MRS. CLARK BURNELL’S HOMEWORK POLICY

See new info on late work passes below in red.

Write your homework in your student agenda book at the beginning of class!   Your agenda book is your best time management tool.

You will have homework each block day. The chart below illustrates that students have two days to do each assignment.   I will assign homework for two days at a time, roughly 40 minutes total.  No homework is assigned on Monday nor is homework intended to be done over the weekend.  

Students are required to write their homework assignments in their student agenda book. 

Frequent Student Questions:

Why doesn't Mrs. Clark-Burnell post homework on this website?

Answer:  Part of middle school is learning how to be responsible for one’s own learning as well as learning to manage one’s time and commitments.  That means STUDENTS are responsible for making sure they do their homework. Thus I do not post homework on this website.  Rather, homework is clearly written on the white-board in class and I provide time at the beginning of each block day for students to write down the homework and ask questions about it. There are no excuses for not knowing what the homework is:  I walk up and down the rows to help students accurately record the homework and answer questions about the assignments.

How can I make sure I get all my assignments done on time?

Answer: Make an action list in your agenda book each day by prioritizing which assignments you're going to tackle first.  Then cross off each item as you finish it.

What if I'm absent?  How do I find out what the homework is?

Answer:  Homework is recorded by a student Class work/ Homework Recorder on the Class work / Homework Sheet which is on a clipboard on the Homework Center.  If you are absent, you can look there to find out what homework you missed. Check the handout tray for your period for handouts you missed while you were gone.  After you've done both of those things, you can ask me to explain any assignment you don't understand.  Finally, you may also call a reliable study buddy and ask them for the homework if you want to find out what it is prior to returning to school.  However, chances are you may need a handout I've designed to help you learn the material, so you'll have to get that from the tray when you return.

Does Mrs. Clark-Burnell accept late work? 

It is the English department's policy that all work must be turned in on time.  

You have two school days to do every assignment, thus you should be able to budget your time wisely.  Start your HW soon so you can ask me questions the following day in case you don’t understand something.  Again, use that agenda book to make prioritize your assignments!

Nonetheless, I understand that sometimes we all forget things or get quite busy.  Thus, students are given THREE LATE PASSES

• ONE FULL CREDIT LATE PASS-- You may turn in any assignment up to two weeks after it is due and receive full credit.  This is a recognition that sometimes you just have too much going on at home, or you might forget to do it or you misunderstood when it was due.  This also includes the "I-promise-I-did-it--it's-on-my-desk-at-home" assignments as well as the "can't-my-mom-bring-it-to-school" assignments.  You may choose to use your FULL CREDIT LATE PASS for these and other situations, but remember, you only get one of these FULL CREDIT LATE PASSes a semester.
• TWO 1/2 CREDIT LATE PASSES-- You may turn in any assignment late for half-credit (50% = F, but is much better than a 0% F) up to two weeks before the end of the quarter.  If an assignment was due during third quarter, you can't turn it in during fourth quarter and expect to get 1/2 credit.  It will remain a zero.  Yes, you can combine two 1/2 credit passes to make a full credit pass.
• Your unused late passes are worth five points each in the HOMEWORK category at the end of the semester.
• If you lose your late-passes, then that's a bummer. You'll just have make sure you are organized and responsible so you can turn stuff in on time. 

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