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Welcome to 7 Grade
Literacy!
Ms. Brown Room 302
msbrownacp.weebly.com

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INTRODUCTION

Welcome to 7 grade Literacy! I am so excited to get started on our journey. This year
you can expect to work hard on reading, writing, and speaking skills as well as time
management and organization. 7th grade is such an important year and it is imperative
that we continue to strengthen the skills necessary to become stellar students and
participants at Alcott and beyond. Think of each day in the classroom as a building block
for the great things to come. If we practice and prepare now, the possibilities for our
success are endless!
Know that I am your #1 cheerleader and am here to help YOU! Dont be afraid to ask
question, send me an email, or come in/before or after school for help. As a smart man
once said, Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that
counts (Winston Churchill). In order to be the picture of success, keep these policies and
rules in mind for smooth sailing!

CURRICULUM
This year almost all of the texts we will be reading will be connected in some way to
what you will be learning in Social Studies. This means you will have novels that touch on
various subjects such as the American Revolution and the Civil Rights Movement as well
as novels I have chosen to practice the most important skills when it comes to effectively
reading literature. To guide our practice, we will be using something called signposts,
more on these soon!
The following novels will be used this year:
Sophias War: A Tale of the Revolution by Avi
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
There Are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
The Skin Im In by Sharon Flake
Some of the content in these novels will hit close to home or discuss sensitive topics, so
it is important that we remember to be thoughtful in our comments and attitudes in

class. I believe that we will be able to have fulfilling, meaningful conversations about
what we read and we will be able to create a strong and open classroom community.
7th grade will also be a pivotal time in terms of our writing skills. Be prepared to write
formally every single week in journals! The journals will be part of a grade throughout
each quarter. We will be building on elements such as grammar, spelling, transition
words, and other more advanced elements of writing. We will also have a series of
essays that will go along with each text as well as a research paper. The research paper
and its components will help us to better utilize tools such as the library and databases.

ATTENDANCE
It is important to be on time for class as that is when the most important information is
given. Make it a goal to be sitting in your desk and working on the assignment on the
board by the time the bell rings. If you are sitting and ready, you do not need to worry
about distracting those sitting around you or worrying about any missed information.
Remember: If you come in after 7:45, you will need to stop into the office for a tardy
pass.
Woke up with a sore throat? It happens. Make sure that if you are absent, you are called
into school and present a note on your return to school. On those days you do need to
miss school, make sure you check in with me to get any work you may have missed as
well as to turn in any work that was due while you were gone.

PREPARATION
Ever heard the saying, 80% of success is showing up? Well, that is partially true. The best way
to be prepared for class is to show up with all of your necessary materials. Going to our lockers
takes time away from class and causes us to miss out on all Ms. Browns great jokes and wealth
of knowledge. Unless otherwise noted, you will need a folder, notebook, and something to write
with on a daily basis. We all forget things, so do not worry if you simply need a pencil, just let me
know!

GRADING POLICIES

The Alcott grade scale is as follows:

100 90
89 80
79 70
69 60
59 0

A
B
C
D
F

It is important to make sure that all assignments are done to the best of your ability. If at any
point during an assignment or activity you feel that you need help, please let me know. I am here
to help you succeed!
Late work will be accepted within 24 hours for half credit. This excludes work that was not
completed during provided class time unless specific permission is given. This also excludes
absent work. When you are absent, you have the same amount of days to complete an

assignment. For example: If you are absent Monday and come back to school Tuesday, the work
will be due Wednesday.
If any cheating or copying occurs, the work submitted will be given a zero and parents will be
contacted. Cheating will not be tolerated in this classroom.
Grades will be updated at least every 48 hours. Please allow longer timeframes for
quizzes, tests, journals, and essays, as these require significantly more time to grade.

CHARACTER COUNTS
Part of being a strong classroom and societal participant is knowing how to treat and work
alongside others. That being said, we will be using the six pillars of character to guide our
behavior and interactions in the classroom. More on this to come!

