English 9 Ethnic Studies Syllabus
English 9 Ethnic Studies Syllabus
Last Updated Aug 2025
Last Updated Aug 2025
English 9 is designed to establish the foundational skills in reading, writing, and research necessary for success in high school. Through the exploration of diverse literary genres, students will develop critical reading and analytical skills. Writing assignments will focus on constructing clear and coherent essays, enhancing grammar and vocabulary, and introducing basic research techniques. This course aims to build a strong base for effective communication and academic achievement in future high school courses.
Goal: Encourage active participation and critical thinking through class discussions.
Expectations:
Students will learn to discuss the assigned and covered reading
Students will learn to prepare for discussion by completing homework, reading, etc.
Students will learn to respect differences in opinion and maintain a courteous and kind tone when differences arise
Goal: Develop foundational writing techniques that emphasize independence and use of evidence.
Expectations:
Students will be able to write hand-written paragraphs in a reasonably time-restricted setting
Students will be able to write paragraphs to prove their learning
Students will be able to conduct research and use quoted evidence to support their arguments
Goal: Develop independence and comprehension skills using essential reading techniques and strategies
Expectations:
Students will be able to read grade-level texts and write about them accurately
Students will be able to begin thinking critically about what they are reading
Students will be able to determine key differences between writing genres, styles, and common tones
Goal: Develop organizational skills, frustration tolerance, and academic resilience
Expectations:
Students will see frustration as an opportunity to grow
Students will begin to practice emotional regulation and reflection to help grow their ability to endure academic difficulties
Students will be able to independently manage their course load
Parent and guardian involvement is essential at the 9th grade level. For this reason, parents and guardians may be contacted on a regular basis if it is seen as something that will benefit the long-term wellbeing of the student. Here are some of the best ways I suggest to ensure your student’s success in their first year of high school:
Talk regularly about what is happening. Ask questions and don’t forget to balance the good and the bad.
“How was school today?”
“What are you reading in your English class?”
“What are you doing well in school right now?”
Have your child walk you through Google Classroom, show you their binder, etc. Push them to teach YOU what they are doing.
“Can you show me how your Google Classroom works?”
“How do you organize your notebook and backpack? Show me.”
When parents read, kids typically read. It is also an opportunity to build relationships and critical thinking.
“What are you reading? Give me the title and author. I’ll read it with you.”
Not only is this a great way to know what your student is struggling with or succeeding on, but it’s a great way to build connections and relationships.
“So you have to write a paragraph about MLK? Let me write one, too. We’ll compare when we’re done.”
Emails don’t have to be long, and you don’t need some explosive reason. Aeries is good to check, but I’ll often respond within a day and give you details beyond a grade.
“How is Angel Aguilar doing?”
Students feel safe in Mr. Tretyak’s classroom. They feel as though they can express themselves without judgment, share their opinion, and make mistakes. They feel as though Mr. Tretyak sees them as good people and that ‘bad’ behaviors are windows for something they might need support for.
Students feel intrinsically motivated to push and achieve their personal best. They avoid unnecessary comparison and prioritize their own, personal growth. They are academically honest and understand that to compromise the process of learning is to hurt themselves and their peers in the process.
Students strive to be as consistent as possible with their attendance, reading logs, reading, participation, and any other assignments. They see growth as something that happens everyday, 1% at a time and that attempting to rush this growth will only hinder it. When things occur to block their consistency, they take steps to communicate, find help, and use resources so that school and this classroom can continue to be a place of comfort instead of turbulence.
Students work hard to establish a unique, independent voice by consistently attempting to contribute something new to every conversation. They are careful to cite the work of others as they are working hard to distinguish how what they say might be different and might contribute compared to what others say. Finally, they understand that creativity is a process and requires hard work to generate; people are not ‘born’ creative but are rather made that way by constant attempts, risks, failures, and recoveries.
It is essential that students learn that completing work as designed is essential for student growth and learning. Students are expected to maintain honesty and the highest respect for their own work and the work of others. Should students cut corners and misrepresent themselves, it makes it impossible for the instructor to appropriately support the student while simultaneously discrediting and devaluing academics at LHS. The actions of a single individual, thus, compromises the integrity of the school and makes it impossible for the instructor to appropriately adjust practices to support the students as their abilities are falsely represented in their work.
