Algebra 1A/B Syllabus

Educato Phon
Mrs. K. Stegmeier 727-669-1131
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Room 19-131 E-mail stegmeierk@pcsb.org

Classroom Expectations:
Get to class on time (School policy will be followed for tardiness)
Use class time for class activities
Follow the teacher’s directions
Refrain from using any electronic devices in class except for a calculator
Grading Policy:
Scale Distribution:
90 – 100 A Tests: 50%
80 - 89 B Quizzes: 20%
70 - 79 C Classwork/Homework: 30%
60 - 69 D
0 - 59 F

Classroom Procedures:
Entering the classroom
Students are expected to review the information written on all white boards, paying particular attention
to the agenda. Students will follow any instructions written on the board(s) and start working on the Opener
before the final bell rings. There will be an Opener everyday and does have a time limit (5 -10 minutes as noted
on the board). To ensure that you have enough time to complete it, please start on it as soon as you arrive in
class.

Tardy to class
It is expected that you will arrive to class on time every day. If you are tardy, please enter the class
quietly and go to your seat. If you have a pass to class, please hand it to me. Do not disrupt the class when
walking in or determining what you need to be doing. The school’s tardy policy is as follows:

1st offense – Verbal Warning

2nd Offense – 15 minute detention and parent contact
3rd offense – 30 minute detention and parent contact (This will also count as one absence as every 3
tardies count as one absence)
4th offense and after – Referral to administrator

If you are more than 20 minutes late, it will count as an absence. Tardies start over every grading period, but
absences do not. They continue counting for the semester.

During class
Any time that a student, guest speaker, or the teacher is speaking, all others will remain quiet and
attentive. I also consider this a “no risk zone”, meaning that there are no “stupid” questions regarding class
material. If you have a question, raise your hand and I will answer your question to the best of my abilities.
There will be no laughing, making fun of a student, etc. when another student asks a question about the
content. Each of us deserves to be treated with respect. Sarcasm, put-downs, and interfering with a student’s
learning, WILL NOT BE TOLERATED.
Passes will not be given during instruction time. Please wait until students are working independently to
ask to use the restroom, go to your locker, etc. You must ask for a hall pass before leaving the room. If it is an
appropriate time, I will write you a pass. You have a maximum of 5 minutes when out on a hall pass. Failure to
adhere to this rule could result in an after school detention. No more than one person at a time is allowed to
 Algebra 1A/B Syllabus
be out on a hall pass. So please be courteous of your fellow classmates and return to class in a timely manner.
When you return to class please return the hall pass to me.
Work will be assigned almost every class meeting. Some days it will be due at the end of the period,
other days it may be finished for homework. Separate homework assignments will also be assigned daily. I will
take questions from the homework, the next class meeting during the “process homework” time of the daily
agenda. In order to succeed in this class you can expect to spend approximately 3-6 hours a week, outside of
class completing homework and studying.

Supplies
The following items need to be brought to class EVERYDAY:
3-ring binder (1” minimum), organized into sections with 3 dividers (Vocab, Textbook pages, Returned
tests)
Sheet protectors (for the textbook pages)
Loose-leaf paper
Pencils
Highlighter
Red pen

Turning in classwork/homework assignments

All assignments will be accepted for grading by turning them into the wire basket located on the blue
shelving unit on the side of the room. In order for the assignment to be graded, the following criteria must be
met:
➢ Use loose-leaf notebook paper, no “fringes” left on paper (when not on a worksheet or
textbook pages)
➢ Neat, Organized, & Readable
➢ Proper Heading, in the upper right hand corner of the paper
o First AND Last Name
o Date
o Class period
➢ Title of the assignment on the first blue line with section, page number & problems assigned
(when on notebook paper)
➢ Problems are numbered (when on notebook paper)
➢ Problems copied except for word problems (when on notebook paper)
➢ Answers are circled or highlighted
➢ ALL problems attempted
➢ PENCIL ONLY
o Red pen will be used for corrections during the processing homework time of each class.
If there is pencil only (or Red pen only) on the homework assignment you will not receive
full credit.
➢ ALL work shown
o NO WORK = NO CREDIT
➢ Be honest and do your own work. Copying homework will result in a zero for the student whose
paper is being copied and for the student who is copying and a possible referral. Cheating on a
test or quiz or violating the test taking policy will result in a zero for the test or quiz and a referral
to the office.

All classwork/homework assignments are expected to be turned in on time and complete. They are
graded as full, half, or no credit based on completion. Remember, if work was collected on the day you are
absent, it is due the day you return to class. No exceptions.

Grades
Assignments will be returned to you in the hanging file folders located in the baskets on the on the
bookcase on the side of the room. Each student will have their own file folder in the basket designated for their
class period. Students will use FOCUS to view their current grade. Each student will print their progress report
 Algebra 1A/B Syllabus
from Focus, have their parent/guardian sign it, and return it by the announced deadline. Please compare the
grade on the returned assignment with the one online to ensure is was entered correctly.

