Quarter 4
Readings may include:
“Young Goodman Brown” and/or “Rappaccini’s Daughter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
“College Pressures” by William Zinsser
“Our Barbies, Ourselves” by Emily Prager
“What Is a Weblog?” by Rebecca Blood
“What Work Is” by Philip Levine
“Shop Like A Man” by Paco Underhill
“On Dumpster Diving” by Lars Eighner
“Sizing Up the Effects” by Sissela Bok, Violent Media Is Good for Kids” by Gerard
Jones, Memo to John Grisham: What’s Next – ‘A Movie Made Me Do It?’” and “Violent
Films Cry “Fire” in Crowded Theaters” by Michael Zimecki - Oliver Stone Essays “Television: The Plug-In Drug” by Marie Winn
Harry Potter Essays “Under the Spell” and “Can 35 Million Book Buyers Be Wrong?”
Various selections on technology
Op-ed essays/articles
Hamlet by Shakespeare
The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Oedipus the King if time allows
Various correlating informational texts
Writing:
Formal Writing Assignment 4 – Comparison/Contrast Essay
The student should choose a contemporary issue (i.e. parenting, fashion, occupations,
politics/politicians, a field of study such as medicine or law, etc.). The issue may be
controversial or opinionated. The student will then identify two views / sides / elements
to the issue and compare and contrast the two views / sides / elements.
Formal Writing Assignment 5 – Research Project – if time allows
After selecting a research topic and receiving approval on the proposal, students will
complete their research and craft an argumentative research project. The topic must be
arguable and supported by valid research. Mrs. Howard must approve all topics. No two
students will be allowed to complete a paper on the same topic.
Other Areas of Focus:
Rhetoric: Delivery and Rhetorical Terms
Vocabulary: bi-weekly
Foreign Phrases and Word Origins
Presentations on research topic and/or proposal
Visual Rhetoric
Other Writing:
Technical writing: proposals if time allows
Research debate project – if time
AP prompt practice
Multi-media presentations