“Plagiarism occurs when you use another’s words, ideas, assertions, data, or figures and do not acknowledge that you have done so… You must always acknowledge your sources by citing them” (Academic Integrity at MIT).
Using Sparknotes, Shmoop, Apps, and other sites not only undermines a student’s learning, but also could count as plagiarism. Should a student present information from these sources as their own interpretation or understanding, this would count as a violation of the academic integrity policy and the plagiarism policy of this class.
There are no exceptions. However, should a student resort to using any outside sources for support, they must acknowledge the sources of the presented ideas and acknowledge that the ideas they are presenting are not their own.
Any student that attempts to plagiarize or cheat on any assessment and/or assignment will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Administration will be involved as necessary and parents will be notified. Common consequences include: a ‘0’ on the assessment or assignment, in-school suspension, parent-teacher conference, preferential seating (for observation) for the remainder of the course, consideration for placement outside of the course (with parent-teacher conference), and/or, in rare cases, a retake of the assessment. All disciplinary actions would be done to communicate the severity of the grievance and all disciplinary actions are intended to maintain the integrity of the class and promote respect for the learning process.
Artificial intelligence in the classroom is treated essentially as a person. Thus, having AI (any form of it for any step of the process) create outlines, stories, essays, etc. without credit is considered plagiarism (see previous page for definition). If credited, it is treated as if another person completed that portion of the assignment.
No unsupervised AI will be allowed during Mr. Tretyak’s English 9 course.
NO CELL PHONES allowed in sight. Students will be given 1 warning if a cell phone is seen, then the cell phone will be confiscated if the student persists to have it out. If the student continues to be defiant, rude, or difficult about the policy, cell phones will be given to the front office for parental pickup.
For English 9, Tretyak will attempt to have his class disconnect from cell phones as much as possible. The goal is to build resilience, frustration tolerance, and social-emotional health. Research has shown that excessive cell phones are not healthy for emotional and academic development, and almost all student cell phone use is excessive.
3 Ring Binder (1-1.5in) with a Set of Dividers
Pencil or Pen
Highlighters and Colored Pencils (Range of Colors)
A
(90+%)
Exceptional Proficiency
B
(80-89%)
Strong Proficiency
C
(70-79%)
Sufficient Proficiency
D
(60-69%)
Imminent Proficiency
F
(0-59%)
Insufficient Proficiency
Reading Comprehension
Writing (Summary)
Writing (Argument)
Use of Evidence in Writing
Basic Research Skills
Basic Citation of Research
Small Group Discussion
Whole-Class Discussion
Creative Expression and Writing
Academic Bravery and Risk-Taking
Writing and Research (40%) - Based on Common Core Writing Standards (Link Here) and Language Standards (Link Here); Use and Citation of Evidence is an Essential Skill for Academic Success
Reading Comprehension (25%) - Any Reading Informational (Link) and Literary (Link) Standards
Class Participation and Engagement (25%) - Speaking and Listening Standards (Link) as well as Overarching Participation
Final Exam (10%) - A broad exam testing the skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking throughout the course of the year
70% credit (1 day late) ----- 50% credit (2+ days late)
Students need to come to school with a charged and working chromebook. Should a student consistently fail to do this, a parent-teacher conference will be held to see why this cannot be done.
The school’s dress code will be enforced in this class. If another teacher does not enforce it, that does not make inappropriate clothing acceptable. Parents and administration will be involved as needed.
Restroom - Students must follow the following procedure: (1) communicate to the instructor that they need to use the restroom, (2) request bathroom pass through SmartPass, (3) take hall pass and (4) sign out using the restroom log book.
Students need access to a chromebook to use the bathroom! Why? Because their bathroom breaks are monitored through SmartPass.
Students must be in their seat when the bell rings.
Must be cleared through the attendance office. I assume a student has ditched if the absence is not excused. In-class assignments will be given a ‘0,’ and homework will be considered ‘late’ (see late policy).
Headphones will be out of sight unless allowed explicitly by the instructor.
Should any student mark, damage, or steal any property in the class that does not belong to them, they will be dealt with swiftly and to the fullest severity that I am allowed to pursue.
The best way to check on your student’s progress is to send an email to Tretyak.Pavel@lompocschools.org OR Tretyak.Pavel@lusd.org. A simple email (“How is Jimmy Doing?”) is perfectly fine. Usually, I will focus on your student’s work habits, classwork, notes, etc.