English 11 Syllabus
I. COURSE DESCRIPTION
In English 11, we will read short stories, articles, fiction and non-fiction texts that allow us to examine the world in a more analytical way. We will ponder the big questions of life while looking at minute details of textual, visual, spoken, and media communications. Students will analyze and discuss literature and media, write and revise essays, creative pieces and research papers, prepare individual and group projects and presentations and contribute to the class in a meaningful and productive way. The primary purpose of this class is to empower students to enrich their lives through intensive literature and non-fiction study, extensive writing and reflective thinking. We will use these texts as a springboard to examine the world and ourselves. All of the writers presented in this syllabus tell their own story about the world and being a part of it. How can we reinterpret echoes of the past and create our own unique verse?
II. Possible TEXTBOOKS (some may be excerpts)
Elements of Literature Textbook: Short Stories, Articles, Excerpts, and Poems
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
The Stranger by Albert Camus
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
Our Town by Thorton Wilder
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams
Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
One Flew Over the Cukoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre
The Bald Soprano by Eugene Ionesco
*Other Authors may include:
Alice Walker
David Sedaris
Bill Bryson
Irving Washington
**Various short historical and biographical video clips as well as excerpts from films and television programs will be used to provide context and information related to units of study.
III. MATERIALS
IV. GOALS
1. Students will learn, identify and apply literary terms essential to understanding the literature they are reading.
2. Students will study, learn, use and be tested on new vocabulary words encountered in the literature study.
3. Students will practice and improve their writing skills by utilizing a variety of writing strategies and writing types (from short answer to multi-paragraph essays), including pre-writing, peer editing and evaluation, writing portfolios, and in class journal activities.
4. Students will utilize speaking and listening skills to participate in the following activities: class discussions, small group discussion, oral reading and oral presentations.
5. Students will improve upon and demonstrate research, study and computer skills by utilizing library and computer lab resources for a variety of assignments.
6. Students will demonstrate responsibility and accountability by being a supportive, productive member of the classroom community.
7. Students will develop the ability to:
**State standards for Language arts are addressed and met in the above goals and in the following units of study. CA Content Standards for Language Arts are available at: http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/finalelaccssstandards.pdf
V. UNITS OF STUDY
VI. METHODS OF ASSESSMENT & GRADING POLICIES
1. Daily Classwork - 25 points (including 5 points for having homework done at start of class)
Timeliness (5); Prepared with homework and materials (5); oral participation & written activity (15)
(30% of final grade)
2. Homework - 20 points per night: 1 page writing, worksheet and/or reading assignment
(20 % of final grade)
3. Projects/Essays - 100 points each
(30% of quarter grade)
4. Independent Book Report/Project of Proposed Choice - due each quarter - 350 points each
(10% of grade)
5. Final Exam -
(10% of Grade)
VII. CLASS PROCEDURES
You are expected to attend this class every day. Each class period will consist of a bell assignment, direct instruction, class discussion & reading, writing responses, and independent work time. If you are absent, you must make up the time and/or the class work missed. You have the number of days that you were absent to make-up the work that you missed without penalty. CHECK THE INTERNET for missed class assignments & links.
Be on time to class. If you are late, you will automatically lose 5 points. The later you are, the more the deduction.
Breaks: You will receive 6 bathroom passes per semester. At the end of the semester, unused passes are worth for 5 extra credit points each OR 50 points for all six unused passes. DON'T LOSE THEM!!
*If you are found wandering campus without permission, you will automatically lose a minimum of 5 points.
LATE WORK WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AFTER ONE WEEK!!
Work Quality (READ CAREFULLY!).
Extra Credit. Students may earn extra credit by:
Cell phones. Cell phones should be kept OFF and AWAY unless they have been approved by a teacher for class use. Appropriate uses: music during silent writing time IF the playlist is not changed; looking up words on dictionary; online research; taking notes; homework recording/photo of whiteboard...
*If you are seen using your phone inappropriately, you will automatically lose a minimum of 5 points.
**If you show me consistent effort and progress throughout the class, participate in oral class discussions, contribute to group projects, and complete all of the assignments thoroughly and timely, you will earn an A. You will lose points for missing assignments, refusal to participate, incomplete, sloppy, or lazy work. Additionally, you will lose points for tardiness, excessive absences, or behavior that disrupts the learning environment. On the other hand, if you show steady improvements, I will weight your grade in a more favorable direction.
VIII. BEHAVIORAL EXPECTATIONS
CONSEQUENCES:
1. verbal warning & LOSE POINTS from daily tally (in 5 point increments)
2. conference after class
3. phone call home
4. referral to principal & behavior contract
*Consequences for misuse of your personal technology
1. warning (and loss of points)
2. teacher confiscation
3. technology for parent pick-up in office
**Consequences for misuse of Cypress technology
1. First offense - loss of technology for the day & technology behavior contract
2. Second Offense - Loss of technology at Cypress permanently
How can parents know what is going on in class?
