Junior English
1st Quarter
Recommended Texts:
Native American Myths
William Bradford- “Of Plymouth
Plantation”
Jonathan Edwards- “Sinners in the
Hands of An Angry God”
Benjamin Franklin- From Poor
Richard’s Almanac and The
Autobiography of B. Franklin
The Declaration of Independence
The Crucible*
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Skills:
Cite evidence to support student analysis of a
text and its themes
Analyze multiple interpretations of a text
Evaluate the impact of an author's choices in
words and syntax on the overall meaning of a
text.
Analyze the reasoning in seminal US
documents
Write narrative text with a rhetorical purpose
Analyze how two or more texts treat similar
themes
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The first quarter study will ask students to consider the earliest days of what became the U.S. and the
ideas and cultural forces that shaped the country. Teachers should make use of early historical
documents to help students understand the mindset of early settlers in the new world, and writings by the
founding fathers to emphasize the persuasive structure of those documents and the beginnings of what
we know as the American Dream.
Every student should read and watch Arthur Miller’s The Crucible in order to see how the ideas
discovered in the informational documents might play out and to introduce the concepts of literature that
the course will focus on. It is recommended to have students watch the film version of the play or another
thematically similar film and make comparisons between the two.
There is a good opportunity for students to do a short research project with The Crucible. The focus could
be entirely on Puritan times, the McCarthy hearings, or involve other historical “witch hunts” in America
and other countries.
Speaking and listening skills, especially getting comfortable speaking to a group or the entire class,
should be emphasized early in the year. The Native American myths in the text provide a good
opportunity for students to pay attention to the art of oral storytelling and practice in class. Students can
also practice dramatic readings and performances from The Crucible, as well as structured group
discussions about the text.
There are opportunities to introduce all kinds of writing assignments in this quarter as well, but persuasive
writing seems particularly suited as a response to several of the texts, including Jonathan Edwards and
the Declaration of Independence.
*- While all students are asked to read The Crucible, more advanced students might benefit from reading
Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. These students could still watch the film version of the play in order to
understand references to it in class.
2nd Quarter
Texts:
Ralph Waldo Emerson
 “Nature”
 “Self-Reliance”
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Henry David Thoreau
 Selections from Walden
 “Civil Disobedience”
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The Gettysburg Address
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Short fiction: Hawthorne, Poe,
Irving, London, others
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Mark Twain- (Short story or
chapters from The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn)
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Skills:
Distinguish between what is directly stated and
what is not (focus on irony and sacasm)
Apply standard usage of English with a focus on
hyphens , dashes, and pronoun usage
Write objective informative text using
multimedia
Understand how syntax affects the meaning of
sentences
Analyze the impact of specific word choices that
have multiple meanings
Evaluate a topic using a variety of media in order
to address an issue.
Determine meaning of vocabulary using
references to consider historical usage and
etymology
Walt Whitman- selected poems
Emily Dickinson- selected poems
John Krakauer- Excerpt from Into
the Wild
This quarter should lead students through the development of American thought in the 19th
century. Textually, the students should engage with the writings of the transcendentalists and
focus on some of the rhetorical devices that Emerson and Thoreau use to deliver their
messages. There are a number of more contemporary essays that might connect with the
transcendentalists well.
In the area of literature, students should come into contact with at least a few of the writers who
helped pioneer an American style. This provides an excellent opportunity to differentiate for
students according to ability and interest level. You might focus on the romantic, gothic, and/or
naturalistic aspects of the different writers from the time period, and possibly pull in related
stories from a contemporary author or another world culture. Every student should read
something from and spend some time studying Mark Twain.
Because much of the reading this quarter is opinion-based, there should be an opportunity to
have students share personal thoughts on the texts through group and whole-class discussion.
You will need to do some kind of introduction to the language used in Huck Finn, a good
opportunity to teach appropriate registers of language.
Students should practice expository writing this quarter, either through an analysis of one of the
works in class, or a more personal topic. There is a good opportunity for students to write
narratives of personal reactions to the ideas represented in the selected texts as well.
For advanced students, a number of the authors listed have writings of higher-complexity that
can be introduced. You might also consider reading more of Huck Finn or assigning another
early American novel as an independent project for those students.
3rd Quarter
Texts:
Fitzgerald- The Great Gatsby
Informational Texts on the 1920s?
Sample Persuasive Essay
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Skills:
Analyze two themes or central ideas and their
development over the course of a text
Cite textual evidence to support analysis of
uncertainties in a text
Evaluate whether textual evidence is relevant.
Utilize digital media to direct conversation and
interact with the ideas of others
Assess stance, line of reasoning, and forms of
propaganda in statements made by others
Write arguments while focusing on audience
and purpose
Analyze how an author's use of rhetoric
contributes to meaning
The focus of this quarter is on the early twentieth century. The main text is Gatsby. It is the one
novel that every junior reads, and it should be read with careful attention to setting,
characterization, plot, point of view, and theme. There are opportunities to work in some
informational text about F. Scott Fitzgerald here as well, as his life is closely tied to the events of
the novel. This is also a good time to work on building vocabulary through various methods, as
there are several words in the text that should be new to students.
This will also give students an opportunity to do an extended research project. One logical topic
for the project is the 1920s, which could then be tied into the novel. Students could also
research a different decade and make a comparison to the 20s, or work with The Harlem
Renaissance.
The research project could logically be accompanied by a presentation on the same topic.
There would also be opportunity to practice participating in and leading group discussions on
the novel.
In addition to the research essay, some of this quarter will likely be taken up with the state
writing assessment. Have students practice using logos, ethos, and pathos; creating arguments;
and tailoring those arguments to an audience before they take the actual assessment.
4th Quarter
Texts:
Lit Circles- list novels
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Modernist Poetry
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Selections from the Harlem
Renaissance
Informational Text- Modern Essays
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Skills:
Evaluate the impact of an author's choices
regarding elements of a story or drama on the
overall meaning or tone
Analyze how an author's choices concerning
stylistic features of the text contribute to the
overall structure & meaning
Collaborate with others to evaluate diverse
perspectives on a topic
Use an individual writing process
Accurately use attributive tags and other
techniques as in-text citations
Select appropriate types and variety of sources
Correctly paraphrase information from
sources
The final quarter tires to highlight modernist literature up through the most contemporary writing.
Students should read fiction from some time after the 1920’s preferably of their own choosing,
and concentrate on using the evaluation skills they have been working on all semester to draw
connections between multiple texts. They should also look at some poetry from the modern era
(you might let them choose a poet they would like to study). Special emphasis should be placed
on the poetry of the Harlem Renaissance.
During this quarter students will have multiple opportunities to do short-term research about
their novels and about the Harlem Renaissance. Think about helping them find scholarly articles
about the literature to read and use to interpret the text. Students could also research poets or
specific aspects of the modern time period they are studying in order to do creative projects.
Lit circles will force students to play specific roles within the dynamics of a group. Spend time
teaching how to perform these roles well. This would be a good quarter to include a creative
presentation about one aspect of the poetry they are reading.
While writing is not as strong an emphasis this quarter, seek out opportunities to have students
state clear opinions about the texts they are reading, as well as doing some creative writing to
accompany the projects they are doing. By the end of the junior year, students should be able to
follow the writing process independently, without the teacher having to prompt them through
every step.