Syllabus for Comprehensive Geometry
2011-2012 Room 22 Gil LeFrancois
Text: Geometry by Boyd, Cummins, Malloy, Carter, & Flores (© 2008 Glencoe Publishing)
Equipment: Calculator (TI 83 or 84 preferred), at least 25 sheets of graph paper (4 or 5 squares per inch), 3 colored pencils, 2 black expo dry erase markers (chisel tip, low odor), centimeter ruler, protractor, and compass (that can make circles up to a of radius 3 inches).
Expectations:
1. There is daily homework with each assignment worth 4 points. The purpose of homework is to practice a particular skill and then to make connections to previously studied material. Your homework is to be done in pencil and in-class corrections may be done with a different colored pencil. Expect to spend up to 35 minutes per assignment [you may stop doing your homework once you reach 35 min. of focused work]. Late assignments may be submitted up to a week after the due date with the loss of a single point. After four missing assignments a note will be sent home and your effort grade may be lowered.
2. Quizzes are given fairly regularly, usually after three to five class days, and will typically be administered without the use of a calculator. The quizzes are designed to check student progress and consist of simple skill based problems. Quizzes are worth about 20 pts each.
3. Tests are given after each chapter with a total of twelve tests in the school year. The tests are cumulative and have two sections, a calculator and a non-calculator part. The tests are comprised of skill based problems that examine your mechanics, multi-step problems that use two or more concepts, and generalization/abstraction type problems that will assess your understanding of the concepts. Tests are worth from 90 to 150 points.
4. If you are unexpectedly absent, you should read the missed section from the text, use the on-line personal tutor, or visit the Khan Academy website for a video lesson, and then check your assignment guide to see which problems have been assigned. I encourage you to do both the in-class and target homework. If you have difficulty with the material you should immediately seek help. If you have a planned absence such as an ortho appt or early dismissal for sports, it is your responsibility to inform me, submit any work that is due, and take any quiz or test prior to the absence.
5. Be prepared for class by being on time and equipped with your book and supplies. You should immediately sit with your group and discuss the previous nights homework. If you will be late to class, bring a late slip from either the office or a teacher. Unexcused tardies and absences will lower your effort grade as well as your letter grade.
6. The taking of notes is optional but strongly encouraged as they can be invaluable when doing homework. Likewise, cooperative work is strongly recommended (though not on quizzes and tests). This does not mean that it is okay to copy someone elseís work! Rather, what I expect is that you will help each other by explaining the concepts.
Let no one destitute of geometry enter.
Inscription over the entrance to Platoís Academy
Web connections:
My site contains a copy of the syllabus, key proof terms, links to the publisherís on-line support (personal tutor, self check quizzes for each lesson, chapter readiness quizzes, & chapter tests), and links to other general math resources. For each unit the site also contains the chapter assignment guide, answers to the practice chapter test, copies of each handout, and links to all of the demonstrations done in class.
Grading: The marking period grade is comprised of homework and projects at roughly 25%, quizzes at 25%, and tests at 50%. The semester grade is comprised of the two marking period grades at roughly 40% and 45% with a final exam at 15%. Updated grades are posted on my web site weekly. Grading is done on a 90%=A-, 80%=B-, 70%=C- scale. Please note: to continue on at the Comprehensive level in Algebra II you must earn at least a B average, otherwise you will continue on in the Core level Algebra II class.
Hints for Success: Recognize that this class has a strong commitment to inquiry-based instruction. Keep up with your daily work. Take good notes, complete with examples. Be involved in the class discussions and the working of example problems. Work cooperatively with your peers. Make sure that you understand the concepts and not just the method for solving specific problems. Read your math book. See me if you have difficulty (my free periods are B, C, F, and H blocks).
Course Outline
SEMESTER I
Chapter 1 Tools of Geometry
Chapter 2 Reasoning and Proof
Chapter 3 Parallel and Perpendicular Lines
Chapter 4 Congruent Triangles
Chapter 5 Relationships in Triangles
Supplement Algebra Rev, Intro. to Problem Solving, Logic, Constructions, Programming
SEMESTER II
Chapter 6 Quadrilaterals
Chapter 7 Proportions and Similarity
Chapter 8 Right Triangles and Trigonometry
Chapter 9 Transformations
Chapter 10 Circles
Chapter 11 Areas of Polygons and Circles
Chapter 12 Extending Surface Area
Chapter 13 Extending Volume
Supplement Problem Solving, Programming, Boolean Algebra, Vectors, Constructions
Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel. - Socrates
Spoon feeding, in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon. - E. M. Forster
By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. - Benjamin Franklin
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