Parents and students can check homework assignments, up-coming tests, and project due dates on my website & check their grades on Illuminate (which will be updated by Friday of each week, at the least).
All missed work can be made up by accessing the website and handing in missed journal entries, readings, and assignments. Parents are also welcome to call or email the teacher anytime.
Please email me to acknowledge that you have been fully informed of classroom policies, procedures, and expectations, and you agree to follow these to the best of your ability.
Thank you & looking forward to the year ahead!! [email protected]
Student Signature: _______________________________________________________ Date: ________________________
Parent Signature: _________________________________________________________ Date: ________________________
In English 11, we will read short stories, articles, fiction and non-fiction texts that allow us to examine the world in a more analytical way. We will ponder the big questions of life while looking at minute details of textual, visual, spoken, and media communications. Students will analyze and discuss literature and media, write and revise essays, creative pieces and research papers, prepare individual and group projects and presentations and contribute to the class in a meaningful and productive way. The primary purpose of this class is to empower students to enrich their lives through intensive literature and non-fiction study, extensive writing and reflective thinking. We will use these texts as a springboard to examine the world and ourselves. All of the writers presented in this syllabus tell their own story about the world and being a part of it. How can we reinterpret echoes of the past and create our own unique verse?
II. Possible TEXTBOOKS (some may be excerpts)
Elements of Literature Textbook: Short Stories, Articles, Excerpts, and Poems
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
The Stranger by Albert Camus
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
Our Town by Thorton Wilder
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams
Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
One Flew Over the Cukoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre
The Bald Soprano by Eugene Ionesco
*Other Authors may include:
Alice Walker
David Sedaris
Bill Bryson
Irving Washington
**Various short historical and biographical video clips as well as excerpts from films and television programs will be used to provide context and information related to units of study.
III. MATERIALS
- A composition notebook
- Pencil, eraser, and pen
- The current text in use
- Self-determination and goals
IV. GOALS
1. Students will learn, identify and apply literary terms essential to understanding the literature they are reading.
2. Students will study, learn, use and be tested on new vocabulary words encountered in the literature study.
3. Students will practice and improve their writing skills by utilizing a variety of writing strategies and writing types (from short answer to multi-paragraph essays), including pre-writing, peer editing and evaluation, writing portfolios, and in class journal activities.
4. Students will utilize speaking and listening skills to participate in the following activities: class discussions, small group discussion, oral reading and oral presentations.
5. Students will improve upon and demonstrate research, study and computer skills by utilizing library and computer lab resources for a variety of assignments.
6. Students will demonstrate responsibility and accountability by being a supportive, productive member of the classroom community.
7. Students will develop the ability to:
- Analyze and assess a variety of literary works in a variety of literary genres including short story, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and drama.
- Organize and synthesize their analyses in cogent, cohesive, and concise responses and essays.
- Demonstrate the depth of their comprehension by summarizing and paraphrasing the content of a variety of literary works.
- Formulate and write intelligent, well-structured responses to course assignments.
- Defend their conclusions and ideas through relevant references and quotations from text.
- Relate concepts that arise from class assignments and discussions with elements of their own life and society.
- Present classroom projects comfortably before their peers, individually and in cooperative study groups.
- Cooperate with others in meaningful projects where the goals of the group take priority over the desires of its individual members.
**State standards for Language arts are addressed and met in the above goals and in the following units of study. CA Content Standards for Language Arts are available at: http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/finalelaccssstandards.pdf
V. UNITS OF STUDY
- Narrative & Short Stories
- Existentialism
- The Art of Theater
- Transcendentalism: Emerson and Thoreau/ Romanticism: Whitman, Dickinson, & Poe
- American Realism & Huckleberry Finn
- Science Fiction & Dystopian Society
- Credible Sources, Analyzing Media & Writing the Expository Essay
- Persuasive Speech & Research Paper
- Contemporary Authors
VI. METHODS OF ASSESSMENT & GRADING POLICIES
1. Daily Classwork - 25 points (including 5 points for having homework done at start of class)
Timeliness (5); Prepared with homework and materials (5); oral participation & written activity (15)
(30% of final grade)
2. Homework - 20 points per night: 1 page writing, worksheet and/or reading assignment
(20 % of final grade)
3. Projects/Essays - 100 points each
(30% of quarter grade)
4. Independent Book Report/Project of Proposed Choice - due each quarter - 350 points each
(10% of grade)
5. Final Exam -
(10% of Grade)
VII. CLASS PROCEDURES
You are expected to attend this class every day. Each class period will consist of a bell assignment, direct instruction, class discussion & reading, writing responses, and independent work time. If you are absent, you must make up the time and/or the class work missed. You have the number of days that you were absent to make-up the work that you missed without penalty. CHECK THE INTERNET for missed class assignments & links.
