Syllabus AP Language and Composition

2020-2021

Ms. Michelle Alonso

Zoom + Virtual Procedures

All pertinent codes for this class can be found here.

Students must log in through Colegia for class. The school procedures for Zoom meetings are here.

Please try to be in a quiet area where you can write things down and type things up when you are asked to. Assignments will be due at the end of the day, but they will also be due while class is running. Plan accordingly.

Please review the tutorials and guidelines for email etiquette and use of Google Classroom linked in your Google classroom page.

Course Description

The AP Language and Composition course cultivates the reading and writing skills that students need for college success and for intellectually responsible civic engagement. The course guides students to become curious, critical, and responsive readers of diverse texts, which in turn helps them become flexible, reflective writers. The course instills in students an understanding of rhetorical situation and use of written language. This course is organized thematically, as students will be reading primarily non-fiction works that demonstrate various forms of composition and argument.

Course Objectives

Students are expected to read critically, think analytically, use internet sources astutely, and communicate clearly in writing and speaking. This course is organized according to the requirements and guidelines set by current AP English Course Description. This course also teaches skills needed to earn a qualifying score on the Advanced Placement test and meet DoDEA language arts standards.

By the end of the course, students should be able to do the following with competence:

• Read from a variety of historical periods and disciplines

• Identify audience, purpose, and strategies in texts

• Analyze the types of arguments that writers use

• Write formally and informally for a variety of audiences

• Write expository, analytical, and argumentative essays

• Understand their own writing process and the importance of revision

• Recognize techniques in visual as well as verbal arguments

• Synthesize ideas and information from various sources

• Know how to interpret information presented in notes and citations

• Use the conventions of standard written English

Note to parents:

I ask that parents maintain an open line of communication with me throughout the year via my materlakes.org email and that they sign up for notifications on the materlakes.org webpage. Although I want to hear from parents throughout the year, part of the purpose of this course is to build self-advocacy from students. I ask that parents allow them the opportunity by letting them speak for themselves. This move might also entail allowing them to make mistakes on their own. I assure you, this too is part of growth and learning.

Accountability:

Students will be held accountable for all assignments. It is imperative that parents, guardians, and students understand that all late work is inexcusable unless proper clearance is given from the office within 48 hours of the due date of the assignment. Students are allowed the number of excused class absences to make up missed work. While I am not inclined to accept late work in an advanced class, unavoidable circumstances may arise, so I’ll work with students on an individual basis. Generally speaking though, expect late assignments to be penalized at one letter grade for each day late. This is, after all, a college class.

If a student is tardy to my class and misses a quiz, unless the tardy is excused, the student will not have a chance to make up the quiz. If a student misses a class, they must get that absence excused.

Homework

Having a question about an assignment does not exempt students from finishing the assignment. Because of our unlimited access to technology, I expect that students will Google, research, and as a last resort, email me or stop by my classroom before the assignment is due.

Grading Scale

3.5 - 4.0 = A

2.5 - 3.4 = B

1.5 - 2.4 = C

1.0 - 1.4 = D

0.0 - 0.9 = F

Note on Grade(s): If you are struggling in the course, it is completely up to my discretion to decide on a course of action. This course of action, depending on your situation may include removing you from the course and placing you in an honors/regular class.

Assignments:

1) Reading: All students will be required to complete a variety of outside reading assignments so that they are prepared to participate in daily class activities directly related to the reading. Due dates will be given in advance and students are expected to adhere to these guidelines. Students should schedule daily time to read for this course.

2) Writing: Students are to understand that writing is integral to mastery of the course objectives and each student will be required to practice a variety of writing styles. Teacher, peer, and individual evaluations will be ongoing and formative in nature.

3) Participation: Participation is a key component to our English course. Students will be expected to contribute in class discussion reflecting on both literary content and structure and the writing process.

4) Assessment: A variety of assessment strategies will be used in determining grades including, but not limited to, teacher, peer, and individual input.

Essential Questions by Writing Opportunity:

Analytical Essential Question: What various styles do authors employ to achieve different purposes in writing?

Comparison Essential Question: What similarities and differences exist between short passages that distinguish them as unique in both style and purpose?

Argumentative Essential Questions: Why is it important to recognize that there are often two sides to every issue? Why is it important to be able to take a stand (defend, challenge, qualify).

Overarching Essential Question for AP English Language and Composition: What does an author’s style reveal about his purpose?

Journal Writing Opportunities: Students will be asked to respond informally to various journal prompts in class and outside of class. Each week, students will turn in a rhetorical precis for a columnist of their choice as well as an informal and personal response to a short poem chosen by the teacher.

Vocabulary Enhancement/Lexicology: Various handouts and excerpts will be provided which include but not limited to: rhetorical and literary terminology as emphasized on the AP exam, novel based vocabulary, and acronyms for writing ( SOAPSTONE, DIDLS, etc.)

