Class participation and discussions as well as prompt and regular attendance are expected, required, and essential.

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AP Literature and Composition Course Number 10425 Credits: One Pre requisites: AP English III Instructor: Ms. Carolyn Harrod Email address: charrod@dentonisd.

1 AP Literature and Composition Course Number Credits: One Pre requisites: AP English III Instructor: Ms. Carolyn Harrod address: School phone number: (940) Conference Periods: A3 (11:28 1:28) and 5 th block (3:15 4:10) Tutorials: by appointment every day before or after school, Room 270 Course Objectives and Goals AP English IV is a rigorous college level course that challenges students to read great works of literature with careful attention to small details and big questions. Students will become familiar with works from major literary movements and learn how to recognize both the historical and philosophical contexts of a piece, as well as the enduring themes present in literature that continue to speak to readers today. The course will adhere to the curricular requirements outlined by the College Board in the AP English Literature and Composition Course Description, focusing on the skills necessary for college level reading and writing. This class will build on the vocabulary of rhetorical techniques that students learned in AP English III and will expand their skills in critical and analytical writing. Assignments will include in class essays as well as formal process essays with several opportunities for revision. Writing prompts will be based on the close readings of poems or prose passages and the thematic analysis of complete works. The assigned reading will challenge students to explicate dense, provocative, and sometimes controversial material. The goals of my course are to read this time tested material, discuss it, and write about it with the focused intent of unlocking the meaning from the text. Class participation and discussions as well as prompt and regular attendance are expected, required, and essential. Please keep in mind that AP English IV, by necessity, is a survey course; we will cover many centuries of literature in only two semesters. However, by the end of the year, students will have a firm foundation on which to build their future college study and will be well prepared for the AP exam in the spring. Students who pass the AP exam have the opportunity to earn college credit. Some students may opt not to take the exam, but the course will be driven by that goal. This is not a bad thing. The course design is based on the premise that the AP exam measures those skills students need in order to be successful in college and real world situations that require quick thinking and concise expression.

2 Approved Texts and Resources Primary Holt McDougal British Literature (textbook available via check out and/or online login) Literature Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama by Robert DiYanni (in class work only) Secondary Plato s Republic, Oedipus Rex, Beowulf, Grendel, The Inferno, the Canterbury Tales, Hamlet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night s Dream, Wuthering Heights, Frankenstein, A Tale of Two Cities, Brave New World, 1984 How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas Foster will be used as a reference tool throughout the year. Independent Reading Each Nine Weeks In addition to literature read in class, students will choose at least three additional works per quarter to read independently (please see attached list of choices). Students will fill out a novel card for each book or play read. Homework and Preparation Because of the pace at which we work, students can expect homework following every class in preparation for the next. The majority of homework is reading and it will be a substantial amount. Students have a tendency to put off assigned reading until bedtime when they are too exhausted to fully absorb the material. This habit shows up quickly in class discussions and essays. Therefore, time management is imperative in this course. Students will receive reading and writing due dates will in advance, so they are responsible for completing these assignments regardless of absences. All outside writing assignments must be typed and double spaced unless otherwise noted. Back up all computer work and/or use Google Docs to automatically save your work. The workload in AP English IV is significant. However, grades will not be assigned to every single piece of work, since the true purpose of homework is to build and reinforce skills and help students prepare for written analysis, class discussions, and final assessments. Supplies and Materials In order to be successful in this class, students will need to come prepared to discuss and write about the assigned text. The following materials will be needed: Pen or Pencil for daily work Paper loose leaf or spiral or composition book Binder or folder for notes and handouts Sticky notes for annotating texts you are not planning to purchase Pencils for the occasional scantron quiz Highlighters optional, but helpful for annotating during class. You may also use mine.