Be on time to class. If you are late, you will automatically lose 5 points. The later you are, the more the deduction.
Breaks: You will receive 6 bathroom passes per semester. At the end of the semester, unused passes are worth for 5 extra credit points each OR 50 points for all six unused passes. DON'T LOSE THEM!!
*If you are found wandering campus without permission, you will automatically lose a minimum of 5 points.
LATE WORK WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AFTER ONE WEEK!!
- You will get 4 LATE PASSES for each semester - by attaching the late pass to the assignment (within a week), you may turn in these 4 assignments for full credit
- After you use these 4 passes, all subsequent late work will be counted no more than 1/2 credit
Work Quality (READ CAREFULLY!).
- All written work must have a heading: title in the middle; name, date and class # in the upper right hand corner; neatly written or typed (12 pt font, double-spaced) (includes journal & homework)
- All FINAL ESSAYS must be typed in a simple 12-point font, double spaced, with a heading in the upper right hand corner (or MLA format)
- All FINAL DRAFT essays must be turned in with an edited rough draft attached to the back of the final draft (regardless of whether or not essay is edited in class, by teacher, family member, or peer) - Attach peer edit sheet between drafts
- For information and how to’s for MLA formatting visit the following link: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/
- All work MUST be resubmitted if it does not meet the standard - for the Assignment (60%/D- pass), UNTIL the student has met the requirements for the skill expectations
- All work CAN be resubmitted for a higher grade: Use the comments to improve content, grammar & resubmit the new draft with the original (edited) draft stapled underneath
Extra Credit. Students may earn extra credit by:
- BOOM POINTS - added to their daily tally when showing wit, wisdom, insight, and empathy for others
- Submitting Book Reports Early (minimum 1 week before deadline)
- Additional Independent Book Reports (submit by the end of each quarter)
- Additional Pieces in their Independent Book Reports (submit by the end of each quarter)
- Persuasive Essay
- Research Report
- Comparing Themes Across texts
- Comparing Books by the same author
- Comparing different perspectives on the same piece of news
- Collection of poetry
- Creative Writing Piece
- Autobiographical Account
- Video/Multimedia Adventure
- ANY Creative Idea run by me first
Cell phones. Cell phones should be kept OFF and AWAY unless they have been approved by a teacher for class use. Appropriate uses: music during silent writing time IF the playlist is not changed; looking up words on dictionary; online research; taking notes; homework recording/photo of whiteboard...
*If you are seen using your phone inappropriately, you will automatically lose a minimum of 5 points.
**If you show me consistent effort and progress throughout the class, participate in oral class discussions, contribute to group projects, and complete all of the assignments thoroughly and timely, you will earn an A. You will lose points for missing assignments, refusal to participate, incomplete, sloppy, or lazy work. Additionally, you will lose points for tardiness, excessive absences, or behavior that disrupts the learning environment. On the other hand, if you show steady improvements, I will weight your grade in a more favorable direction.
VIII. BEHAVIORAL EXPECTATIONS
- Arrive on time and begin working immediately
- Bring all necessary materials (including homework) every day.
- LISTEN to the person addressing the class
- FOLLOW procedures and routines
- RESPECT each other
- USE POSITIVE LANGUAGE to express thoughts
- HELP maintain a clean classroom & safe environment
- CELL PHONES are OFF and AWAY unless they have been approved by a teacher for class use
CONSEQUENCES:
1. verbal warning & LOSE POINTS from daily tally (in 5 point increments)
2. conference after class
3. phone call home
4. referral to principal & behavior contract
*Consequences for misuse of your personal technology
1. warning (and loss of points)
2. teacher confiscation
3. technology for parent pick-up in office
**Consequences for misuse of Cypress technology
1. First offense - loss of technology for the day & technology behavior contract
2. Second Offense - Loss of technology at Cypress permanently
How can parents know what is going on in class?
Parents and students can check homework assignments, up-coming tests, and project due dates on my website & check their grades on Illuminate (which will be updated by Friday of each week, at the least).
All missed work can be made up by accessing the website and handing in missed journal entries, readings, and assignments. Parents are also welcome to call or email the teacher anytime.
Please email me to acknowledge that you have been fully informed of classroom policies, procedures, and expectations, and you agree to follow these to the best of your ability.
Thank you & looking forward to the year ahead!! [email protected]
Student Signature: _______________________________________________________ Date: ________________________
Parent Signature: _________________________________________________________ Date: ________________________