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Course Overview
This course is designed to help students to think critically as well as, “to write effectively and confidently in
their college courses across the curriculum and in their professional and personal lives.” Students will “read
complex texts with understanding and...write prose of sufficient richness and complexity to communicate
with mature readers “ (The College Board AP English Language and Composition, 2006-2007 Professional
Development Workshop Materials, p. 4).
TEXTS
The Bedford Reader
Readings for Writers
The Elements of Style
How to Watch TV News
Literature
The Great Gatsby
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
A Farewell to Arms
Kennedy, Kennedy, & Parm
McCuen-Mehterell & Winkler
White and Strunk
Postman and Powers
Holt & McDogual
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Mark Twain
Ernest Hemingway
GRADING
Students are asked to emphasize their personal growth more than their personal grade. As an AP course,
this class is taught at the college level.
Students will be supplied with a grading sheet at the beginning of each quarter. Every grade you receive (i.e.
every assignment you receive with points indicated) should be recorded on this sheet. This will help you
keep track of your grade (in theory, it should be more up-to-date than Edline) and eliminate students asking
to see their grades in class at inopportune times. Scores are not weighted, so simply divide the number of
points you have received by the points possible. If you happen to lose track, check Edline.
1st/2nd quarter – 45% each | Final Exam – 10%
100-93 - A
82-80 – B
69-67 – D+
92-90 – A79-77 – C+
66-63 – D
89-87 – B+
76-73 – C
62-60 – D-
86-83 – B
72-70 – C60>E
ASSIGNMENTS
Assignments change year to year to help personalize the focus for each class. For the first few weeks of class
(during the Survey of American Literature), assignments for the next week will be posted on my website.
Students can expect to avoid “busy work” in this course. Work is assigned for your enrichment, not to
waste your time or to create the appearance that you are doing something. Since care has been taken to
ensure that assignments are worthwhile, it is required that you complete them.
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Assignments are due at the beginning of the hour. Assignments turned in after collection or without a
name are marked down.
WRITING
Throughout the course, students will write several types of essay. For each essay, students are given a copy
of the AP scoring guideline or a similar 9-point rubric specific to the essay prompt. Students are
encouraged to schedule appointments with the teacher to discuss their individual writing.
Out-of-Class Essays
Students will write one out-of-class essay per quarter. These are given to help students identify and cultivate
their writing voice, to gain experience with the revision process, and to give them freedom to explore their
own analytical and creative thoughts. Each out-of-class essay has multiple drafts that are, at various stages,
self, peer, or teacher edited. Each student will have one essay discussed in a 10-15 minute classroom
workshop, where every student receives a copy of the essay and returns it with comments.
First Semester
-Narrative
-Research
Second Semester
-Analytical
-Argumentative
The narrative, analytical, and argumentative essays are written topics of the student’s choosing. They must
incorporate an insightful thesis and should employ the strategies that we discuss in class. Examples of each
essay will be provided before the students begin their own drafts, and classroom discussion will focus on
what strategies the examples use for success.
Research
Over holiday break, students read How to Watch TV News by Neil Postman and Steve Powers. They are
asked to synthesize the book with a minimum of three essays (they are provided Judy Brady’s “I Want a
Wife,” Armin A. Brott’s “Not All Men Are Sly Foxes,” and Emily Prager’s “Our Barbies, Ourselves”) and an
episode of ABC’s The Bachelor to create an analysis of how men and women are portrayed in popular
culture. Students are required to supplement their analysis with their own research on the topic.
In-Class Essays
Students write approximately 25 timed in-class essays throughout the year, the majority of which are former
AP prompts. The others are prompts based on specific works, such as those in the summer reading.
Students receive a letter grade based on their score on the AP scale.
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Responses
Students complete a one-page written response to each reading. Students are free to write about what they
choose but are encouraged to devote some attention to “how” the author conveys their message.
Each response is due at the beginning of the class period when the reading will be discussed. The responses
are shuffled and exchanged and that night, students write a one-page response back to the original student.
These two responses are returned the following day to the original student.
Reflective Writing
Every 8 weeks (once per quarter), students write a reflective essay on the work in their writing portfolio.
The reflection should contain analysis and evaluation of their writing. A writing goal for the following
quarter is discussed and established, as well as clear steps for attaining the goal. The student assigns
themselves a holistic grade for the writing process and product for the quarter. The teacher writes a
response back to the student.
Journal
Journal topics are given a few times per week. Students have roughly 10 minutes to respond in their
journal. This writing is not collected but serves as a springboard for class discussion. A variety of topics are
available, from opinions on current events to writing with specific strategies.
WRITING PORTFOLIO
Students will be given a folder in which to store all of their writing. Any writing completed for class must
go in the folder (it can be moved to a different folder for storage after each quarter). Students are
responsible for keeping tracking of their essay scores and writing grades. The portfolio’s organization will
be considered for the writing grade each quarter.
WRITING PROCESS
Out-of-Class Essays
Students are provided with examples of the genre in which they are being asked to write. Class discussions
take place with attention to strategies and conventions used by the author.
