Summative work counts for 90% of the grade. This category is made up of tests and projects, the big-ticket items.

Formative work counts for 10% of the grade. This category is made up of packets of daily assignments.

All of our actions have consequences, and grades are one of the consequences--one of the life lessons--in the world of a middle school student. It's easier to learn life lessons in junior high than it is to learn them as adults. When we slack off as seventh-graders, we get a letter written on a piece of paper that we don't like. In the short run it can be a bummer, but in the long run it's not a life-destroying event. A D (or even an F) in seventh-grade social studies isn't going to keep anyone out of Harvard, and it's not going to throw anybody's family out on the street. It's just a quick snapshot of whether or not we're doing the job of school correctly--a chance to notice and fix anything that needs fixing. (Remember: grades don't tell us how smart we are; they tell us how hard we're working, and that is important feedback that a seventh-grader needs to receive.)

Check the homework online and be sure that your child is doing it.

Occasionally come in to look through your child's graded work folder. PLEASE NOTE that graded work is kept at school during the trimester so that you can see it all at any time.

Call the daily homework hotline (916.771.1775 x 111).

Ask me for a printout of your child's grades.

Call me, email me or drop by class and ask how things are going.

Look in the binder labeled "Assignments and Other Stuff You Missed" for a list of all the work we've done.

Check the whiteboard to see what wound up being assigned as homework.

Check the homework hotline daily (916.771.1775 x 111).

Check the homework web page.

If that is still not enough, we can talk about setting up a homework signoff plan.

There's no way on earth that I assign hours and hours of homework on a single night. No way. In my old age, I've decided that I'm not as big a fan of homework as I used to be, and I'd rather look over your shoulder at school to help you get it right than bust you for taking it home and doing it wrong. Except for projects, you should be looking at less than half an hour of work each night--whatever it takes to finish up what we started in class. Projects will be extended affairs, and, if you're organizing your time correctly, you're not doing them the night before they're due. If you have two or three hours of homework at night, you're not working efficiently.

Not much. We do extra credit quizmos before tests, and projects often have bonus-point options, but there's not a whole lot beyond that. It is expected that you will do your work to the best of your ability on a daily basis in order to get a good grade.

You didn't put your name on it. It's in "Mystery Meat" or it got thrown away.

It's still in your backpack/binder/desk. It's probably too late to turn in, but check anyway.

I accidentally skipped it when I was entering grades. Pull it out of your graded work folder, put it in "Homework In," and I'll correct the gradebook. (This only works if the item is ALREADY GRADED by me.)

If you were absent when an assignment was given, you must immediately see me to set up a new due date for things we did while you were gone. If you were absent when work was turned in, it is your responsibility to turn the work in as soon as your return to school. Except for those situations, formative work will not be accepted late. The due dates will be clearly announced and posted on the whiteboard in class, on the homework hotline, and on the class web site. Don't come to me a week or three after you return from your absence and try to turn in your homework packet; I won't accept it. I keep a list of all the assignments we do; feel free to check it if necessary.

We keep graded work in a folder in class until the end of the trimester. That serves two purposes: first, if I make a mistake and don't give you credit for work that you did, you can just pull it out of the folder and wave it at me. Second, your parents can come in and see the entire range of work that is being done (instead of just the A's and B's, as sometimes happens). Not that you'd do that, of course.

Respect people and property.

Come to class on time and ready to work.

"On time" in my class means being seated with your writing utensil and your opening activity out and ready to go when the bell rings. If you don't do this, I'll mark you tardy. For silent reading groups, it also means having an appropriate silent reading book out.

I fully expect that everyone can follow the class rules, but, for those who can't, the consequence will match the violation, and there will be stiffer consequences for more serious or repeated violations. The standard procedure for repeated violations will be something like this:

• Warning
• In-class consequence (like detention or an essay)
• Contact home
• Citation (after-school detention and loss of three merits)
• Disciplinary referral to the assistant principal (whatever the AP assigns and loss of five merits)

Beyond that: I hope we NEVER have to get this far

There are school rules against chewing gum and coming late to class. If you do either of these things, I have no choice but to give you a citation. It is your responsibility to let your parents know that you have detention.

Only if you're having an emergency. I expect that you'll go to the bathroom and get drinks of water during lunch and recess. We will start by rationing bathroom trips.

Nobody is going to die of dehydration from not getting a drink during my class. Whatever does not destroy us only makes us stronger.

You need to bring your own school supplies. I have a cup of found pencils at the front of the room that you can choose from, but if it is empty, it's empty. If you don't have a pencil or paper or your book--and I become involved in the problem because you don't solve it quietly on your own--then there will be consequences.

Please don't. And please don't wear a hat in class. And don't chew your hat or wear your gum on your head. In fact, let's pretend that hats and gum simply don't exist.

voicemail: 916.771.1775 x 111

email address: mklingensmith@rcsdk8.org

class web site: mrklingensmith.tripod.com

Please note that I return phone messages outside of school hours.