Advanced Placement Objective Tests: On an ongoing basis, instructors will include timed practice AP objective tests with a variety of learning activities including, but not limited to, trouble-shooting, group processing, direct teacher feedback and instruction, and individual reflection on patterns of growth and mastery. The teacher will be evaluating individual and whole-class needs with special emphasis on reteaching problem areas as needed throughout the year.

Major Papers & Larger Projects: Requirements for each will be given with the assignment and will be evaluated based on the specific requirements as well as the depth and breadth of discussion within the paper/project; also includes active reading of novels and response to AP prompts. These prompts will be revised in group peer settings as well as individually with instructor for maximum writing rewards.

Tests/Quizzes: All tests will be announced at least a day in advance; quizzes may or may not be announced

Smaller Writing Assignments: bellringers, journal responses, notes, response questions, etc… i.e. may include level of contribution to whole class & small group discussion, focus and attention, engagement in projects and other in-class work, level of preparation.

Major Writing Assignment Breakdowns: All major writing assignments will begin with rough drafts. Once completed, students will conference with the teacher. The students will then revise, prepare, and submit the final versions of their essays.

Revision and editing of all major assignments: Students will have the opportunity to revise all major assignments through peer editing and teacher’s feedback.“Students meet in peer response groups wherein they help each other brainstorm, draft, revise, edit, and polish an essay that analyzes the rhetorical strategies of a newspaper editorial or another nonfiction text. The teacher offers formative feedback throughout the writing process. Conference interactions always vary according to individual needs, but typically include discussion of diction, syntax, evidence, and tone. As drafting proceeds, some students may ask about deepening the development of their texts by including additional concrete details. Others may seek help on emphasizing key ideas by revisiting or rearranging words, sentences, or whole sections. I will frequently discuss the variety of sentence structures available to the writer in order to best convey his or her meaning. I sometimes ask students to read particular text segments aloud before revising. Each student’s ear and voice come into play during the conferring phase of the revision process.

Modeling Grammar: I will model ways of using various grammatical structures to better convey meaning. Every time students have major writing assignments, I will create mini-lessons that focus in on three or four particular areas where we could improve for next time (this might be a mini-lesson on transitions, writing introductions, improving commentary/analysis, etc

Specific Strategies:

Students will receive direct instruction in two strategies designed to help them analyze print and visual texts. Students will uses these strategies in whole class, small group, and individual settings.

Class Rules

1. I will treat you with respect, so you know how to treat me and my classroom.

2. Feel free to do anything that doesn't cause a problem for anyone else.

3. If you cause a problem, I will ask you to solve it.

4. If you can't solve the problem, or choose not to, I will propose a solution.

5. What I will propose will depend on the specific person and the specific situation.

Electronic Devices

The following only applies to in-person instruction:

Phones are not allowed out in my classroom under any circumstances unless students are expressly asked to use them. Any unauthorized use of cell phones will result in confiscation. Put simply, I don’t want to see cell phones and expect that the students will keep them in their bookbag and turn them off during class. If the device is in a pocket and it falls out, it will be confiscated. If the device rings in class, it will be confiscated. No exceptions.

Cheating & Plagiarism

Students are expected to submit original work. Plagiarism of any kind and copying answers off of classmates during tests or other assessments will not be tolerated and will result in a zero for those students involved. There will be no tolerance for unethical behavior. Even when I ask students to work in groups, copying word for word is unacceptable in an academic environment and will result in a zero.

Heading

This year, since I will not be doing most of my filing, it is imperative that you write a heading on your paper. Failure to write your heading will result in a 10% grade deduction. On the left hand side of the page, write the following:

Full Name

Date

Period

Required Reading

For this class, we will be working with a Critical Thinking Workbook as well as various texts, speeches, documentaries. Basically, we will make an intellectual foray into various modes of rhetoric. I will provide the texts or the links to the texts when possible.

Students are required to have the following books for the school year. Their grade depends on it.

· First Quarter: Speeches that Changed the World + The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams

· Second Quarter: As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

· Third Quarter: 1984 by George Orwell

· Fourth Quarter: TBA

· All quarters: Bedford Martin Guide to Writing (which includes an APA, MLA, and Chicago Manual of Style guide. In this class, we will work explicitly with MLA style)

Study Aides:

Though not required, you will find these works useful to have at home and in college (many available in electronic form).

· College-level dictionary

· College-level thesaurus

· The Elements of Style, Strunk and White

· The M.L.A. Handbook (most recent edition)

· 5 Steps to a 5: AP Language, Barbara Murphy and Estelle Rankin

· 5 Steps to a 5: Writing the AP English Essay, Barbara Murphy and Estelle Rankin

What do I do now?

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