Students then write and submit their first draft. The teacher collects and selects 4-5 essays to share and
discuss with the class. The essays are shared on the SmartBoard and read through together. Edits and
suggestions are made and areas of success and need are indicated. This class-wide edit helps students
identify areas of strength and weakness in their own essays, and students self-edit their draft overnight and
bring it to class for peer editing.
Revisions are made from the peer edit and then the draft is submitted to the teacher. Receiving the essay at
this stage allows the teacher to avoid commenting on careless or easily remedied issues, freeing them to
focus on areas of individual need.
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The final draft is then submitted for grading.
In-Class Essays
An effort is made to replicate the pressure of the AP exam environment. Students are given 40 minutes to
complete their essay. The remaining class time (10-12 minutes) is allotted for students to read and score
their essay on the AP scale. Students are encouraged to read essays from their peers to get a better feel for
their own score. That night, students are encouraged to read student samples (provided or at AP Central)
in preparation for the essay discussion the following day.
The teacher scores the essays using the AP guidelines. The following day, the teacher discusses areas of
strength and weakness and offers specific advice on how to improve. The class reviews and scores student
samples before receiving their own essay back.
To help students familiarize themselves with the AP guidelines and to focus their attention on their
individual improvement, the first few essays of the year are not graded.
FIRST SEMESTER
The first semester of the course is a survey of American Literature and an introduction to the AP program.
Students explore American Literature through five thematic units and one novel study (The Great Gatsby).
Smaller, ongoing assignments help students build skills and lay the groundwork for success on the AP
exam.
Some practice is provided for the AP exam, mostly through in-class essays. Brief AP multiple choice quizzes
will be given to expose students to the exam.
Summer Reading
On Writing
Two works of fiction…
The Awakening
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Slaughterhouse-Five
Catch-22
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Color Purple
A Thousand Splendid Suns
The Joy Luck Club
Stephen King (required)
Two works of non-fiction…
Chopin
Detroit City is the Place to Be
Stowe
Angela’s Ashes
Vonnegut
Outliers
Heller
Blink
Foer
Zeitoun
Walker
The Glass Castle
Hosseini
Freakonomics
Tan
The Devil in the White City
Binelli
McCourt
Gladwell
Gladwell
Eggers
Walls
Levitt
Larsen
Over the summer, students write blog posts dealing with topics specific to each work. These are reviewed
by the instructor. The posts facilitate a discussion for students to engage in during the summer months
when class is not in session.
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The first two weeks of class cover summer reading assignments and serve as an introduction to the course.
Students also begin ongoing assignments as they gain familiarity with the class and its environment.
Vocabulary
A list of ten vocabulary words is provided to students each week. A vocabulary quiz is given every two weeks
(20 words total) and vocabulary makes up a portion of the mid-term exam.
Daily Exercise
The first five minutes of each class is devoted to a brief language exercise. These are taken from Nancy
Dean’s Voice Lessons. A selection of exercises will appear on the mid-term exam.
The Elements of Style
For the first five weeks (after summer reading), students are assigned one chapter from the book and are
required to take notes. Questions regarding Elements appear on vocabulary quizzes and the mid-term exam.
Students are encouraged to use the book as a reference throughout the course.
READING
Students must annotate or take notes on each selection throughout the year. While the annotations/notes
may address anything that students find relevant, they should focus on “how” the author conveys their
message.
As the first semester is a survey of American Literature, students will read from a wide range of works both
in time, topic, and medium (essay, poem, short story, etc.). On occasion, students will be given pieces that
are not by American authors but that are relevant to the thematic unit.
FIRST QUARTER
A Survey of American Literature
Week 1 – Man and the Divine
From Of Plymouth Plantation
“Huswifery”
“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
“Hell”
“Hollywood’s Heaven and Hell”
“Salvation”
“Verses Upon the Burning of Our House”
William Bradford
Edward Taylor
Jonathan Edwards
James Joyce
Todd Hertz
Langston Hughes
Anne Bradstreet
Week 2-3 – Man and Nature
From Nature
“Big Two-Hearted River”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ernest Hemingway
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From Walden
“Walden”
“To a Waterfowl”
From Life on the Mississippi
“A Measure of Restraint”
Henry David Thoreau
E.B. White
William Cullen Bryant
Mark Twain
Chet Raymo
Week 4-5 – The Individual
Viewing: About a Boy (2002)
“Speech to the Virginia Convention”
“The Crisis”
“Letter to Samson Occum”
“Letter to John Adams”
“The Battle With Mr. Covey”
“I Will Fight No More”
“I Have a Dream”
From Self-Reliance
“Shame”
From Fever Pitch
Patrick Henry
Thomas Paine
Phyllis Wheatley
Abigail Adams
Frederick Douglass
Chief Joseph
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Dick Gregory
Nick Hornby
Week 6 – Family and Community
“Baba and Me”
“Mother Tongue”
“Bricklayer’s Boy”
“Once More to the Lake”
“On Black Fathering”
From The Way to Rainy Mountain
Khaled Hosseini
Amy Tan
Alfred Lubrano
E.B. White
Cornel West
N. Scott Momaday
Week 7 – The Changing/Enduring Vision of America
“What is an American?”
