Teacher: Brink
School Term: Spring 2013
English IV Honors
Course Description
Content and Goals:
This class is intended to prepare students for the level of reading and the kind of
writing that they will encounter in college classes. Emphasis is placed on argumentative
and persuasive writing. Literature from the British canon will be studied with a focus on the
characteristic styles and themes of various literary periods. The objective is that students
will continue to be able to identify new pieces of literature as typical of a specific literary
period once they have graduated. In addition, emphasis will be placed on origins of the
English language and of genres which continue to be popular in the present day. When
possible and as appropriate, other of the humanities specific to the period will be discussed.
A researched position paper—in line with the Common Core Curriculum and similar
to argumentative papers written in college freshman English classes—will be completed
during this class. If the student has not completed the Graduation Project paper, he/she
will complete that instead. Regardless of which type of research paper is written during this
class, each student's grade for the completed Graduation Project (all four components) will
be his/her final exam grade for English IV Honors. Students will also be required to
complete individual projects, presented in class, on approved British novels of choice. The
benefit of this process is twofold: 1) Reading and completing a project independently help
students to develop critical skills necessary for advanced literary analysis required by
universities, and 2) Students are able to gain knowledge of other British literary works
through these presentations, broadening their content knowledge. Further information
about these independent projects is available on the class webpage. Finally, as a literacy
strategy, word attack and recognition skills will be strengthened by a vocabulary program
that emphasizes Greek and Latin roots and context clues.
The following PDF file
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/CCSSI_ELA%20Standards.pdf provides a
comprehensive description of course objectives. Because this class is Honors level, the
standard curriculum described in this document is accelerated and enriched.
Major Works and Texts:
1984 (George Orwell); Hamlet (William Shakespeare); Elements of Literature, an
anthology of major works by British authors, arranged chronologically. Additionally,
students will be required to complete and present an independent book project each nine
weeks.
Methods and Procedures:
With the exception of the summer reading assignments, this course focuses on a
chronological study of British literature. The instructor will employ a variety of classroom
practices to facilitate the study of assigned works. When possible and appropriate, students
will be engaged at the interpretive, analytical, evaluative, and creative levels of thinking.
Writing in this class will involve application of learned principles to new situations and/or
works of literature.
Additional Needs:
Students will need excellent attendance, a positive attitude about English studies,
self-sufficiency in classroom situations and in managing reading/homework loads, and a
willingness to be challenged and to take theoretical risks in the classroom and in writing.
This is an investigative, multi-dimensional course that requires students to be self-motivated
and proactive. They will be required to work hard.
Contact Information:
susan_brink@abss.k12.nc.us