ENGLISH 9: Semester 1 (Q1 & Q2) and Semester 2 (Q3 & Q4)
English 9 is a course where students will build a strong base of knowledge which will become the foundation of much of their high school education. In this course, students will be challenged through a variety of tasks which incorporate the five aspects of an English classroom: reading, writing, speaking, listening and viewing. The goal of this course is to increase students’ cognitive understanding and critical thinking skills. This goal will be met through the rigor and sophistication of the lessons and activities, the challenging assessments, and the complex texts and materials that the students will be exposed to during this course. Students will study both reading and writing in depth through numerous genres and lenses. They will study and experience diverse interests, cultures, perspectives, learning styles, and how intelligence is cultivated in higher level critical and creative thinking skills such as interpretation, problem-solving, and investigation. Students will develop these skills through inquiry-based activities and by exploring the text not only through a world-view lens but also through a critical/investigative lens. Students are asked to dig beneath the surface to focus on the how and why something happens the way it does. Through leveled questions and engaging discussions, students will build skills that assist them in deciphering a topic and communicating their understanding not only through their writing but also through speaking and discussion with classmates. (1SSENG9Q)
ENGLISH 10: Semester 1 (Q1 & Q2) and Semester 2 (Q3 & Q4)
English 10 is a year-long course that emphasizes the fundamental language skills of reading, writing, thinking, viewing, and presenting. An emphasis on vocabulary and composition skills is an on-going part of the class. Students refine their skills of written expression by writing compare/contrast, literary analysis, research, persuasive, and narrative essays. Students analyze important themes in classic and modern works of various literary genres including short stories, novels, and non-fiction. Topics include author’s purpose and perspective, exploration of human motives and conflicts, the study of figurative, connotative, and technical vocabulary in context, literary devices, and the art of persuasion. The development of critical reading and writing skills is a major emphasis of the course. Students will utilize the knowledge and tools acquired each quarter to participate in a project-based learning assignment. The assignment will connect the real world around them to the content embedded within this course. (1SSENG10Q)
ENGLISH 11: Semester 1 (Q1 & Q2) and Semester 2 (Q3 & Q4)
English 11 is a year-long course that emphasizes the development of an academic persona to further student’s skills in reading, writing, analyzing, interpreting, viewing, synthesizing, and presenting. The students will explore a variety of strategies to effectively interpret, evaluate, and synthesize meaning through analyzing various literary theories throughout several time periods with the purpose of creating more sophisticated readers, thinkers, and writers. Students will analyze texts and media for advanced rhetorical strategies, fallacies, logic, and arrangement to eventually apply to national issues using each of these devices through written and oral presentations. Using advanced and sophisticated strategies in premises, purposes, and propositions in a variety of works, students will analyze and implement argumentation methods by justifying and documenting evidence and presenting the arguments effectively to an authentic audience. The development of sophisticated interpreters, readers, writers, and oral conveyors is emphasized throughout the course. (1SSENG11Q)
ENGLISH 12: Semester 1 (Q1 & Q2) and Semester 2 (Q3 & Q4)
English 12 is a year-long course that focuses on contemporary literary genres and themes through speeches, short fiction, various nonfiction, poetry, and choice texts. Each quarter, numerous reading and writing skills are introduced to students in new, innovative ways in order to foster growth and to shed light on the many ways in which English/Language Arts translates to our real world. Skills include rhetorical analysis; reading for allegory, symbolism, themes; inferencing and evaluating; narrative writing, argument-synthesis writing, expository writing, and more. With an emphasis on Project Based Learning, students identify authentic, personalized, and complex questions to investigate and learn from. Oftentimes these projects lead to various multimedia productions as well as various speaking and listening platforms. English 12 students are encouraged to reflect on their growth, development, and many accomplishments as they near the end of their high school careers. (1SSENG12Q)
CREATIVE WRITING Semester 1 (Q1 & Q2) or Semester 2 (Q3 & Q4)
For many hundreds of years, literature has been one of the most important human art forms. It allows us to give voice to our emotions, create imaginary worlds, express ideas, and escape the confines of material reality. Through creative writing, we can come to better understand ourselves and our world. This course can provide you with a solid grounding in the writing process, from finding inspiration to building a basic story. Then, when you are ready to go beyond the basics, learn more complicated literary techniques to create strange hybrid forms of poetry and prose. By the end of this semester-long course, you can better discover your creative thoughts and turn those ideas into fully realized pieces of creative writing. This course is designed to allow students the freedom to demonstrate their own creativity and process and share their voice with a community of writers. Creative Writing is an English elective course (1SSWRCREQ)
