English 3 Honors

Teacher: Sarah WorkmanEmail:

Phone: (270) 628-3800 ext. 4125Planning Period: 5th period (11:40-12:30)

I. Title

English 3: American Literature

II. Course Description

Eleventh grade Honors English students are required to read at least four novels per year. Students will read, discuss, and analyze the historical context of American non-fiction, fiction, and poetry selections both orally and in writing. Emphasis is also placed on writing. Students are required to write a short story, informative speech, and a research-based argumentative paper as well as experiment with other forms of transactive/analytical writing. Grammar usage and mechanics are parts of the writing experience. Focus will also be placed upon reviewing concepts for the English and Reading portions of the ACT. This course is a pre-requisite for Honors English IV (dual credit).Students wishing to take the dual credit Honors English IV must pass Honors English III with a ‘C’ or better.

III. Course Objectives

Class activities will be centered on the attainment of the course objectives listed below. These objectives are understood to be reflective of, but not limited to, those behaviors aligned with the Kentucky Core Academic Standards (KCAS) for English Language Arts Grades 11-12. Following each objective, and enclosed in parentheses, are numbers which reference the Kentucky Core Academic Standards that are addressed by that objective. Upon successful completion of this class, students will be able to

A. Read and interpret a variety of grade-level appropriate texts (literature and informational) to determine what the text says explicitly and implicitly, determine central themes or ideas and analyze their development throughout the text, analyze the impact of the author’s choices, and determine the meaning of unknown words and phrases. (RL. 11-12.1-5, RI. 11-12.1-4)

B. Determine an author’s point of view and analyze the development and effectiveness of a presented argument or topic, with attention given to style, content, and aesthetic. Arguments studied will include seminal U.S. texts such as “The Declaration of Independence” and Thomas Paine’s “The Crisis.” (RL. 11-12.6-10, RI. 11-12.6-10)

C. Produce clear and coherent writing that addresses and fits the following parameters: write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence; writeinformative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content; write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences. (W. 11-12.1-4)

D. Gather evidence from multiple source types including texts studied to effectively evaluate and present a topic or position on a topic. Students will conduct research as needed, and use the writing process to guide the production of assigned writing tasks. (W. 11-12.5-10)

E. Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9–10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. Students will present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task, incorporating a variety of media as necessary. (SL.11-12.1-6)

F. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standardEnglish grammar and usage when writing or speaking. (L. 11-12.1)

G. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing paying particular attention to the use of semicolons to separate two or more independent clauses and the use of colons to introduce lists. (L. 11-12.2)

H. Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression; demonstrate understanding of figurative language and word relationships. (L. 11-12.3-6).

IV. Content Outline

Mrs. Workman reserves the right to modify and refine the instructional units as the year progresses. Texts to be studied are somewhat tentative and subject to change.

A. Unit 1 – Literature of Early America (Beginnings-1750)

This unit will focus on American literature from the Early American Period and will feature such authors as the Navajo, Onondaga, Iroquois, Christopher Columbus, John Edwards, Anne Bradstreet, and Arthur Miller (for content of The Crucible). Students will also write personal narratives/memoirs in response to Native American readings which will give an accurate picture of who and why they are.

  • “The Earth on Turtle’s Back,” the Onondaga
  • “When Grizzlies Walked Upright,” the Navajo
  • “The Iroquois Confederation,” the Iroquois
  • “Journal of the First Voyage to America,” Christopher Columbus
  • “General History of Virginia,” John Smith
  • “Of Plymouth Plantation,” William Bradford
  • “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” John Edwards
  • “To My Dear and Loving Husband,” Anne Bradstreet
  • The Crucible, Arthur Miller

B. Unit 2 – Early National Period (1750-1800)

This unit will focus on American literature from the Early National Period and will feature such authors as OlaudahEquiano, Phyllis Wheatley, Patrick Henry, and Benjamin Franklin. Students will also prepare informative speeches that will require research documented using MLA styling and will complete a practice informative constructed response.

  • “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of OlaudahEquiano,” OlaudahEquiano
  • “The Declaration of Independence,” Thomas Jefferson
  • “The Crisis, Number 1,” Thomas Paine
  • To His Excellency, George Washington, Phyllis Wheatley
  • “Speech in the Virginia Convention,” Patrick Henry
  • “Speech in the Convention,” Benjamin Franklin

C. Unit 3 – 19th Century Literature (1800-1870)

This unit will focus on American literature from the 19th Century Literature Period and will feature such authors and poets as Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Walt Whitman, and Emily Dickinson. Students will also be required to create short stories that tie in elements of those words read and discussed in class.

  • “The Devil and Tom Walker,” Washington Irving
  • “The Minister’s Black Veil,” Nathaniel Hawthorne
  • “The Fall of the House of Usher,” Edgar Allan Poe
  • Because I Could Not Stop for Death, I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died, et. al., Emily Dickinson
  • Song of Myself, I Hear America Singing, Walt Whitman
  • “Walden,” Henry David Thoreau
  • “Self-Reliance,” Ralph Waldo Emerson

D. Unit 4 – The Age of Realism (1850-1914)

This unit will focus on American literature from the Age of Realism and will feature such authors and poets as Sojourner Truth, Mark Twain, Jack London, Kate Chopin, Edwin Arlington Robinson, Edgar Lee Masters, and Willa Cather. Students will begin working on an argumentative research paper which will include sources document using MLA format. Students will also complete a practice argumentative constructed response in preparation for end of the year testing.

