ENGLISH I and PAP/ADVANCED ENGLISH I

SYLLABUS

Freshman Englishstudentswillexplorebothfictionalcharactersandrealindividualswhoencounterself-definingevents. Buildingontheirknowledgeofliteraryelementsintraditionalliterarygenres, studentswillalsostudytherelationshipbetweennarrativevoiceandstyle, whileanalyzingliteraryandstylisticelementsinliterature. Therewillbeastrongemphasisongrammar, spelling, punctuationandthemechanicsofwriting, allofwhichwillassistinstrengtheningourskillsaswritersandcriticalthinkers.

AsthiswillbeyourfirstexperienceinahighschoolEnglishclass, itisimportantyouunderstandwhatitmeanstobeastudentatthisacademiclevel. Youmustbepreparedforaworkloadthatincludesmorereading, writing, anddeepanalysisthaninyourpastLanguageArtscourses. Youracademicsuccesswillbedeterminedbyyourworkethicanddesiretotakechargeofyourlearning.Inordertobesuccessful, youmustbewillingtopartnerwithyourpeers, teacher, andfamily. LikethecharacterswewillencounteronourjourneythroughtheworldoffreshmanEnglish, thisisatimeoftremendousacademicandsocialgrowth.

TENTATIVEREADINGLIST- WHATAREWEREADINGTHISYEAR?

  • SelectionsfromPrenticeHallLiteratureGrade 9including (butnotlimitedto) “TheNecklace” byGuyMaupassant, “TheCaskofAmontillado” byEdgarAllanPoe, “TheScarletIbis” byJamesHurst
  • ExcerptsfromTheOdysseybyHomer
  • ExcerptsfromRomeoandJulietbyWilliamShakespeare
  • Selectionsofpoetry, variousspeeches, nonfictiontexts, videoclips, etc.

FirstSemesterUnits

  • FictionandLiteraryNon-Fiction
  • Poetry
  • Drama
  • InformationalTexts

SecondSemesterUnits

  • IntentionalPersuasion
  • GenreConnections
  • CollegeandCareerConnections-ExpositoryProceduralTexts
  • InquiringMinds-Research

ROUTINES: WHATWILLWEBEDOINGREGULARLYINTHISCLASS?

  1. Mechanics, Usage, andGrammar (M.U.Gs)- withaspecialemphasisoncompoundandcomplexsentences, phrasesandclauses, punctuation, capitalization, andsentencecombining. M.U.Gswillbedoneweeklyduringbothsemesters.
  1. WritingElements – findingyourvoicethroughnarrativeandanalyticalwriting, writingeffectiveexpositoryessays, usingevidencetosupportaposition, TimedWrites, andworkingthroughthewritingprocesswithspecialemphasisonrevisingandediting. YoushouldexpecttoWRITEDAILY.
  1. Vocabulary – Youwillberesponsiblefornotonlyknowingthedefinitionsofnewwords, butalsousingthemproperlyinavarietyofsentencetypes. Theultimategoalistostrengthenyourabilitytorecognizenewvocabularyinotherpiecesofwritingandcorrectlyincludetheminsentencesyouwrite. Youcanexpectavocabularyquizeveryweek.
  1. Independent ReadingProjects- InanefforttoincreaseyourreadingstaminaandensureyouaresetupforacademicsuccessinallofyourrigoroushighschoolEnglishcourses; youwillberequiredtoreadONEnoveland/ormultiplerelatedshortselections of fiction or non-fictionoutsideofclasseachquarter. AssessmentoveryourreadingwilltakebothwrittenandcreativeformatsandwillbeworthaMAJORgradeeachquarter.
  1. Organization –Beingorganizedisakeyhabitthatwillhelpyoutobesuccessfulinthisclass, aswellasincollegeand/oryourprofessionalcareers. Youcannotexpecttodowellinaclassifyouaredisorganized. Howwillyouknowwhenassignmentsaredue? Howwillyoukeepupwithyournotes? Howwillyouadequatelyprepareyourselfforexams? Inaddition, youmayfindthatyouwillbeallowedtouseyournotesonsomequizzes; therefore, youwillneedtobeorganized.
  1. ArticlesoftheWeek (A.o.W.)- Thisisarecurringassignment; articlesaredistributedeveryotherweekandareduethefollowingweek. Thepurposesoftheassignmentincludebuildingstudents' priorknowledge, givingstudentsexperienceinreadingreal-worldinformationaltexts, buildingnotetaking, criticalthinking, andmetacognitiveskills. Studentswillberequiredtocomplete 3 A.o.W. (ArticleoftheWeek) assignmentseachquarterforaMAJORGRADE. Studentswillbeinitiallyguidedthroughtheexpectationsassociatedwiththistaskviamodelingandbyprovidingthestudentswithexemplars.

GRADING

  • Homework/Daily Grades – 40%
  • Tests/Major Grades – 40%
  • Journals/Projects – 20%