AP English Literature & Composition Bhumi Dalia daliab@issaquah.wednet.edu Room 5105 425.837.4857 Course Description This Advanced Placement English Literature & Composition course is designed to provide a college-level experience of reading and writing and prepare for the AP Literature and Composition exam. Our meetings will be a time of responding to and questioning the assigned texts, exploring lines of inquiry, developing and experimenting with critical reading and writing skills, and adopting the techniques and vocabularies of strong writers. The foundation of this course is the close reading of literary texts, but we will also challenge, synthesize, and apply these texts as we explore how writers create meaning and enjoyment for their readers. Participation is essential to student and class success. Writing is frequent, first as a tool to understand ideas, then as a method to explain and evaluate these ideas. Daily discussion will originate from your preparation of the assigned readings. Subsequent writing and discussion assignments build upon this understanding to further explain an author s ideas and techniques and then evaluate effectiveness and truth. In conversation with me and your peers, you will apply this knowledge to your own writing to evaluate, develop, and revise choices of diction, sentence structure, organization, argumentation, and other stylistic and rhetorical techniques. It is expected that every writing assignment, whether formal or informal, will be used as a place to practice the aforementioned elements. Course Expectations To your credit, you have elected to take a challenging and worthwhile course. Meeting this challenge requires achieving expectations beyond the basic ones outlined in your student handbook. In enrolling for this class, you make the following commitments: Expunge senioritis. You will work hard; you will read a lot; you will write a lot; you will have brain cramps. Complete the required assignments to the best of your ability. Come to class prepared by doing and thinking about your readings. Participate in class discussions both by providing comments indicating you are thinking, and by listening to and analyzing what others say. Provide adequate documentation when citing other sources. Plagiarism and cheating is taken very seriously. In addition, use works of recognized merit. The likes of Sparknotes may have been a place to get started when you were a freshman. Time to move on. Act in a manner befitting an honorable human being. Understand your success in this class is a direct result of your commitment to it. Teacher Expectations Just as you have made a commitment to this class, so have I. I will work to provide you with an extensive curriculum that is designed to not only prepare you for the higher education institution of your choice, but more important, to be a helpful step in your process of becoming a critical and active participant in this world. My hope is that as you are exposed to a broad spectrum of ideas, you will be able to steer yourself through the possible benefits of this course. This requires us to communicate often. Though assignments in this class take time and possibly multiple attempts, I do try to create assignments that 1
are meaningful and void of busy work. Be proactive with your learning. If you are struggling with anything, please talk to me as soon as possible. I am available before and after school. Course Components Reading. There is a lot. Success in the class will require initiative to pace yourself. You will receive calendars for each unit so you can plan your studies. Here are the highlights: Readings in this course will build upon the literature read in sophomore and junior years. Texts include novels, plays, short stories, essays, letters, poems and journalism from the sixteenth century to the present. Close reading and style analysis are major components of the course, as well as the rhetorical analysis that was a central component of the AP English Language course. You will consider an author s stylistic and rhetorical choices in the context of audience and purpose. Intertextuality, or using one text to inform another, is a major component of the reading in this course. Writing. A lot of this too. Again, pace yourself. Sometimes the calendar looks empty for the week, but you will want to use the time to get ahead. Here are the main forms and purposes of the writing we do: Writing to understand o Critical Responses. These are short papers (1-2 pages) for which you typically have one or two class periods to prepare. They are in response to something we are reading. o Poetry Responses. These are personal responses to poems assigned each unit. You will typically submit a response once every two weeks. Writing to explain o Timed writes. These are taken from or based on AP prompts. Plan to write a timed essay every Wednesday that we have class. o Major papers. First semester emphasizes close reading and literary analysis of ideas and techniques, though students begin evaluating authors ideas. After closely reading the texts and participating in discussions, you are expected to choose specific evidence (of structure, style, and social/historical values) to