Eaglecrest High School

World Literature
Mrs. Vlieger

Ms. Jo M. Vlieger
Phone: 720-202-4635
E-mail: jvlieger@psdschools.org
Planning Periods: 2A, 4A, and 3B (Office 231)

**You may email me during any time, no worries. It is the best way to reach me,
both parents and students. If I do not answer after at least two days, please email
me or call once more- I do not mind being nagged. If the email is urgent and you
need an answer immediately, please indicate so in the subject line or in the
voicemail. Please do not text as the number is a landline. **
Welcome to World Literature! This year, we will be diving into texts from all around
the world and exploring their multi-cultural perspectives. The purpose of this course
is to not only teach you more about the world, but to help you learn a little bit about
yourself as well. We will also be traveling through time, from 1300 to present, so
buckle up and be prepared to feel yourself in the times of Homer and Grimm, in the
worlds of Joyce and Soyinka. The fulcrum texts for this course will be The Odyssey
by Homer, the occasional fairy tale from the Brothers Grimm, stories from Joyces
Dubliners, and two plays by Wole Soyinka, Death and the Kings Horseman and
The Trails of Brother Jero. We will continue with our discoveries through our own
writing, with poetry, plays, or other creative writing-its up to you!
Going out into the world can be a scary thing, and as juniors, you guys are
getting closer and closer to that. Our classroom is going to be a place of safe
exploration, where we can have deep discussions without worrying about judgment
or prejudices. This is a classroom I believe I have created, but I know that there is so
much more I could be doing to make it better for everyone. I also believe in a
democratic center for learning, so please do not hesitate to let me and your other
classmates know what we can be doing to make this the environment the safest
and most accessible to you. We are all learners here, and even I will never stop
ceasing to obtain knowledge. I hope that this is something that you will learn in my
classroom.
Expected Classroom Behaviors
We will always respect each others opinions and beliefs during our class time.
When someone is speaking, we need to make sure that we are giving them our full
attention. During any sort of presentation, be it by your classmates or myself, we
will always show active listening and respectful tact. You should always come to
class completely prepared, but if you are not, you will know where to find the
necessary materials. Please refrain from any language deemed profane and
ignorant- remember, we want this to be a safe place.
Participation

Participation is both welcome and expected. You do not need to feel as if you have
to speak at all times, but you will be graded on a weekly basis for your input into
classroom time. I want you to want to come to class with a mind ready to learn, so
please attempt to contribute to discussion and other activities.
Class reading time: Please always follow along with whomever is reading out loud.
Be ready to be called on or asked to read a certain part. Do not poke fun at anyone
having a difficult time getting their words out.
Reading Journals: Reading journals will be completed either in class or for
homework, but I will let you know which will be done for that day. I will be doing
random reading journal checks, so be ready with your notebooks as a part of your
weekly participation grades.
Peer Workshops: Please provide helpful criticisms when peer-editing a fellows work.
We will be doing workshops on various writings throughout the semester, and the
workshops will count for participation grades as well. Again, remember to be
helpful, meaning, yet positively constructive.
Other Activities: There are many random activities that we will doing throughout
this semester. I think that they are an absolute blast, but if you dont, please still
actively participate. I know we can come into the day not necessarily liking the
world, but remember to always put your best foot forward when attempting to
participate in anything.
Cell Phones: Cell phones are okay if they are out for the most part, but make sure
they are on silent. During peer workshops, class discussion time, and tests, make
sure they are out of sight and out of mind. Any inappropriate cell phone usage will
result in the taking away of participation points for the week.
Supplies
I will be providing anthologies for everyone to use throughout the semester, and
any other texts will be available in the storeroom or the bookstore. I do encourage
you to buy your own copies if you can, however, because annotating the actual
texts can be more helpful in the learning process.
You will also need:

Writing utensils (You can absolutely have fun colors, if youd like, just make
sure that they are legible!)
Two notebooks (College-ruled) - One for notes and one for reading journals.
You can choose to have one bigger notebook as you will not be physically
turning anything you write in them into me.
Optional: highlighters, sticky notes, book tabs
Access to the internet/ way to type out projects and essays- The library is
open until five p.m. every day, and the public library is open until six if you do
not have access to these necessities at home. We will be doing a lot of our
work through Google Classroom, so please make sure you have a way to get
there.

Folders: We have many assignments we will be doing over the course of the
semester, so please keep track of everything. There will be folders inside bins
with all of your coursework if you do not want to carry around your past work
with you.

Grading Scale
This classroom will be graded on a traditional A-F scale pluses and minuses included
(except for an F).
A+: 100-96 A: 95-93

A-: 92-90

B+: 89-86

B: 85-83

B: 82-80

C+: 79-76

C: 75-73

C-: 72-70

D+: 69-66

C: 65-63

D-: 62-60

F: 59 and below
All grades will be a mix of tests, quizzes, vocabulary, reading journals, the final
writing project, and class participation. Please make sure you are completing
everything on time for the best possible grade.
Grades will be entered into the gradebook on a weekly basis. I will keep a thorough
record of everything, but I guarantee that a mistake or two will be made; please
keep your own record of all of your classwork and assignments in case I have
entered something in incorrectly or have omitted something entirely. There will be
folders for you to keep your past assignments in if you do not believe you can keep
track of them in your own folders.
Tardies
I expect everyone to be ready and on time for class every day, but I understand that
things happen. You will have exactly one more minute after the bell rings to be
considered on time for class. After the minute is over, you must go to the tardy
stations and report for the proper consequences. If you are frequently late (as in at
least two times a week or more), we will meet outside of class time to discuss a plan
for ensuring your punctuality in the future.
Absences and Late Work
Again, life happens, so I do not expect you to be there for class every single day of
the semester. However, I do expect that all of your work is completed regardless of
your lack of presence. For any excused absences, you will have one day for every
day that you missed to make up the work. For example, if you missed two days on a
valid excuse, you will have to more class periods to complete the necessary work.
For any unexcused absences, work will still need to completed. You will have until
midnight of the day of your absence to finish the work for it to be considered on
time. Otherwise, for every class period that it is late, five percent will be taken off
the final grade of the assignment.

Remember that even if your work is not on time, turning in something is better than
taking a zero for the assignment. Therefore, late work will absolutely be accepted.
General late work follows the same guidelines as an unexcused absence. Deadlines
for the assignment will provided at the introduction, but some of them can be rolling
deadlines if necessary. If this is the case, it will be discussed as a class and we will
reach a manageable time limit.
Extra Credit
There will be plenty of opportunities for extra credit during the school year, so keep
your eyes out! It will most likely be provided when I notice that everyone is working
very hard and deserves a supplemental merit. I may have a fun activity for
everyone one to do inside or outside of class, or I may allow revisions on tests or
quizzes for a return of points. Stay strong and focus, and I will make sure you get
exactly that.

I HAVE READ AND COMPLY WITH THE CLASSROOM STANDARDS AS SET FORTH BY
MS. VLIEGER
______________________
Student Signature

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Date

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