American Government

2020-2021
Ms. Rojas Esquer
Cholla High School
Course Description and Classroom Guidelines

Welcome to American Government. American Government provides students with an understanding of civic life, politics, and
government along with a short history of American government’s foundation and development. Students learn how power and
responsibility are shared and limited by government, the impact American politics has on world affairs, the place of law in the
American constitutional system, and which rights the American government guarantees its citizens.

Textbook: o Notebook
Richard C. Remy, Ph.D. United States Government: o Pencil/Pen
Democracy in Action. Glencoe 2005. o Highlighter
o Thinking Cap
Materials:

Use of Technology:
The main source of communication will be through Zoom and Teams. Each student has a Zoom and Teams account where they
will be able to access class and classwork each day. Students are expected to show up to class on time and communicate with the
teacher if there are any technical issues. All classwork will be turned into Teams, if Teams is not working please email your work
to my email: kira.rojasesquer@tusd1.org

Grading:
Your grade in this class will be determined based upon your
performance on in-class assignments, projects, participation, current
events and essays.

Turning in Work:
o Students must turn in work on time to receive 100%
Grading Scale:
o Students may receive a 90% on late work if it turned in
within one week of the due date.
o Anything turned in after one week past the due date will 100-90 = A
o
receive a maximum of 50%
Last day to turn in late work will be the end of the quarter.
89-80 = B
79-70= C
69-60= D
59-: F
 Tips for Success:
o Be prepared: Log into class ready to participate and be
engaged with the material. Please make sure your
laptop/computer is charged and ready for class each day.
o Participate: During a time where we are distance learning,
it can be hard to stay motivated but if each student
participates, we will be able to have a fun environment
where we can all learn from each other.
o Communicate: If there are any issues you are facing,
please make sure to let me know. I am more than happy to
work with you to ensure your success, but I cannot do that
if we are not communicating. Please make sure to email
me as soon as possible.

Classroom Policies:
o Electronic Devices: Phones should not be used unless instructed otherwise by the teacher.
o Food: Please make sure to turn off your camera and mic when eating a snack during class
o Restroom break: Please make sure to privately chat Miss Rojas Esquer or Mrs. Santa Cruz before excusing yourself.
You may not use the restroom during the first or last 10 minutes of class.
o Tardies: Please make sure to show up to class on time. After 3 tardies, an email will be sent home to notify your
parents/guardians.

Course Outline:

o Foundation
o Convention
o Three Branches of Government
o Federalism
o Amendments
o Unwritten Constitution
o Laws and Civil Liberties

Positive Consequences: Negative Consequences:

Classroom Expectations:

o Verbal praise o Email to student

o Log into Zoom on time
o Call/email home o Meeting during conference period
o Be prepared to learn
o Golden extra credit ticket o Email to parents
o Be respectful
o Conference with student and
o Participate
parents/guardians
Dear Parents and Guardians:

My name is Kira Rojas Esquer and I couldn’t be more excited to be your student’s American Government
teacher for the spring semester. I have the wonderful opportunity to teach your students as a part of my training to
become a teacher. Last semester, I had the opportunity to teach alongside Mrs. Santa Cruz, preparing to become the
main teacher for this spring semester. I will be in charge of all lesson planning, assignments, projects, and grades. I
am very excited to continue to be part of the Cholla Chargers community as I take my role as a teacher.

A little more about me, I am a Graduate student working towards my Masters in Secondary Education. I
received my bachelor’s degrees in Criminal Justice, History and Political Science at the University of Arizona. I
was born and grew up here in the beautiful city of Tucson. History was always one of my favorite subjects, but
during my American Government class in high school is where I fell in love with learning about our unique
government system. I owe a special thank you to my sister Cynthia for teaching me the importance of being an
active citizen in our democracy, and I hope to do the same for your young ones.

I am extremely excited to have this opportunity to teach your children until the end of the school year. My
main goal as their teacher is to help your children succeed by learning everything they need to, to be informed
citizens. I want to say thank you for your support and trusting me with your students. Please reach out to me with
any questions or concerns you may have. I look forward to talking to each one of you and hopefully meeting you all
in person. You may reach me at kira.rojasesquer@tusd1.org

Have a beautiful day,

Ms. Rojas Esquer