English II Syllabus
2015-2016
Important Information:
Teacher:
Planning:
Tracie Luttrell
5 th Period 11:55-1:15
School E-mail Address: tracy.luttrell@harlanind.kyschools.us
School Phone:
HISD’s Web Page:
606-573-8750 http://www.harlan-ind.k12.ky.us
Parent Portal Link (where parents and students can view up-to-date grade averages): https://infinitecampus.kyschools.us/campus/portal/harlanindependent.jsp
Course Overview
English II is centered on three thematic units: 1) Searching for Ourselves: Elie Wiesel's Night; 2)
Personal Choices and Consequences: Sophocles' Antigone and Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Julius Caesar; and 3) Power and the Abuse of Power: Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. Students will be immersed in various texts (written as well as audio/visual and technological) related to these units. At the same time, they will analyze the components of these texts that make them effective methods of communication.
In addition to reading, you will be writing expository, narrative, and argumentative essays. In journals, you will also have opportunity to express yourself informally; your journals will serve as a record of your growth and development as writers and thinkers during your sophomore year. We will not, of course, neglect grammar study and vocabulary development.
Course Goals
• Students will use knowledge of grammar and writing skills to critically analyze a variety of print materials.
• Students will view literature in context of universal themes and its ability to help us understand the human condition and ourselves.
• Students will develop oral communication skills.
Note:
This course serves a dual purpose: to enable students to enjoy, understand, and learn from a variety of texts (written as well as audio/visual); and to help students communicate clearly, intelligently, and correctly about what they have learned. English II builds upon the foundation of concepts learned in
English I, including such skills as grammar, sentence structure, composition, and vocabulary. The course also focuses on humanities integration, seeking to enrich historical and social perspectives as well as geographical skills.
Students enrolled in English II are required by the Kentucky State Department of Education to take the End-of-Course Exam. This assessment is not a school-created assessment. It is an assessment that is standardized for the entire state of Kentucky, and it assesses content that is required for proficient scores on the ACT English and Reading assessments. According to the policy of the Harlan Independent
School Board, a student’s score on the English II End-of-Course Exam will be counted as 10% of the
student’s final grade. There are no exemptions from this assessment. In addition to the End-of-Course
Exam, students in English II are required by law to take the On-Demand Writing Assessment administered by the Kentucky Department of Education. Our curriculum in English II has been revised to help students be prepared for these types of assessments.
Course Content:
Reading:
 Reading Across the Curriculum
 Reading Strategies
 Knowledge of Literary and Nonliterary Forms
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English II Syllabus
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 Influences on Texts
 Author’s Voice and Method
 Persuasive Language and Logic
 Literary Criticism
 Words and Their History
Writing
 Writing Process
 Modes of Writing for Different Purposes and Audiences
 Organization, Unity, and Coherence
 Sentence-Level Constructions
 Conventions of Usage
 Conventions of Punctuation
Research, 
 Listening, Viewing, and Speaking
 Comprehension and Analysis
 Application
 Study Skills and Test Taking
Major Course Readings
While the assigned textbooks for the class are Prentice Hall's tenth-grade literature book and
Glencoe's tenth-grade grammar and writing book, we will spend the majority of our time involved in other texts. Materials covered in the class may include, but are not limited to, the following texts (written as well as audio/visual):
Short Stories
Luisa Valenzuela—“The Censors” (p. 554 in text)
Flannery O’Connor’s—“Revelation”(plus its critical analysis)
Novels
Elie Wiesel’s Night
Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities
Dramas
Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Poems
Jo Carson—“Mountain People”
Maurice Ogden—“Hangman”
Paul Laurence Dunbar— “We Wear the Mask” (lyric poem)
Sophocles “Wonders of Man” (ode)
Dr. M.C. Gupta “An Ode to a Teacher” (ode)
Tony Barnstone—“The Cave” (sonnet)
Biographies
PBS First Person Singular: Elie Wiesel (DVD)
A&E Biography: Charles Dickens
Essays
Gary Larson—“Words Can and Do Break Bones”
Gordon Allport—“Scapegoats” (excerpt from The Nature of Prejudice)
Rachel Donadio—“The Story of Night”—and tie-in to literary archetypes
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English II Syllabus
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"The Techniques of Propaganda" (excerpt from How to Detect and Analyze Propaganda, by Clyde R.
