

language, voice, words,

and tone.

4) Be on time & in your seat with all of your materials

ready when the bell rings.

5) Talk using appropriate language at the appropriate

time.

6) Be honest--do your own work on homework,

quizzes & tests.

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Discipline

If any of these rules and procedures are not adhered to

within the classroom, disciplinary action will be taken.

Each offense will result in a

record within the

corresponding homeroom

teacher's discipline book,

hereafter referred to simply

as "The Book". "The Book"

is used to monitor minor

offenses that students may

accumulate. If a behavior is

deemed to be more than

minor, then a separate set of procedures may be

followed by either myself or the office.

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If behavior warrants, I

will call home

immediately or write

an office referral

(whatever I deem

appropriate for the

corresponding issue).

A student may or may

not get an office

referral or detention

at any point during

this behavior plan--the guidelines above are general

and special circumstances may require a change from

the plan.

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Lab Policy and Procedures

Labs will be conducted throughout the course of the

year to help you better understand the concepts and

objectives presented in class. There will be a multitude

of inquiry activities done during

the school year to help you grasp

a more in-depth comprehension

of all Earth, Physical, and Life

sciences.

All students are to be on his

or her best behavior while a lab is

in progress. Failure to comply

will result in a suspension of class labs until everyone

in the class is able to work together. All lab policies

must be followed at all times, even if the lab is what

you perceive to be an easy one.

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Lab safety is a priority in this classroom and if a student

is not practicing the necessary

precautions when a lab is in

progress, he or she may be

subject to lose their lab

privileges. Lab safety policy

and procedures are included

in the lab safety contract

given to all students the first

day of school. A student will

not be able to conduct a lab if they do not have a

signed lab safety contract on file with Mrs. Boggs. NO

EXCEPTIONS!

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Acceptable Use Policy

Each and every student at

Bardstown Middle School

must read and sign the

district-wide Acceptable Use

Policy (AUP) for

accessing/using all school

technology. Technology is

used as often as possible in

this classroom and if a

student does not sign the form, they will not be

allowed to either log into the school district's

computer network or have the opportunity to

participate in these activities. Instead they will have to

do paper/pencil activities in its place.

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Mrs. Boggs' Procedures and

Regulations Terms and Agreement

I,______________________________, have read and understand all of

Mrs. Boggs' expectations and procedures. I am fully aware that I am

required to keep a notebook specifically for this class. I understand that I

will be placed in a cooperative learning group and that I will be

disciplined accordingly for breaking and not abiding by class procedures.

I also understand that we are graded on a 3 point scale for every learning

target assessed in this course.

____________________________________ _____________

Student Signature Date

I have read through Mrs. Boggs’ Rules and Procedures Packet with my

child and understand all of the classroom procedures listed in this packet.

I understand that the only grades to be listed in the course grade book

will be learning targets addressed within each unit of study and will be

given a score based on a three point scale.

____________________________________ _____________

Parent Signature Date

Can your child be photographed and/or videotaped to be published any

school publications? _________________________________________________________ ______________________

Parent Signature Date

Yes No