Advanced Placement Language and Composition
Sabino High School
Ms. Allen
Class Syllabus
2015/2016
Course Overview
The AP Language and Composition course is a college level rhetoric course designed to prepare students for
analytical, argumentative and expository writing and to teach students the importance of these modes as a “basis of
academic and professional communication, as well as the personal and reflective writing that fosters the
development of writing facility in any context.” The course is organized by modes of discourse encompassing the
three specified categories of writing and including a variety of literature selections, primarily non-fiction. These
literature selections include historical documents to contemporary essays on a variety of subjects. All students are
expected to take the AP exam in May.
Class Goals
As taken from the College Board’s AP English Language and Composition Course Description, upon completion of
this course students should be able to:

Analyze and interpret samples of good writing, identifying and explaining an author’s use of
rhetorical strategies and techniques;

Apply effective strategies and techniques in their own writing;

Create and sustain arguments based on reading, research, and/or personal experience;

Demonstrate understanding and mastery of standard written English as well as stylistic maturity
in their own writings;

Produce expository and argumentative compositions that introduce a complex central idea and
develop it with appropriate, specific evidence;

And move effectively through the stages of the writing process, with careful attention to inquiry
and research, drafting, revising, editing, and review.
Writing Portfolio
Each student will maintain a Writing Portfolio containing the following items:

Comprehensive notes from daily class discussions, writing strategies and rhetorical elements

Copies of all literature selections with annotations

Completed compositions with all drafts

Timed Write prompts, rubrics and scored responses

Writing conference notes for peer editing and teacher/student conferences

Student written reflections on all compositions and timed writes completed
Homework and Preparation
In order to be successful in this class, students will come to class every day prepared to work with the text being
studied. Discussing varying aspects of literature, including style and structure, will be a daily practice. In preparation
for these discussions, students will be asked to complete written homework to accompany reading homework.
Homework will consist of assignments specific to the text being studied and a Homework Protocol (see attached)
requiring students to actively engage with notes taken daily in class. The Homework Protocol enables students to
incorporate course material and skills into their worldview.
Grade Criteria
As the AP Language and Composition class is a comprehensive rhetoric course, a large portion of each student’s
semester grade will be based upon writing scores. The percentage division is as follows:

