AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION



AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION

Instructor information:

Mrs. Sharon Ma office: B211 phone: SMIC ex 347

school email: sharon_ma@ personal email: 2008sharonma@

weebly: mrsmasmic.

Course Overview

The AP English Language & Composition course is an intensive college-level course that challenges students to read analytically, write effectively, and think critically. There is an emphasis on the analysis of rhetorical structure and strategies of selected passages from the American literary canon, but not limited to it. While the course will require students to read at least 2-3 books per quarter, a significant part our class time will be spent on close reading of selected non-fiction passages including contemporary authors such as Amy Tan and Richard Rodriguez, orators such as Martin Luther King, Jr., and Patrick Henry, and politicians such as John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. Throughout the school year, students will have the opportunity to practice for the AP exam by taking regular timed writing and multiple choice practice exams. After each exam, sample student essays will be reviewed in class, after which students will write a reflection piece on their writing. Students will be expected to keep all essays in a writing portfolio and will have scheduled conferences with the instructor. Readings from various sources will be provided to students throughout the year. Students will be expected to think critically about the current American societal issues and how these issues are reflected in history, in literature, and in politics. Online access to quality news services like the New York Times, the New Yorker, The Washington Post or the L.A. Times will be required as part of supplemental reading to support positions on controversial issues. At the end of each quarter, students will demonstrate their ability to think logically, articulate with clarity, write cogently, and read analytically.

Daily journal writing is a requirement for this course. Suggested and required topics will be given weekly. Writing assignments include responses to quotes and photographs, assigned passages, chapter summaries, grammar reviews, rewrites, vocabulary exercises, annotation of texts, imagery exercises, imitation writing, and fluency writing. Journals will be collected twice each quarter. Quizzes may be given for general understanding of assigned reading to ensure that discussion will be productive. Essay assignments will usually stem from these discussions or reading assignments.

There will be a required reading of 2-3 books per quarter. Students will use the book(s) as well as the readings/discussions covered in class to write major papers on a variety of topics. There are specific skills emphasized each quarter, but students will be expected to hone their writing style to reflect the following College Board requirements:

➢ A wide-ranging vocabulary used appropriately and effectively;

➢ A variety of sentence structures, including appropriate use of subordination and coordination;

➢ Logical organization, enhanced by specific techniques to increase coherence, such as repetition, transitions, and emphasis;

➢ A balance of generalization and specific illustrative details;

➢ An effective use of rhetoric including controlling tone, establishing and maintaining voice, and achieving appropriate emphasis through diction and sentence structure;

(CollegeBoard AP English Course Description, May 2007, May 2008, p. 8)

The course is primarily organized around the rhetorical modes and follows the recommendations of the Advanced Placement program of the College Board. Theme and composition development will include concentrated study in the areas of description, narrative, example, classification and division, process analysis, definition, cause and effect, argument, and comparison-contrast. Four small documented research papers will be required. Summer reading and writing assignments will be required.

Students prepare for the AP Exam in English Language and Composition. The 2013 exam is Friday, May 10, 2013, at 8 a.m. More information about the exam and advanced placement can be found at . [However, do not look at sample AP Essays or Qs since we will use those in class.]

Materials needed: Each student will need pens, a pencil, a notebook, a folder for handouts, a file with dividers, loose leaf paper, a highlighter, post-it notes, and a system for keeping notes together in different groupings. Access to internet and email is vital for this class. Books required include:

A. Elements of Literature: American Literature, Holt, Rinehart, Winston

B. The Compact Reader

C. The Crucible, The Scarlet Letter, The Great Gatsby, Outliers, Ethan Frome

D. The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, online edition sent by teacher

E. Writers Inc. – grammar and writing practice

F. Various reading handouts provided for class.

G. Essay prompts & practice tests from former AP tests provided for class.

Attendance: Most class time is spent in group activities, discussion and student or teacher presentation of material. Much information is missed if the student is absent. Work must be turned in upon return. Notes should be copied from another student. Tests are announced in advance; students are expected to take tests even if they miss the day before the test. In the rare instance that a student misses class on the test day, the student must contact Mrs. Ma & come to her office the next day to make up the test to avoid a deduction. Projects and assignments are due on the due date regardless of whether a student is absent or not!

