AP English Literature & Composition
Course Syllabus 2015-2016
Ms. Maria Regojo
mregojo7@dadeschools.net
Course Description
The AP English Literature and Composition course is meant to bring college level literature to
high school students. Its purpose is to challenge students in their knowledge and ability to
interpret various types of literature (novels, plays, short stories and poems), but to also create
writers well prepared for the college level. [SC1] Students will be exposed to a variety of texts
and genres in order to build upon their literary background in addition to their written literary
analysis to prepare them for the AP English Literature and Composition exam in May. Success in
this course is determined on the ability to keep up with the assigned readings as well as be able
to critically read and respond to each text for its literary aspects and social/historical/political
aspects. [SC2, SC3, SC4]
The AP Test
• The AP English Literature and Composition test is a three-hour exam divided into two major
sections: multiple choice and essay. The multiple choice section usually contains an average of
55 questions based on four pieces of literature: both prose and poetry. This portion is worth 45%
of the test and is only one hour long.
• The essay section consists of three equally weighted essays. The first two questions are based
on a prose passage and a poetry passage. The third essay is an open essay that relates to a literary
work you select. This section is worth 55% of the test and is two hours long (40 minutes per
essay).
• If you score a 4 or 5 on the AP you will automatically earn credit for most colleges and
universities. Many colleges look favorably on students who have taken the AP test. By preparing
for the AP exam you will get used to approaching your studies with seriousness and focus that
college success requires. As many teachers would agree: think of this course as a boot camp
that’ll prepare you for college.
Reading Assignments
The most critical aspect of this course is that students read each piece required of the course
within the appropriate scheduled time. Students must manage their time accordingly in order to
accomplish the reading. This will be the main homework required of students. You must come
prepared daily to discuss and write based on the assigned text pulling from the original readings
to support their analysis of the text. There will be a variety of books, poems and short stories
covered throughout the year. Although most of the poems are not long, it is expected that
students do multiple readings. After having initially discussed the material, students will then
transfer that ability into their writing. In addition, students will be given critical articles of the
assigned text in order to expand their understanding of the pieces and to assist in their analysis of
literature. [SC8, SC9]
Writing Assignments
Writing will be completed daily either in the formal, informal or creative approach. Students
must be able to produce an analysis within a set amount of time as reflective of the AP English
Literature & Composition exam as well as create an original piece of work following the
different genres: short story, poem, group project, critical review as well as others. [SC5, SC6]
You will be exposed to sample writings as well as critical works in order to expand writing
styles. Students will also be exposed to an open writing environment in which writing will be
given feedback from both the student’s and teacher’s perspective in oral and written form in all
written assignments. It is important to realize that writing cannot be improved without feedback
and given multiple tries. On a daily basis, students will be required to keep a response journal in
which they will focus on literary works read, development of vocabulary and improvement of
writing structure. This will be most of the informal writing that can then be transferred into the
formal and creative writing. With skills learned in daily informal writing, students will
incorporate their knowledge and application of vocabulary and gradual improvement in their
writing skills. [SC11, SC12, SC13, SC14, SC15]
In-class Writing, Quizzes and Exams
We will have essay exams throughout each semester to demonstrate your knowledge of the text
and the application of story structure, poetry and drama. These exams will be primarily AP based
and are made to help students become accustomed to the rigor and time of the AP exam. Quizes
will not all be announced.
Unit 1 Introduction to the Course: How do we read Literature?
The Elements of Fiction
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Reading the story: p. 61-67, Plot Structure p. 104-111,Characterization p. 161-165, Theme p.
208-214, Point of View p. 253-259, Symbol, Allegory, and Fantasy p. 300-311, Humor and
Irony p. 359-363,
The Elements of Poetry: What is Poetry? P. 657-664, Imagery p. 712-714, Simile, Metaphor,
Personification, Apostrophe, Metonymy p. 726-738 Symbol & Allegory p.748-757, Paradox,
Overstatement, Understatement, Irony p.771-776, Allusion p.792-795, Tone p.820-821,
Sentimental, Rhetorical, Didactic Verse
The Elements of Drama p. 1036-1039, 1087-1091, 1222-1229,
(Perrine’s Literature)
Unit 2 Fate and Free Will: How much of what happens in our lives do we
control?
Primary Test:
Oedipus Rex (drama) by Sophocles
Secondary Texts:
“Myth” (poem) by Muriel Rukeyser
“Consolation” (poem) by William Butler Yeats
“Solitude” (poem) Ella Wheeler Wilcox
“Consider Oedipus’s Father” (poem) by David Tomas Martinez
“Macbeth” (drama) by William Shakespeare – secondary text
“Mind” (poem) by Richard Wilbur
“A Child is born Free of Mind” (poem) by Raj Arumugam
“The Verdicts” (poem) by Rudyard Kipling
“Beowulf” (epic poem) unknown
“Inferno” (epic poem) by Dante Alighieri
“Paradise Lost” (epic poem) by John Milton
“The Lottery” (short story) by Shirley Jackson
Fahrenheit 451 (dystopian novel) by Ray Bradbury
“Invictus” (poem) by William Ernest Henley
“If” (poem) by Rudyard Kipling
“The Guest” (short story) by Albert Camus
Unit 3 The Human Condition: What defines man?