Miller)
“Academic Stooge: The Three Stooges and Their Satire of Hitler, Mussolini, and Dictatorships” http://desert.net/tw/05-11-95/curr1.htm
Rachel Donadio—“The Story of Night”—and tie this in to literary archetypes)
Powers of Persuasion http://www.nara.gov/exhall/powers/stampem.html
German Propaganda Archive http://www.calvin.edu/cas/gpa/gdrmain.htm
“A Tale of Two Revolutions”
Speeches from Various Cultures and of Nonliterary Forms
Elie Wiesel—1986 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech
Martin Luther King—“I Have a Dream” speech
Roosevelt—“Four Freedoms” speech
Patrick Henry—“Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech
Films
Schindler’s List (film)
The Three Stooges: You Nazty Spy! And I'll Never Heil Again (short films)
Grammar and Usage
Integrated into and among these three units will be a continuous study of grammar as utilized by each author we study. The grammar we study in English II is geared specifically toward an understanding and proficient usage of grammar skills assessed on the ACT. While the ACT English Test will never explicitly ask students to name a grammatical error, they must know what those grammatical errors are to be able to identify and correct them. Students are expected to know the fundamentals of usage, diction, and rhetorical skills. For example, they must understand sentence construction—what makes a run-on and what makes a fragment. They need to know how to distinguish between commonly confused words, such as affect and effect or principal and principle. They must be able to use the proper forms of words, distinguishing between an adjective and an adverb. In addition to the previously mentioned concepts, we will explore the following fundamentals of usage:
 Subject-Verb Agreement
 Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
 Pronoun Cases
 Verb Tenses
 Adverbs and Adjectives
 Idioms
 Comparative and Superlative Modifiers
Class Rules and Grading Policy
 Students must bring the following materials with them to class each day:
Three-ring binder notebook (Students should keep everything we do in English II in this folder in chronological order. It will be graded and counted as a test grade at random times throughout the semester.)
Textbooks (Literature and Grammar—plus any novel we’re reading at the time)
A writing utensil
 Class time is extremely important in English II. Students are expected to be in their seats BY THE
TIME THE BELL RINGS, because I will already be teaching by that time. (In accordance with the student handbook, any student who is tardy for any reason must bring a tardy slip from the
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English II Syllabus
2015-2016 office.) If a student has forgotten materials and needs to return to his locker, he must obtain a tardy slip before returning to class.
 Attendance/Absences/Makeup Work: Your presence (mind and body) in class is essential. A student who has an excused absence (according to the handbook) is given one day per excused
absence to make up any work. This includes tests, quizzes, homework assignments, and any projects. If a student does not ask for his make-up work the day after he was absent, he will NOT be allowed to make up the work. This is very important for students to remember: It is THEIR responsibility to ask for make-up work.
 Because you will have at least a week’s lead-time for papers and other major assignments, the due date remains the same regardless of your absence. If you are ill the day a paper is due, Email it to me or deliver it to a friend who can turn it in for you. If an emergency arises (illness or otherwise) and you absolutely cannot complete an assignment, I will need a note from your parent/guardian explaining the situation.
 Late Assignments: Your responsibilities in this class include keeping your own up-to-date assignment notebook, maintaining pace with the reading, and turning all assignments in on time.
If you do not understand an assignment, ask for help far enough in advance to have time to finish the assignment. If you are having personal difficulties apart from class, talk to me before an assigned due date so that we can make other arrangements. Otherwise, each day an assignment is late, I will subtract 10% from the grade. Once I have graded and returned an assignment, you
cannot turn that assignment in for credit.
 You will be given at least a week’s lead-time for out-of-class papers and other major assignments, so plan accordingly: if you spend most weeknights working on daily homework for other classes, you will probably need to block out a significant amount of time on the weekend for prewriting, writing, and revising your work.
 Reading: Keeping up with reading assignments is crucial to your success in this class. If you have not read the assignment, you cannot thoughtfully participate in class discussion. If you fall behind in the reading, you will become overwhelmed and set yourself up for frustration when it comes time to write a paper. Bear in mind that some of the reading will be difficult and you may not understand it all the first time. That’s OK; I want the reading to stretch your thinking. Do the best you can to understand; meanwhile, write down questions in your notebook that we can address in class. I am always happy to help anyone who asks for help.
