Syllabus+and+Policies+PS

toc =Course Description= From Course of Studies: PHYSICAL SCIENCE 1 year, 1 credit, grade 9

Overview:
Physical Science is an introductory high school science course intended for grade nine students. The course is designed to present a broad exposure to important physical science topics, including: laboratory procedures and lab safety, measurement, the methods of science, geology, electricity and magnetism, wave theory (light, optics, sound), astronomy (stars, galaxies, astronomers), and motion (uniform motion, accelerated motion, Newton’s Laws).

Materials:
Three-ring notebook, writing utensils, a ruler, and a calculator

Expectations:
In Physical Science, topics will be explored in a descriptive as well as an abstract, analytical manner. Students will use technology and explore a variety of problem solving strategies. Assessments will consist of homework (practice and graded), quizzes, tests and periodic laboratory reports. Student laboratory reports, tests, and quizzes will need to include thorough descriptions and examples as well as mathematical analyses and generalizations showing relationships and connections among concepts.

Homework:
Homework and projects will be assigned regularly. Projects and labs will often include some class time for working on assignments. There will be two culminating major lab report assessments, one in the spring and one close to the end of the course.

Honors Challenge Component:
Students will have the opportunity to earn Honors-level credit for this course. Through this program, students will be offered various assignments throughout the year in content embedded in the course through which they can deepen their understanding of the material and challenge themselves as learners. These opportunities will be available to all students, but to earn Honors credit, students must fulfill the requirements included in the guidelines below.
 * 1) Honors Challenge is academically rigorous; it offers more depth of content and skill development in science.
 * 2) Students who elect to participate in Honors Challenge should expect to produce work at a high academic level. While that may require students to spend more time on their studies, the Honors Challenge work is not simply additional course work.
 * 3) Students in the Honors Challenge Program will be expected to:
 * 4) Successfully complete all required Honors Challenge assignments and 80% of the optional Honors Challenge assignments.
 * 5) Maintain a class average for the year of an 85%.
 * 6) Submit a letter of intent and a contract signed by his/her parent or guardian to complete their Honors Challenge Program.
 * 7) Maintain an online journal of the work completed towards Honors on an on-going basis.
 * 8) Honors Challenge assignments will always be open to any student in the course. Students do not have to be working towards Honors credit to complete Honors Challenges.
 * 9) Designation of Honors on a student’s transcript will appear upon satisfactory completion of the year-long Honors Challenge Program.

=Classroom Policies=

Expectations

 * Be on time: Excessive lateness could result in classroom detentions.
 * Be prepared: Have required materials (text with cover, writing materials, laptop, calculator), and be ready for learning
 * Be respectful: Follow common sense rules of classroom decorum, including respect for others, materials and class procedures.
 * Be honest: Follow school-wide principles of academic honesty for all lab work, coursework, and assessments. If you aren’t sure what constitutes cheating or plagiarism on an assignment, please ask.
 * Be safe: Follow safety procedures outlined in class. Failure to follow the safety rules will result in exclusion from lab activities in the class.
 * No Food: Food (including candy and gum) will not be allowed in the science lab.

Common Policies for Grade 9

 * [|Academic Honesty] This link downloads a copy of the YHS Academic Honesty Policy

**Additional Policies for Science**

 * Homework:** Homework is due at the beginning of class. After the first semester, science homework not completed by the due date will earn a grade of half-credit if received by the end of the following school day. After that, late homework will not be accepted for grading.


 * Other Assignments:** Assignments are due the beginning of class on the due date. After the first semester, science projects such as labs will have Work Habits points deducted for each day past the due date.


 * Make Up of Class Work**: //** Try to avoid getting behind in science course work//. __Excused Absences:__ You are responsible for finding out what work you missed prior to coming to class and catching up on this work. If you know you will be absent, please check with me to receive any assignments ahead of time. It is expected that you will come to class prepared and have gathered information on class assignments from classmates, online or via email. Work not made up in a timely fashion will receive a zero. __Unexcused Absences:__ Work will not be accepted.

Science Notebook
In this course, students should obtain a 3-ring binder with a hard cover. This notebook will be used to keep assignments, notes and other work pertaining to science. Notebooks need to be for science work only.

Extra Help
Students can come to see me at any time. Appointments can also be set up by the student or parent. I will also ask you to come in for extra help if I think you need it.

Grading
Grades will be based on the average of all the work done throughout the quarter. Grades will be based on homework, quizzes, tests, in-class activities, labs, other assignments, and classroom participation. The first and second quarter grades will be averaged to obtain the first semester grade. The third and fourth quarter grades will be averaged to determine the second semester grade. The average of the first and second semester grades will be the final course grade. Grades will be posted on PowerSchool, and will be updated regularly throughout the course.

Grading Scale
This course follows the grading scale for YHS. A+ = 98 - 100 A = 95 - 97 A- = 93 - 94 B+ = 90 - 92 B = 87 - 89 B- = 85 - 86 C+ = 83 - 84 C = 80 - 82 C- = 78 - 79 D+ = 76 - 77 D = 72 -75 D- = 70 – 71 F = Failure I = Incomplete