Hector St. Jean de Crevecoeur
“What is an American?”
E.L. Hudgins
“What is an American?”
Harold Ickes
“Declaration of Independence”
Thomas Jefferson
“The Gettysburg Address”
Abraham Lincoln
“Speech on the Challenger Disaster”
Ronald Reagan
SECOND QUARTER
November – Winter Break –Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Great Gatsby, A Farewell to Arms
This unit covers The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Great Gatsby as examples of American novels.
Both are driven by a thematic exploration.. Students respond to chapter questions and are evaluated on
essay prompts. If time allows, A Farewell to Arms will be considered.
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January – End of 1st Semester – Research - How to Watch TV News
Viewing: The Bachelor (ABC)
“I Want a Wife”
Judy Brady
“Not All Men Are Sly Foxes”
Armin A. Brott
“Our Barbies, Ourselves”
Emily Prager
SECOND SEMESTER
The second semester of the course builds on the groundwork laid in the survey of American Literature in
the first semester and intensifies preparation for the AP exam in May. The ongoing assignments from first
semester continue, but students are gradually weaned to AP practice, tips, and strategies. In-class essays are
given weekly.
Readings come primarily from The Bedford Reader and Readings for Writers and our study focuses on the
various modes of discourse.
Visual analysis becomes important as students prepare for the synthesis prompt and to help students learn
to analyze rhetorically.
Public Spaces
Viewing: Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)
Throughout the first semester, the instructor will hold discussions about artists or particular works of art.
These serve to introduce students to visual analysis and to help students prepare for the synthesis essay.
The Public Spaces unit gives students an opportunity to take the lead in these discussions.
This unit explores various monuments, memorials, and buildings as “texts”. The connections between the
subject, speaker, and audience are explored. Students consider how they can analyze visual “texts”
rhetorically. The unit culminates with a project on a new monument/memorial proposal “contest,” in
which groups of students develop and defend a monument or memorial to a particular event in American
history.
The Modes of Discourse
A selection of relevant essays, current event articles, and op/ed pieces supplements each section, changing
year to year.
Narrative
“Fish Cheeks”
“Indian Education”
“Shooting an Elephant”
“Grade A: The Market For a Yale...”
Amy Tan
Sherman Alexie
George Orwell
Jessica Cohen
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Description
“Arm Wrestling With My Father”
“Shooting Dad”
“Fly-Fishing For Doctors”
Signs
Brad Manning
Sarah Vowell
Ethan Canin
Scott Sanders
Comparison and Contrast
“Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out”
“Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts”
“Neat People vs. Sloppy People”
Dave Barry
Bruce Catton
Suzanne Britt
Process
“Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain”
“How You Became You”
Jessica Mitford
Bill Bryson
Division or Analysis
“English 101”
“The Idols”
“Move Over, Teams”
“The Crisis of National Identity”
Bart Edelman
Francis Bacon
Paul M. Muchinsky
Samuel P. Huntington
Definition
“Needs”
“The Meanings of a Word”
“Being a Chink”
“In Praise of the Humble Comma”
Thomas Sowell
Gloria Naylor
Christine Leong
Pico Iyer
Argument and Persuasion
“Too Much Pressure”
“Why Don’t We Complain?”
“A Nation in Need of a Vacation”
“Will Spelling Count?”
“A Modest Proposal”
Colleen Wenke
William F. Buckley, Jr.
Steve Rushin
Jack Connor
Jonathan Swift
Focused AP Exam Preparation
With the time left before the AP exam, students will be given focused instruction and prepared for areas of
specific weakness on the exam. A full-length practice exam may be offered for students interested in the
experience outside of class.
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College Preparation
After the AP exam, the focus of the class shifts to the future. Students take stock of their academic and
extracurricular career and complete a portfolio that includes
-a research paper evaluation five college choices
-a completed college admissions essay (will go through the writing process)
-a completed senior questionnaire
MISCELLANEOUS
For information not otherwise covered...
Multiple Choice Exams
Students will complete several multiple choice practice quizzes throughout the year, usually over a single
passage and 10-12 questions. They will be curved at first, though the curve will be higher or disappear as
exam day approaches. Students can expect to take a minimum of three timed, full-length AP multiple
choice exams, usually one at the beginning of second semester, one halfway to the AP exam, and one just
before the AP exam. Others may be offered as needed. A full-length exam (not graded) is often given at the
beginning of the year to give students exposure to the test.
Projects
Several projects will be given throughout the year and combine visual and creative skills with analysis or
argument. Many of the projects are group assignments and all involve some sort of presentation in front of
the class.
Summer Reading Project
Students select one character from their summer reading and, using images and words cut from magazines,
create a visual of the character’s internal and external influences. A one-page rationale is turned in with the
visual.
Literary Terms Guide
Early in the year, students are assigned a literary term (metaphor, allusion, consonance, etc.). They must
create a visual that clearly shows the word and its definition. These terms are then placed in a guide for
students to consult.
Each class is unique. New projects are offered based on student interest and areas of need.
Film Study
Students will be introduced to film analysis through a series of brief lectures and representative clips.
Students are encouraged to see each film, like all of our visuals, as rhetorical texts.