I hope you are as excited about this new year as I am! I have been hearing wonderful things about this class of 8th graders, and I am already seeing good things on the map quizzes you have taken. I just want to remind you of a couple of procedural things to make the year go much smoother for all of us: 1)When you are absent, please come by my room DURING HOMEROOM to make up work from the previous day. This is especially important if you have missed a quiz or a test. If you fail to do this, your makeup time will be after school that day. I try to keep up with grading, posting, and returning papers, so having outstanding work slows that process. 2)The day assigned to me for testing is Friday. You can expect a test almost every Friday. Tests are 60% of your grade;quizzes can come at anytime, and they are in the daily grade category of 40%. I am posting your first notes. These are here for your convenience. Some of my students stay ahead on the blog and print out notes that they bring to class. That is acceptable if it helps you to stay focused on explanations and discussions in class.