Syllabus-in-a-Book(let)

In addition to blogging, I reflect by making brief notes to myself in my agenda at the end of each lesson. Should I repeat that particular lesson, I will know what adjustments to make. It is very helpful. (Helpful when I actually LOOK at the notes I've written, that is).

Last year, I wrote a note to myself to be more organized about presenting all of the things students need to know at the beginning of the year. This includes the basics like grading, late work policy, supplies needed, some procedural stuff, and more.

"Make a foldable that students can keep in their binders all year long", I said to my future self.

And this is what it became . . . A booklet that slides nicely into a construction paper cover which students can decorate themselves:

A quick rundown of what's inside:

1. A little note to students, stolen straight from Miss Calcul8.
2. How to start/end class
3. Supplies needed
4. Grade breakdown
5. Absent and late work policy
6. Need help? (how to get to the notes & videos I put online)
7. How to practice
8. How to grade your practice
9. Sample practice (An extra page will be pasted here. I hope to post about this later.)
10. How to coach. I blogged about this here.
11. Binder Setup
12. A note to parents/guardians, highlighting page 6 and requesting a signature.

I am thinking of adding more to next year's booklet, like maybe these pages on learning styles or multiple intelligences from Everybody is a Genius.

I am sure your policies will be different from mine, but here is the file in case you're interested.
Syllabus Booklet

To get the layout right, I stacked a few index cards on top of each other and folded the stack in half. Then I flipped through the stack like a book and wrote the topic and page number I wanted on each page. Finally, I separated the cards so that I would know that, say, page 2 needed to be printed next to page 11 in order for the final booklet to assemble correctly.