Class absence
If you are absent from school, it is your responsibility to find out what work you missed and to make it up.
Please check with a fellow classmate before asking me about any assignments that you may have missed. If
you need to consult me for missed work, please ask during independent work time or at the end of the class
period. PLEASE do not ask me at the beginning of class. You may also email me the day you are absent to find
out what you missed. If work was collected on the day you are absent, it is due the day you return to class. No
exceptions. Being absent on the day before a test does not excuse you from taking a test. Tests will be
announced approximately 1 week before they are to be given. So be prepared. If you are absent on the day
of a quiz or test, it is your responsibility to make arrangements to stay after school to make it up. Missed tests
must be made up after school by the following Friday, so make arrangements. If you do not make it up by that
day, it will result in a ZERO for that test or quiz. Arrangements can be made for extenuating circumstances, at
the discretion of the teacher. Please understand that I cannot go to every individual that has missed class to
make sure that they make up missed work. Again, I stress that it is your responsibility to find out about and
make up any missed work and to turn in any assignments collected while you were out. Please see me
privately with any questions regarding personal circumstances. If you ask me for an exception in front of the
class, the answer will always be no.

Ending class
Students are to remain seated and working until the bell at the end of class rings. Do not line up at the
door. Many days there will be an Wrap up to complete to aid me in assessing your understanding of the
material presented that day.

Classroom Management Plan (aka rules):

a. Be in your seat with materials ready when the bell rings.
b. Use appropriate language and behaviors
c. Talk only when given permission (i.e. during group work, when called on, etc.)
d. Hats and/or electronic devices are to be off and put away during class.
e. No food or drinks (except water) allowed in class at any time.
f. Follow the Student Code of Conduct at all times.
Consequences for not following rules
First Offense: Verbal Warning
Second Offense: Conference with student (privately during class, after class or after school)
Third Offense: 20 minute after school detention and phone call home to parent
Fourth Offense: Referral to administrator
**Some infractions may warrant time out in another classroom as determined by me and may occur after any
offense**
**Any severe infraction will be an immediate referral to administrator**

Communication
It is very important that there is communication between students, parents, and teachers. Please see
me during down times or after school if you have any questions, concerns, or need extra help. I am available
many days after school for tutoring. I will post on my board weekly when I am available for that week. Please
feel free to email me at stegmeierk@pcsb.org or call 727-669-1131 and leave a message with the office. My
preferred method of communication is email. I check it continuously throughout the day.

***This syllabus may be changed or updated at any time to better serve the student and/or teacher***
 Algebra 1A/B Syllabus
Course Overview and Additional Information

The Intensified Algebra I curriculum includes rigorous, but accessible, treatment of topics that are most
critical for success in algebra and future mathematics courses, and targets students' conceptual
understanding, associated skills, and related problem-solving and reasoning capabilities. Intensified Algebra I
uses technology-based representations — visualizations, animations, and simulations — to allow students to
explore algebra situations, increase their attention to mathematically important aspects of those situations,
explicitly show relationships, and connect ideas.

The program draws on problem solving and modeling approaches, requiring students to engage with
the mathematics and draw on previous knowledge to build new understandings. Learners are supported
through questions and prompts that are embedded within the student materials to help them get started on
activities, maintain cognitive engagement with the task at hand and with the mathematics they are learning,
and focus students on key ideas and relationships.

Instructional tasks are designed primarily for partner work, rather than individual or small group work, to
promote reflection, discussion, and mathematical justification. The program includes "Focus Skills" and "Staying
Sharp" assignments as a way to build procedural fluency; algebraic thinking problems — non-routine, extended
problems — as a way to build student's strategic competencies, problem-solving abilities, and mathematical
communication skills; and lessons and themes that aim to effect positive mathematical identities, dispositions,
and work habits.

Struggling learners have difficulty organizing and interpreting information and complex processes,
thereby increasing the challenges they face when attempting to access new mathematical learning. Thus, a
key feature of Intensified Algebra I is the inclusion of well-defined routines and supports that assist students in
making connections within algebra, organizing information, and making their mathematical thinking "visible" to
them and to their teachers. For example, daily routines are designed to help students summarize their learning
and make connections, as well as to support student accountability and self-directed learning. With explicitly-
taught problem-solving strategies, students learn to be thoughtful and persistent in tackling mathematics tasks.
Embedded within the lesson and homework activities themselves are questioning prompts, structures, and
scaffolding that support students in organizing their work and developing their ideas. Tasks are carefully
designed to maximize the time students spend on meaningful work.