Late work: Late assignments and tests taken late will earn a letter grade per day deduction, but must be completed before subsequent work is graded. Every assignment is considered important for completion of a unit’s objectives; therefore each assignment must be completed and handed in. Occasionally, emergencies arise that prohibit the student from completing assignments in a timely manner. If a student has such an emergency, please talk with the Mrs. Ma before class time.

Homework: The weekly lesson plan chart will indicate all homework assignments including assignments that are to be brought to class. All assignments for class are due at the beginning of the period already printed out. Back up your assignments so that they will be available for revision assignments. Students should meet with Mrs. Ma in small groups or privately outside of class at least once a quarter to review writing skills and to design individual writing goals. It is up to you to make an appointment with Mrs. Ma for this conference during a study hall or her available office hours.

Paper format: As a general rule, major papers and essay written outside of class must be typed using MLA style. Essays should use a block font (e.g. Times New Roman or Ariel), 12 pt font, and be completely double-spaced (including the 4-line heading), with 2.5 cm or 1” margins.

Assessment: Students will be graded on daily assignments, class participation, objective tests (true/false, multiple choice, short answer, essay), compositions, projects, book/movie discussions, and self-designed projects.

Below is a general guideline for the year’s assignments and readings. Please know that the slight changes may occur at the teacher’s capricious whim to be innovative and creative. (

Quarter One: The American Identity: A Nation of Immigrants

Summer Reading – Discussion and writing & Elements of Literary Analysis

Joy Luck Club, Editorial Analysis Assignment, Memoir Assessment and PPT assignment

1. Readings may include but not limited to selections from:

Mortimer J. Adler – How To Mark A Book [Handout]

Strunk and White – The Elements of Style [Handout online]

The Meeting of Cultures

-- Native American Myths & Ritual Songs

-- Colonial & Puritan Period: Wm Bradford, Mary Rowlandson, Sarah Kemble Knight, Anne Bradstreet, Edward Taylor, William Byrd, The Crucible

The Nation Takes Shape

-- Revolutionary Period: Benjamin Franklin, Patrick Henry, Thomas Paine, Thomas Jefferson, Phillis Wheatley, Jonathan Edwards Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

American Romanticism

--Washington Irving

Modern Links: (these selections may vary by year)

Selections from Elements of Literature: American Literature and The Compact Reader

2. Books/ Play:

Arthur Miller, The Crucible [text]

3. Viewing:

I Have a Dream speech – Martin Luther King, Jr.

Excerpts The Crucible – movie

Patrick Henry Arguing “the Parson’s Cause” (c. 1830, oil painting)

The Declaration of Independence (Mural in Capitol building)

Selected political cartoons from various periodicals

Related photos and videos, including individual student selections

4 Assessments:

A. Quizzes and Tests

B. Compositions

1. Research Assignment

2. Personal Declaration of Independence

3. Position Paper

4. Quarterly Book Review:

Each quarter, the student will read one book outside of class. Over the year, the student should read ONE book from EACH of the genres. (Genres: Q1. Biography or autobiography, Q2. Biography or Memoir, collection of letters, or collection of essays; Q3. Nonfiction or collection of essays; Q4. Fiction (a classic to help with AP Literature.) Books must be approved in advance & students are responsible for checking each genre is completed. [I suggest you compliment this by choosing books you can also use in your APUSH class, if you are taking that course.]

After reading the book, the student must submit some type of evidence that he/she actually read the book- showing analysis of the book using the techniques learned in AP Lang class. The evidence is up to the student. (The student may be as creative or as traditional as he or she wishes. It is the student’s responsibility to show that he/she has, in fact, read the work and not relied on Spark Notes, etc. [The teacher can read Spark Notes for herself, thank you very much.]

