9th Grade Science syllabus
9th Grade Science
Course Syllabus
Physical Science
Instructor: James Earley
Welcome to Hidden Valley High School. This course is designed to introduce you to the concepts of Earth Science and Physical Science. There are two sections to the course, taught over two trimester sections. In this section, we will focus on the Earth and its structure. The topics will include an introduction to the Scientific Method, Energy flow through the Earth system, modeling the Earth, Basic Chemistry, Mineralogy and the Rock Cycle, Geological time and Plate tectonics.
Standards for work:
All work must be done on time. Late work will not be accepted. Special note to student athletes: If you are to be gone for an away game, all work must be completed prior to your absence date. Work may not be turned in after the game. For instance, you have an away game on Thursday, and you have an assignment due that same day. The assignment must be turned in to me ahead of time, on Wednesday.
Students are requested to submit their homework electronically. This has the advantage of being easily read and scored, along with avoiding the problems of ‘lost’ homework.
Course material
We will be covering Chapters 1-13 of ‘Earth Science’ by Allison, DeGaetano and Pasachoff. In addition, there will be on line course material available. Students without Internet access will have to make arrangements to use school computers in either the library lab or in class.
Grading
Grading will be done on a point total basis, with points being earned for classwork assignments, homework and assessment activities. Participation points will also be earned daily. The grading scale is 90-100%, A, 80-99% B, etc. Students performing at less than 60% will not be considered to have passed the class. There will be a Midterm examination and a Final examination that will count at least 20% of the grade. There will be a progress report during the 6th week of class.
Communication
Students, parent and guardians are strongly urged to use electronic communication to maintain contact with me. My email address is jim.earley@threerivers.k12.or.us
Flexibility (FLEX) Plan for TAG Students The goal of Ninth Grade Science is to create competence in each student in the areas of Scientific Inquiry. Assessments take place in a variety of formats, both formal and informal, and allow for a wide degree of performance levels. In addition, the most significant assessment is the degree of a student’s fluency and comprehension, which is never limited due to the class structure, and the amount of open-ended instruction provided.
Accommodations of curriculum to better meet the needs of TAG students may include allowing students to pre-test at their convenience, offering students additional/supplemental assignments to expand vocabulary and comprehension, and allowing students to pursue enhanced grammatical concepts through both independent use of curriculum and dictionaries, as well as additional instruction from the teacher. The goal of Ninth Grade Science is to maximize each student’s abilities, including TAG students, according to each one’s individual drive and potential. No TAG student will be required to do extra work, but the specific course requirements may be adjusted to allow him or her to meet the objective.
|
