AP+English+Language+and+Composition

Syllabus for AP English: Language and Composition Chinquapin Preparatory School Dale Dilworth 281-515-5673 ddilworth@chinquapin.org Residence L

“The writer wants to be understood much more than he wants to be respected or praised or even loved. And that perhaps, is what makes him different from others.” – Leo C. Rosten “Life beats down and crushes the soul, but art reminds you that you have one.” -Stella Adler
 * OVERARCHING THEME**: What is the human condition?

This class is a study of language in all forms. We will begin with a discussion of the elements that authors use to rhetorically manipulate an audience (tone, syntax, diction, imagery, symbolism, etc). Then we will work to analyze what an author’s purpose is and how to discern what audience they are targeting, and we will use these close language studies to improve our own language through emulation and adaptation. In all cases, the end goal is for a student to intelligently analyze and use rhetoric and rhetorical techniques to be able to comprehend and comment on any text they come in contact with.
 * COURSE OVERVIEW**

Students must come into the class expecting an intensive writing experience. They will be required to complete in-class timed essays, out of class revised and polished works, reflective writing, journaling, peer- and self-edits, research projects, and a hodgepodge of other written and spoken activities designed to increase their lexicon of rhetorical techniques. Above all, students who want to exceed on the AP Language Exam should write on a consistent basis – without expectant feedback form Dilworth. Writing will breed better writing, with or without my feedback.

Summer Reading: //A History of the World in Six Glasses//
 * TEXTS**

//Writing the Australian Crawl// (excerpts) //The Writing Life// (excerpts) //Teaching a Stone to Talk// (excerpts) //A Place to Stand// (excerpts) //Sound and Sense// (selected poetry) //100 Great Essays// (selected essays) The Best American Essays (selected essays) //Cracking the AP English Language and Composition Exam// //The Norton Anthology of Poetry// //They Say, I Say (excerpts)// //Civil Disobedience (excerpts)// //Sentence Composing for High School// (grammar) //The Weighty Word Book// (vocabulary) //Vocabu-Lit// (Vocabulary Workbook)

Novels:

//Their Eyes Were Watching God// (fiction) //The Crucible// (play) //The Devil in the White City// (nonfiction) //Palace Walk// (fiction) //Candide// (novella) //In Cold Blood// (non-fiction) //Heart of Darkness// (novella)


 * First Couple of Weeks (or so)**


 * //Six Glasses// review: summary, claims, quizzes
 * How to write in the style of the author (Sandra Cisnero’s “My Name” from //The House on Mango Street//) for the purpose of understanding style, syntax, figurative language, etc.)
 * Making a claim
 * Voltaire’s argument
 * Review of main arguments in summer readings; presentations?
 * Independent Reading List
 * Begin reading //The Crucible//
 * Inner Circle, Outer Circle
 * Carousels (Poetry, Fiction, etc.)


 * First Quarter**


 * Summer Reading
 * Writing in author’s style
 * Making a claim
 * How to analyze graphs and pictures
 * Teaching Rhetorical Analysis (What is Rhetoric? What is rhetorical analysis? Divisions of rhetoric, key terms in RA: Exigence, Audience, Purpose, Appeals, Figures of Speech, Imagery, Syntax, Diction, and their functions)
 * Selected Essays – the rhetorical argument/photos/quotations
 * Scoring Guidelines/Student Samples
 * Substantial writing assignments: Diagnostic (argument), Analysis I (main idea construction), Analysis II (Main idea, appeals, and organization/structure/form
 * Timed writing prompts
 * Independent Reading
 * Text: //A Clockwork Orange//


 * Second Quarter**


 * Chapters 3 and 4 of //Writing America//
 * Selected Poems
 * Selected Essays/photos/quotations
 * More substantial writing assignments: Argument I, Analysis III—Timed writing and then revised (Main idea, appeals, organization/structure/form, and one other surface feature element—diction, syntax, imagery/allusion, figurative language), Argument II
 * Timed writing prompts: two Synthesis Essays
 * Independent Reading
 * Research Paper (p. 11of Handbook, Syllabus 4)
 * Text: //The Crucible// and //The Devil in the White City//


 * Third Quarter**


 * Chapters 5 and 6 of //Writing America//
 * Selected Essays/photos/quotations
 * Key Terms (some), Rhetorical Modes, Rhetorical Fallacies
 * Paper: //Candide//
 * Test examples/Student Samples
 * Timed Writing Prompts
 * Substantial writing assignments: Argument III—Timed writing and then revised; Analysis IV (full-fledged—student choice of what to focus on, as on the exam); Synthesis I (two texts synthesized)
 * Independent Reading
 * Text: //Candide// and //Palace Walk//