3 Grading Policy Grades will be entered regularly in Denton ISD s online gradebook (HAC). Keep in mind, however, that timed writings and longer essays will not be immediately recorded. It takes a substantial amount of time for me to grade writing assignments for all of my classes. AP grade calculation is based on: Minor Summative Assessments (weighted 30%): homework, in class work, quizzes, rough drafts Major Summative Assessments (weighted 70%): tests, final drafts of essays, projects I will follow the Denton ISD grading policies, which are outlined in your student handbook and available on the RHS website. Additionally, I will be following the guidelines established by College Board. Academic Integrity Following Denton ISD policy, cheating, plagiarism, or other kinds of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated and will result in appropriate sanctions that may include failing an assignment, failing the class, or being suspended from school. Parents/Guardians will be contacted, as well as the appropriate school administrators. Units of Study A close examination of the syllabus indicates that we will follow neither a strictly chronological or thematic approach, but a combination of both. This chronothematic itinerary will allow us to explore literature with connected themes through many different eras. It is my hope that through our study you will enjoy some of the greatest writing of the western canon. Every quarterly grading period will include vocabulary study, timed writings, quick writes, independent reading with assigned projects, novel cards, Socratic seminars, focused writing instruction and revision. First Quarter: The epic hero, the tragic hero, the anti hero Summer reading (critical review due second day of class) Plato s Allegory of the Cave Oedipus Rex Anglo Saxon study, including Beowulf Grendel by John Gardner Arthurian Legend, including excerpts from Le Morte d Arthur The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer Selected poetry Preparing for college (application information, essays, resumes, etc.) Critical and analytical essays Independent reading (novel cards) from attached list

4 Second Quarter: Shakespeare and Company Dante s The Inferno Hamlet Selected Renaissance literature Sonnet explication John Donne (selected metaphysical poetry) Continue independent reading and novel cards from attached list Third Quarter: The Power and Beauty of the Written Word Satire, including Jonathan Swift s A Modest Proposal The Big Six Romantic Poets and representative works William Wordsworth Samuel Coleridge John Keats Percy Bysshe Shelley Lord Byron William Blake Selected Victorian poetry, including Tennyson and Browning A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Continue independent reading and novel cards from the attached list Fourth Quarter AP Literature and Composition PRACTICE EXAM REQUIRED Focused AP Exam test preparation and review Novel Card Review Brave New World or 1984 The poetry of T.S. Eliot and other modernists Independent reading choices from past AP exams YOUR SENIOR CAPSTONE PROJECT Important Dates AP LITERATURE PRACTICE EXAM (REQUIRED): Thursday, March 30 (5 9 p.m.) AP LITERATURE EXAM: Wednesday, May 3 (8 a.m.) The Denton Independent School District does not discriminate on the basis of sex, handicap, race, color, and/or national origins in its educational programs. Admission to career programs is based on age, grade, interest, aptitude, and ability. Lack of English language skills will not be a barrier to admissions and participation in any educational programs.

5 Please sign and return this page. AP LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION SIGNED AGREEMENT I have read and understand the requirements, responsibilities, and workload that AP English IV entails. I also understand that the AP Practice Exam, March 30, is required. The date of this practice is exam should be put on your calendar immediately to avoid scheduling conflicts in the spring. The practice exam takes place in the evening, after regular school hours, from 5 9 p.m.. Student signature Student Parent/Guardian signature Parent/Guardian Parent/Guardian preferred phone number (please indicate home or cell phone) Please return this agreement no later than Tuesday, August 30

6 Independent Reading Choices AP English IV Ms. Harrod Please remember to fill out a novel card for each book or play you read. You will notice that all of these titles have appeared on the AP Literature and Composition Exam. This is not a coincidence. Every novel/play you read on this list will give you an added advantage on the AP exam in May. First Quarter: Tragedy, Forgiveness, Redemption Choose at least three of the following works. King Lear William Shakespeare Atonement Ian McEwan Death of a Salesman Arthur Miller A Thousand Acres Jane Smiley The Color Purple Alice Walker The God of Small Things Arundhati Roy Slaughterhouse Five Kurt Vonnegut Little Women Louisa May Alcott Bless Me, Ultima Rudolfo Anaya A River Runs Through It Norman Maclean Second Quarter: The Power of the Human Spirit Choose at least three of the following works. All the Pretty Horses Cormac McCarthy One Flew Over the Cuckoo s Nest Ken Kesey Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Betty Smith The Things They Carried Tim O Brien My Antonia Willa Cather Invisible Man Ralph Ellison Metamorphosis Franz Kafka Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man James Joyce For Whom the Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway Third Quarter: The Individual vs. the Culture Choose at least three of the following works. Ceremony Leslie Marmon Silko The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad Catch 22 Joseph Heller The Namesake Jhumpa Lahiri Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky The Awakening Kate Chopin Beloved Toni Morrison The Handmaid s Tale Margaret Atwood Their Eyes Were Watching God Zora Neale Hurston Fourth Quarter: The AP Exam awaits canonical choices Free choice from past AP exam titles. Choose at least three literary works.

AP English Literature & Composition Syllabus

Syllabus Introduction The AP English Literature & Composition course is a college-level class that engages students in a careful and critical analysis of complex literary texts. Readings in the course