Compositions/Timed Writes
45%

Classwork/Homework/Tests/Presentations*
55%
*The summer work assignment will be included in this category.
Expectations Regarding Writing
This course requires you to write formally and informally. Formally, you will write for a variety of purposes and a
variety of audiences. Informally, you will write to reflect on your choices as a writer as well as to explain the process
by which you made these choices. You will also write informally to process information and to deepen your
understanding of important concepts.
Formally, you will write expository, analytic and argumentative essays. Expository essays require you to explain
concepts thoroughly or to explain key issues in texts for specific purposes and specific audiences. Analytic essays
will require you to analyze language/literary devices for aesthetic effect, to build an argument that elucidates your
interpretation using evidence from the text. Argumentative essays will require you to build a compelling argument for
a literary interpretation of merit, choosing evidence that proves your argument, and drawing inferences from that
evidence that successfully explain how and why the evidence proves your thesis. Some argumentation essays will
require you to do research and to document the sources used. Informally, you will write for a variety of purposes that
support your learning and your further development as writers.
Most importantly, you will regularly move through the writing process employing a variety of invention strategies to
generate material from which to craft essays. You will use a variety of inference and argument building strategies to
reconsider the material in your rough drafts and follow the writing conference preparation prior to a writer’s
conference.
Academic Dishonesty
Plagiarism – representing another person’s ideas as a student’s own – will not be tolerated. Plagiarism within any
assignment will immediately result in a zero on the assignment, parental contact and referral to
administration.
Character Counts
Students are expected to follow Sabino’s 6 Pillars of Character during all academic activities. The 6 Pillars are
Responsibility, Caring, Respect, Fairness, Citizenship, and Trustworthiness.
Late Work Policy
The Sabino High School English department has established the policy outlined below regarding submission of
student late work.
A. Students who are absent have one day for each day of absence to complete missed
assignments and submit those assignments for grading. Work submitted by students with
excused absences will be given a grade and/or points.
B. Students with unexcused absences or incomplete work may submit late work for a 40% penalty
(TUSD Board Policy JE-R).
C. Students with 10 excused and/or unexcused absences will lose credit; however, students will
have the opportunity to appeal a loss of credit (TUSD Board Policy JE)
D. Students must submit ALL assignments in order to receive any earned extra credit.
E. Extra credit points will be added to a student’s total points earned at the end of each semester.
You are responsible for any material covered during an absence. That means that you must get notes from
someone else in class. I recommend doing this the day you return to school.
If you miss an in-class assignment, you must make it up according to the policy stated above in Item A or
make alternative arrangements with me. However, you must see me immediately to schedule make-up work.
Failure to follow these directions will result in a zero for that assignment.
Website
Students can access the class website for information regarding daily assignments, texts to print for class and links
to important sites. I recommend checking the website on a daily basis.
Tardy Policy
Students are expected to arrive to class on time. Students who are late to class must have a pass excusing the
tardy. If the tardy is unexcused students will be disciplined per the guidelines on Sabino’s Progressive Discipline
plan.
Cell Phone Policy
Cell phones are to be silenced and out of sight during class. Students who use cell phones during class will have the
cell phone confiscated and sent to administration. Confiscated cell phones can be obtained in the administration
office by a parent/guardian.
Dress Code/Student ID Policy
Students are to follow appropriate dress code guidelines as stated in the Student Rights and Responsibilities
handbook. Additionally, students must wear student IDs at all times. Students who violate either of these policies
will be given the appropriate disciplinary action.
Parent Contact
The most efficient way to contact me is via email. If you are inclined to try the phone system my number is 5847888. I typically have a 24-hour response time.
Grade Reports
Grades will be posted on the TUSD Parental Access website weekly beginning the week of August 17, 2015.
The Content
Fall Semester
The fall semester will focus on an introduction to the fundamentals of writing, rhetorical strategies and writing
concepts, and rhetorical analysis, argumentative and expository compositions. Students will close read a variety of
model literature enabling a focus on higher-level thinking and critical analysis skills.
