Forensics Syllabus

Materials needed:
1 3-ring binder, any size.
At least 1 pencil or pen to be brought to class every day.
1 notebook or loose-leaf paper.
Procedures:
We will begin our warm-up activity as soon as the bell rings.
Once class is over, you will put away all of your materials and leave in an orderly fashion.
You will turn all assignments into the box with your period marked on it.
Any books or materials taken from class will be checked out with Mr. Music.
If you must leave class for any reason you must have permission.

Tardy Policy:
If students are not prepared and in the room when we start our warm-up, then they are tardy.
After their third tardy students are required to serve a 30 minute detention in the English room.
Tardiness afterward will result in more detention, and potentially further consequences.

Assessments:
Speeches/Performances (50-200 pts. each)
Most of your grade will come from speeches or performances made in front of the class. Each
presentation will have a script or outline that must be turned at the time the speech is given. If a
speech is given without an audience, 10% is automatically deducted. Speeches may be redone or
corrected, if necessary, but only in specific circumstances.
Participation (5-25 pts. each)
Much of this class will be graded based on willingness and ability to participate in drama or
speech related activities. Any missed activities can be made up through alternate assignments, as
long as students are prompt about asking for missing work.

Late Work:
Students are expected to be prepared for speeches and performances before the class period in
which they are due. If students enter class unprepared, they lose 10% per week they are late, up
to 5 weeks. Any speech or presentation made without an audience will automatically lose 10%.
Quizzes and smaller assignments will be late as soon as they are graded and handed back to the
rest of the class. Afterward, they will lose 10% per week until they are no longer worth any
points.
The late work policy may be extended or shifted if you come talk to me!!!
Literature disclaimer:
I will send notices home anytime the class is reading a play or dramatic work. However, this
class has many smaller individual passages for reading. I will do my best to keep all materials at
an age-appropriate level, but some of the most noteworthy and historically important works of
literature contain elements of the obscene or otherwise undesirable. There will be alternate
assignments available if a parent chooses to opt their child out of one or more of the readings.
Final Thought
While it is natural to be shy, and common for students to be afraid of public speaking, most of
our projects, if not all, revolve around the ability to speak in front of an audience. I will invest
time in working with students to be less nervous in front of a crowd, but students must be willing
to make a good-faith effort to push the edges of their comfort zones in order to become
successful.