English III Syllabus
Rose Davis
601-758-4730 Ext. 7915
rose.davis@lamarcountyschools.org
Overview
In this class, you will read and analyze a survey of American literature. Combining
period fiction and nonfiction, we will examine and trace themes as they occur throughout
American history and literature. We will also review conventions of English to hone your
writing skills, preparing you for the rigors of college and workplace reading and writing.
Make-up Work
If you are absent for any reason, please make up missed assignments according to the
guidelines of the SHS Student Handbook. My planning period is 4th block, and I usually
arrive at school by 7:30 A.M. You can come in during those times to receive help or to
make up missed tests. I will be staying over on Tuesdays. Please let me know if you
need help with English III. Be sure to make arrangements for transportation.
Materials
For this class, you will need the following supplies:
 a three-ring notebook with dividers
 2 packs of dividers
 paper
 blue or black pens, pencils (for standardized common assessments only)
 red pens
 flash drive
 highlighters
 index cards with spiral
 clear plastic folder for research paper
 file holder to keep all research paper items in
***While we have class sets of the novels and major plays we will be reading in
class, you need to purchase your own copies. The following is a list of what we will
read:
The Crucible, Arthur Miller
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck
Student choice: Choose one novel to read outside of class.
A literary analysis will be due on the same day. You must choose
your novel and project by September 1, 2013. You will meet in reading groups,
will discuss novel themes and fill out novel progress sheets.
1. The Awakening,Kate Chopin
2. Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston
3. The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway
4. A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hanberry
5. Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller
Outside Novel Exam:
 Literary Analysis
Class Outline—The following description of units represents what we will attempt to
cover in this class. Common assessments per mandate of the school district will be given
before and after each unit.
Week 1--Rules, expectations, pre-tests, writing assessment, grammar review
**Mini-lessons in proofreading/editing skills as well as vocabulary practice will be a part
of our daily routine in bell assignments. These practices will be monitored bi-weekly in
notebook checks and quizzes resulting in daily grades. Each unit will also include
instruction on how to research and cite sources using MLA format.
Unit One—A Meeting of Old and New Worlds: Beginnings to 1750
In this unit, we will read Native American pieces, explorers' and colonists' journals,
Puritan writing, The Crucible, and writings of the Founding Fathers including The
Declaration of Independence. We will define “the American Dream” as these early
writers defined it, exploring the beginnings of American literature. (two-three weeks)

Ethos, Logos, & Pathos

Research Topic

Argumentative Essay

Grammar as rhetoric and style: subordination in the complex sentence

Annotated bibliography (MLA Style)

Vocabulary

Voice Lessons/Grammar daily
Unit Two—A New Republic: 1750-1830
In this unit, we will further define “the American Dream” as we read literature from
America's infancy as a nation. We will read short stories by Irving, Hawthorne, Poe, and
Melville. We will also define Transcendentalism and explore how the philosophy shaped
American thought, reading selections from Emerson, Thoreau, and Dickinson. (two-three
weeks)

Synthesis Essay

Grammar as rhetoric and style: appositives

Annotated bibliography (MLA Style)

Vocabulary

Voice Lessons/Grammar daily
Unit Three—America in Conflict: 1830-1865
American romanticism transitions naturally to discussion of America's dark past: slavery
and the Civil War. We will read selections by Abraham Lincoln, Louisa May Alcott,
Mark Twain, Ambrose Bierce, Emily Dickinson, and Walt Whitman, as well as exploring
slave narratives and spirituals. We will discuss how this period in American history and
literature fits in the development of the definition of the American Dream. (one-two
weeks)

Literary Analysis Essay

Grammar as rhetoric and style: Cumulative, Periodic, and Inverted
Sentences

Annotated bibliography (MLA Style)

Vocabulary

Voice Lessons/Grammar daily
Unit Four—Reconstructing America 1865-1913
We will begin this unit reading post-Civil War short stories, defining regionalism and
realism. You will choose one American novel from the list above (Chopin, Hurston,
Steinbeck, or Hemingway) to read at home. You will participate in a reading group to
discuss the novel.

Grammar as rhetoric and style: Modifiers

Vocabulary

Voice Lessons/Grammar daily

Annotated bibliography (MLA Style)
Unit Five—America in the Modern World: 1913-1945
Flappers, the Charleston, Prohibition, the Harlem Renaissance and the Roarin' Twenties!
We will dive into the decade and examine what its decadence says about the American
Dream as we read poetry and nonfiction from the Harlem Renaissance. We will also read
and analyze The Great Gatsby. (three weeks)

Grammar as rhetoric and style: Direct, Precise, and Active Verbs

Vocabulary

Voice Lessons/Grammar daily

Annotated bibliography (MLA Style)

Hamlet
Unit Six—Redefining America: 1945 to the Present
In this final unit, we will examine how war and fear have affected the American Dream
as we read Death of a Salesman. In addition to fiction and nonfiction that we will read in
class, you will research a contemporary controversy and write a persuasive researched
argument. (three-four weeks)

Grammar as rhetoric and style: Parallel Structures

Vocabulary

Voice Lessons/Grammar daily

Annotated bibliography (MLA Style)
Research Paper:
At the beginning of second nine weeks, we will begin our research paper.
This is a test grade.
History Project: Research your family's history in the United States from your ancestors'
first arrival to the present.








Create a powerpoint. Please save to a flash drive.
Be sure to finish in time so that you can check your flash drive at school.
Include a very interesting story about one of your ancestors.
Please include family photos.
Be creative.
Do not tell your parents that you have to subscribe to Ancestors.com!
If for some reason you are uncomfortable with your family background, you
may interview and gather information from a neighbor, a family friend, etc.
This is consider a test grade and will affect your grade.
Here are some points to consider:
1. What were my ancestor's motives for coming to the United States?
2. My family name has importance.
3. Religion has played a major role in my family's background.
4. Looking at my ancestors from a geographic perspective shows interesting facts.
5. Although my original ethnic heritage has become “Americanized,” my family
maintains an old tradition.
6. I discovered that my ancestors were active in (political, social, or cultural)
activities (e.g., political party, civil rights, music).
7. I come from a long line of (list occupations).
8. My ancestors and my family heritage help to mold my present life.