IRA: A semester long out of class analysis of supplemental texts for each unit. Students read and analyze text and
then present findings to class.
Unit I Language
How does the language we use reveal who we are?
Part I - Essential Questions
What does it mean to engage in close reading of a text?
How do authors use the resources of language to impact an audience?
How can a reader distinguish between arguments based on emotion, common values and logic?
How is our understanding of culture and society constructed through and by language?
What are the contrasts between dreams and realities?
Texts
Academic Writing, Language Registers, Spheres of Writing, Bloom’s Taxonomy, SOAPS, Rhetorical
Triangle
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
“How It Feels to Be Colored Me” Zora Neale Hurston
The Way to Rainy Mountain” N. Scott Momaday
“The Boxman” Barbara Lazear Ascher
“On Compassion” Barbara Lazear Ascher
“I Am A Cripple” Nancy Mairs
“A Word’s Meaning…” Gloria Naylor
“Americanization is Tough on Macho” Rosa Del Castillo Guilbault
“Mother Tongue” Amy Tan
“How to Tame a Wild Tongue” Gloria Anzaldua
“The ‘F’ Word” Firoozeh Dumas
“Words Don’t Mean What They Mean” Steven Pinker
“Nonviolent Language” North York Women Teachers’ Association
Unit II Education
education?
To what extent do our schools serve the goals of a true
Essential Questions
What makes a person educated?
What is the purpose of education?
Should schools impart knowledge as well as values?
Do mainstream ideas take precedence over the concerns of individual groups?
Texts
“I Just Wanna Be Average” Mike Rose
“I Know Why the Caged Bird Cannot Read” Francine Prose
“A Talk to Teachers” James Baldwin
“Me Talk Pretty One Day” David Sedaris
“Best In Class” Margaret Talbot
“This Is Water” David Foster Wallace
“Eleven” Sandra Cisneros
“What I Learned” Roz Chast
“Stop the Madness” Diane Ravitch
From “Shanghai Schools’ Approach Pushes Students to Top of Tests” David Barboza
Unit III Community
What is the relationship of the individual to the community?
Essential Questions
How can an individual maintain integrity and pursue personal dreams while contributing to overall society?
How has the definition of community changed?
Do we belong to various communities based on distinct criteria?
Can a person belong to several communities simultaneously?
Texts
“Letter from Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Where I Lived, and What I Lived For” Henry David Thoreau
“The Family That Stretches (Together) Ellen Goodman
“Walking the Path between Worlds” Lori Arviso Alvord
“Small Town, Quiet Town, Safe Town” Jeremy Steben
“Home at Last” Dinaw Mengestu
“Facebook Friendonomics” Scott Brown
“Small Change” Malcolm Gladwell
“Child of the Americas” Aurora Levins Morales
“Two Ways to Belong in America” Bhrati Mukherjee
“Freedom from Want” Norman Rockwell
“The Last Thanksgiving” (cartoon) Roz Chast
From “The Singer Solution to World Poverty” Peter Singer
“Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and the Billionaire Challenge” Christian Science Monitor Editorial Board
Unit IV Gender
creates and enforces?
What is the impact of the gender roles that society
Essential Questions
What is the distinction between sex and gender?
When do gender roles become stereotypes of what it means to be a woman or a man?
What forces define gender roles?
How does ethnicity contribute to the expectations of what is masculine or feminine behavior?
How does setting affect a group’s expectations?
How do beliefs about sex or gender affect public policy, including education?
Texts
“There is No Unmarked Woman” Deborah Tannen
“Don’t Misread My Signal” Judith Ortiz Cofer
“The Androgynous Man” Noel Perrin
“I Want a Wife” Judy Brady
“We Do Abortions Here” Sallie Tisdale
“Professions for Women” Virginia Woolf
“The Speech of Miss Polly Baker” Ben Franklin
“Lost in the Kitchen” Dave Barry
“Ugly Truth About Beauty” Dave Barry
“Just Walk on By” Brent Staples
“Are Women Really More Talkative Than Men?” Matthias R. Mehl et al.
“Barbie Doll” Marge Piercy
“Marlboro Man” (advertisement)
“Being a Man” Paul Theroux
“Putting Down the Gun” Rebecca Walker
Writing Assignments
Timed Writes, Literary Analysis, Argument Evaluation, OP/ED Analysis or Class Discussion Presentation
Spring Semester
The spring semester will continue to focus on rhetorical strategies and writing concepts, rhetorical analysis, and
argumentative and expository compositions. This semester will include careful analysis of the synthesis essay, the
continued use of visual media as text and the study of letters and speeches as rhetoric. Students will continue to
practice close reading of a variety of model literature enabling a focus on higher-level thinking and critical analysis
skills.
Unit V Sports
ourselves?
How do the values of sports affect the way we see
Essential Questions
Why are sports such a dominant part of our society?
How does the language of sports influence our interactions?
Is our attraction to professional athletes healthy?
What do we learn from professional athletes?
Does the importance placed on sports encourage dangerous habits?
Texts
