AP Language Syllabus - Calvin
- 1. We are many. We are one. We are WARRIORS AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSTION – Course Expectations INSTRUCTOR: Mr. NickCalvin|ROOM: J213 EMAIL: nickcalvin@iusd.org|PHONE:949.936.7896 COURSE INFORMATION The AP course inEnglish Language and Compositionengagesstudentsinbecomingskilledreadersof prose writtenina varietyof rhetorical contexts,andinbecomingskilledwriterswhocompose foravarietyof purposes.Boththeirwriting and theirreadingshouldmake studentsaware of the interactionsamongawriter’spurposes,audience expectations, and subjectsaswell asthe way genre conventionsandthe resourcesof language contributetoeffectivenessinwriting. GOALS The course,and the variousreadingsandwritings,isorganizedbythemeswithaconstantpresence of the understandingof rhetorical strategiesandthe applicationof these.The rhetorical strategiesandfallaciesfoundin variousmodesof persuasion(advertisements,speeches,poems,graphics,essays,andfiction) willbe analyzedboth verballyandinwriting. Each unitrequiresstudentstoacquire anduse rich vocabulary,touse standardEnglish grammar, andto understandthe importance of dictionandsyntax inanauthor’sstyle.Therefore,studentsare expe cted to developthe followingthroughreading,discussion,andwritingassignments: • a wide-rangingvocabularyusedappropriatelyandeffectively; • a varietyof sentence structures,includingappropriateuse of subordinationandcoordination; • logical organization,enhancedbyspecifictechniquestoincrease coherence,suchasrepetition,transitions, and emphasis; • a balance of generalizationandspecificillustrative detail;and • an effective use of rhetoricincludingcontrollingtone,establishingandmaintainingvoice,andachieving appropriate emphasisthroughdictionandsentencestructure. (College BoardAPEng.Course Description,May2008, p. 8) GRADING POLICY Gradesare not assigned;theyare earned.Yourpreparationandeffortwill determineyourlevel of successinthiscourse. Gradeswill be basedonthe percentage of total pointsearnedduringthe semesterout of the total amount possible. Lettergradesare assignedaccordingtothe followingscale: 100-99 A+ 79.99-78 C+ 98.99-93 A 77.99-72 C 92.99-90 A- 71.99-70 C- 89.99-88 B+ 69.99-68 D+ 87.99-82 B 67.99-62 D 81.99-80 B- 61.99-60 D- AP/Honorslevel courseworkrequiresaspecial commitmentanddedication.Itisyourresponsibilitytomeetthe expectationsof the course.Thiscourse presentschallengesboththroughthe amountof workrequiredandthroughthe challengingnature of those assignments.Oftentimesyouwill workindependentlyandwithoutsignificantinstructor oversight.Itisyourresponsibilitytomanage yourtime effectively,keepupwiththe readingandworkload,and communicate withme if youneedhelporassistance.Donotstruggle insilence –if youneedclarification,guidance, help,advice,orsupportIam here for you – but youhave to letme know that you’re inneedof assistance. ATTENDANCE, LATE WORK, AND MAKE-UPWORK Acceptresponsibilityforanyabsences.Youare responsibleforfindingoutwhatyoumissedwhileabsentandarranging make-upworkwiththe teacher.Workcan be made up for excusedabsencesonly.Youhave twodaysperday absentto make up all missedclassworkandassignments.Workassignedpriortoyourabsence isdue the dayof yourreturn.Tests will be made upby appointmentwithintwoweeksof yourreturntoclass.Make-uptestsmay be substantiallydifferent inform and difficultyfromtestsadministeredinclass.Appointmenttimeswill be atmyconvenience.Again,itisyour responsibilitytomake sure thatall work ismade up ina timelyfashion.Workthatismerelylate isnotaccepted.
- 2. We are many. We are one. We are WARRIORS There are nomake-upsfororal presentationsorgrouppresentations –an absence onthe day of an oral or group presentation,whetherexcusedorunexcused,will resultinthe lossof all pointsforthatpresentation.Itisyour responsibilitytoinformme of anyschedulingconflictswhenthe projectisfirstassigned.Turnitin.comdeadlinesfor writtenworkare absolute – workisexpectedtobe submittedelectronicallyregardlessof yourattendance inclass. SUMMER ASSIGNMENT Studentswere requiredtocomplete anassignmentoverthe summerinpreparationforsuccessfullyachievingthe course’sgoalsandobjectives.The assignmentisbrokendownintothreeparts: a. Rhetorical Terms – Define andprovide examplesforavarietyof termsthat will be usedthroughoutthe course. b. Analysisof Magazine Feature Stories –Three differentFeatureStoriesanalyzedusing SOAPSTone strategy. Speaker:the individual orcollective voice of the text Occasion:the eventor catalystcausingthe writingof the textto occur Audience:the groupof readerstowhomthe piece isdirected Purpose:the reasonbehindthe text Subject:the general topicand/ormainidea Tone: the attitude of the author c. Grammar – Work throughall six learningmodules andcomplete eitherthe six moduleself-testson englishgrammar101.comorthe grammar assessmentprovidedonthe Google Drive folder. GRAMMAR A continual studyof writtenconventionswill be practicedthroughoutthe year.Beyondbasicgrammarskills(partsof speech,verbtense,etc.) anunderstandingof syntax,dictionandsemanticswill alsobe studiedandapplied.Activities will include,butare notlimitedto: HomeworkHandouts Grammar warm-ups PowerPoints Lectures Analysisof selectedworks PeerEditing COMPOSITION Multi-DraftEssays - Studentswill complete several multi-draftessaysthroughoutthe year,including: Narrative Rhetorical Analysis Research Argument Synthesis Paperswill be assessedonthe basisof strengthof assertions,qualityof evidence andsophisticationof style.Students will be askedtouse a varietyof rubrics andpractice peereditingandself editingactivities. Journals - Throughoutthe year,studentswill exploretheirthinkingaboutreadingandpractice theirexpressionof ideas by keepingjournals.The entrieswill take variousformsthroughthe year: Narration Description ProcessAnalysis Exemplification Compare and Contrast ClassificationandDivision Definition Cause and Effect ResearchPaper- Studentswill researchandcompose afully-processed,multi-source researchpaperandwill also complete shorterresearchassignmentsculminatinginwritingand/ordiscussion.Studentswill be assessedontheir abilitytoeffectivelyapplyresearchtodevelopandsupportaclaimwhile implementingstandarddocumentation conventions(MLA). UNIT TESTS Objective testswill be givenaftereachunit. Atthe endof eachsemester,acumulative finalexamcoveringall works studiedthatsemesterwill be given.
