geometry honors

course expectations
BROOKLINE HIGH SCHOOL 2010-2011

Ms Hitchcock | kathy_hitchcock@brookline.k12.ma.us | room 142

greetings!
This year we are going to discover beautiful, useful and extraordinary islands of
knowledge. I'm going to be challenging you consistently as you build bridges
from island to island – from lines and angles to deductive proofs to trigonometry. As you
move forward on this adventure, there will be, most likely, uncertainty and unexpected
perils. After all, it's an adventure.

But, don't worry. Yes, at times it will be hard – all great adventures are – but please know
that I'm always going to be right there with you. We are in this together. I'm going to
make sure we make it to the end of year with lots of sparkling mathematical treasures
from your adventure: congruent triangles, coordinate geometry, proving theorems, circles,
how to find interior angle sums and other items.

teaching goes both ways

With this said, you are now at a point in your education where you are responsible for your
own learning. You are old enough to know what to do when you are having difficulty.
Please then, answer the following (pick one):

When you are feeling lost in class, you should:

(a) wait until the next class and hope that it will all begin to make sense
(b) not do anything...it's only one concept and there will be a big test on many
concepts, so no big deal if you don't learn it.
(c) ask someone for help – whether it be Ms Hitchcock, a table-mate, a friend or a
teacher at the Math Center.
(d) watch American Idol and hope that Randy Jackson will explain the concept.

You are in this class to learn some math – and even though we are in this journey together
(remember: I am always on your side), that does not absolve you of responsibility. For
this class to run smoothly, for us to have a good time, to get all we need to get
accomplished in mere months, you need to:

✔ come to class prepared every day – do your daily practice (homework)

✔ spend quality time – daily – working on your homework
✔ not be afraid to ask questions about concepts or homework problems you are
struggling with
✔ be an engaged participant in every class
✔ be kind and respectful to the other members of the class
 If you keep your end of the bargain, I guarantee you that your mind will be brimming with
intellectual riches at the end of the year. You will have learned a lot.

Just as I expect only the best from you, I want you to expect the best from me. I promise
to come to each class well prepared, ready to embark on our daily adventure. I promise to
try my best to make my presentations clear and interesting. I promise to respect you.

materials
You will be required to have a 3” three-ring binder for this class as well as 3 tab inserts for
the binder. WHAAA?, you say? Don't fret. You won't have to bring it to class
everyday. You can keep it in your locker, or keep it at home. However, when I ask you to
bring it to class, you must bring it to class – no exceptions. More below about how we'll
use the binder.

To keep your work organized I am going to require that you carry a folder (or smaller three
ring binder) specifically dedicated for math. I don't want to see English papers or sheet
music in there. Seriously. Math only.

All, and I do mean all, graphs that are done for homework need to be on graph paper.
Free graph paper is available on the internet. Google free graph paper and you'll come up
with numerous sites. No graph paper = no credit.

On your homework, write the following header:

Jane Smith [Name]

9/27/2010 [Date Assigned]
Page 37 #2 – 17 odd [Page(s)/Problems]

As for class notes, you will want to keep good notes because...well, keep on reading.

You should also come to class every day with a scientific or graphing calculator and
something to write with. I prefer that you use pencil. Math done in pen is hard to undo.
Pencils, however, come with erasers.

absences
The general policy is that if you are absent for n class days, you have n school days to
make up tests, quizzes and get credit for homework. For example, if you missed 3 class
days, you have 3 school days for you to make up a test/quiz, and submit homework. If
work hasn't been made up by 2:45 pm of the third day, you will get no credit.

tardies
Simply put: You are expected to be on time! You are considered tardy if you are not in
your seat with materials ready at the start of class. Anyone entering class after the class
has begun is late. Tardiness is reflected in your daily attendance record which is tallied
on your report cards.

Additionally, for every minute that you are late, you will need to make up 5 times that
amount for me. For example, if you’re 5 minutes late, you need to come and sit with me
for 25 minutes. Make-up time is generally during X Block.

Tardy students will not have extra time to complete quizzes or tests. Tardiness beyond
 15 minutes will result in an unexcused absence (AWOL), with all of the appropriate
ramifications.

If tardiness becomes a chronic problem, I will contact the dean and a parent. If a
previous teacher has kept you late, be sure you ask him/her to give you a note; if you
arrive late without such a note, I will need to send you back to the other teacher, who
probably won’t be too happy to have class disrupted.

cheating
The crux of this issue is “don't”. Because we have had, and will continue to have, many
discussions of this at BHS, I believe you know what it is. And if you don't know what
constitutes cheating, we'll be talking about it in class. So, don't copy homework,
exchange answers on an exam or quiz, tell a student in another section of the class
about an exam, or do other morally bankrupt things.

If you do cheat, and I find out about it, not only will I have lost faith in you but you will get
a 0 (zero) on the assignment and your parents, counselor and dean will be notified. Read
the BHS Student Handbook for more information.

An important note, however, is that I encourage you to talk with other students about
concepts, homework problems, etc. You can talk with others about the homework
problems, but when you write them up, you must write them up separately. You cannot
copy homework from others. That's cheating. Again, if you have questions, just ask me.

email
I generally check my email several times per day. However, I don't guarantee a response
to anything sent after 5 pm.

On the topic of email:

Hi Ms Hitchcock.

