Advanced Placement Literature and Composition AP English 12 jfinitzer@sutterhigh.k12.ca.us The AP English Literature and Composition Course is designed to cover the equivalent of a college English course. Successful completion of the course and the AP Exam offered in May should result college credit (type of credit depends on the school and the actual score earned). More importantly the class should be a place where you can obtain the skills to read analytically, write clearly, discuss intelligently, and present with integrity. Objectives *Students will identify literary structures and conventions to increase the effectiveness of their writing. *Students will employ narrative, expository, analytical and argumentative writing as they consider a wide variety of genres and prose, including major Classical, English and American texts. *Students will develop a writing process that includes strategies needed to self-edit and respond to peer and teacher responses. *Students will sustain discussions of topics in language and culture while debating current issues and literature. *Students will gain familiarity with AP terms and question styles including development of an extensive vocabulary for use on the AP Exam and other college entrance exams. Expectations *Commitment to course work both inside and outside class *Regular attendance- please make prior arrangements if you will be missing class for a pre-approved absence. *Assignments thoughtfully completed and ON TIME! Deadlines are established purposefully. Exceptions will be rare and only for compelling reasons. If you will be absent on the due date of a major project please make arrangements to have the assignment delivered on time! *Vocabulary quizzes must be made up BEFORE the next quiz! *Intelligent participation with honor and respect for the viewpoints of others Materials *Binder with sections (2 inch) *Journal *Black or blue pen *Independent Reading book
Ongoing projects (notebook sections) *Journal *Common Place Articles *SAT/AP Vocabulary and terms *Daily Assignments *Projects/Essays *Reference materials Tasks Course Portfolio (binder) Dialectical Journal on all assigned reading, annotations unless otherwise noted Independent Novel Projects and oral presentations Personal essay Literary Analysis Essays, formal and informal Creative and collaborative writing including: o Contextual shift o Poetry o Historical context scripts o Peer reviews Timed writes based on AP prompts Daily assignments and paragraph responses Participation in small group and whole class discussions Writer s workshops and revisions o Teacher o Peer o Self Writing Expectations College level responses (best writing!) o Good command of standard written English o Variety in syntax, tone and diction o Strong voice o Consideration of purpose and audience Paragraphs always include: o Main idea/ key concept o 3-5 concrete details, evidence o 4-10 explanatory sentences, commentary o Strong transition sentence Essays o Introduction includes: Author and title as appropriate Strong thesis statement
Necessary background information o Body Minimum 3 body paragraphs Format as stand alone paragraphs Appropriate transitional elements Writer s Workshops o Conclusion Draws together basic observations and assertions Includes final statement of understanding First typed draft due at the beginning of the first writer s workshop o Double spaced o Two copies o Thesis highlighted Teacher and 2-3 peer reviews based on assignment rubric Revisions and improvements are expected! Final submission (MLA format) o Final draft with all drafts, revisions and rubrics o Works cited as needed o Electronic submission to Turnitin.com by 11:59 pm on due date o Hard copy due on the following day Please make arrangements if you will be absent Any exceptions (rare) will receive a 50% reduction in points Essays not turned in electronically will not be graded AP 12 English Literature and Composition Semester one Unit One: How will we approach this course? Course Introduction and Expectations/Summer Reading Assessment AP Vocabulary; discoveries in readings, Voc. for college Genre, authors considered Dialectical Journals explained What does college level response entail?
Timed interpretive writing based on summer assignment Student/teacher conference on summer journal Feedback on course portfolio development Explanation of writer s workshops Discussion of scoring rubrics and deadline expectations Divide into discussion groups, explain class participation goals Unit Two: Where do I begin? Writing a Personal Statement/College Application Essay Exploring self / 2-5 minute in the bag speech Personal reminiscence/ essay of experience Anecdote Details Dialogue Awareness of audience Writer s Workshop Draft at least one final essay based on prompt from college application of choice (The Common Application) Unit Three: Is there really any reason to read the old ones? Recurring Themes and Motifs in Ancient Texts The epic of Gilgamesh, The Illiad, and Biblical texts Patterns throughout literary history Introduction to tragedy, tragic hero, archetypes, allegory and allusion Close look at diction, syntax, and terms in translations Discussion of textual details Timed write analysis of recurring themes across a minimum of two texts Writer s workshop Formal submission
