About Your Teacher:

Mr. MartinelleRm 101TECH BOSTON ACADEMY18 Croftland AveDorchester MA 02124

Facebook: “Rob Martinelle” (“Friend” the picture shown here)Mr. M’s Website: http://mrmartinelle.wordpress.com/OFFICE HOURS: Tuesdays 3:30-4:30

Required Materials for Class: Each student must come to class prepared to work and learn. In order to do that, you must bring the following to class 1-2” 3-Ring Binder Pens, pencils TBA Laptop* (Given out beginning of 2nd Quarter)

GRADING:

Assessment: % of Term Grade

History Binder 20%Homework 20%Projects/Essays 25%Tests 20%Participation* 15%

*If Independently Reading with Mr. M, that grade will be part of your PARTICIPATION Grade. See “Participation” Rubric to see how Mr. M measures participation.

Final Course Grades will be based on:

Average of 4 term grades- 80%Final Exam- 20%

About This Course: This course is an intensive study that covers American history from the time of Columbus’s “Discovery” of America all the way through to the events of the Civil War and Reconstruction. Rest assured, this is not a class about memorizing dates. History is far more interesting than that! The goal of this class is get you thinking about the choices people make and their consequences.

*Laptops & Technology Integration:Technology is a HUGE component of this class. Every unit always culminates in a project that requires the use of a laptop. Simply put, if you are not bringing your laptop to class, it will put you at a severe disadvantage and prevent you from understanding and completing classwork and major assignments. To avoid this always do the following:

1. Responsibly use Laptops @ TBA2. Always bring Laptop bag to school and keep

secure after school hours3. Arrive to school & homeroom on time

It is also the expectation that upon successfully completing this class, students should be proficient in using Microsoft Powerpoint and Microsoft Word. It would be hard to do this if your laptop is not present in class

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ENTERING THE CLASSROOM LATEIf entering late for any reason, whether excused or not, you will enter silently, take your seat, and await instructions.

TARDY POLICYDon’t be late to my/your class!!! Whether it’s true or not…being late to my class without a pass sends 1 message to me: “I don’t care about this class”. If that is the case…I don’t have any problems DEDUCTING A ½ POINT OFF YOUR FINAL GRADE FOR EVERY UNEXCUSED TARDY you have this term, and I will. As harsh as this policy sounds, I don’t waste much time in class and care enough about your performance to want you here for the entire 60 minutes.

LEAVING THE ROOMInterrupting Mr. M for any reason to leave the room while class is going on is unacceptable. Plan accordingly be doing to the bathroom between classes and coming prepared to class.This is why you will be given 4 passes each term to leave the room.

When you need to leave the room, with the exception of being summoned by the principal or guidance, you are to do the following SILENTLY:

1. Fill out 1 of your given passes

2. Drop it in the bin labeled “Bathroom Passes”

3. Exit the room

As a reward, if you do not use any of your passes, you will receive 1 Extra point on your final term grade for every pass you do not use. Should you forget to give me one of your passes before you leave, you have chosen to forfeit all 4 of your passes.

ENTERING MR. M’s CLASSROOMIt is essential to understand that when entering Mr. M’s room, you are entering a “CLASS” room, an educational, professional, and working environment. In other words, all “Drama” must be checked at the door and it is expected that you will do the following immediately upon entering the room: Grab Daily Handouts, Have a seat, Take out your Homework to be checked, Update your Table of Contents, & Begin working on your “DO NOW” assignment posted on the Smart Board.

HISTORY BINDER

Your history binder must be brought to class EVERY DAY. It is the ultimate measure of what you are doing and learning in the class. Not bringing it to class could and will hurt you severely because your binders will be RANDOMLY collected on any day Mr. M chooses. Should your binder not be present on a day where Mr. M collects it, you will have earned an automatic ZERO.

MISSING CLASS & ASSIGNMENTSWhen you miss a class, it is YOUR responsibility to make up what you missed. You can and will do that by way of speaking to Mr. M, checking the “Missing Assignment” Box, checking the Class Website on Edline, and if necessary, seeing Mr. M after school for extra help by request. If absent, the work must be made up by the next binder check.

What will we study? What types of things will we do in this class?: Every unit we study will always end in a project. Do not worry You will know the assignment before each unit begins. For most units, you will take on the roll of someone to complete it.