 * Fourth Quarter**


 * Chapter 7 of //Writing America//
 * Multiple Choice practice exams (two)
 * Selected Essays/photos/quotations
 * Paper: //In Cold Blood//
 * Narrative Essay Assignment
 * Test examples/Student Samples
 * Timed Writing Prompts
 * Substantial writing assignments: Argument IV, Synthesis II—Timed writing and then revised—at least three sources synthesized
 * Independent Reading
 * Final touches; review for the exam
 * Text: //In Cold Blood// and //Heart of Darkness//


 * Assessments**

Homework, Participation, Quizzes, and Projects (including all writing prompts, papers, and major/minor projects, including presentations, etc) all count towards a point total. Roughly, Homework and Participation represent 15% each, while quizzes represent about 20%; papers and other writing assignments, presentations and other projects make up the rest, or roughly 50%. However, there is no exact science to this. The points come as the assignments are given. I can show this better than I can articulate it. Ask if you are unsure about this method of grading.


 * Materials: **


 * Black or blue pen
 * Red pen
 * Notebook – just for this class


 * Nuts and Bolts**


 * Why the 5-paragraph essay doesn’t work (usually)
 * Don’t be offended by my “So What?” questions. They will seem obnoxious, but purposeful.
 * Don’t expect a “4” score (at best) if you don’t write on a daily basis.
 * You need to have an opinion in this class – and your opinion needs to be grounded, not baseless
 * Exigence: what’s in your crawl? What are your needs, gaps?
 * This is AP, but it doesn’t always have to look like an “AP class.” Let’s try to have some fun while being challenged at the same time. But a lot of that depends on you and your attitude to the subject matter.
 * What do you need to change? How will you change? (Without change there is no growth) How can I help you to change? Help me to help you.
 * Keep in mind: however well you do on the AP Exam, as long as you work hard in this class and are an active listener/reader/writer, you will do well in all of your college classes (well, I don’t know about Stats). Also, keep in mind that your grade in this class may not reflect the grade you get on the AP score, for better or worse.
 * Don’t be shy. I don’t bark, despite what you may have heard to the contrary. Odds are, you will need my help somewhere along the way. I am available whenever – see me about a good time to meet and I will make time to meet you. It looks like I will be in the library on most Mondays for evening study hall. I live in Residence L, and you can knock on our door up until 8 p.m.; after that, boys, please text me and I can meet with you in the library or in the US dorms; girls, text or chat or send an email to me and I’ll try to read them as frequently as is humanly possible)
 * Do not be intimidated in this class. I know that sounds easier said than done, but you’re seniors. If I had any doubts about you being in this class, I would have said that we need to be more selective. Likewise, please participate as much as possible, even if it means just asking questions. That is how you get true value from an education – becoming engaged. **Ask me about APSI.**


 * Other Tid-bits:**


 * 1) I really don’t care what you think. Don’t take this offensively. But it’s true. Argue what you think, and back it up. It does not matter to me if you are on the same page as me. Seriously. And why should it?
 * 2) Write, write and write some more. This is the only way you will become an efficient writer. And don’t think that you write enough with my assignments. You don’t. When you write, you also need to think, ask questions. This is the only way your writing will get better. People think they write to get feedback from the teacher. This is not true. Teachers cannot possible grade and comment on everything students write. And we shouldn’t have to. If you learn how to read and think, you will also become the proficient writer you will need to be. And no matter what field you go into, your writing will always carry you to levels others will never achieve (even if it’s just as simple as writing and re-writing emails – yes, I do rewrite emails; I also edit FB posts).
 * 3) If you don’t reach out to me for help when you need it, you’re a chump. I can’t put it any other way. I do have free time – usually during study halls, but it’s there. Reach out. I’m not a mind-reader. You know where I teach, where I live, you have my email and phone number. You’re running out of excuses.
 * 4) You’ve got . . . personality . . . This is the one thing, unfortunately, a lot of students check at the door – their personalities. Especially with creative writing assignments, this should come out from you. Students too often think that they only need to answer the question and do this in a very sterile way. We need to answer the question, but why can’t we reveal who we are at the same time?Personality hardly ever comes out. I read hundreds of papers a year. Trust me you, I am dying to get your personality from a paper – humor me!
 * 5) The AP test is, for the most part, optional. I don’t want the whole class opting out of it, but if there are a few who feel uncomfortable taking it, we can discuss it.
 * 6) Notes: You will need to take notes in college. This is the one thing I am sure of. I will grade you on notes, not so much on content, as much as thoroughness and variety. I will grade you on notes (class and novel) for the first semester at least, and possibly the third quarter. You need to stay on top of these. IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU TAKE GOOD NOTES ALL THE TIME. **Ask me about my APSI courses**. I don’t ask for what I can’t deliver myself.


 * Resources:**

[|www.collegeboard.com] []