da Vinci Arts Middle School
Late Work Policy
Turning in an assignment late is inevitable. It happens to all of us, even Myers (just ask Blockbuster), but there are still consequences (dun dun dun...).
In Room 300 there is a "grace period" in place for such times. It lasts for an entire week after an assignment is due. During this grace period a student can turn in the late assignment with only a 10% penalty to their earned points. Essentially this is a letter grade penalty (drops an A to a B). If the assignment is turned in after the first week's "grace period," there is a 50% penalty to the earned points on that assignment. Every assignment has a "grace period" unless specified by Myers (usually it's only the 8th grade Book Analysis that has no grace period).
This policy is meant to stress the importance of turning in work in a timely manner while simultaneously not stressing the student into turning in incomplete work.Here is a list of Frequently Asked Questions and their answers to help you navigate this highly complicated policy.
Frequently Asked Question #1: Why have a late policy at all? Don’t you know that as kids we have, like, a bazillion other things to do?
Answer: While I appreciate all the things that you kids do outside of school work (and, for the record, there are actually only 10,437 things going on outside of school), the reason you are here is for your education. You need to learn to balance your work with your play. If you can master this you will become a very successful student and person. Turning in assignments in a timely manner is not only good practice for high school and beyond, but it also eases the burden of last-minute grading and end-of-the-trimester stress on the teacher.
Frequently Asked Question #2: If you’re trying to teach us to be responsible students for high school and beyond, why have a grace period at all? Why not have a penalty for an assignment that is a day late?
Answer: Don’t tempt me… OK, seriously: I understand that middle school is a transition to high school and that the rules should not be too abrupt a change for in-coming 6th graders, but still appropriate for 8th graders that will be moving on. It would be a logistical nightmare to have different late policies for each grade level, so I have created one that (I hope) is fair for all levels, while still teaching the appropriate study habits for success at the high school level.
Frequently Asked Question #3: Why bother turning in the assignment after the grace period if it’s only worth half the points, essentially an F, the lowest grade possible?
Answer: Besides the inherent value of completing the assignment (there is a reason why we’re doing that particular assignment after all), your final grade is simply the total points you earned divided by the total points possible. Missing out on all the points of an assignment will definitely hurt your overall grade. Earning half the points at least is a way to help your total and therefore your final grade. In other words, even if you receive an "F" on that particular assignment, any amount of points you earn on it will help your overall grade.
Frequently Asked Question #4: What if I'm absent during the grace period? Do I get an extension of the grace period?
Answer: If you are absent on a day before the assignment is due you get the number of days you were absent plus one to turn in the assignment (plus your very own personal one week grace period). If you are only absent during the grace period days, you receive no extension beyond the original grace period deadline.
Frequently Asked Question #5: Why are your sideburns red, but the hair on your head (at least what’s left of it) brown?
Answer: Genetics. My dad had brown hair (when he had hair) but red facial hair, and so do I.
I hope these have answered your most burning questions about the late policy here in room 300.
