Welcome to 8th Grade Science



Welcome to 8th Grade Science!

Everything You Need to Know – the Detailed Version

Alex LeMay

alex.lemay@

560-3926 x 23422



Remind: text @lemay8s to 81010

Your Class

This is my 25th year teaching and I love it. I believe science should be your favorite and most mentally exciting class of the day. The whole point of science is to understand how flippin’ amazing the world and all its workings are. And then figure out interesting things to do with that information.

Also, eighth grade is considered a “transition” year for students between middle and high school. This makes eighth grade science a quite a different experience from 6th and 7th grade science. Not only will you be taught the eighth grade science curriculum, but we willalso be preparing you for high school classes.

Curriculum

The curriculum is HUGE and full of some of my favorite topics:

Science methods, elements and the periodic table, atoms, subatomic particles, radiation, isotopes and half-life, bonding and compounds chemical reactions, chemical nomenclature, properties of matter, energy resources, environmental limiting factors and relationships, energy and matter flow in ecosystems, sources of energy for living things, human health, microbes, infectious disease, disease prevention, biotechnology, geologic evolution, fossils, genetics, biological evolution, properties of water, hydrosphere, ocean resources, freshwater quality and water stewardship and so much more!

We will also add to this material as student interest, the need to prep kids for high school courses, and current events lead us.

Structure of the Class

|Monday |Tuesday |Wednesday |Thursday |Friday |

| | | | | |

|Overview of week |Lecture, discussions, |Lecture, discussions, |Lecture, discussions, |Quiz or Test |

|Go over quizzes |activities and labs |activities and labs |activities and labs |Word Wall for next week |

|Review if needed or start new | | | | |

|material | | | | |

Extra Help

Please, please, please ask questions in class. Chances are, if you have a question, someone else wants to know the answer, too. I love to answer questions. Really. Ask lots.

Tutoring: Monday afternoons 4:15-5:00, Wednesday lunch (my room), and other times by appointment.

Email tutoring: Got a quick question? alex.lemay@ . Not a guaranteed immediate answer, I have phenomenal kids I feed and love and sometimes I do laundry, but I will get to it as soon as I can.

General Class Procedures

Start of class: Pick up any handout from the front table. Copy the warm up, answer the review. Class starts when the bell rings.

Notebooks: I do not take up binders (welcome to junior high independence!), but I recommend that you have one section/folder for warm ups, one for work to be done, one for completed work to be turned in, one for class notes, and one for handouts and returned quizzes and tests.

Tardies: Don’t be tardy. We need you here. If you are tardy, come in silently, sign in on the tardy sheet as directed and attach your note to the clipboard if you have one. Three unexcused tardies is ASD with Mr. McGee.

Absences: Don’t be absent. We need you here. Now, if you are sick, we love you, please stay home and get better. Check the alexlemayscience. or call a friend to get your assignment. You have 5 days to complete any missed work or make up missed assessments. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR GETTING AND TURNING IN YOUR ASSIGNMENTS AND MAKING ARRANGEMENTS FOR MAKE UP ASSESSMENTS. Work not turned in or tests/quizzes not made up become ZEROS after five days.

Grading: I use a cumulative points system.

Practice work (work done in class or finished at home counts10 points per assignment.

Quizzes count 15-25 points,

Tests 100 points

Labs, activities, and projects will vary based on the content of the assignment.

Late Work: Practice work turned in late is worth at most 7 points. But still, turn it in! I will accept late practice work up until a week before the end of the grading period. Really, turn it in.

Testing: Tests usually cover about 3-4 weeks of material. You should study your warm ups, notes, word wall vocabulary, classwork, quizzes, and labs.

Turning in work: All work goes in The Bin up front. Late work goes in the Late Bin at my desk. Write “absent” on any work not turned in because you were absent within five days. All practice work is generally due on Fridays.

Bathroom: Whenever you are out of the room, you miss what we are doing in class. You may not leave class once you are here. In case of emergency, you may go, but you must exchange time lost at lunch.