- 3. We are many. We are one. We are WARRIORS AP TEST PRACTICE Throughoutthe course,studentswill practice bothobjectiveandtimedopen-endedAPtestquestionsusuallyrelatedto the curriculum.College Boardmaterialswillbe providedincludingmarkerpapersforstudents’understandingand revision.Studentswill be assessedaccordingto APprovidedrubrics. DISCUSSION/CLASSPARTICIPATION Discussion - Discussioninclasswill take variousformsrangingfromgradedformal SocraticSeminarstoinformal classroomchat. Studentswill be assessedontheirmeaningful contributionstodiscussionsatall levels. Oral Presentations - Studentswill needtocomplete avarietyof oral presentationscoveringanindependentanalysisof an assignedtext,defenseof essential questions,research,studentlead teaching,etc. Group Activities - Studentswillsuccessfullyachieve goalsandobjectivesinagroupsetting.A varietyof groupactivities will be practicedthroughoutthe year.These activitieswill include,butare notlimitedto: Literature/Non-FictionCircles TeachingTopics Satirical Skits Defense/ArgumentationSides ATTITUDE We Will persevere | We Have integrity | We Show empathy In orderto getthe mostout of thisclass,and in life,everyoneinvolved mustbe committedtohardworkand participation. Eachof us shouldfeel comfortable speakingourminds,regardlessof ourperspectiveorinterpretation.Of course,thisexpectation requires certainattitudesandbehaviors (inadditiontoschool policy): Respect others: Regardlessof anydifferencesyoumayhave,alwaysencourageandtreatotherswithrespect.Never speaknegativelyaboutsomeoneinclass. Be in class: Attendance isimperative.Pleaseshow upon time andreadyto learn – everyminute counts!Tardies will be countedandactiontaken as perthe school attendance policy.Further,please donotleave or line upat the door until youare instructedtodo so – ithurts my feelings . Your work: Two words:honestyandintegrity.Anyformof plagiarismisabsolutelyunacceptable.Iwantto hear and readyourthoughts,notsomeone else’s.Have courage andbe proud – yourvoice isunique toyou and youalone. Electronic devices: There are manyamazingwayswe can andwill use ourdevicesinclassand around campus.However, we needto firstlearnwhenandwhere itis appropriate touse them.Please put yourdevices away (headphonestoo!) asyoucome to class andI’ll letyouknow whenyoucan use themagain.Thanks! Participation: Speakup andspeakoften. The passive receptionof knowledgeshouldnotsatisfyyou. Alwayskeepan openmind. Application: These attitudes andbehaviorsapplynotonlytohow you act in myclassroom, butmore importantly, theyapplyto howyouact around the rest of campus andout in the world. Smile atothers,pickup trash,be a good person,and the worldwill be abetterplace!
- 4. We are many. We are one. We are WARRIORS COURSE CONTENT & MATERIALS RequiredTexts: FALL SEMESTER SPRING SEMESTER Language of Composition Language of Composition The Catcher in the Rye Into the Wild The Importance of Being Earnest Julius Caesar Persepolis Readings for the course include excerpted as well as full-length fiction and non-fiction texts. Students are expected to complete the readings outside of class and come prepared to discuss the texts beyond a superficial level. The students’ reading is inherently assessed by all activities of the class including: journals, comprehension handouts, summative and formative assessments, discussions, group activities, annotations, dialectical journals, graphic organizers, etc. Students will use also practice evaluating visual materials. Recommended Materials: A 1” (minimum) 3-ringbinderfor Englishmaterialsonly Blue or blackpens(nocoloredpensfor submittedwork!!!) College-ruled,3-hole notebookpaper (nospiral perforations!!!) No.2 pencil ComposeYourself,WHSEnglish DepartmentWritingManual Internetaccess,eitherathome ora plan for regularaccesselsewhere SIGNATURE PORTION Date Period I, (please print neatly), have read the above course outline. I understand the level of dedication required for successful participation in this advanced course. I accept responsibility for my own academic progress and commit to fulfilling the rigorous behavioral and academic expectations of this course. I have reviewed these expectations with my parents or guardians and they understand the task ahead and agree to support me in my endeavors. Student Signature Parent Signature