2014-2015 John Page M.S.

Syllabus

ESL Science and English Language Development

John Page Middle School
29615 Tawas St, Madison Heights, MI 48071 (248)-589-3428
Email: Cosgrok@lamphere.k12.mi.us
Office hours: Upon Request

Ms. Cosgro's Class Outline

Standards: This course was designed using the current World-Class Instructional Design
and Assessment (or WIDA) standards and will align with the Common Core Standards. Our
main focus will be on building and strengthening students' linguistic complexity,
vocabulary usage, and language control.

Goals: The goal of this course is to provide students with a working knowledge of the
English language and cultural norms especially as related to the American school setting.

ESL Science will focus on building and strengthening student knowledge of basic
scientific concepts and learning the specific vocabulary associated with those
concepts.
English Language Development will focus on academic language and reading.
Students will learn a variety of strategies to understand the language of school and
breakdown different types of texts.

Expectations: In my classroom we will follow the L.E.A.R.N model for behavior: Listen
carefully to instructions, Enter and Exit properly, Always try your best, Respect yourself,
others, and your school, No excuses! Additionally, students are expected to follow ALL
school rules. If classroom/school rules are broken, students can expect a swift and
appropriate consequence per the tiered model of student intervention.

Course content: In this class, we will practice the four domains of language: reading,
writing, listening, and speaking. We will practice these skills in a variety of ways including
reader's theater, journaling, dictations, role play, script writing, computer activities with
language software/typing, and educational games. We will collaborate (or work
together), sometimes as a whole class, sometimes in small groups or in pairs, and
sometimes we will work independently.
 2014-2015 John Page M.S. Syllabus

In this class we will also practice strategies for academic reading and test taking in order to
ease academic anxiety and build student confidence. We will practice these skills in a
variety of ways including reader's workshops, book talks, identifying elements of fiction
and non-fiction, comparing and contrasting facts and opinions, study of transition words,
and breaking down the specific language sample prompts.

Evaluation: Assignments including class work, homework, projects, and assessments

will be worth a given number of participation points, those points will then be converted
into a percentage out of 100%.

Secondary grading scale {grades 6-12}

A+ 97+% A 93-96% A- 90-92% B+ 87-89% B 83-86% B- 80-82%

C+ 77-79% C 73-76% C- 70-72% D+ 67-69% D 60-66% E/F 59-%
Participation: Class participation is an important part of your success. It is through
participation that you actively EARN your grade! Attendance is a component of
participation; how can you expect to earn a good grade if you don't come to class?

Participation means showing up on time every day, volunteering answers and ideas, and
helping others. Active participation contributes to your citizenship grade as well (your
citizenship grade measures how well you act in school.)

Getting Involved [outside of the classroom]: As your teacher, I would strongly

advise you to join a club or team here at John Page Middle School. The more time a student
spends at school the higher their level of academic achievement. Being part of a club or
team would not only help you practice your English skills outside of the classroom setting,
but provide you with a sense of belonging and school pride. Trying new things can also
lead to meeting new friends.

This is what Americans call a "win win situation" where both parties benefit!

Teacher's Intention: I look forward to meeting you and helping you to learn and grow!
_ ____Please sign and return the bottom section ___________________________________________

Student's first and last name {PRINT} ______________________________

I, [student's name] ______________________________ have taken this information home and

shared it with my parent(s)/guardian(s).

I, [parent/guardian's name] ______________________________ have read and understand this

information about my son/daughter's ESL English class.