Materials: There are materials like staplers, band-aids, and such by the bookshelf and up front. They are there just for you! (If you can donate to help restock –that would be awesome!) The items on my desk are just for me. If you need something you don’t see, let me know.

Cell phones: Keep the ringers off and keep them out of sight. I follow school procedures and take them if I see them or if there is under the table texting and give them to the main office.

Nuisance Behaviors: I rarely have major behavior issues in class. Most of the time, the problem is talking. But that’s a pain for the rest of the class to stop because I have to reel someone back in who knows better. First, I give you a chance to correct yourself, if that doesn’t work, I contact a parent, if that doesn’t do it, it then goes to either a guidance counselor or administrator as appropriate. Honestly, by this point, I know you can do the right thing; it’s just a matter of choice.

Cheating: Don’t. If you are caught giving or taking answers on a test, copying someone else’s homework or classwork or any other violation of the honor code, you get a zero on the work. Period.

Eating: Can’t do it in class at all. Not even sneaking. There are multiple students here with severe food allergies. Your surreptitious peanut butter cracker crumbs could kill someone. Not kidding. And there are mice.

Laboratory Safety Contract

Labs can be very exciting, insightful, and fun. However, some labs can also be very dangerous unless a few simple guidelines are followed. If, for any reason, you cannot follow these guidelines, you will be removed from the lab area and receive a zero for the lab. THERE WILL BE NO EXCEPTIONS!!! I take lab safety very seriously.

The Basics. (See the individual lab instructions for safety issues specific to that lab.)

1. Read the procedure before beginning the experiment. If you have any questions, please ask before you begin the lab.

2. Know where the safety equipment is located before starting an experiment.

3. No food or drink is allowed in the lab area.

4. Never taste or inhale any substance or chemical in the lab.

5. Wear protective equipment when needed. If goggles and/or an apron are required for the lab, wear them at all times.

6. If a chemical spill occurs, do not try to clean it up yourself, inform the teacher immediately.

7. If your skin is exposed to a chemical, immediately rinse with water and inform the teacher.

8. Report any accident, no matter how small to the teacher.

9. Keep all materials away from open flames.

10. Wear appropriate clothing on lab days and tie back long hair.

11. Stay on task, pay attention to what you are doing. NO FOOLING AROUND!!

12. Keep the lab area clean and free of clutter.

End of the lab procedure:

1. Dispose of chemicals and other materials as directed by your teacher.

2. Disconnect electrical devices.

3. Clean your work area: wash and put away all materials, wipe down table.

4. Turn off water and heating devices. If they are still warm, inform the teacher.

5. Wash hands before leaving the lab area.

6. Reset lab as instructed by your teacher.

Please fill out and return by Friday 9/1.

( I have actually read and understand Ms. LeMay’s policies and procedures for our science class and the above lab safety guidelines. I agree to abide by them.

____________________________________________________________________

Student Name (Please print and sign)

All students want to do well. Signing this tells me you know what you have to do to be successful (and I will hold you to it!) and how I will help you if you have problems. Let me know if you have any questions.

( I have also actually read and understand Ms. LeMay’s policies and procedures and will support my child in following them.

____________________________________________________________________

Parent name (please print and sign)

While it’s not required, I highly encourage parents to annoy their child regularly with questions about what happened in class today, discuss new or weird things they learned, and what assignments are due. That way the students can review their material, see what they understand and don’t, make sure they are keeping up with their assignments and get to see that their parents love them enough to listen to discussions of quantum mechanics and wombats after a long day at work. DSA parents are the best.

Parent/Guardian Contact Information (please print)

_______________________________________ ____________________________

Name(s) Relationship to student

_______________________________________ ____________________________

Name(s) Relationship to student

________________________________________ _____________________________ Best Email for parent/guardian contact… ….and whose email it is

_______________________________________ Home Cell Work (please circle)

Best number for contacting a parent/guardian

Please add any information you would like me to know about your amazing child at the bottom or on the back. Feel free to add an extra page if they are exceptionally amazing.

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