English 10
Syllabus
Fall, 2012
Instructor:
Office Hours:
Voice Mail:
E-Mail:
Website:
Jessica Del Curto
8:00 a.m. to a.m. or by appointment
891-0575 x312
jdelcurto@theaskacademy.org
askjdelcurto.wordpress.com
Suggested Supplies:
3-Ring 1-1/2” binder with 5 tabs (Notes, Hand-Outs, Project 1, Project 2, Portfolio)
Flash Drive
3" x 5" index cards
Small post-it notes
Colored pencils
Package of college-ruled paper
Course Description:
The primary purpose of this class is to expand your knowledge of world literature, develop an
understanding of commonalities across cultures, and also improve your literacy skills. My
objective is to help you develop the ability to read consciously, write concisely and
authoritatively, speak articulately, and think critically. The goal of The ASK Academy is to
prepare you for college and life beyond high school; consequently, it is also the goal of this class.
This course will address the National Common Core State Standards and Benchmarks for
English Language Arts.
Course Exit Standards:
Upon completion of this course, scholars will:
 Read a variety of texts and extract information relevant to specific questions.
 Read, view, and listen to a variety of media and identify similarities and differences.
 Identify, locate, analyze, and synthesize information from a variety of media to develop
logical arguments and conclusions.
 Understand how authors use rhetorical strategies to convey explicit and implicit information
and meaning.
 Infer implicit meaning from the author's use of rhetorical and literary strategies.
 Identify literary elements specific to genres.
 Develop and apply vocabulary comprehension skills.
 Understand the different types of writing and oration, their structures and purposes, and use
them appropriately.
 Plan and organize your oral and written communication to maintain a logical progression of
ideas.
 Express your ideas clearly, precisely, and with a tone and vocabulary suitable to the
audience.
Teaching Strategies
This class will be taught in seminar format. Active and respectful participation in class
discussions is expected of all students. Essays will be used to articulate analyses, as well as
synthesize and summarize information to convey personal perspective. In addition to discussion
and critical writing, scholars will participate in a variety of activities to engage them in learning
vocabulary, developing their own rhetorical skills, and preparing for the NM High School
Graduation Exam (NMSBA) which they will take in their junior year.
Course Texts:
These are the texts we will cover this semester. I realize it looks like a lengthy list, but many of
the pieces are novellas. We will also cover a selection of short stories and poetry from different
parts of the world and across a variety of eras.
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Literature World Masterpieces,
Prentice Hall
A Doll's House, Ibsen
Antigone, Sophocles
Dante's Inferno (select Cantos)
Night, Weisel
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Siddhartha, Hesse
The Epic of Gilgamesh
The Metamorphosis, Kafka
The Tempest, Shakespeare
Things Fall Apart, Achebe
Course Outline:
Weekly Vocabulary: Every week you will be assigned 5-10 vocabulary words. These are words
from your reading, the SAT, and ACT. You will be assessed the following Thursday.
Assessment will take a variety of forms: performance, quiz, sentence completion, cross-word
puzzle, explanation of the definition based on the context, using all the words in one paragraph,
etc. In addition, throughout the course of this year, I expect these words to creep in your essays,
where appropriate.
Blogging: Each day you will be asked to write in your blogs for ten minutes. The topic can be
about anything you want, however, at least one of the four blog posts must be related to the class
reading. I ask that you email me your blog post daily by 4 p.m.
Mini-Lessons on Writing: Throughout the year, you will work to develop an engaging writing
style. Most of you have mastered simple and compound sentences. However, this course will
require to you analyze literature and express complex thoughts and ideas clearly and concisely.
You will work to improve your mechanics, grammar, syntax, and style. You will also develop
fluency with complex sentences, compound-complex sentences, using subordinate clauses to
combine sentences, integrate quotations, and understand and use non-standard sentence
structures. Mini-lessons will occur one to two times per week.
Reading and Literary Analysis: One of the keys to understanding literature is the careful
evaluation of literary devices such as theme, motif, symbolism, allusion, tone, mood, etc. You
will use your knowledge of history, science, anthropology, sociology, psychology, mythology,
sacred texts, and other literary works to deconstruct pieces of literature for their deeper meaning
and intertexuality. You will actively explore how literature explains and illustrates the thoughts,
desires, and motivations of people living under the influence of societal and religious mores,
adversity, duress, and the consequence of their own actions.
Project 1:
This will be an independent book project. Scholars will select a book from any of the regions
and eras we are studying this semester. Plays and short stories/novella may be substituted for the
book with prior permission. Scholars will have the option of creating one of the following:
 A short 3-5 minute video depicting key points of the piece;
 A "Cliff's Notes" summary;
 A poster illustrating the major literary devices used in the story; or
 A project of the scholar's own design.
This project will be due in December.
Project 2:
This is a research project with a research report. You will select one of the regions we have
studied throughout the year, investigate the origins of the country (i.e., religion, philosophy,
major conquests and the integration of different cultures, etc.) and write about how these
influences appear in one of the pieces of literature we have read and discussed in class. This
piece of literature can be a poem, short story, play, or novel. This project will be due at the end
of April.
Portfolio:
The best way to develop any skill is to collect information and reflect on your progress. We will
take some class time throughout the year to work on compiling and reflecting on our skill
development. The final project for this class is to complete a World Literature portfolio
demonstrating your mastery of the content standards and benchmarks. This portfolio will be due
in May.
Classroom Site:
We will be creating and updating a classroom blog throughout the school year. It will be similar
to that of a news site, with various articles and photos uploaded by the scholars. You are
expected to contribute to the news site throughout the year. More information will follow.
Late Work Policy:
Scholars will be given several days to complete projects and assignments in class. Any
assignment not completed in class may be taken home and completed as homework. All
deadlines will be listed on the board, in the gradebook, and on assignment sheets. If the scholar
has deadline issues due to other commitments, multiple conflicting assignment deadlines, or
extracurricular activities, it is the scholar’s responsibility to negotiate for a mutually agreeable
alternative due date. This negotiation must occur at least one day before the designed due date.
Scholars who are absent because of illness receive date extensions equivalent to one additional
day for each day of absence. Assignments turned in late without prior negotiation are penalized
ten percent (10%) per day (including week-ends and days classes are not in session). Extra
credit assignments are not available.
Grading Distribution and Procedures:
Quarterly grades are a percentage of the total points earned divided by the total points available
for the assignments. Based on the percentage, a letter grade is assigned according to The ASK
Academy’s grade scale of A, A-, B+, etc.
As scholars, I believe your grades are your responsibility and business. However, there is a fine
line between your business and family business and since this class fulfills a required credit for
graduation, I will require you to come in for Friday tutoring if you fall behind in your
assignments. You and your parents can check your grades at any time on PowerSchool. I
generally update my gradebook over the week-end. Please note that in accordance with
Academy policy, credit will not be granted for semester grades lower than 70%.