Patti Martin
404-334-4790
Ext. 1066
Contact via kmail
7th Grade English Language Arts Syllabus
School Year 2015-16
Georgia Cyber Academy Middle School Vision Statement:
Virtual learning during the middle school years continues to lay the foundation for success in high school and
beyond. In addition to mastering the standards in a virtual environment, we encourage our students to be
committed life-long learners and perceptive citizens of the world.
Georgia Cyber Academy Middle School Mission Statement:
We will strive for the academic success of every student. We will create a relationship built on trust and
respect among student, learning coach, and teacher, necessary for a student’s successful educational journey.
Students and Teachers Aligned to Reach SUCCESS! (STARS)
GCA is happy to meet your specific learning needs in a STARS homeroom! STARS is a program that assertively
identifies learning gaps and provides students an abbreviated and streamlined course load with the focus on mastery of
skills and content necessary to meet the standards on the Georgia Milestones Assessment. Adaptability and extra
encouragement give students the opportunity to get on the fast track to completing middle school and meeting content
standards. As a reminder, students need to attend LIVE classes through Class Connect in the student’s OLS. While each
class will be recorded, students will receive the most benefit by attending the LIVE sessions. Our LIVE classes will
provide your student with all the information he/she will need to know and the opportunity to ask questions in order to
reach his/her highest potential in ELA.
Weekly Class Connect Schedule:
Advisement Team Time You will see this link in your
OLS. Join us for homeroom time, and then help sessions
for each content area will be provided.
Friday, 8:30-9:30am
ELA Whole Group Targeted Instruction
(Classes will last 60 minutes and will appear in your
OLS.)
ELA W.I.N. Sessions (What I Need)
(These sessions will last 45 minutes and are specific
to the need of the individual student. These are by
teacher invitation only.)
Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays
8:30-9:30 am
11:30-12:30 am
NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor in order to meet your
student’s individual needs as prescribed in your student’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP).
Patti Martin
404-334-4790
Ext. 1066
Contact via kmail
**Class Connect sessions are required. Occasionally a Class Connect may be canceled due to unforeseen
circumstances, or a recording will be sent in place of a live class. These changes will be communicated though
kmail and/or on your Monthly Instructional Calendar.
NOTE: All Class Connect sessions are recorded and students can access recordings via their OLS shortly after
the class has ended.
Grading Criteria:
All Middle School students enrolled in Georgia public schools are required to be given formal letter grades. GCA
students will earn grades by completing and participating in the various components of our curriculum. An
online grade book, Infinite Campus, will be utilized and both students and parents will have access to the
grades. Grades will be based on the following scale:
Gradebook Categories/Percentages
OLS- only lessons assigned on the Monthly Instructional Calendar will
count as part of the OLS Grade.
Study Island Pathways (Participation)
Pathway 1
Pathway 2
Pathway 3
Pathway 4
Pathway 5
Pathway 6
Assessments and Writing
Pre-Assessment (participation grade)
Interim Assessment 1 (includes writing assignment - Math, ELA, Sci, & SS)
(actual grade)
Interim Assessment 2 (includes writing assignment - Math, ELA, Sci, & SS)
(actual grade)
Interim Assessment 3 (includes writing assignment - Math, ELA, Sci, & SS)
(actual grade)
Interim Assessment 4 (includes writing assignment - Math, Sci, & SS)
(actual grade)
Posttest (actual grade)
Writing Assignment 4 (ELA only - SI)
Writing Assignment 5 (ELA only - SI)
30%
35%
35%
NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor in order to meet your
student’s individual needs as prescribed in your student’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP).
Patti Martin
404-334-4790
Ext. 1066
Contact via kmail
**Advisement will be a separate category on the report card (GA Futures, Conference Attendance,
Signed Compact/handbook, and Infinite Campus log in.)
2015-2016 Middle School Writing Plan
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Writing will be completed as a part of the Interim Assessments in USA Test Prep for the
constructed response prompts for all content areas. ELA’s 2 extended response assignments
will be in Study Island.
Each non-ELA content area will complete a minimum of 3 required constructed response
writing pieces that are related to content standards. These will be graded with a rubric that
provides feedback to students along with teacher commentary on the writing piece.
ELA will be completing 3 constructed responses and 2 extended responses related to content
standards.
o The 2 extended responses will be formulated from/similar to text-based writing critical
skills units in the OLS. One will be persuasive/ expository, and the other will be focused
on the research process in order to more directly teach research and the writing
process.
o The 3 constructed responses will be standards-based and will apply skills from
composition units and literature units.
o All writing will be graded with rubric and teacher feedback.
o Composition units will provide writing skills support and in-class composition support
rather than prompts that are not aligned to the standards and testing requirements.
Literature OLS units that focus on writing will be pulled for these purposes more so as
they have been reformatted to fit the new standards.
