Humanities 9th Grade • Matt Haupert Semester One - Fall 2019
Contact Information Email:[email protected] Phone: 608-498-9529 Digital Portfolio: matthaupert.weebly.com
Semester Overview This semester will focus on developing students in five distinct areas: (1) civic literacy and engagement, (2) writing, (3) analytical and creative thinking, (4) public speaking, and (5) leadership and collaboration. These skills will be developed through group projects, independent writing tasks, simulation activities, one-on-one conferencing, and more. Everything we do this semester will be connected by the following essential questions:
HOW CAN WE CREATE A MORE JUST SOCIETY? HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT TO BELIEVE? HOW DO YOU CHANGE SOMEONE’S MIND?
Students will be participating in a number of projects and immersive experiences, including:
Research and debates about society’s most complicated and controversial issues
Investigation of three real-life murder mysteries
A Mock Trial
A campaign and election simulation
An oral history project
A town-hall debate in the council chambers at San Marcos City Hall
Field trips and guest speakers that will help us learn more about our essential questions and the issues in our society
More information will be available as projects get underway.
Materials The Constitution of the State of California requires that we provide a public education to you free of charge. Subject to certain exceptions, your right to a free public education means that we cannot require you or your family to purchase materials, supplies, equipment or uniforms for any school activity. Many families have been asking what supplies their child may need during this school year. Below, I have a recommended list of supplies that your child may bring to school. Please note that if your child does not bring the recommended supplies, the school will provide the supplies for him/her. If you have any questions/comments about this, please contact me, or Shani Leader, the school director. Thanks.
Reading Option Starting at the end of September, students will be independently reading a novel of their choice from the list below. Students are free to choose any of these books - all of them connect to our essential questions about society & justice. Students will also be allowed to propose a different book not on this list if it connects to our course theme. Students will need a copy of one of these books by September 27. Two weeks before that, students will have a chance to explore these books in class to help them make a decision. In the Parent Information survey, please indicate whether you will be able to acquire the book on your own, or if you will need me to provide a copy of the book for you.
The Hate U Give- Angie Thomas
Dear Martin- Nic Stone
Monster- Walter Dean Myers
March (Part I)- John Lewis
Just Mercy- Bryan Stevenson (Young Readers edition also available)
Animal Farm- George Orwell
1984- George Orwell
Fahrenheit 451- Ray Bradbury
The Handmaid’s Tale- Margaret Atwood
Always Running- Luis Rodriguez
Mexican Whiteboy - Matt de la Peña
We Were Here- Matt de la Peña
The Distance Between Us- Reyna Grande (Young Readers edition also available)
Tweak- Nic Sheff
Beautiful Boy- David Sheff
Columbine- Dave Cullen
Classroom Materials The following classroom materials are required for day one of school.
Pens
Highlighters
1-inch three-ring binder
1 composition notebook (not a spiral notebook)
Please let me know if you are unable to acquire any of the supplies listed above, and I will provide them for the students on day one.
Grading Here are a few principles I follow when it comes to grading in Humanities class:
I generally stick to the philosophy, “Either you have an ‘A’ or an ‘in progress.’” This class is about learning and growing over time, not getting anything right the first time. You’ll have ample opportunities to revise and redo your work.
I want to have conversations about learning, not points, and I’ve built a system that allows me to do this.
There will always be opportunities for you to go above and beyond the expectations, and I want you to take them.
My expectation is for every student to finish with an A. We’ll keep pushing and revising until you get there, as long as you keep trying.
If you don’t turn stuff in on time and give it your full effort, it’s impossible for you to learn and impossible to get a good grade.
You will only have a total of 8 grades in PowerSchool for the entire semester. They are: Mock Trial, Personal Narrative, Argumentative Essay #1, Argumentative Essay #2, Book Club, Oral History Project, Political Campaign Project, and Work Ethic. Grades will be entered and updated throughout each project. If a grade says “In Progress,” the student is still revising or working on this project and can raise (or lower) the grade. If a grade says “Final,” it is the final grade for this project and cannot be changed. There will be clear deadlines for when drafts are due and when it is too late to complete more revisions. Every project will have a specific rubric, but all will follow these general guidelines:
A - Student mastered the material, demonstrated notable growth, and gone above and beyond the expectations in some way.