“The Silent Season of the a Hero” Gay Talese
“The Four Horsemen” Grantland Rice
“The Proper Place for Sports” Theodore Roosevelt
“An Innocent at Rinkside” William Faulkner
“The Cruelest Sport” Joyce Carol Oates
“A Spectator’s Notebook” Kris Vervaecke
“Ex-Basketball Player” John Updike
“The Twelfth Player in Every Football Game” (cartoon) New York World
“Yes!”(magazine cover) Sports Illustrated
“I’m Glad We Won…” (cartoon) Boris Drucker
“Pay Dirt: College Athletes Deserve the Same Rights as Other Students” Frank Deford
“Serfs of the Turf” Michael Lewis
“My Priceless Opportunity” Bill Walton
“As Colleges’ Greed Grows, So Does the Hypocrisy” Michael Wilbon
“Despite Criticism, NCAA Takes a Firm Stance on Professionalism” Steve Weiberg
“Why Students Aren’t Paid to Play” NCAA
Unit VI Pop Culture
values?
To what extent does pop culture reflect our society’s
Essential Questions
What is the difference between high culture and pop culture?
What does the onslaught of entertainment and information mean for our society?
What is the message of pop culture?
What is the relationship among pop culture, politics, and commerce?
Do commercial interests control what is offered to the public?
Should pop culture respect its roots?
Texts
“Hip Hop Planet” James McBride
“Corn-Pone Opinions” Mark Twain
From “Show and Tell” (cartoon) Scott McCloud
“High-School Confidential” David Denby
“An Image a Little Too Carefully Coordinated” Robin Givhan
“Saga of O.J. Still Alters Our Lives” Mitch Albom
“Watching TV Makes You Smarter” Steven Johnson
“Television: The Plug-In Drug” Marie Winn
“Celebrity Bodies” Daniel Harris
“My Zombie, Myself” Chuck Klosterman
“Emily Dickinson and Elvis Presley in Heaven” Hans Ostrom
“Myths” (painting) Andy Warhol
“The Innocent Eye Test” (painting) Mark Tansey
“The Revolution in Is U.S.” Thomas L. Friedman
“Besieged by ‘Friends’” Heather Havrilesky
“Cultural Hegemony: Who’s Dominating Whom?” Deirdre Straughan
From “The Case for Contamination” Kwame Anthony Appiah
“The Perils of Soft Power” Josef Joffe
“The U.S. Can Reclaim ‘Smart Power’” Joseph S. Nye, Jr.
“Slovakian Soccer Fan at 2010 World Cup in South Africa” (photo) Hassan Ammar
Unit VII Economy
What is the role of the economy in our everyday lives?
Essential Questions
Do we insist on consuming more than we need and more, in fact, than is good for us and the world?
Is our consumption of goods and services a realization of the American Dream?
What is the potential outcome of the shift to participating in a global economy?
How do we choose what is important work?
Should work do more than pay the bills-should it satisfy the soul?
What is meant by “necessary for life”?
Texts
From “Serving in Florida” Barbara Ehrenreich
“A Modest Proposal” Jonathan Swift
“The Atlanta Exposition Address” Booker T. Washington
“On Dumpster Diving” Lars Eighner
From “In the Strawberry Fields” Eric Schlosser
“The Case for Working with Your Hands” Matthew B. Crawford
“How to Restore the American Dream” Fareed Zakaria
“The Waste Generation” Bill Bryson
“To Be of Use” Marge Piercy
“The Great GAPsby Society” (cartoon) Jeff Parker
From “Economy” Henry David Thoreau
From “The Dependence Effect” John Kenneth Galbraith
“Shopping and Other Spiritual Adventures in America Today” Phyllis Rose
“Waste” Wendell Berry
“The New Consumerism” Juliet Schor
“Shop-happy” Joan Smith
“In Praise of Chain Stores” Virginia Postrel
Unit VIII Politics
state?
What is the relationship between the citizen and the
Essential Questions
What is the nature of patriotism in a democracy?
What are the effects of both colonialism and post-colonialism on language, culture, social change and global politics?
Are educated citizens responsible for knowing about the politics of the world as well as the politics of their own
country?
Texts
“On Seeing England for the First Time” Jamaica Kincaid
“On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” Henry David Thoreau
“The Gettysburg Address” Abraham Lincoln
“Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” Patrick Henry
JFK’s Inaugural Address
“Thoughts on Peace in an Air Raid” Virginia Woolf
“On World War II” Ernie Pyle
“The Destruction of Culture” Chris Hedges
“The Apology: Letters from a Terrorist” Laura Blumenfeld
“The Partly Cloudy Patriot” Sarah Vowell
“If We’re Gonna Have Guns, Let’s Get ‘em Out in the Open or Else” Mike Royko
“Get a Knife, Get a Dog, But Get Rid of Guns” Molly Ivins
“The Veil” (cartoon) Marjane Satrapi
“”On the Rainy River” Tim O’Brien
“Letter to King Ferdinand of Spain” Christopher Columbus
“The Requerimiento” King Ferdinand
“Defense of Native American Religion” Red Jacket
From “Concerning Violence” Frantz Fanon
“In Which the Ancient History I Learn is Not My Own” Eavan Boland
Beaver Letters Stephen L. Tvedten
From “The Empire Fights Back” Chinua Achebe
“Christiansted: Official Map and Guide” National Park Service
Writing Assignments
Timed Writes, Argument Evaluation, Synthesis Evaluation, Literary Analysis, OP/ED Analysis or Class Discussion
Presentation
Ms. Allen’s Disclaimer
This syllabus contains the basic curricula we will address this year. However, there will be additional
materials incorporated as necessary and appropriate.