Olympian High School “Where Champions Are Made”

English 10

Course Syllabus

English 10 Course Description

Course Rationale English 10 is a one-year course designed to prepare students to pass the California High School Exit Exam with proficiency and prepare students for college through the use of California’s Common Core Standards. Moreover, using fiction and expository texts, students will work to strengthen their skills in critical reading, writing, listening, and speaking. In their 9th grade year students worked on defining and identifying literary/rhetorical strategies, in contrast 10th graders will focus on evaluating literary/rhetorical strategies used in novels, poetry, drama, short stories, essays and technical and consumer documents. The primary text that will be used is the district adopted Holt Literature and Language Arts for 10th grade.

Pre-requisites Students are expected to have mastered the K-8 California English Language Arts Standards. In addition, students are expected to have passed the English 9 Language Arts course.

Course Description Throughout the year, students will practice and demonstrate the following skills and expectations in accordance to California’s newly adopted Common Core Standards: independence in learning situations, wide use of vocabulary, strong content knowledge, appropriate response to varying demands of audience, task, purpose, and discipline in reading and writing, reading comprehension as well as critique, value of evidence in reading and writing situations, use of technology and digital media, and an understanding of other perspectives and cultures vicariously through classical texts. In addition, students will examine: Habits of Mind, College Readiness Skills, reading strategies and MLA documentation. Also, students will engage in units addressing the California High School Exit Exam, progress towards the SUHSD Senior Outcomes, and the skills necessary for college readiness.

Suggested Texts and Materials:

• Holt Literature and Language Arts Text and Ancillary Materials • A Guide to MLA Documentation (ISBN 0-618-64694-9) • Spiral Notebook • Blue or Black Pens (No pencils) • Highlighters • College-ruled loose leaf notebook paper • Additional material may be required by individual teachers

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English 10 Course Description

College Readiness Skills Students will learn how to describe, summarize, relate/apply, synthesize, and evaluate; all these are skills necessary for success at a four-year university. Habits of Mind Students will practice three major Habits of Mind that lead to success in higher education. These habits are:

• Meta-Cognition • Intellectual Perseverance • Intellectual Curiosity

Student Expectations (Participation):

• Each student will attend class daily and promptly. • Each student will consistently bring materials and be prepared to contribute in a

positive manner. • Each student will complete assignments on time and contribute with relevant

academic discourse. • Each student will strive to integrate the Habits of Mind. • Each student will demonstrate respect toward her classmates and teacher at all

times. • Each student will be in their seat before the tardy bell rings and begin their “Do Now”

activity without prompting. • Students should not miss instructional time and should try to use the restroom during

the passing period. Use of the hall pass will be minimal. • The use of non-approved technology during an exam may void the results of that

exam.

Homework Policy Independent reading should happen on a daily basis. It is recommended that each student spend 30 minutes or more a day reading an independent reading book. Moreover, homework will be given Monday-Thursday. If it is not specifically assigned a student should assume that the day’s homework is independent reading for 30 minutes minimum.

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English 10 Course Description

Assessments Formative: Formative assessments are checkpoints that allow the teacher to track progress toward the mastery of a standard sub-strand. Students with a D or F, or not mastering the standard, may retake formative assessments after tutoring or remediation recommended by the teacher. *Note: Skills need practice and therefore not all work turned in will be evaluated. Formative assessments are used as preparation for the summative--greater weighted assessment. Summative: Summative assessments are the culmination of a unit’s work. These will be graded. They will always include a formal writing response and an objective test addressing the skills of the California High School Exit Exam and California Common Core State Standards, and progress toward the SUHSD Senior Outcome Grading Policy Citizenship: Citizenship grades will be based on the following:

1. Attendance and timeliness 2. Preparation for class including required materials 3. Completion of assignments 4. Positive participation 5. Ability to listen to others 6. Positive, non-disruptive behavior 7. Exhibiting college preparatory skills and participation

Academic: Academic grades will be based on the following:

1. Independent Reading and vocabulary10% 2. Formative Assessment 30% 3. Summative Assessment 50% 4. District Benchmark and District End of Course Exam 10%

Course of Study

Semester 1 Semester 2

Olympian Academic Literacy Plan & Test Prep Research Unit Pay to Learn Heroes Unit

The Quest for Power War Unit

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English 10 Course Description

* Units may change Late Work Policy According to ED Code, a student has one day to make up for missed work for every day excused absent. Upon return from an absence, a student is expected to request missing work from the teacher at an appropriate time. Mastery Model for Retakes on Assessments To qualify for re-takes students must do the following:

1. Student must have completed all homework up to the point of the assessment. 2. Student must attend one tutoring session prior to retake. 3. Retake must be taken within two week of initial assessment

Sophomores can only re-take summative assessments and can only re-take each assessment one time. Plagiarism and Cheating No one learns what is necessary for success in college by plagiarizing or cheating. Plagiarism is a serious offense and will result in a grade of “0” on the project/assessment containing it with no option for remediation. Parents and guardians will be notified. Sometimes students don’t realize they are plagiarizing when they fail to properly document the ideas, concepts, words, phrases, or longer passages they have taken from other sources. Please consult A Guide to MLA Documentation by Joseph F. Trimmer for assistance on how to document other’s ideas. Also, pay close attention to the difference between copying, summarizing and paraphrasing. You must know the difference. English 10 ACC *English 10th grade accelerated courses will differ in pace and content with the 10th grade regular courses. Addendums of the accelerated courses include but are not limited to: 1. 4 independent reading novels 2. Additional Vocabulary 3. 2 additional Response to Literature Essays 4. Exposure to different reading approaches: Aesthetic, Biographical, Historical, and Rhetorical.

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