B - Student successfully mastered the material, demonstrated growth, and met the expectations of the project.
C - Student followed the directions and completed the project and showed some understanding and growth.
F - Student did not fully complete the assignment or didn’t make an attempt to learn the material and grow.
Challenge Options Challenge options will be available for students who are interested in deepening their Humanities studies even further. Challenge options will be offered regularly, and will include both small and large ways for students to go above and beyond. Students will be tracking challenges they take on over the course of the semester, and will be highly encouraged to do so whenever they feel capable.
Office Hours I will be available in my office every week from 3:30pm-4:30pm on Tuesday afternoons. I can be available on other days after school and during lunch by appointment--just let me know! Please ask for help if you need it! It’s what I’m here for.
Homework Beginning September 27, once students have selected their novel for their book club, there will be homework every night - and the homework will be the exact same every night - READ. Students are expected to read a little bit every single night to ensure they are meeting the weekly reading deadlines.
Beyond reading, there will never be explicitly assigned homework. That being said, students always have work they can -- and may need to -- do at home. This includes working on class projects and revising writing assignments. Upcoming deadlines will always be posted on the front page of my DP, so check there to see what you should be working on.
Plagiarism/ Academic Dishonesty Any form of cheating will be reported to the Dean of Students and will result in immediate action. Penalties entail receiving an automatic zero on the assignment and you will be required to write a reflective piece about the incident, which must be signed by your parents and will be placed in your permanent student file. Incidents such as these are reportable to colleges and universities (even if it occurs in the 9th grade). If there is a second incident, a committee will be called to assess the student’s place at HTHNC. It is against High Tech High policy (and the law) to use another person’s work as your own. Using another person’s ideas or summaries is also a form of plagiarism.
Keeping Up With Student Work There are several ways to stay involved with your student’s progress throughout the semester:
Learner Profile & Work Portfolio - These are two documents students will use during the semester to organize and track their learning. The Work Portfolio will include links to all major work completed in the class as well as student reflections and teacher feedback.
My Digital Portfolio - matthaupert.weebly.com - My DP will contain quick links to all of the sites mentioned below, as well as information on current projects and upcoming deadlines.
Google Classroom - All parents will be given “parent access” to my Google Classroom page. Parents receive a weekly email update from Google Classroom listing all assignments and upcoming due dates. The full website can be accessed via my DP, but you will need a student email address to log in and utilize the full site.
Contact me! Send me an e-mail ([email protected]) or a text (608-498-9529) or give me a call with any questions or concerns.
Semester 1 Outline Due to the nature of project based learning, the following schedule is subject to change.
Week 1 August 26th - August 30 Personal Narratives, Murder Mysteries, Mock Trial
Week 2 September 2nd - September 6th Murder Mysteries & Mock Trial
Week 3 September 9th - September 13th Murder Mysteries & Mock Trial
Week 4 September 16th - September 20th Murder Mysteries & Mock Trial
Week 5 September 23rd - September 27th Oral History & Political Campaign, Launch Book Club
Week 6 September 30 - October 4th Oral History & Political Campaign
Week 7 October 7th - October 13th SLCs
Week 8 October 14th - October 18th Oral History & Political Campaign
Week 9 October 21st - October 25th Oral History & Political Campaign
Week 10 October 28th - November 1st Oral History & Political Campaign
Week 11 November 4th - November 8th Oral History & Political Campaign, Final Book Club
Week 12 November 11th - November 15th Oral History & Political Campaign
Week 13 November 18th - November 22nd Oral History & Political Campaign
Week 14 November 25th - November 29th Thanksgiving Break
Week 15 December 2nd - December 6th Campaign speeches for student body
Week 16 December 9th - December 13th City Hall Exhibition
Week 17 December 16th - December 20th Exhibition Week!
Week 18 December 23rd - December 27th Winter Break
Week 19 December 29th - January 3rd Winter Break
Week 20 January 7th - January 10th Oral History Exhibition
January 13 SECOND SEMESTER BEGINS!
Your First Assignment Have one parent click here to complete the parent syllabus form! (This will allow me to add parents to Google Classroom, share Learning Portfolios with parents, and gather all parent contact information electronically.) DUE FRIDAY 8/30!