  • “My Bondage and My Freedom,” Frederick Douglass
  • “An Account of an Experience of Discrimination,” Sojourner Truth
  • “The Gettysburg Address,” “The Emancipation Proclamation,” Abraham Lincoln
  • “Life on the Mississippi,” Mark Twain
  • “To Build a Fire,” Jack London
  • “The Story of an Hour,” Kate Chopin
  • “A Wagner Matinee,” Willa Cather
  • Luke Havergal, Richard Cory, Edwin Arlington Robinson
  • Lucinda Matlock, Richard Bone, Edgar Lee Masters

E. Unit 5 – The Modern Era (1914-1945)

This unit will focus on American literature from the Modern Era and will feature such authors and poets as John Steinbeck, William Faulkner, Robert Frost, Langston Hughes, and Carl Sandburg. Students will also revise their research papers and turn in a final draft.

  • “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” F. Scott Fitzgerald
  • “The Turtle from Grapes of Wrath,” John Steinbeck
  • Chicago, Leaves of Grass, Carl Sandburg
  • Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, Mending Wall, Robert Frost
  • “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner
  • “Dust Tracks on a Road,” Zora Neale Hurston
  • I, Too, Dream Deferred, Dream Variations, Langston Hughes
  • The Red Wheelbarrow, The Great Figure, This is Just to Say, William Carlos Williams

F. Unit 6 – The Contemporary Period (1946-present)

This unit will focus on American literature from the Contemporary Period and feature such authors and poets as Flannery O’Connor, Alice Walker, Amy Tan, Sylvia Plath, Ian Frazier, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Students will complete a literary analysis that will require a more in-depth look at a chosen look.

  • “The Life you Save May be Your Own,” Flannery O’Connor
  • “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker
  • “Onomatopoeia,” William Safire
  • “Coyote v. Acme,” Ian Frazier
  • “Mother Tongue,” Amy Tan
  • “The Rock Pile,” James Baldwin
  • Mirror, Sylvia Plath
  • My Papa’s Waltz, Theodor Roethke
  • In a Classroom, Adrienne Rich
  • “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King, Jr.

V. Instructional Activities

A variety of instructional activities will be used in this course including inquiry learning, reflective journaling, classroom discussion and presentations.

One novel will be read each nine weeks. Students will complete identification, interpretation, and discussion questions for each novel every two or three weeks. A quiz will accompany each assignment.

Students will complete the ACT Coach book activities throughout the year in preparation for taking the ACT in March. Students will also acquire fifteen vocabulary words each week and will complete a variety of activities to learn the words and be able to use them in everyday conversation. A weekly vocabulary quiz will be completed, as well as mid-term and end-of-term quizzes each nine weeks.

VI. Texts and Resources

  1. Prentice Hall Literature, Penguin Edition, Grade Eleven
  2. Wordly Wise 3000, Third Edition, Book 11 (reproduced pages)

C. Novels

“The Great Gatsby,”F. Scott Fitzgerald

”Of Mice and Men,” John Steinbeck

“Huckleberry Finn,” Mark Twain

“The Scarlet Letter,” Nathaniel Hawthorne

D. ACT Coach: English, Reading, and Writing

VII. Evaluation and Grading Procedures

A. Grading Scale

A = 100% - 90%

B = 89% - 80%

C = 79% - 70%

D = 69% - 60%

F = 59% and below

B. Articulation, professionalism, standard English, appropriate use of MLA format, and neatness are extremely important in presentations and written assignments. Grades will be earned based upon completion of and participation in the classroom activities. A 10% late penalty will be deducted each calendar day that an assignment is late. An assignment is considered late if it is not submitted when the teacher collects the class assignments (i.e., turning an assignment in at the end of class when it was collected at the beginning of class would result in a 10% penalty).

C. Students will receive grades in the following categories: Tests and Quizzes (30%), Papers (30%), Daily (40%). All grading will be posted in a timely fashion via Infinite Campus. Bellringers and other daily assignments fall under the category of “Daily.” Participating in class and completing Bellringers each day is the student’s responsibility; students will not be able to complete these assignments for a late grade.

IX. Attendance Policy

Students are expected to adhere to the attendance policy outlined in the student handbook.

Students will be considered tardy if they are not in their seat when the bell rings. Jumping into the classroom as the bell rings will not count.

X. Academic Honesty

Taken from Murray State University’s Academic Honesty Policy

Violations of Academic Honesty include:

Cheating - Intentionally using or attempting to use unauthorized information such as books, notes, study aids, or other electronic, online, or digital devices in any academic exercise; as well as unauthorized communication of information by any means to or from others during any academic exercise.

Fabrication and Falsification - Intentional alteration or invention of any information or citation in an academic exercise. Falsification involves changing information whereas fabrication involves inventing or counterfeiting information.

Multiple Submission - The submission of substantial portions of the same academic work, including oral reports, for credit more than once without authorization from the instructor.

Plagiarism - Intentionally or knowingly representing the words, ideas, creative work, or data of someone else as one’s own in any academic exercise, without due and proper acknowledgement.

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