Primary Text:
Hamlet (drama) – by William Shakespeare
Secondary Texts:
“Lapis Lazuli” (poem) by William Butler Yeats
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (play) by Tom Stoppard
Frankenstein (novel) by Mary Shelly
“Prometheus” (poem) by Lord Byron
“Monsters” (poem) by Dorothea Lasky
“Metamorphosis” (short story) by Franz Kafka
“Tell Me” (poem) by Shel Silverstein
“Canterbury Tales” (short stories) by Geoffrey Chaucer
“On the Morning of Christ’s Nativity” (poem) by John Milton
“A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings” (short story) by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
“A Hymn to God the Father” (poem) John Donne
“Good Country People” (short story) by Flannery O’Connor
“One Art” (poem) Elizabeth Bishop
A Lesson Before Dying (novel) by Ernest Gaines
Unit 4: Love: What is love?
“The Gift of the Magi” (short story) by O. Henry
“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” (poem) by William Shakespeare
“Loving in Truth” (poem) by Sir Philip Sidney
“When my love swears that she is made of truth” (poem) by William Shakespeare
“Meeting at Night” (poem) by Robert Browning
“My mistress’ eyes” (poem) by William Shakespeare
“Let me not to the marriage of true minds” (poem) William Shakespeare
“My Son the Man” (poem) by Sharon Olds
“My Papa’s Waltz” (poem) Theodore Roethke
Unit 5 Social Identity: How does society shape an individual?
Primary Text:
Raisin in the Sun (drama) Lorrain Hansberry
Secondary Texts:
“I, Too, Sing America” (poem) by Langston Hughes
“Be Nobody’s Darling” (poem) by Alice Walker
“The Garden Party” (short story) by Katherine Mansfield
“A Good Man is Hard to Find” (short story) by Flannery O’Connor
The Importance of Being Earnest (novel) Oscar Wilde-secondary text
“Barbie Doll” (poem) by Margie Piercy
“Interpreter of Maladies” (short story) by Jhumpa Lahiri
“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” (short story) by James Thurber
“The South” (short story) by Jorge Luis Borges
“The Criminal” (poem) by Khalil Gibran
“Aunt Helen” (poem) by T.S.Eliot
“The Drunkard” (short story) by Frank O’Connor
“Negress in Notre Dame” (poem) by Robert Service
“Cross” (poem) by Langston Hughes
“Brave New World” (poem) by Robert Service
Unit 6 American Dream: What is the truth?
Primary Text:
Of Mice and Men (novella) by John Steinbeck
Secondary Texts:
Death of a Salesman (play) by Arthur Miller
Grendel (epic poem) by John Gardner
“Dreams Deferred” (poem) by Langston Hughes
Los Vendidos (satire) by Luis Valdez
“Immigrants” (poem) by Pat Mora
“Immigrants in Our Own Land” (poem) by Jimmy Santiago Baca
“A Way to Make a Living” (poem) by James Wright
“Cheerfulness Taught By Reason” (poem) by Elizabeth Barret Browning
“Rise O Days from Your Fathomless Deeps” (poem) by Walt Whitman
“Two Infants” (poem) by Khalil Gibran
“Let America Be America Again” (poem) by Langston Hughes
“O Me O Life” (poem) by Walt Whitman
Reading and Writing Schedule
This lists reflects a tentative weekly schedule of the major works that will be covered in class. It
is expected that students will have read each text prior to the start of class. In addition, students
will be exposed to short and full versions of the practice AP exam in order to establish endurance
and familiarity of the exam. Students will also be exposed to visual interpretations of literature in
partial or complete form as an additional resource.
Week 1: Introduction to the Course
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Review Summer Reading: How to Read Literature Like a Professor and Winesburg Ohio by
Sherwood Anderson
Perrine’s Literature Structure, Sound & Sense
Week 2: Diagnostic Exam
Week 3: Oedipus/poetry
Week 4: Oedipus/poetry
Week 5: Oedipus/ poetry
Week 6: Oedipus/drama
Week 7: Oedipus/epic poem
Week 8: Oedipus/short story
Week 9: Oedipus/excerpt & poem
Week 10: Hamlet/poetry
Week 11: Hamlet/play
Week 12: Hamlet/ novel excerpt/poem
Week 13: Hamlet/ poetry
Week 14: Hamlet/short story
Week 15: Hamlet/ poetry/short story
Week 16: Hamlet/novel
Week 17: Hamlet/novel
Week 18: short story/poem
Week 19: Winter Break – work on project
Week 20: Winter Break –work on project
Week 21: poems
Week 22: Raisin in the Sun/poetry
Week 23: Raisin in the Sun/poetry
Week 24: Raisin in the Sun/novel
Week 25: Raisin in the Sun/short story
Week 26: Raisin in the Sun/ poetry
Week 27: Raisin in the Sun/poetry
Week 28: Of Mice and Men/play
Week 29: Of Mice and Men/play
Week 30: Of Mice and Men/epic poem
Week 31: Of Mice and Men/play
Week 32: Spring Break – work on project
Week 33: Of Mice and Men/ poetry
Week 34: Of Mice and Men/poetry
Week 35: Of Mice and Men/poetry
Week 36: Of Mice and Men/poetry
Week 37: AP Test Prep
Week 38: AP Test Prep
Week 39: AP Testing
Week 40: Independent Project-Research Paper
Week 41: Independent Project-Research Paper
Grading Criteria
Assessments (Essays/Tests)
70%
Assignments (Classwork/Quizzes/Homework)
30%
Daily Required Material
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Assigned text
1 ½ three ring binder including a full pack of lined paper
Pens (blue/black and red)
Highlighters (various color pack)
Dictionary/thesaurus
Two composition books
Class Procedures
Respect yourself and others
Bring all materials/books to class daily
Monitor absences. Too many throughout the year can affect your success in the class.
Make-up work is your responsibility and will only be accepted if your absence is excused
Participate often and respectfully.
* The teacher reserves the right to makes changes to the syllabus*