I have been having some difficulty

understanding how to multiply complex
numbers. Do you have any time to meet
Tuesday (tomorrow) or Wednesday, to help
Hey,
me out? I'd really appreciate it.
r u free to meet during E block tomorrow? Did
My free blocks are:
u c American Idol last night?
Tuesday: E or before school
Wednesday: E or before school

Thanks.

Jane Student
extra help
I am available to meet with you for additional support. My brain doesn't do well with
times and dates so please send me an email and check the calendar on
www.kahitchcock.blogspot.com or use the sign up sheet.

Don't forget to use the math center! It's open every single morning from 7:35 – 8:20 and I
s a terrific place to drop in and get help.

extra time on exams

Some of you qualify for extra time on assessments. If you want to use your extra time,
you must email me by 3:30 the day before the assessment – with all of your possible free
times – so that I can keep some time free for you. If you do not contact me the day
before the assessment, you won't be allowed to use your extra time. You must take your
extra time on the same day of the assessment. I will give you a note if you have to go late
to after school activities. You have the right to the extra time, but it comes with this basic
responsibility.

I am absolutely serious about academic integrity and extra time brings up many, many
issues. Most importantly, you cannot tell anyone what is on the exam – in ANY form, and
you cannot study, ask questions, or open your book or notes from the time you first see
the exam and when you finish the exam.

Placement
To go into A2T Honors next year, you need a final assessment grade of B-

grading
formal Assessments (70%)
You know what these are. I will try my best to get tests and quizzes back to you in 3 class
days (usually less), assuming all students in the class have already taken it.

You know, right answers only mean so much to me. What's really important is seeing you
show how you got your answers. Why? I want you to be able to effectively communicate
to someone else your thought process. It's a life skill. Show your work on assessments if
you want full credit!

daily practice (10%)

Basically, this is your homework. I'm calling it “daily practice”, however, to emphasize
that the problems assigned are meant to reinforce what you've learned in class. The
problems aren't meant to be mindless busy work – though I know sometimes they can feel
that way. I try, but am not always successful, to keep homework under 30 minutes.
 When working out of the book, I will attempt to assign mainly odd problems. The answers
are in the back. You will have to check your odd answers in the back of the book and
correct them if necessary. I've found that when you are given the right answer, it may help
you discover the steps that were taken to arrive at the solution. Make sure you note with a
different colored pen/pencil, if you didn't get the correct solution. When we go over
answers that are not in the book, you will have to mark these right or wrong also.

I do NOT accept late work unless you were absent.

I will sometimes:
• collect HW and grade it for completeness (if you don't have it, no credit)
• walk around the classroom to check for completeness (if you don't have it, no
credit)
If you worked with someone else, please write his or her name down on your paper under
your header. But remember, you may talk about the problems, but when you write up the
answers on your homework page, you must be working independently.

While I do have a syllabus, I may modify the assigned problems based on what we did in
class. If you're not sure, please check my blog : kahitchcock.blogspot.com to get the
assignment.

Your homework must be more than just some chicken scratch and an answer. Part of this
course is learning how to communicate math well. You should show all your work, in a
neat manner, so that someone reading it can follow your though process. Solutions aren't
worth much in this class. Solutions with solid work are worth a lot. (See next section.)

binder (10%)

This will probably be the most different part of this year's math class for you so you'll want
to pay close attention to this section. In theory, it will be the easiest 10% of your grade, if
you stay on top of it.

For this class, you will be required to have a 3” ring binder. At the end of the year, the
binder will have archived all your hard work: worksheets and Daily Practices, your class
notes, and all of your assessments. It will be invaluable when studying for cumulative
assessments.

You can leave your binder in your locker or keep it at home. You'll only be carrying a
folder with you to class each day. In that folder, you will keep your Daily Practices
(homework), assessments and class notes.

Every few weeks, I'll ask you to bring your binders in and we'll spend a few minutes at the
beginning of class putting work in order.

You will have binder checks periodically – and these checks will constitute 10% of your
quarterly grade. There will be at least 2 binder checks in Quarters 1 & 2, and at least 1
binder check in Quarters 3 & 4. The dates will be announced in advance – and on the day
of the binder check, you're going to have to bring in your binder. If you don't, you'll lose
20% for each day late.
 The binder check will look like this (with more questions):

Date Assigned: 10/12/2010; page 65, Problem 8

Date Assigned: 10/15/2010; page 78, Problem 17

You will highlight these answers in your binder and mark them with post it notes. I will
collect and go through them. You will be graded for your work – specifically, the
correctness of your work and solution – and neatness. Notice how I said work and
solution – not just solution.

Since you will be checking answers in the back of the book and since we will be going
over homework daily, there is no reason for your work and answers not to be terrific. If
you get something wrong, take a minute and correct it. It will not only help you
understand everything better, but you're pretty much guaranteeing yourself a great binder
grade!

scribe (5%)
You will be asked to be a “class scribe” every so often. What this means is that you take
good paper notes in class – writing down all the relevant definitions, examples,
explanations, etc. Then you will make a copy of your notes (neatly rewritten if necessary)
and give me the copy no later than 3 pm the same day. The real purpose of this is to
teach you how to communicate math effectively. We will have a class binder of all our
archived work.

classroom engagement (5%)

Your classroom engagement will be based on your ability to focus and participate in class.
You will lose points for being late or by distracting other classmates.

extra credit
Please don't ask me if there's anything you can do for extra credit. I don't give extra
credit assignments.

I must also state that depending on how things unfold this year, I reserve the right to change
things. If things will be changed, I promise to be vey explicit about the changes.