Welcome one and all to ninth grade American Cultures II!!  The syllabus below contains information about our class which we will go over and you will reference throughout the school year as needed.  If you or your parents have any questions, please let me know.  You can contact me by phone and/or e-mail, and we can certainly arrange a time to meet if you would like.

 

Class Website:  I have created a website for my classes.  On this website, you will find my teaching schedule, a syllabus for your class, and important homework, quiz, and test reminders.

The address for the website is:  http://sites.penncrest.org/bzielinski/.

 

Classroll:  There is a link from my site to the Classroll website.  I highly suggest that you check your grades on Classroll on a regular basis.  You can access Classroll from the school website, my website, or by going to:  http://www.classroll.com.

 

Course Description:  American Cultures II picks up where American Cultures I left off.  We will begin by discussing events leading up to the American Civil War in 1861 and we will end around the time of the election of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932.  We will also discuss the role and importance of our great state of Pennsylvania during this time period.  You will also be receiving a rather large helping of geography in this class, which is just good for you.

 

Classroom policies are as follows:

 

Class Rules:  All school rules apply in our classroom.

1.  Be respectful.  Respect is expected and will be given to your classmates and myself at all times.  Please raise your hand, and be quiet when someone else (including the teacher) is speaking.  These are guidelines that you’ve heard before many times, and they still apply.

2.  Be on time.  You are responsible for being in the room by the late bell or you will be marked late.  Two lates reported from me and any of your other teachers will add up to equal a detention.

3.  Be prepared.  Come to class with the materials that you will need and any assignments that may be due.  It is difficult to function properly in most classes without a writing utensil, and my desk does not contain a bottomless supply of pencils for borrowing – bring your own.  Also, you will not be permitted to take the hall pass to your locker to retrieve forgotten assignments.  You are young adults that have now entered high school, and more is expected of you.

 

Hall Pass Use:  You must ask to use the hall pass.  Each student will receive nine uses of the hall pass every nine weeks.  I will be keeping track, and once you have used up your allotted number of passes, you may no longer leave the room, so don’t waste them.  I need to approve your destination if you need to take the pass to somewhere other than the restroom.  You may not take the pass to your locker to retrieve something that you have forgotten (notes, homework, etc.)  It is your responsibility to bring all of the necessary materials to class each day.

 

Homework:  Homework is an essential part of high school.  All homework must be turned in on time.  Work will be accepted one (1) day late for 50% of the original value.  For example, if you turn in a 10-point assignment one day late, your highest possible value on the assignment would be 5 out of 10.  This does not include excused absences from school, though you will be expected to make up any work that you may have missed while absent.  I will give you time to complete work in class and will help in any way that I can, but you will be responsible for work outside of class as well.

 

Cheating:  Cheating will result in a zero (0) grade for the assignment, quiz, test, etc.  Don’t do it.

 

Assessments and Grading:  Your grade will be made up of the following: tests, quizzes, homework, essays, papers, group work, presentations, map work, random note checks, and other things that I think up along the way.

 

Bell Ringers:  There will be a daily bell ringer question that you will be responsible for answering each day.  We will go over the answer in class, and you will be quizzed on the bell ringer questions every two weeks.  You will be responsible for getting the bell ringer question and answer from another student or myself if you are absent.

 

Mid-term and Final Exams:  There will be two end-of-semester tests which will consist of the bell ringers from throughout the semester.  Be responsible and keep track!

 

Chapters to be covered in this class:

• Chapter 10 – Expansion and Conflict
• Chapter 11 – Sectional Conflict Increases
• Chapter 12 – The Civil War
• Chapter 13 – Reconstruction and the New South
• Chapter 14 – The Western Crossroads
• Chapter 15 – The Second Industrial Revolution
• Chapter 16 – The Transformation of American Society
• Chapter 17 – Politics in the Gilded Age
• Chapter 18 – The Age of Reform
• Chapter 19 – Progressive Politicians
• Chapter 20 – America and the World
• Chapter 21 – World War I
• Chapter 22 – A Turbulent Decade
• Chapter 23 – The Jazz Age

 

We have lots to cover, but don’t worry.  If you come to class and do your best, you will do fine.  Whether you find history class to be easy or difficult, my goal is not to make things hard for you, but to share this information with you and prepare you for things to come.  How well you do in class is up to you!!