Unit Four: What are the Roots of Modern English? A Closer Look at the Language, Style and Themes of early English pieces Beowulf, Grendel, and selected Canterbury Tales Close reading of texts Listen to segments of each in the original language Consider motifs of heroes and patriarchal relationships Introduction of the ingenuous narrator Oral interpretive readings/passages chosen for significance/presentation of analysis (Beowulf) Chaucerian Feasts / collaborative research and writing on the life and times of Chaucer/culmination in a dramatic presentation with a time period Host, Chaucer, another Canterbury Tales character, and another historic character of the time period/requirements include scripted small talk reflecting hot topics of the time period, invitation to the party and menu/ attempted dialect, food offerings and period costuming Unit Five: What is going on in Denmark? Elements of Shakespeare; reading of Hamlet Why is Hamlet so widely studied? Connections to cultural, religious, and scientific beliefs of the Elizabethan era Order and disorder in the universe, in Denmark and within the families in Hamlet Character analysis (psychology) of players/dramatic presentations of chosen memorized passages Use of soliloquy, poetry and prose as vehicles of Shakespearean drama View and discuss selected scenes from Mel Gibson s Hamlet Group work with Maynard Mack s Triple Play movements Short Essay Exam/questions based on above discussions and activities
Literary analysis paper drawn from exam questions-a closer look Direct instruction on analysis during the unit, as well as during writer s workshop Formal and electronic submission Unit 6 Was that meant to be funny? Satire; reading of Gulliver s Travels Second Semester Review of the ingenuous narrator based on (11 th grade) study of Huckleberry Finn and Canterbury Tales Divide, conquer and present research on Jonathan Swift and the 18 th century political world for understanding of his satire Review discussion of A Modest Proposal (AP 11 reading) Define satire and interpret Gulliver s adventures Consider utopia as presented by Plato, Sir Thomas More, and Swift (environment, government, social systems, education, etc.) Investigate word etymologies and enjoy Swift s names Draw and present political cartoons based on Gulliver s experiences Daily discussions/connections and short answer quizzes for accountability Final essay satirizing a facet of modern society with connections to Gulliver s Travels Writer s workshop/electronic and formal submission Unit 7 Why bother to read this? Short Fiction Unit from Perrine s Literature Emphasis on literary terms and techniques Analysis of multiple short stories with particular attention to irony, symbolism, point of view, and ambiguity as well as review of plot, character, and theme Use of graphic organizers in analysis Connections with previous studies (emotion, humor, fantasy) Timed write/rewrite one story shifting point of view
Variety of practice timed writes/ group analysis of essays Comparison analysis essay O Henry A Municipal Report ; Glaspel A Jury of Her Peers Writer s Workshop Formal and electronic submission Unit 8 What is the meaning of this? Poetry study; A kind of language that says MORE and says it more intensely than does ordinary language (Perrine) Read poetry with feeling to broaden our experience Study poems with attention to literary details including: connotation, imagery, metaphor, symbol, paradox, allusion, repetition, rhythm, pattern etc. Consider poetry as a cross section of life and culture/poems representing past and present; American, British and other Holistic look with discussion of purposeful literary devices Helps will include graphic organizers, class and small group discussions, individual reading of a wide variety of poems in the Perrine text Composition of original poetry reflecting rhetorical patterns of a particular author Short written analyses: techniques that account for tone, refrain, allusions, meter, verse and other effects of poems Formal Poetry Project: presentation of representative works of a specific poet with formal analysis of style and literary purpose including connections with period poetry and application for today Unit 9 Where do we all fit in? Drama/ A look at the themes of the individual in society; man and woman; appearance Vs. reality in Ibsen s A Doll House and Tennessee William s The Glass Menagerie. Connections to previous dramas; review of tragedy, comedy, fantasy, and realism Consideration of dramatic conventions, narration, sets, special circumstances
Analysis of traditional literary terms Argumentation of artistry and quality Dramatic interpretations/discussions of key scenes View selected scenes Timed write/ assess the thematic importance of deception and honesty; self-deception and self-discovery in choice of works Writer s Workshop Formal and electronic submission Unit 10 Can t I pick my own novel? Independent Novel projects/ one per semester/ ongoing Novel chosen from AP reading list/ only one per title per class/ first semester classic ; second semester Modern novel Keep dialectical journal Creative presentation (5-10 minutes plus question and answer time) NOT PLOT SUMMARY Formal Essay/ persuasive/ address theme and character, including social concerns with current connections and call to action Unit 11 Why do we do so much of this? AP Exam Practices/released questions/multiple choice and essay/ongoing At least biweekly first semester Weekly second semester Close look at test taking and reading strategies Multiple choice and discussion Dissecting and REALLY addressing the prompts Many timed writes Discussions of past works studied Putting coursework into practice/ filling in the writing gaps we encounter Both semester finals timed writes-released AP test questions, required to use a work studied during the appropriate semester in answering the prompt Works Cited
Arp, Thomas, Greg Johnson, and Laurence Perrine, eds. Perrine s Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense. 7 th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1998. Mack, Maynard, ed. The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. 6 th ed. Vol.1.New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 1992 Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Eds. Barbara Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square Press, 1992 Shostak, Jerome. Vocabulary Workshop Level H. New York: William H Sadlier, Inc., 2005. Swift, Jonathan. Gulliver s Travels. New York: Penguin Books, 1960.