FAQs
How can I contact Ms. Shapiro?
Email is the fastest way to get in touch with me. My email address is [email protected]. To parents/guardians: If you would prefer to contact me by phone, you can leave a message for me at Porter, and I will return your call as promptly as I can. Porter's main office number is 818.920.2050.
Note to students: When you email me or when you send me a message through Schoology, please address me properly, identify who you are, and let me know what period you are in. For example, "Hi, Ms. Shapiro, this is... from your period ..." I will not respond to emails in which the student is not identified by name and period.
Note to students: If you have a long-term project, essay, etc., and you wait until the day/a couple days before it is due or the weekend before it is due to email me for help, do not count on a response. There have been instances in the past in which up to 50 students have waited until the day/weekend before a major project is due to contact me with questions or confusion, and it is not realistic for me to respond. Further, you cannot expect me to respond to emails in the evenings or on the weekends. If you have a longer-term essay or project, please plan in advance and ask me for help--in class-- well before it is due. I offer ample in-class time to work on essays/projects during which you can seek my help and guidance. Waiting until the last minute to contact me reflects poor planning and certain procrastination on the students' part. If you have questions about an assignment that you have known about for some time, ask me in class or via email ahead of time. There is no guarantee I can get back to you if you wait until the day before/a few days before or the weekend before an assignment is due to contact me.
What is your conference hour?
In the 2024-2025 school year, I have a period one conference. If parents/guardians want a phone or in-person conference with me, please call the magnet office or email me, so we can arrange a time. Alternatively,
we can communicate through email.
How have you chosen the class literature?
Magnet English 8 is a project-based course that uses literature as the basis for each of our units. Each unit that we study has a primary text –often supported or accompanied by supplemental texts–that serve as the foundation for the themes that we are exploring, Common CORE standards that the students are studying, and the assignments/project on which we are working. Students read works that are challenging, stimulating, interesting, thought-provoking, culturally and socially relevant, and works that will appeal to the students' intellect and conscience. Our texts are either: a California Reading list recommendation, an LAUSD recommendation (via our textbook: MyPerspectives), a selection from the American Library Association's "Recommended books for college-bound students," or a text that I have studied in adolescent literature courses or workshops for English educators. All authors are LAUSD approved. I structure the year so that each piece naturally flows into the next, with an umbrella theme of issues that address power, structure, relationships within society (including issues of morality, ethics, ethnocentrism, political/social/racial/cultural division and hierarchy within American culture, as well as various other cultures). Students will explore issues through essay form, Socratic seminars conducted in class, group/panel discussions, journal responses, class discussions, various other types of response activities, and a project as the culminating task of each piece of literature. Of course, all activities and assignments are standards-based. This is a gifted and rigorous program, designed to prepare students for honors and AP classes in high school, and as such, our readings are mature and advanced.
How do you choose the weekly vocabulary?
Our daily vocabulary is comprised of SAT prep words from R. Kent Smith's book Building Vocabulary for College the eighth edition. Vocabulary is a fundamental component of a successful language arts program. The vocabulary activities that we engage in expose the students to multiple word strategies and teach the students how to analyze words and word parts. We also learn vocabulary connected to the literature that we read. All of the words that the students learn are practical words that students can and should make efforts to incorporate into their vocabulary, conversations, and formal writing. The vocabulary program that we use rotates words and word parts. For example, students will learn ten root words; then, the students will learn ten vocabulary words that implement the previously learned root words. Learning word parts, root words, prefixes, and suffixes builds critical thinking, and it helps students to decode word meanings even when they have never encountered a word before.
How much writing do students do in your class?
We write A LOT!!! Writing is fundamental in this class! We begin structured essay writing the first month of school. The students are taught to think critically and to apply their analytical skills to their writing. Students will learn how to write in various styles and forms. Some of our essay types will include: narrative, response, persuasive, compare/contrast, expository, research. For each assignment, I provide the students with detailed instructions, format, and timelines, as well as samples that I have created.
How can I know what my child does in your class daily or if my child has homework?
All assignments are detailed on Schoology.
How often do you assign homework?
There are no regular designated nights for homework; homework will be assigned based on the needs of the students and the class in meeting the course objectives. Because our class is project-based, discrete homework is rarely given, as most of our projects/essays are long term. For each project/essay, students will be given a timeline of when each component of the assignment is due and when the final product is due. Students must budget their time to meet the timeline requirements. Ample time is always provided in class to work on projects and essays, and most students can finish rough drafts in class-- if they use their time effectively.