Writing across the Curriculum
In accordance with our school mission to strive for the academic success of every student, this year writing will
be included in our Interim Assessments. This plan models the expectations for the end of grade testing and
encourages critical thinking. This will be a graded part of the Interim Assessments in USA Test Prep.
Middle School Late Work Policy 15-16
Each student has a Window of Opportunity to complete the following:
OLS - Expected progress is due by May 20th.
Study Island Pathways – Students must complete 100% of all Study Island Pathways.
NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor in order to meet your
student’s individual needs as prescribed in your student’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP).
Patti Martin
404-334-4790
Ext. 1066
Contact via kmail
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Study Island Pathways are due as advertised (September 30, October 30, December 18, January 29,
February 29, and March 31) to demonstrate mastery prior to the GA Milestone End of Grade Testing.
January enrollees- complete 100% of Pathways 4, 5, and 6. It is recommended to complete all
pathways.
ELA Writing assignments-After the end of the semester, the grade will be a 0 if not turned in.
Pre-assessment- After the end of the semester, the grade will be a 0 if not completed.
Interim Assessments and Post-test –If not completed by due date, a 0 will be earned. The Interim
Assessments and Post-test are an important part of our instructional plan throughout the year. The results
from these assessments give us information of which standards have been mastered and which ones need to
be reviewed. For this reason, these assessments are time sensitive and need to be completed during the
assigned dates.
PE
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60 hours by May 20th
Mid-year enrollees- 30 hours by May 20th
Health
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30 hours by May 20th
Mid-year enrollees- 15 hours by May 20th
***Middle School recognizes All A and All A/B Honor Roll at the end of semester one and end of semester
two. For semester one, grades will be calculated through January 11th for consideration of Honor Roll.
Semester one Honor Roll only includes the core content subjects. For semester two, grades will be calculated
through May 17th for consideration of Honor Roll. Semester two Honor Roll includes all subjects (core
content, PE, Health, Advisement and Elective).***
Course Description:
GCA’s Middle School ELA department strives to educate students in the discipline of language arts with a focus
on literature and composition in order to reach the goal of producing analytical communicators capable of
meeting and exceeding national and state standards. ELA teachers use the Common Core/Georgia
Performance Standards (CCGPS), K12 Online School curriculum, and Study Island to help students master the
concepts of reading, writing, speaking, and listening at or above their grade level.
Purpose and Course Objectives:
NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor in order to meet your
student’s individual needs as prescribed in your student’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP).
Patti Martin
404-334-4790
Ext. 1066
Contact via kmail
The purpose of this course is to teach students how to analyze literature and produce organized compositions
that achieve their specific purposes. After successfully completing this course, students will have an extensive
foundation for the reading, writing, listening, and speaking they will be expected to do at the high school level
and beyond.
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Course Requirements:
Online School assignment completion by May 20, 2015.
*OLS will be supplemented by the Study Island Pathways and additional class reading and writing
assignments. The OLS Vocabulary and Composition strands will be used as supplemental material.
o Literature: 46%
o GUM: 95%
Complete various graded writing assignments throughout the course of the year, including but not
limited to, journals entries and short answer essays. Due dates will be announced both in Class connect
sessions and through monthly checklists sent via kmail.
Complete required lessons in the OLS per kmailed monthly checklists.
Complete required ELA Study Island Pathways.
Complete pre-assessment, 4 interim assessments, and post test in USA Test Prep.
Attend LIVE sessions (or listen to recordings) of Class Connect sessions.
Successful mastery of standards on the Georgia Milestone’s End of Grade Test – in person the week of
April 25th-29th.
Materials:
English Language Handbook; Classics for Young Readers, Vol. 7 (book and audio); City: A History of Roman
Planning; Iliad and the Odyssey: Stories from Homer's Epics; Shakespeare: Julius Caesar; The Hobbit; Treasure
Island; Vocabulary from Classical Roots, Book B
ELA Projected Quarterly Topics:
*Please note that the topic lists are just an overview. Monthly Instructional Calendars will be
provided with daily lessons and topics. In order to stay on track for successful completion of grade
level standards, please make sure to attend classes and work from the material listed on the
monthly course calendar.
Domain
Literature
GUM
Composition
CONTENT
Short stories/story elements; novels; historical/cultural literature; poetry;
informational literature
Sentence structure; parts of speech; punctuation/editing
Persuasive (argument) and Informational (incorporation of the research
process)
ELA GEORGIA STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor in order to meet your
student’s individual needs as prescribed in your student’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP).
Patti Martin
404-334-4790
Ext. 1066
Contact via kmail
https://www.georgiastandards.org/Common-Core/Documents/ELA-Standards-Grades-6-8.pdf
NOTE: This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor in order to meet your
student’s individual needs as prescribed in your student’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP).