Memo:
To: Parents of Mr. Boemmels’ Science Students
From: Mr. Boemmels
Subject: A Successful Year of 6th Grade Science
Date: September 16, 2009
All of the following items will be important for your child’s academic and life successes.
Preparedness:
Your child will need to come to class with specific tools. These tools include a notebook or binder divided for science, a supply of pens and sharpened pencils. Contact me if you need assistance in getting these materials.
Organization:
Organization is a necessary life skill that will be further developed and supported with specific strategies. You may help your child by checking the assignment pad for completed or missing homework. In some cases you made actually need to see your son or daughter place their assignment in a book bag or binder that is going to school. Also,
check for necessary tools (2 pencils, and pen). Failure to be prepared will affect their responsibility grade.
Academic Expectations:
It is a well know fact that the United States is lagging behind many industrialized nations in science and mathematics competency at the eighth grade level. As your child's science teacher, I will be doing my part to close that gap. Improvement in science is a multi faceted challenge. The first step is to get your child very interested and enjoying science, if science is not their favorite subject; the second step is to help your child develop an appreciation and respect for all life; the third step is to challenge those students that have a keen interest and/or career aspirations in a science driven field.
Homework:
Whether it is reviewing the day's lesson or preparing for tomorrow's lesson, homework is an important component of the learning process. A typical assignment should only take 20 minutes and on occasion the assignment may be started in class. Homework assignments over the weekend are usually given on Thursday and could take as long as 35 minutes.
Your child will have two or more homework buddies they may call for any assignment they have missed. Homework assignments will also be posted on the ‘Teacher’s Web Site.’ If your child is absent from school an attempt should be made (if they are feeling well enough) to complete the homework assignment later that day, even if parts are not completely understood. Familiarization with the next day's topic will help them catch-up more easily. A note from you is required if homework is missed because of extenuating circumstances.
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Tests and Quizzes:
Your child will have a quiz almost every week on various topics within a unit. Tests are given when we finish a complete unit. Students will also be required to prepare lab reports, journals, oral and written projects on current science topics. Extra credit will be in the form of a marking period final, covering all topics during that time. The final will count as an additional test grade regardless of the grade earned. There are no retakes; please notify me if there should be considerations for a delay in taking a quiz or test. I am available at 7:30 each morning for extra help.
Grades:
Students are required to record all grades in the back of their assignment pad. You may get a reasonably close assessment of their average by adding the grades and dividing by that number of grades, even though the grades are weighted, the average you calculate will be close. Please pay close attention to the comments that are part of the Progress Reports and Report Cards. These coded comments are important indicators of your child’s attitude and class room demeanor. As a parent you will have access to your child’s grades on line. This added monitoring should become available after the first trimester.
Grades for each assessment are weighted as follows:
Unit Test - 30%
Projects-25%
Quizzes- 25%
Science Labs -20%
Working Together:
Communication is an important part of our working partnership; please feel free to send a note with your child, or e-mail me (JBoemmels@milforded.org) for any questions or problems that may arise or to arrange an appointment. Please be sure to check the District Handbook and/or the Harborside Parent/Student Handbook for the answers to most questions. In other cases, you can expect to hear from me within a day or sooner depending on the level of concern. If we cannot resolve a problem, I will consult with the team and/or the school’s administrators.