5. AP Practice Exams-

- Practice Multiple Choice/ Reading selections

- in-class AP Practice Essays

Students will be provided with sample student essays from past classes, as well as those released by the College Board. Proper formatting and organization of analytical essays will be introduced. Close reading of passages will begin with reading assignments. Timed essays will be administered after several exercises with various readings. For the first quarter, special attention will be given to students’ use of diction, sentence variety, sentence combination, and use of imagery. Students will also be encouraged to develop tone and firmly establish a voice. Mandatory conferences with the teacher will follow at least two timed essays.

Quarter Two: American Romanticism and Renaissance

1. Readings may include but not limited to selections from:

American Romanticism

--Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Herman Melville, William Cullen Bryant, Longfellow, Whittier, Holmes, Lowell

--The Scarlet Letter & Allusions to The Scarlet Letter - Cartoons & Modern Culture

American Renaissance – Transcendentalism

-- Emerson, Nature, Self-Reliance, Thoreau, Walden, Resistance to Civil Government

Modern Links: (these selections may vary by year)

Selections from Elements of Literature: American Literature and The Compact Reader

2. Books:

Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter [purchase]

3. Viewing:

Theme-related photos and videos, including individual student selections

4. Assessment:

A. Quizzes and Tests

B. Compositions

1. Position Paper

2. The Scarlet Letter: Creative Assignment

3. The Scarlet Letter: Position Paper

4. Quarterly Book Review:

Each quarter, the student will read one book outside of class. Over the year, the student should read ONE book from EACH of the genres. (Genres: Q1. Biography or autobiography, Q2. Biography or Memoir, collection of letters, or collection of essays; Q3. Nonfiction or collection of essays; Q4. Fiction (a classic to help with AP Literature.) Books must be approved in advance & students are responsible for checking each genre is completed. [I suggest you compliment this by choosing books you can also use in your APUSH class, if you are taking that course.]

After reading the book, the student must submit some type of evidence that he/she actually read the book- showing analysis of the book using the techniques learned in AP Lang class. The evidence is up to the student. (The student may be as creative or as traditional as he or she wishes. It is the student’s responsibility to show that he/she has, in fact, read the work and not relied on Spark Notes, etc. [The teacher can read Spark Notes for herself, thank you very much.]

5. AP Practice Exams-

- Practice Multiple Choice/ Reading selections

- in-class AP Practice Essays

At this time in the quarter, students should feel comfortable responding to both persuasive and rhetorical analysis prompts. In addition to poetry that is covered in class, students will continue responding to fiction and non-fiction pieces by various American authors. Students will be adept at recognizing various AP prompts and responding accordingly. Mandatory conferences with the teacher will follow at least two timed essays.

New Year’s Break:

1. Read Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers. Annotate the book in one of the styles of Adler’s essay.

2. Complete a full length practice AP test using time constraints established by CollegeBoard.

Quarter Three: The American Dream

1. Readings may include but not limited to selections from:

New American Poetry

-- Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson

A Nation in Crisis

--Realism: Frederick Douglass, Bret Harte, Mark Twain, Ambrose Bierce, Voices from the Civil War

--Review The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn & satire

Emergence of Modern America

--Stephen Crane, Kate Chopin

The New Era

--The American Voice in Fiction: F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sherwood Anderson, Sinclair Lewis, Willa Cather, Thomas Wolfe

Modern Links: (these selections may vary by year)

Selections from Elements of Literature: American Literature and The Compact Reader

2. Books:

F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby [purchase]

3. Viewing:

--The Grapes of Wrath

Theme-related photos and videos, including individual student selections

Various editorial cartoons from the Upfront magazines

4. Assessments:

A. Quizzes and Tests

B. Compositions

1. Rhetorical Analysis

2. Synthesis essay: Research assignment

3. Compare/contrast two distinctive works and analyze purpose, tone, and technique.

4. Quarterly Book Review:

Each quarter, the student will read one book outside of class. Over the year, the student should read ONE book from EACH of the genres. (Genres: Q1. Biography or autobiography, Q2. Biography or Memoir, collection of letters, or collection of essays; Q3. Nonfiction or collection of essays; Q4. Fiction (a classic to help with AP Literature.) Books must be approved in advance & students are responsible for checking each genre is completed. [I suggest you compliment this by choosing books you can also use in your APUSH class, if you are taking that course.]

