Course Syllabus

Video for Parents who missed Back to School Night

BTSN Notes for Parents & Guardians-2024-25.pdf

Term 1 Office Hours/Extra Help

MONDAYS 2:30-3:15 in room 428

(If Monday is a Holiday then office hours will be Tuesday that week.)  

Extra help also available some block As (7:30-8:30) and after school by appointment.

Algebra 2 (Advanced Algebra) Honors- Overview and Policies 2024-25

Mrs. Bell – Room 428- bellc@wellesley.ps.org

“What music is to the heart, mathematics is to the mind.”
-Amit Kalantri

Course Overview:  Topics include the linear, absolute value, quadratic, radical/rational exponent, polynomial, exponential, logarithmic and rational families of functions, along with some probability and statistics. Within each topic, students will be study and be evaluated on:

• Expressions:  perform operations, change forms and evaluate expressions.
• Equations/Inequalities: solve equations/inequalities and check for extraneous solutions.
• Graphs: obtain information from a graph, represent information/equations/inequalities graphically and apply/describe transformations.
• Model & Reason: model mathematically, interpret solutions within the context of a situation and justify responses.

Students will be expected to synthesize the skills and concepts they learn from direct teacher instruction and the text/resources and then independently apply them to larger conceptual problems during group work in class and on their own. Students will be assessed both with and without a calculator.

 

Term Grade Breakdown

• Term Assessments 60%
• Term Cumulative Assessment 20%
• The higher of Term Assessment average and Term Cumulative Assessment score 15%

• Homework and Classwork 5% (Max score 95% or, if higher, your average of the above. Grade given at end of term based on HW/CW completion through term)

Year Grade Breakdown

• Term 1 22%
• Term 2 22%
• Term 3 22%
• Term 4 22%
• Final Exam 12%

Note- Student transcripts only show a student’s grade for the year. 

Classroom Policies:

1. Extra Help/ “Office Hours”/Math Lab- You are strongly encouraged to come to room 428 or the Math Lab when you have questions or just want to do some math work with a teacher nearby for support if needed. I will post my Block A and after school Extra Help/ “Office Hours” hours each week. The Math Lab is open most blocks of the school day. The Math Lab is in room 452 during A block and is held in room 426, right next to our classroom, the rest of the school day.  When open, there will be a math teacher there to help you with your work.  It’s a great resource, use it!  Here are the times that I’ll be working there this year: Day 1: Blocks A and C (yellow), Day 3: block E (purple), Day 5 blocks A and D (yellow)
2. Electronics- NO cell phone or smart watch use in class- PARK your phone and/or smart watch (in “Do not disturb” mode) when you enter the classroom and pick them up as you leave. To promote learning, avoid distractions, and focus on being present and respectful, we will NOT use phones and other electronics, aside from your laptops, in class. This includes headphones.  It should feel good to have a break from these devices!  
3. Food and Drinks-

Drinks are permitted if they have tops.  Keep snacking to a minimum and be sure to clean up after yourself. 

5. Fire exit/emergency – Please adhere to the designed route and policy when we need to leave the building. Fire Alarm Exit Plan- LEFT out door and then RIGHT and down MAIN STAIR WELL and out back of school to SEAVER ST. Be quiet and move with speed!                    
6. Leaving class- If you must go to the bathroom, go and return efficiently. (Leave your phone parked.) Only one student is allowed out of the classroom at a time unless there is an extenuating circumstance.  If you need to go to the nurse, let me know and I’ll give you a pass.  Try not to leave class much- you miss out and we miss you!
7. Enrich our classroom. You have the power to make our school and this classroom better!  Let’s make our Advanced Algebra class fun and positive.  Be a force for good!  Be respectful of all people and things. Do not get in the way of your own or others opportunities for learning and thinking and having a good day.  Focus on the thinking and learning.  (Not grades/points.)  We are all counting on you, what will your impact be?  Please enrich our classroom. And thank you in advance!

Attendance: 

-If you are late to class without a pass, sit down to work as quickly and quietly as possible. Each unexcused late is recorded and 3 unexcused lates =1 cut.  This is a WHS policy.  Being late is also a distraction to the class, a hassle for the teacher, and it will make class more difficult for the late student.  Be respectful- please do your best to be on time! 

-You will receive a zero for any HW, quiz, in-class assignment or test that you miss due to an Unexcused Absence or a Cut for our class.  If you need to talk to me about exceptional cases then do so ASAP.   Do the math; zeros hurt your grade a lot.  Plus, you’ll miss out on good mathematics- come to class!  

-Excused Absences- Check Canvas when you are absent.  And email me or see me when you return to check in also.  It’s also smart practice to talk with a classmate about what we did in class.  After an excused absence, any previously assigned work is due on the day you return to school.  If you miss class on the day of an assessment, you must communicate with me as soon as you are back to school (or before) and schedule a time to take a make-up assessment within 2 school days of your return to school. Makeups can be scheduled to start anytime between 7:30 and 2:45 on most days.  (Your parent(s), counselor, and assistant principal will be alerted if you are repeatedly absent on assessment days.)

Please refer to the WHS Student Handbook for more on the Attendance Policies and other school expectations, values, rules and policies.

Canvas:

https://wellesley.instructure.com/  Click on Advanced Algebra.

Homework assignments (plan on 15-45 minutes per class), assessment dates, class slides as needed, class handouts, other resources like chapters from our Algebra 2 textbook will be posted on Canvas.  We will also periodically use the Discussion tab there to help with class discussions. 

Assessments:

-Test dates will be announced at least a week in advance. 

-For terms 1, 2 and 3, we will have three unit tests and a term cumulative test.

-For term 4 we will have two unit tests and a term cumulative test.

-Short/unannounced quizzes (usually on Delta Math) can be given anytime and will be used to inform both you and me about your proficiency with the material.  These scores will be posted on PowerSchool but will NOT count toward your grade.

 

Academic Integrity:  Please read and follow the Honor Code located on page 1 of the Student Handbook.  If you cheat on an assignment or assessment, I will notify your counselor and call home and you will get a zero on the assignment.  Keep your integrity- your best is definitely enough!

 

Materials: You will need pencils, pens, a TI-83 or TI-84 graphing calculator, graph paper, a small ruler, charged laptop and a math notebook or math binder or binder section.  (I suggest using a spiral bound notebook for HW and class notes and a couple folders or a small binder or binder section for handouts.)  You will access our textbook through pdf documents posted on our Canvas page.  Please see me if you want to sign out a text book or are concerned about getting any of the materials and we will make it work.

 “Accumulate learning by study, understand what you learn by question.”-Ming jiao, Jiufeng

Advanced Algebra Honors- 2024-25 

Welcome Challenges- Be a positive force- Do the thinking!