make an argument about the authors ideas and how they are communicated. Writing to evaluate o o Major papers. Second semester emphasizes synthesis and evaluation. Writing conferences. For each major paper (4 total) you and I can meet to discuss your choices and development as a writer. We discuss previous essays and timed writings and set goals for the next writing assignments. Additional Skills Grammar and vocabulary instruction is ongoing as needed. Writing instruction, in addition to what is discussed in writing conferences and written on students papers, is also ongoing (explicitly once or twice each week; implicitly every day). Discussion and presentation. While participation in class is a daily expectation, oral analysis is sometimes formalized. Presentations, panel discussions and Socratic seminars emphasize supporting generalizations with specific, illustrative detail. 2
Required Materials 3 ring binder -- I pass out a lot of materials and graded items. You will need to access it quickly. Loose leaf paper (do not turn in work on notebook paper with fringes!) Highlighters/colored pens/sticky notes (for active reading) Grading Participation 10% Includes daily small group and whole class discussions. Classwork 25% Includes notebook assignments, quizzes, poetry responses and any other minor assignments. Timed Writing 30% Includes timed writing, semester final, and any other assignments associated with timed writing (revisions, etc.) Assessment 35% Includes critical responses, major essays and work associated with the process of writing these essays, writing conferences, tests **There is no extra credit offered in AP Lit. I round semester grades to the nearest whole number if you are within 0.25% range of the next grade level (eg. 92.75 = 93.00; I will not round 92.74 to 93.00)** Course Calendar I. Setting the Stage: The Identity Crisis A. Hamlet, William Shakespeare B. Selected readings (prose, poetry, critical essays) C. Essay I: Narrative Essay D. Essay II: Style Analysis Unit Paper E. Poetry I II. Cultural Wars: The Politics of Identity A. A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini B. The Things They Carried, Tim O Brien C. Essay III: Compare/Contrast Unit Paper D. Poetry II III. Tales of Horror: Defining Identity through Race, Emotion, and the Supernatural A. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad B. Frankenstein, Mary Shelley C. Beloved, Toni Morrison D. Essay IV: Synthesis Unit Paper E. Poetry III IV. Exam & Post-Exam A. Exam is Wednesday, May 9 B. Selected Readings C. Sentence Project Presentations 3
Course Policies 1. Attendance. It is important that you are here every day, as class discussions cannot be duplicated. The school attendance and tardy policies apply. 2. Absences. Work missed during an unexcused absence cannot be made up. If you have a school related or prearranged absence on the day an assignment is due or a test is taken, you may complete these tasks ahead of time (outside of class). You may turn in work on the day you return if you have an excused absence. Please write Absent and the date(s) you were gone near the heading. Students are responsible for turning in absent work without reminders from me. In the event of a prolonged illness or family emergency, I am willing to work out an acceptable timeline of due dates for missed work, but the student must contact me about this as soon as possible. 3. Late Work. Each student gets two late passes each semester. They are not tangible slips of paper, but I will keep track of when you have used them. The late pass allows you to earn full credit as long as you turn in your assignment within one week of the due date. Without a late pass, late work is not accepted. Late passes may NOT be used for the following: -Tests or quizzes (reading, timed writes, etc.) -Final drafts of essays -Group work/seminars -Presentations Additional rules about late work: -Late essays and projects will lose 20% of the grade if turned in within one week of the due date. -Reading quizzes and tests must be made up before or after school within one week of the assigned date. If a reading calendar has been given in advance, students are expected to be caught up with the reading on the day they return to class; if circumstances prevent the student from reading while away from school, then arrangements must be made with me prior to the day of the quiz. 4. Cheating and Plagiarism. Not tolerated for obvious reasons. You lose credit on any assignment that is wholly or partially plagiarized. I will also be unable to write you a letter of recommendation for scholarships or college admissions. Please see the school policy in your handbook. I m looking forward to all you will accomplish this year! 4
AP Literature & Composition Course Syllabus Parent/Student Signature Page I have read the information provided in this syllabus in its entirety. I understand the information and know that I can access it on Ms. Dalia s class website at any time. I also am aware that I can contact Ms. Dalia at any time with questions about the syllabus or the course. Student Name: Student Signature: Student Email: Parent/Guardian Name: Parent/Guardian Signature: Parent/Guardian Email: 5