Ms. C. Medeiros EnglishIV HonorsSyllabus

Miramar High School British Literature

Text: The Language of Literature, Grade 12

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I.English IV Honors consists of five components: literature, composition, language study, listening and speaking skills, and informational reading skills. During the course of the school year the student will master the following objectives:

Students will read, analyze, and critique classical and contemporary British Literature. Textbooks will be issued to all students. All literature will focus on universal themes and issues common to humanity. Literary elements and devices will be revisited as the year progresses.

Students will understand and practice the reading-writing connection. A variety of rhetorical structures appropriate for a particular audience will be studied and practiced, from short essays to research papers, from resumes to poetry.

Students will actively participate in language study. Language study will emphasize vocabulary development as well as the consistent use of words and elements of writing that are appropriate for a particular audience. Frequent grammatical errors will be studied and corrected.

Students will actively participate in listening, speaking, and discussion activities and will also be exploring and presenting ideas related to the text in class.

Students will use effective reading strategies in a variety of informational contexts. The Interactive Reader workbook proves to be an excellent tool for this goal. Students will be required to complete reading assignments in the Interactive Reader, as well as highlighting and completing margin and vocabulary activities that are provided with each selection.

  1. British Literature will be studied chronologically by using a variety of short selections from several text sources.

The following longer pieces will be intently studied:

“Beowulf” translated by R. Burton (Epic Poem)

Hamlet by William Shakespeare (Play - Tragedy)

Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (Narrative/Descriptive Poetry)

“Six Feet of the Country” by Nadine Gordimer (Short Story)

“A Hanging” by George Orwell (Essay)

“Words and Behavior” by Aldous Huxley (Essay)

from “Writing as an Act of Hope” by Isabel Allende (Essay)

  1. HOMEWORK WILL BE ASSIGNED NIGHTLY!! HOWEVER, A WRITTEN PRODUCT MAY NOT BE REQUIRED DAILY. A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF READING MUST BE DONE AT HOME!!
  1. The following grading scale will be utilized:

90 -100 = A

87 - 89 = B+

80 - 86 = B

77 - 79 = C+

70 - 76 = C

67 - 69 = D+

60 - 66 = D

59 or below = F

Incomplete = I

  1. Punctuality, regular attendance, and careful attention to assignments and deadlines are all absolutely essential for the successful completion of this course.
  2. Materials: a notebook and folder OR a 3-Ring Binder with white-lined paper, and a PEN (NO PENCIL-WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS will be accepted! Unless, it is an artistic assignment).
  3. Supplemental Materials: students should have a dictionary and a thesaurus available for use at home. Students will be asked to acquire several paperback novels during the course of the year to enhance their knowledge. Every student will have home learning assignments every night whether there is a written assignment or not. Reading, review, and test preparation are all considered home learning. Expect a minimum of 20 - 30 minutes of home learning every night.

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1st Assignment: Diagnostic Essay

DUE: Thurs. - Blue Days, Fri. - Red Days

Choose a prominent person (living, deceased, or fictional) that you would like to interview and explain why.

Also: “I Am Poems” (Explanation on separate sheet)

DUE: Wed. – Red Days, Thurs. – Blue Days