Connecting new learning with prior knowledge involves both engaging students in tasks and activities
that help them access relevant prior knowledge when they need it and repairing misconceptions they might
have related to that knowledge. Intensified Algebra I takes a "just in time" approach to review and repair;
based upon research with struggling learners, review tasks are strategically placed to help students access
prerequisite knowledge, preview upcoming content in the algebra core, or repair common misconceptions.
Our repair strategy is based on research that indicates that learning increases when common mistakes and
misconceptions are systematically exposed, challenged, and discussed.

Struggling students need extra practice opportunities to develop mathematical proficiency. Our
approach is based upon long-standing research that supports the use of distributed practice in mathematics.
Intensified Algebra I includes several means to promote application of concepts and principles, and ongoing
practice of skills to build automaticity. Continual practice and review in Intensified Algebra I are incorporated
within the program's daily lessons, homeworks, and embedded assessments — both online and paper-and-
pencil.

Drawing on the latest advances in developmental and social psychology, Intensified Algebra I helps
shape students' motivation, confidence, and ultimate success as learners. A core theme is developing the
understanding that intelligence is malleable, or changeable, not fixed. Founded in powerful research from
social psychology and neuroscience, students come to understand how their brains change as they learn, and
apply that knowledge to challenging tasks. Targeted lessons have been strategically incorporated throughout
the year to provide opportunities for students to apply the concepts of effective effort, attributions, and the
significance of interpersonal skills, sense of belonging, and motivation in learning. Intensified Algebra I
 Algebra 1A/B Syllabus
transforms the way students think about themselves as learners, develops their motivation and commitment to
high achievement, and fosters skills that sustain students' productive engagement and persistence in
challenging academic work.
Researchers have begun to understand how literacy and language issues impact learning in
mathematics and science classes, particularly with struggling learners, and how to support content learning
through the use of simple strategies and tools for language and literacy development. The Intensified Algebra I
program helps students build essential academic vocabulary, comprehend and analyze key elements of
mathematics problems, explicitly connect different representations of mathematical situations, and reflect
upon and communicate their understandings through the following features:
-Targeted activities, rich visualizations, and scaffolding of concepts help build mathematical vocabulary
-Visuals and animations illustrate difficult concepts and provide memorable mental models
-Puzzles and activities targeting core vocabulary allow students more exposure to, and experience
using, terms in context
-Multiple representations of relationships and ideas help students develop deeper understanding

Intensified Algebra I contains a comprehensive set of assessment activities and tools that provide
struggling learners and their teachers with regular and targeted feedback to help them monitor progress,
address sources of confusion, and build on the strengths in students' mathematical knowledge to move them
toward more advanced thinking and toward regulation of their own learning. Lessons provide multiple means
for students to communicate their thinking, and student and teacher materials contain questions and prompts
to help teachers probe students' understanding and link responses to suggested next steps in instruction.
Intensified Algebra I also explicitly embeds a formal assessment trajectory designed to give students and
teachers information about performance. Twice during each unit, (mid-way through and near the end)
students complete online assessments, receiving guidance in way of hints and immediate feedback. The Agile
Mind reporting tools provide both educators and students with information about performance on these online
assessments that is explicitly processed by students during the next class period. Following this review of online
assessment data, students complete written assessments to demonstrate what they have learned. The data
from these written summative assessments are explicitly reviewed and processed by students in a subsequent
class period. In this way, students move from being passive recipients of grades to active participants in
learning from assessment performance, and even summative assessments are used in formative ways.

Your child’s textbook is provided in loose-leaf form. Therefore, your child will need to purchase a binder
in which to keep his/her text. I suggest at least a 1 inch binder size. In class, students will be able to use rulers
and calculators provided by the school. You may choose to purchase these items for your child for use outside
of class, though the purchase is not required. Only scientific calculators are to be used for this course.

I need your support. Specifically, I would like you to encourage your child to attend class everyday and
to be on time. Show interest in your child’s mathematics work by asking what he/she did in class daily.
Encourage him/her to work hard daily. Check his/her progress by asking to see homework, notebook, tests, and
quizzes weekly. The only way for a student to succeed in mathematics is by attending class everyday and by
working hard everyday.

Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any further questions or feel the need to talk to me, please
do not hesitate to send an e-mail to me at stegmeierk@pcsb.org. By working together, we can help your child
have a successful year in Algebra.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Kassandra Stegmeier

Please review this letter and the syllabus handed out in class. Then, please fill out all of the requested
information below and return this page to me. It is a grade worth 50 points. This will indicate to me that you
have seen my expectations for the class and will provide me a way to contact you if necessary. Thank you.

Student Name (please print): _____________________________________________ Class Period: _______

Parent/Guardian Name (please print): ________________________________________
 Algebra 1A/B Syllabus
Parent/Guardian Contact Information:
Phone: ________________________ E-mail (please print): _______________________________________
Parent/Guardian Signature: ______________________________________________________________
Does your student have access to a computer with internet outside of school? (circle one) YES or NO
Does your student have access to a computer with a printer outside of school? (circle one) YES or NO