 Plagiarism/Cheating: I begin the year with complete trust and faith in each of you. Please do not abuse that trust by being dishonest. Learning cooperatively is great, and I encourage you to get together to brainstorm and discuss assignments. When you sit down to complete an individual assignment, however, let the work be yours alone. Penalties for plagiarism—another word for cheating—are stiff. If two papers resemble each other too closely, I will split the points. If a paper is obviously copied, whether from a classmate’s work or from the Internet, it will receive no credit.
Grading Policy
Evaluation: For major assignments I will provide the rubrics or explain the expectations that I will use to assess your work. For general reference, however, here are four similes and a metaphor to represent my expectations for assignments:
A: Like a double mocha cappuccino with whipped cream and sprinkles, “A” work goes above and beyond expectations. It not only demonstrates an understanding of concepts discussed in class, but also takes risks
and presents additional insights.
B: Like a really good cup of coffee, “B” demonstrates understanding of the concepts presented in class and shows thought and effort, but it doesn’t take any risks or offer fresh insight.
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English II Syllabus
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C: Like decaf, “C” work is solid, but doesn’t pack the punch of “A” or “B” work. It’s competent, but not dazzling.
D: Like the burnt dregs from a gas-station coffee pot, a “D” paper is there, but leaves a bad taste. “D” work just doesn’t hang together and probably shows lack of thought and effort.
F: As Ani Difranco says, “The coffee is just water dressed in brown.” While “F” is definitely better than zero, it is clearly not up to snuff. “F” work is the result of careless work and poor planning.
Extra Credit: Extra work, at times, merits extra points. I will offer various extra credit opportunities throughout the year.
Freebies: I expect your work to be in on time. Still, I know I occasionally get bogged down in work, or something unexpected comes up and I cannot get your papers back to you as quickly as I’d like. I assume the same things happen to you, so each semester I’ll give you one “Freebie”—i.e., a one-school-day extension without penalty.
Course Procedures
Format of Papers: I expect all papers written outside of class to be typed. Hand in to me the final draft along with previous draft(s) stapled to the back. Please adhere to the following guidelines:
• Use white paper and black ink.
• Use a sensible font (for example, 12-point Times New Roman).
• Double-space all text.
• Use one-inch page margins.
• Include on the first page your name, the title of your paper, your class and period number, and the date.
• Include page numbers on the upper right-hand corner of the page.
Personal Statement 
 It is very important that you review your notes and homework frequently! This is especially true when homework has a purpose. Most homework has one or more of the following aims:
• Practice reinforces the learning of material presented in class and helps you master specific skills.
• Preparation provides supporting information—history, skills, definitions—for what’s forthcoming; it will help when new material is covered in class.
• Extension or elaboration involves the transfer of previously learned skills to new situations.
• Integration asks you to apply skills and concepts to produce a single product. 
 I will make every effort to communicate the purpose of homework assignments to you. If you are having difficulties with anything covered in this course, see me as soon as possible. Times when I am available for extra help are included below.
I am excited and proud to be teaching this course. The nature of this course is to challenge and to push you to stretch beyond what you already know and can do. Although I expect you to work hard this year,
I will never give you an assignment or expect you to do anything I haven’t already done or wouldn’t/couldn’t have done myself when I was your age. I also want to say now that I appreciate your effort and value each of you as important members of the class, regardless of the grade you earn from me.
Your grade does not equate to your value as a person. My wish is to help you discover and cultivate your gifts for use in a meaningful life.
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English II Syllabus
2015-2016
Signature(s): Discuss this course syllabus with your parent(s) or guardian(s). The yellow copy is for you to keep. Please sign and return the blue copy to me by next Friday. I am looking forward to working with you this year.
I, _____________________ (Student), have read and understand the English II course syllabus and the course expectations.
I, _____________________ (Parent/Guardian), have read and understand the English II course syllabus and the course expectations.
Student Signature: ____________________________________
Date: _____________
Parent/Guardian Signature: _____________________________
Date: _____________
PLEASE PLACE THIS DOCUMENT IN YOUR CLASS NOTEBOOK FOR FUTURE REFERENCE.
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