Some of the Projects you will do this year: Persuasive Essays Historical Report Cards Interactive Press Conferences* Facebook Powerpoints Historical Newspapers CSI Investigatiion Powerpoint Historical “ReEnactments” Mock Trials

If you keep up with homework and classwork, these projects will always be completed on time. Students who fail to do homework often find these projects difficult to complete and sometimes impossible.

Pizza Parties:Part of “rising and falling together” and being part of a community involves always being on the same page. When Mr. M sees his class showing this over a period of time, he loves to reward them with pizza. To earn this reward a class must do the following TOGETHER:

The whole class must come to class with HW completed 10x The whole class must report to class ON TIME 20x The whole class must show up to class in uniform 20x

Student(s) of the Month: At the end of the month, Mr. M, with the help of students, will choose a

student that he feels has embodied everything that TBA is about. Such students will have shown to Mr. M and their classmates true care for their performance and everyone else’s as well. These students’ faces will proudly be displayed in the classroom throughout the month.

“Old & Crusty” Bucks:Mr. M loves to catch people in the act when they are doing positive things and/or showing leadership @ TBA. When he does, you might just get handed an “old & crusty” buck. If you get one, write your name on it immediately and save them. These “bucks” can be cashed in for prizes like pens, pencils, or even extra points on tests

COMING TO CLASS PREPARED

Would you ever jump out of a plane without a parachute? It just doesn’t make sense does it? While showing up to Mr. M’s class without writing utensils and a binder is not a matter of life and death, it still…doesn’t make much sense does it? DO NOT EVER come to class without these things or even ask Mr. M for them if you forget. Ask a classmate first QUIETLY. If nobody can assist you, you may purchase a utensil from Mr. M for $1.00 or use any OCB’s that you earned.

FINDING OUT YOUR GRADE

Mr. M tries to post grades EVERY week on EDLINE. If you need to see your grade, login to EDLINE and go to Mr. M’s page to find out what your current grade is. The grade you earn every term should never come as a surprise. Be responsible, check your grades often, and always ask Mr. M for ways in which you can improve.

RESPECTRespect is not something you are owed. It is something you earn. The way we show and earn RESPECT, is measured by how we speak to one another and our actions. It is expected that you treat others in the room in ways that you wish to be treated. Mr. M has been accused of lots of things. He has been called, “Tough,” “Crazy,” “Hilarious,” and “Challenging.” However, he has never, while teaching, been accused of being RUDE or OFFENSIVE. You will conduct yourself in a way to ensure that you will never be accused of the same.

TBA RULES

Mr. M’s primary responsibility is to your learning, not your behavior. It is expected that while in his classroom, you will follow all TBA Rules (Dress Code, No Food, Language, No cell phones etc). Failure to do so will lead to results that will affect your overall grade negatively along with the headache administration involvement.

DEADLINESDeadlines are called that for a reason…Unless you’re dead, the assignment is due!!! Homework, unless noted otherwise, is due the following day. All projects are always due by the DATE given…NO EXCUSES. Homework will never be accepted late and major projects and assignments will be penalized severely for every day they are not turned in.

CHAIRS & BOOKS:

The schedule at TBA rotates every quarter. Should you have Mr. M’s class the last period of the day, it is expected that you put away all books and help put up all the chairs onto the tables to ensure that we always have a clean environment to work in every day.

SPEAKING IN CLASS:

Put simply, when Mr. Martinelle is addressing the class and teaching, YOU ARE NOT SPEAKING. You will be given plenty of opportunities to speak in class by way of GROUP WORK and OPEN DISCUSSIONS, but when you wish to speak in class, you will respect whomever is speaking by RAISING YOUR HAND and waiting your turn to speak.

SPEAKING WITH MR. M

If Mr.M asks to speak with you in the hallway, he is doing this because either there is something he needs to speak to you about that he doesn’t think the class has any business of hearing or because he is trying to minimize any current conflict in the classroom. Should he ask to do so, it is in your best interest to do so to avoid the involvement of administration which you DO NOT WANT.

STUDENT & PARENT SIGNATURES

I understand the objectives, expectations, and other information included in this syllabus.

Student Signature ________________________________ Date: ________________

Parent Signature _________________________________ Date: ________________