CLASSROOM MATERIALS

Part of being a student means using public spaces like classrooms, hallways, the cafeteria, and
playground. It is part of your duty to respect these spaces as they are meant for all students to
enjoy! The same goes for classroom materials such as textbooks and novels. Please remember
that these items are provided for your use and need to be treated with care. We are fortunate
enough to have access to such tools, so it is our job to take care of them!

DISCIPLINE
Here

are some rules to keep in mind for daily classroom behavior:

Be on time
Raise your hand to speak during instructional time
No cheating
Keep your hands to yourself
Be thoughtful of comments made to classmates and teachers
Listen to all instructions when given
No cellphones are permitted during class time
Internet/laptops must be used appropriately for school purposes only

All discipline issues will be handled privately. The following steps will be typical:
1. Incident will be discussed with student and documented

2. Second offense will be discussed with student and documented. Parents/guardians will be
contacted.
3. A third offense will be discussed with the student, documented, parents will be contacted,
and a discipline referral will be sent to the office.

FOOD IN THE CLASSROOM

As per Alcott/CPS rules, there will be no food allowed in the classroom. Food is only permitted in
the cafeteria. If you would like to bring in treats for a birthday, please try and keep it to
something that is not food. Any requests to bring in treats must be through Mr. Estrada or Ms.
Allen about a week in advanced. Keep in mind all food needs to be store bought with ingredient
labels. No nuts of any kind are allowed.

CONTACTING MS. BROWN

I do check my email often throughout the day and will respond within the same day. For the best
chances of a same day response, please try to send all emails before 6:00 p.m. Students are
welcome to come in before and after school as well. I usually arrive at school at 7:15 a.m. and
stay until 3:15. If you are planning on coming in, please let me know in the event that I leave
before then.

Additional information:
Ms. Kathleen Brown
Room 302
7th and 8th Grade Literacy
Email: TBA
Phone: TBA
Website: msbrownacp.weebly.com

CLASSROOM WEBSITE, TWITTER, AND REMIND

This year we will be working off a website designed for middle school Literacy. There will
be a main homepage and a tab specifically for 7th grade. Here you will be able to find
everything you need to be successful. Parents, there is a tab explaining things such as
Common Core and the Notice & Note signposts we will be using in class.
In addition to classwork, I will also be uploading photos and videos from class. These
pictures will never be labeled with names and to add pictures of students, I will need
permission. On the next page, there is a place to give written permission for
photos/videos of students in class. If you would not like your student included, that is
perfectly fine please check the corresponding box.
Additionally, I will use two additional services to connect with students, the first being
Twitter. This will allow me to tweet reminders as well as current event news articles. This
will be a public account, so there is no need to follow to access the content. Parents and
students are welcome to follow the account @MsBrown_ACP. The second form of
communication will be through a one-way text service called Remind. THIS IS
OPTIONAL. This service allows students and parents to subscribe to text
alerts/reminders. Students and parents CANNOT respond to texts. 7th grade text
@3351c to the number 81010
Please initial and sign the bottom line and return this page to Ms. Brown on
Friday September 11th.

Rule or expectation:
Parent Initial

All materials need to be brought to class

on a daily basis.

Student Initial

_____________

Cheating will not be tolerated and will be

given a zero on any and all assignments proven.
___________

I am to be on time to class or arrive with a pass.

___________

I know that late work will be accepted within

24 hours for half credit.

___________

_____________
_____________

______________

___________

I know that if I am absent, I have one day for each

______________
___________
missed day to complete my work OR talk to Ms. Brown for arrangements.

I know it is my responsibility to check in with

Ms. Brown when I am absent.

______________

I understand that I am not to use my cell phone

in class.
______________

I agree to be responsible when using technology.

___________

I understand no food is allowed in the classroom.

I will be a respectful member of my classroom community.

___________

I have Ms. Browns:

o Email/phone number
o Website URL

___________

___________

______________
______________

___________

______________

______________

___________

______________

___________

I hereby grant permission for the use of my childs picture on the classroom
website. YES NO
I agree to the following and am committed to being the best Literacy student I can
be (student signature):

I acknowledge that I have read my students classroom expectations and will aide in
my students academic goals and progress (parent signature):