Do you contact parents/guardians if students do not turn in work or earn low scores?
I do not contact parents/guardians when students miss an assignment or earn a low score on an assignment, as all of this information is readily available to parents/guardians on Schoology. The need for my contacting parents/guardians should be obviated by parents/guardians remaining proactive and updated on their child's work in the class. Parents/Guardians are encouraged to check Schoology regularly to remain updated on your child's progress in the class. Please know when your child has an assignment due, and ask to see the assignment before it is turned in. For all assignments, the students are given very specific, clear, and thorough requirements/guidelines/criteria charts/rubrics. If your child is not communicating the assignment expectations with you, feel free to email me.
Do students take home graded work?
After I return graded assignments, students will have an opportunity to review their work, read my comments, reflect on their grades, etc. Students should keep their returned work. Note: now that every student has a school-issued device, the majority of our assignments will be completed on Schoology, rather than physically turned in. Parents/Guardians can check Schoology to review their child's grades and assignments.
How long does it take you to grade assignments?
I cannot offer a standardized answer for this. English is different than all other subjects in that most of the work that the students do is intensive writing, which should take a lot of thought and time on the students' part, and, consequently, it takes a lot of time and thought on my part to grade. I do not give "busy" work or fluff work. All of our work is meaningful, rigorous, and serious, and I take my job in evaluating the work seriously. I spend dedicated time evaluating work and making necessary comments to help students to improve. As an example, it takes me an average of 15 minutes to grade one essay. I have approx. 180 students. Thus, 5 class sets of an essay can take me approx. 3 weeks to grade--and that is when I set aside a few hours each night, keeping in mind that other work also comes in during those three weeks, which I must grade as well. I grade all work as promptly as possible, but given the rigorous nature of the work assigned in our class, you will not get your assignments back as quickly as you may in a class in which you do multiple- choice assignments.
Note to students: Constantly asking me if an assignment has been graded will not speed up the process. I want your assignments to be graded as quickly as you do. I am as eager to see how you are doing as you are! I work diligently to grade your work, but it takes time...and a LONG time to read your assignments. ...And yes, I read every word. I don't simply give credit for work completed.
Do you offer extra credit?
In short, no. Because each individual student's grade must be a clear reflection of that student's progress in the class, extra credit invariably defeats the teacher's goal of assessing whether or not the students are mastering the necessary skills. For example, if a student has legitimately earned a "D" or a "C" in the class, but has done extra credit to bring that grade up to a "B," the "B" does not genuinely reflect the student's
mastery of the skills. The "B" reflects "extra" work that the student did to compensate for the work that s/he/they did not do well on or work that the student may have not done at all. Thus, it is not an honest representation of whether or not the student has mastered the CORE standards and skills. It is crucial that I am aware of how the students are doing at all times, so I can help them when necessary. Likewise, it is crucial
that the students' next year English teachers also have access to the students' most accurate grades possible. The decision to not allow extra is not punitive; on the contrary, it is in alignment with mastery grading, and it is a thoughtful decision made to encourage students to remain current with all work and to seek help when necessary, so that extra credit is not even desired. It is more sensible and helpful to the students for me to work independently with them when they are struggling to master a concept. I review concepts multiple times before I assess the students' understanding for a grade. Therefore, during our many class reviews, students are encouraged to seek help if they are confused. I also implement elements of mastery grading practices that allow for students to revise and resubmit select major assignments that students may have struggled with or earned an unsatisfactory grade on.
Do you allow late work:
If a student is absent, the student has the same amount of days that s/he/they were absent to make up missed work. For example, if a student was absent for four days, the student will have four additional days to make up the assignment. If a student is absent when we take a test, the student should see me immediately when they return from the absence to arrange a make-up day. If a student chooses not to turn in an assignment by the designated due date and time, the assignment will be marked as "missing" in Schoology, which is equivalent to a "zero/fail." Schoology time and date stamps all assignments and indicates which assignments are not turned in on time. If you need to turn an assignment in late for personal reasons, please see me. You must obtain a "late-work form" from me, and thoroughly fill out the form explaining the reason for the late assignment; your parents/guardians must sign the form. You will attach the form to your work, and turn it in to me. I will not grade any late assignments if you have not submitted this form.
You have not answered a question that I have:
Please email me, and I'll be happy to answer any questions or address any concerns. If it becomes clear that I haven't addressed something that many students or parents/guardians are inquiring about, then I will add it into this section.