Frequently Asked Questions: This page contains answers to common questions of students and parents.

1. What is your homework policy in Social Studies?
2. What is your homework policy in Reading, Spelling, and Religion?
3. Will there be projects?
4. How many graded events will my student have for each report card period?

What is your homework policy in Social Studies?

For 7th and 8th grade social studies, I usually give homework Monday to 
Thursday. It usually revolves around reading a section in the chapter we are 
in and then completing a one page worksheet for each section. We usually get 
through a chapter in about 5-6 school days and then have a test. If you are 
not seeing a test to be signed about every 7-10 days please ask your student 
where it is. I rarely give Friday or holiday homework unless it is tied to a 
project or I need to give a rare Monday test.

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What is your homework policy in Reading, Spelling, and Religion?

Reading and or spelling homework is done weekly. In Spelling, knowing the 
meaning of spelling words and how they are properly used in a sentence is 
just as important as knowing how to spell them. Spelling tests are once per 
week and may include writing a sentence for selected words. Spelling 
homework is 
usually due on a Wed or Thur with Tests on Friday. Students should plan on 
having the spelling workbook pages done for 
a Wed and have a sentence for each word in their copybooks. This process 
will go on the entire school year and should not be a surprise. Tests will 
come home within a few days of the test, so if you do not see one every week 
ask your student for the latest test. Reading homework will usually be in 
the form of completing story vocab and/or skill pages in their workbooks. 
There is no set sequence, it depends on how fast we get through each story. 
Religion homework is sporadic and will usually result in completing a 
textbook work page or writing a short essay related to scripture or a topic 
in our textbook. I do not generally give homework on Fridays or holidays 
unless I need to give a rare Monday test.

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Will there be projects?

I give projects of varying complexity throughout the year. There are 3 or 4 
in Social Studies, book reports and essays in Reading, and in Religion a few 
short projects centered aroung the Old Testement and some of our Biblical 
Heroes. Any graded project or homework assignment not turned in on time 
loses 5 points per school day unless it is specifically addressed in a 
rubric. In this case, it may be more. Since more than sufficient time is 
given to complete projects, students are expected to get them done on time. 
Organization and time management skills are critical to success in school 
and life.

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How many graded events will my student have for each report card period?

I believe in giving students as many opportunities as possible to show what 
they know. This will be in the form of tests, quizzes, essays, projects, and 
other worksheets that I may find useful for evaluation purposes. I feel 
having at least 6-8 graded items for each class helps with averaging rather 
than 4 or 5. In many of my classes, it is common to have 10-15 different 
graded assignements during a reporting period. This helps those who are not 
good test takers or have a "bad day" and do not do as well on one particular 
test.

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