This Week in Pre-AP Math 8
September 28 - October 2
Grades and End of Marking Period
We are entering the last week of the marking period. The last day for a student to submit late work (other than test corrections) will be Wednesday.
A few reminders:
- If there is a * symbol for the grade, that means that the student was absent or not yet enrolled when that assignment was given. This is NOT hurting their grade in any way
- If you see a zero (0) for the assignment, the assignment is currently missing and needs to be turned in for partial credit
- I routinely write comments next to any * or 0 that I put into the gradebook so that you and I know why that grade was assigned
- Any grade below a 70 can be corrected/re-done for a maximum grade of a 70. Most daily grades that are low won't make a big impact on the overall average, as there are a LOT of daily grades for them to average with. However, a TEST grade that is below a 70 will impact the overall average, so I would highly encourage your student to come during tutoring times to correct those.
Blackboard and Tutoring
Just a reminder that Blackboard is updated daily with calendar entries to let students know what they may have missed if they were absent. Also, the calendar has important events, such as marking period dates and test dates on it. I also post copies of assignments and handouts in Blackboard and attach copies of daily work assignments in Skyward.
Also, just a reminder that I am available for tutoring on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school, if students are struggling and need extra help. If Tuesdays and Thursdays don't work out for your student, encourage them to talk to me, as I am here many of the weekdays after school and could likely arrange another day if they need it.
Exams and Reviews
Also, I set up an online sticky note board where students can post questions that may come up while they are studying. This can be accessed via Blackboard as well. The path is 1st Marking Period --- Closure Activities --- Parking Lots --- Unit 3A Review (the unit number changes with each test). Students can post sticky notes to this board with their questions on it. I will check a couple of times throughout the evening and post responses back. It is a great way for students to make sure they understand concepts and to be able to ask me if they don't.
Finally, my exams are NOT open-note. So, students need to study. I design my reviews to be written in a way that the information there is very similar to the tests, so, if they can successfully complete the review, they will be able to complete the exam as well.
Laptops
This Week In Pre-AP Math 8
- We began our first experience with the financial responsibility topics this past Friday - the topics for this six weeks are simple and compound interest. If you have ever taken a loan for anything - mortgage, car, schooling, bills, etc - it would be beneficial if you could try to talk to your student a little about interest and how it works, if you can. It always helps students to be able to see that what they are learning will have very practical uses once they are out of school
- Unit 3B exam is this Friday, October 2
- The end of the marking period is also Friday, October 2
- Report cards will go out during the week following (I believe on Thursday)
- The fundraiser that is going on ends on Monday. Please make sure that any fundraising forms are complete and money is collected.
- There is a "I Survived the First Six Weeks" dance on Friday, October 2
- Finally, in a few weeks, there is a Staff Development/Student Holiday on Monday, October 12