Interactive+Student+Notebook

What is an Interactive Student Notebook (ISN)?
All students will maintain an Interactive Student Notebook (ISN). Each day our notes, class activities, reflections, and homework will be placed in this notebook. In an interactive notebook for every piece of new information that goes in, there is an accompanying activity designed to help the student personalize and understand the information.

Why do we use the ISN?

 * Every student is multi-faceted and therefore uses many modes to learn. The ISN helps cover a wide array of learning styles.
 * We cut and fold things because foldables are amazing graphic organizers. They help to take big ideas and processes and break down them into logical, sequential, and much more manageable parts.
 * We tape and glue so that things don't get lost. It is a simple and obvious thought but is SO crucial. (Most) kids lose everything. All the time. And when you give them an extra copy, they lose that one too.
 * We color because it's a fantastic way to help important information stand out and to process information. So many kids are visual learners and coloring/highlighting their notes and foldables really helps them to recall and find information.

How do I make my ISN?
Each student needs a three folder with loose-leaf paper. Each activity in the ISN will be comprised of 2 pages. The left side will contain the notes and any handouts or foldables given\make in class. The right side will be for students to reflect on the lesson. This is where they will put in their own words, pictures, charts, etc... what we learned. **STUDENTS** are responsible for keeping their ISN current and complete. Each activity set will be labeled with a title and given a page number. Then each activity will be placed in the table of contents. In the back of the ISN each student will create a grade tracker to keep up with nine week scores.

**Grading the ISN** The students ISN will be graded twice each nine weeks in a survey format. This means that they will not know which activities will be graded, only that their ISNs should be current and complete. Each survey will be worth 100 points unless otherwise noted. This grade will include that their table of content is correct and up to date as well as their grade tracker. The dates for these checks will be published in the class calendar. The student should also be ready for unannounced checks periodically throughout the year. Other grades will come from the work produced in the ISN. For example, the students are given a homework assignment to find an article about the first amendment and write a summary. This will be placed in their ISN, but graded as a homework assignment. These will be assigned in class and posted in the class calendar at the proper time.

What if I am absent?
__Students__ are responsible to check the makeup folder for missed handouts, to check with a neighbor/classmate for missed notes to copy, or they may check my ISN.


 * ISN will be the sole responsibility of the student. A bin labeled by class period is available at the back of the classroom for storage, but many assignments require the students to take the ISN home and return it to school the next day.