After reading the book, the student must submit some type of evidence that he/she actually read the book- showing analysis of the book using the techniques learned in AP Lang class. The evidence is up to the student. (The student may be as creative or as traditional as he or she wishes. It is the student’s responsibility to show that he/she has, in fact, read the work and not relied on Spark Notes, etc. [The teacher can read Spark Notes for herself, thank you very much.]

5. AP Practice Exams-

- Practice Multiple Choice/ Reading selections

- in-class AP Practice Essays

Students will have significant practice on writing persuasively using past AP exams. Students will use various persuasive techniques learned from readings. These techniques will be evaluated according to effectiveness. Mandatory conferences with the teacher will follow at least two timed essays.

Quarter Four: Culture and Philosophy: Shaping of a Modern Nation

1. Readings may include but not limited to selections from:

The Global Crisis

-- Hemingway, Hurston, Steinbeck, Thurber, Katherine Anne Porter, Faulkner, Flannery O’ Connor, Welty

-- Poetry: Edwin Arlington Robinson, Edgar Lee Masters, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Frost, Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen

-- Imagism and symbolism - Ezra Pound, William Carlos Williams, Sandburg, E.E. Cummings, Plath, Brooks

The Cold War and beyond

--American Drama -A Raisin in the Sun

--Fiction and art work – 1945 + 1980s - Isaac Singer, Malamud, Updike, Alvarez, Tim O’ Brien, Anne Tyler

--Ray Bradbury & Science Fiction

[--Modern Nonfiction: E.B. White, Momaday, Baldwin, Kingston, Alice Walker, Cisneros, Jamaica Kincaid, Wm Least Heat Moon] as time allows

Modern Links: (these selections may vary by year)

Selections from Elements of Literature: American Literature and The Compact Reader

2. Books:

Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome [purchase]

optional Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451[purchase]

3. Viewing:

Theme-related photos and videos, including individual student selections

4. Assessments:

A. Quizzes and Tests

B. Compositions

1. Research Assignment: Persuasive Essay.

2. Quarterly Book Review:

Each quarter, the student will read one book outside of class. Over the year, the student should read ONE book from EACH of the genres. (Genres: Q1. Biography or autobiography, Q2. Biography or Memoir, collection of letters, or collection of essays; Q3. Nonfiction or collection of essays; Q4. Fiction (a classic to help with AP Literature.) Books must be approved in advance & students are responsible for checking each genre is completed. [I suggest you compliment this by choosing books you can also use in your APUSH class, if you are taking that course.]

After reading the book, the student must submit some type of evidence that he/she actually read the book- showing analysis of the book using the techniques learned in AP Lang class. The evidence is up to the student. (The student may be as creative or as traditional as he or she wishes. It is the student’s responsibility to show that he/she has, in fact, read the work and not relied on Spark Notes, etc. [The teacher can read Spark Notes for herself, thank you very much.]

5. AP Practice:

Concluding the school year, students will begin to explore the more abstract concepts of culture by examining philosophy. Discussions this quarter will center on the nature of man and resulting behaviors, particularly in American society. The AP prompts dealing with guilt, ridicule, and wooden-headedness will add to good discussion. Students will be expected to articulate philosophical concepts into words. Conferences with the teacher will follow at least two timed essays.

