Grading:
Notebooks - 15%
Homework and classwork – 20%
Quizzes – 20%
Tests and Assessments – 30%
 Projects, Reports, presentations, and class participation  - 15%

Notebooks – Notebooks will be required as part of this course. They will be reviewed and graded throughout the school year. Notebooks should include all of your class lecture notes, chapter outlines, corrected homework, classroom exercises, handouts, lab and project reports, and any other material required by the teacher. They will be graded on completeness, level of organization, and neatness.  A minimum 2 1/2-inch three ring binder is recommended.

Homework - Homework assignments will be given out at the end of the class session and posted on the class web site at the end of each day.  Unless otherwise stated, assignments will be due the next class period. Homework will frequently be discussed and corrected in class. Your name, class period, and date should be written at the top right hand corner of each assignment. No late homework will be accepted unless you are absent on the day it is given or due. If you are absent on the day it is due, you must pass in the assignment on the day you return. If you are absent on the day an assignment is given, you must meet with me to make special arrangements to make up the work. Two free homework assignments will be granted each quarter so that your lowest homework grades for that quarter will be dropped.

Quizzes – A quiz will generally be given at the end of each topic. Additional quizzes may be given depending on the complexity and length of the material. Quizzes may or may not be announced. Surprise quizzes are always a possibility! There will be no make-up quizzes. One free quiz grade will be granted each quarter so that the lowest quiz grade for that quarter will be dropped.   

Tests and  Assessments –  Assessments and/or chapter/unit tests will be given at least four times a quarter.  Tests and assessments will be announced at least three class periods in advance.

Reports, presentations, and participation – This course will include as many classroom “hands on” exercises as time allows. A written report may be assigned at the end of any of these exercises. A design and build project will be completed during the fourth quarter. Additional group and individual projects (including reports and classroom presentations) may also be assigned. Your participation in class (class discussions, group projects, desire to be involved, overall preparedness) will help to enhance your learning experience. A part of your grade will reflect the level of your contribution to the class.

All students are invited to expand the course by bringing to class any related material that they may encounter (newspaper and magazine articles, newsletters, Internet sites, etc.). We will try to include it where possible.

As the school year progresses, the guidelines to this course may evolve and are subject to change. Any revision in the course will be communicated as soon as possible to each class section.