English 9

New to high school, incoming students are presented with many skills needed for success in the upper grades. These skills include study skills, personal management, and organizational skills. Additionally, the curriculum presents areas such as various literature genres, vocabulary acquisition, literary analysis, reading comprehension, grammar and writing study, and speaking and listening skills. Also, researching information, incorporating information into documents, evaluating sources and documenting outside sources with MLA precision will underscore the culmination of this important transitional year. 

English 9 Honors

This course is structured to provide students with formal instruction in listening and speaking skills, literary analysis, vocabulary studies, grammar and writing. Students will read novels, short stories, poems, and plays that will open up worlds that guide our exploration of themes within literature, literary devices, elements of story, character development, methods of persuasion, and authorship. Students will be guided through a diverse number of writing assignments, with instruction provided pertaining to appropriate structure, effective thought-flow, meaningful content, correct grammar, and cohesiveness of style. Students will be instructed in how to correctly insert parenthetical references into their writing and how to create a Works Cited page in keeping with MLA format. Students will write for a variety of purposes. 

World Literature

This college preparatory program has higher expectations, richer assignments, and deeper experiences than a traditional English classroom. This is a year-long course consisting of four areas of language study necessary for effective communication: reading, writing, speaking and listening. Students hone these skills through literary analysis, writing, sharing, and critical thinking in a 21st Century classroom. Organized around themes and genres from current and Classic texts from the world canon of literature, students engage multiple literacies through a mixture of traditional methods and technology as appropriate. Throughout the course, vocabulary and grammar/usage/mechanics are addressed in context and within the experience of the students’ own writings. Emphasis is placed on the development of comprehension and writing skills through essays, journals, presentations, and collaborative group processes. Students who complete this course can demonstrate competencies in the following: critical thinking and listening, world literature, research writing, creative writing, email etiquette, data management, multimedia presentations, and Google documents as well as many other web-based applications. 

World Literature Honors

The Honors program has higher expectations, richer assignments, and deeper experiences than a traditional English classroom. This course is a year-long Honors course consisting of four areas of language study necessary for effective communication: reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Students hone these skills through literary analysis, writing, sharing, and critical thinking in a 21st-century classroom. Organized around themes and genres from current and classic texts, students engage multiple literacies through a mixture of traditional methods and technology as appropriate. Throughout the course, vocabulary and grammar/usage/mechanics are addressed in context and within the experience of the students’ writings. Emphasis is placed on the development of comprehension and writing skills through essays, journals, presentations, and collaborative group processes. Students who complete this course can demonstrate competencies in the following: critical thinking and listening, world literature, research writing, creative writing, email etiquette, data management, multimedia presentations, and Google documents as well as many other web-based applications.

American Literature

Focusing on mastery learning, this two-semester course explores the relationships among history, literature, and the individual within the scope of the American experience.  From Douglass and Twain to Fitzgerald and Miller, students are introduced to and learn to read and write within the spheres of multiple genres and time periods.  The main objective is to appreciate the relevance of literature and composition in affecting change within the self and the community.  In addition, students learn to share these understandings through products, presentations, and interactions across a wide range of mediums as they hone their competence by utilizing critical reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. An additional component of the 11th-grade curriculum is the introduction to and beginning of the Capstone project. The Capstone project is a research-based project that spans part of the 11th-grade year and culminates in a presentation at the end of the senior year. 

American Literature Honors

Focusing on mastery learning, Honors American Literature works at an accelerated pace to explore the relationships among history, literature, and the individual within the scope of the American experience.  From Douglass and Twain to Fitzgerald and Miller, students are introduced to and learn to read and write within the spheres of multiple genres and time periods.  The main objective is to appreciate the relevance of literature and composition in affecting change within the self and the community.  In addition, students learn to share these understandings through products, presentations, and interactions across a wide range of mediums as they hone their competence by utilizing critical reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. An additional component of the 11th-grade curriculum is the introduction to and beginning of the Capstone project. The Capstone project is a research-based project that spans part of the 11th-grade year and culminates in a presentation at the end of the senior year. 

British Literature

Traditional topics for this course include the oral tradition of the English language, a foundational introduction to the mythology of England, storytelling, major cultural themes showcased through the writings of various periods of British culture, vocabulary enrichment, reading comprehension, literary analysis, literary critical theory, and research skills. This focus on character development is achieved through reading classic and modern literatures that exemplify the cultural beliefs and ideologies of its people; additional skills and learning opportunities come through practice with conventional grammar and usage form, expository writing, oral presentations, collaborative and individual projects, critical thinking, MLA documentation, business writing, and argument.

College English 113

College English 113 is a college freshman English literature and composition course which focuses on developing competent writers by combining reading comprehension and analysis using a variety of world literature, both fiction and non-fiction, and various writing patterns and techniques. The course includes a focus on strengthening English-related competencies through critical reading, literary theory, academic and real-world writing, vocabulary, fallacies, debate, oral presentation in individual or group collaboration, literary criticism and the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of literature and non-academic examples from world culture. Furthermore, the curriculum covers deconstructing written and visual messages, grammar, and MLA documentation. Students complete the rigors of this course in preparation for higher education and an appreciation for the connection between the written word, past and present societies, and the students’ own lives.

College English 123

College English ENG123 combines college comparative English literature with a continued emphasis on expository writing patterns covered in ENG113. Students who have the prerequisites necessary for this course understand that the workload will encompass a variety of communication and critical thinking skills in preparation for success after high school. The course focuses on strengthening English writing conventions through academic and real-world writing, oral presentation in individual or group collaboration, various documentation formats, literary criticism and the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of literature and non-academic examples from world culture, and critical reading strategies. Genres of literature include fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and drama.