Student Evaluation:

Analytical Journal – 15%

This is a journal that students keep for the whole year. Collected 2 times each quarter, the journal serves as a tool for pre-writing activities, such as brainstorming, outlining, writing theses, and composing first drafts. Students are also expected to rewrite sentences and paragraphs using precise diction, sentence variations, and literary techniques learned each quarter, such as parallel structure, allusions, figurative language, etc. Reflection pieces may be assigned to evaluate students’ own writing.

Compositions and Book Projects – 20%

Besides the major paper every quarter, in-class essays will be given, whether as a response to a given quote or an AP practiced timed writing. Responses to video clips, art pieces, political cartoons, and documentaries will also be required. Students will turn in work on assigned deadlines.

Unit and Skills Tests – 20%

Since this is a reading-intensive course, students will be accountable for every assignment. Tests will be given to ensure understanding of books and literary concepts and to evaluate the mastery of skills taught in the class.

Quizzes and In-class Assessments 10%

Students are accountable for every assignment and mastery of skills. Periodic quizzes and assessments (announced and unannounced) will be given to ensure understanding literary concepts and mastery of skills.

Participation & Preparation– 15%

Intrinsic motivation & preparation is a significant component of the course and is vital to ensure lively discussion in class. These discussions often lead into a deeper analysis of themes, which will help with essay assignments and research assignments. Articulating ideas clearly and analyzing passages orally is integral to the process of writing the actual essay. After each full-length practice exam, students should meet with the teacher to discuss their timed essays. Attendance counts toward the participation grade. Evidence of preparation for class and participation in class discussions will be evaluated on a subjective basis. In-class grades (like discussion and presentation grades) may not be made up

Midterm and Final Exams –20% each Quarter

Midterm and Final Exam will be given to ensure understanding of books and literary concepts and mastery of skills. Each exam will cover concepts and skills taught in the quarter.

Each Monday, Mrs. Ma will email assignment outlines for the week. Due to the excessive amount of material to cover in each class, homework will not be explained in class. It is YOUR responsibility to review the assignment outline and ask questions when you have them.

Course Objectives:

1. to enable students to write effectively and confidently in their college courses across the curriculum and in their professional and personal lives

2. to teach students how to read primary and secondary sources carefully

3. to prepare students to synthesize material from primary and secondary sources in his/her own compositions

4. to prepare students to cite sources using conventions recommended by professional organizations such as the Modern Language Association (MLA)

5. to prepare students for the Advanced Placement Exam in English Language and Composition

6. to enable students to read complex texts with understanding

7. to prepare students to write prose of sufficient richness and complexity to communicate effectively with mature readers

8. to encourage students to move beyond such programmatic responses as the five-paragraph essay that provides an introduction with a thesis and three reasons, body paragraphs on each reason, and a conclusion that restates the thesis

9. to encourage students to become aware of how stylistic effects are achieved by writers’ linguistic choices

10. to emphasize the writing process, taking students through brainstorming, rough drafts, self editing, peer editing, and revision (The College Board, AP® English Course Description, May 2007, p. 6, 7 and 8).

Student Objectives:

“Upon completing the AP English Language and Composition course, then, students should be able to:

1. analyze and interpret samples of good writing, identifying and explaining an author’s use of rhetorical strategies and techniques;

2. apply effective strategies and techniques in his/her own writing;

3. create and sustain arguments based on readings, research, and/or personal experience;

4. write for a variety of purposes;

5. produce expository, analytical, and argumentative compositions that introduce a complex central idea and develop it with appropriate evidence drawn from primary and/or secondary sources, cogent explanations, and clear transitions;

6. demonstrate understanding and mastery of standard written English as well as stylistic maturity in his/her own writings;

7. demonstrate understanding of the conventions of citing primary and secondary sources;

8. move effectively through the stages of the writing process, with careful attention to inquiry and research, drafting, revising, editing, and review;

9. write thoughtfully about his/her own process of composition;

10. revise a work to make it suitable for a different audience;

11. analyze image as text; and

12. evaluate and incorporate reference documents into researched papers (The College Board, AP®

English Course Description, May 2007, p. 9).

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