Contact information:
Ms. Carmella Argento
Wyoming Area Secondary Center
20 Memorial St
Exeter, PA 18643
cargento@wyomingarea.org
570.655.2836 ext. 2182
Homework hotline – 2182
Room # 182
English 11 – Traditional and Honors Syllabus
Course Description:
This course includes the reading and analysis of American Literature from the colonial days to the modern era, appreciating the connections between social events and art. Students will examine and discuss various genre and writing styles and work to develop their own voices. They will demonstrate growth in literary, writing, and speaking skills by participating in individual and group presentations, writings, and peer assessments.
Sources Used:
Text – Prentice Hall Literature, The American Experience
Supplemental – Lord of the Flies by William Golding and The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest
Hemingway (Time permitting – Catcher in the Rye by Salinger and Separate Peace
by Knowles)
Video Resources – The Crucible, Moby Dick, Lord of the Flies, The Old Man and the Sea, and
A&E Biography
PSSA Reading Coach Grade 11 (two different workbooks)
Vocabulary Worksheets
Your grade will be calculated on a total point system (from the following items):
Tests and Quizzes
Projects, Reports, Presentations
Homework, Class Participation, and Attendance
Testing:
Tests missed due to an absence must be made up by the student during a study hall, not during class time, and as soon as possible. If a test is not made up in two weeks from the original test date, the student will receive a zero and will not be allowed to make up the points. Students are aware of tests/quizzes in advance and there is no reason for lack of preparation. In the event of an illness of three days or longer, or a family crisis causing an absence of three or more days, I retain the option of allowing the student additional time to prepare. This is an option, not a right of the student, and it will be decided on a case-to-case basis. Ninety percent of the tests/quizzes are open text to allow for practice for the PSSA’s. If a student is caught cheating during a test/quiz, the test/quiz will be discarded and a zero will be given. Cheating is not tolerated!
Homework:
To receive full credit for homework it must be turned in on the due date. Approximately ten homework assignments will be checked over the course of each marking period for a major grade (100 points). Most of the times, I will let students know when I am going to check the homework but not always.
Essays
Each student is responsible for 18 pieces of writing throughout the course of the year. The PSSA format (3.5 format – three main ideas, five paragraphs) will be used for each of the 18 pieces. Each student will be responsible for completing the following three steps and turning them in on the specified due date: district made outline, a hand written rough draft and a hand written final copy. Essays will be graded on the following domains: focus, content, organization, style and conventions.
Grading Scale:
A 100-95 C 79-75
A- 94-90 C- 74-70
B 89-85 D 69-65
B- 84-80 F 64-0
**There will be opportunities for extra credit each marking period. All students are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunities when they arise. Grades will NOT be rounded up. Whatever grade you receive after all of your grades have been totaled will be the grade that goes on your report card (ex: a 94.5 is not a 95 and will be an A- not an A).
Selections Read:
Onondaga – The Earth on Turtle’s Back
Modoc – When Grizzlies Walked Upright
Navajo – The Navajo Origin Legend
Iroquois – The Iroquois Constitution
Equiano – The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano
Columbus – Journal of the First Voyage of Columbus
Smith – The General History of Virginia
Bradford – Of Plymouth Plantation
Bradstreet – To My Dear and Loving Husband
Edwards – Sinner’s in the Hands of an Angry God
Mather- from The Wonders of the Invisible World (Supplemental Reading)
Miller – The Crucible
Franklin – from The Autobiography
Kennedy – Inaugural Address
Paine – from The Crisis, Number 1
Henry - Speech in the Virginia Convention
Adams – Letter to Her Daughter from the New White House
Haley – Roots
Irving – The Devil and Tom Walker
Poe – The Fall of the House of Usher, The Raven
Hawthorne – The Minister’s Black Veil, Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment
Melville – from Moby-Dick
Emerson – from Nature
Thoreau – from Walden
Twain – The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County
Harte – The Outcasts of Poker Flat
Eliot – The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
Fitzgerald – Winter Dreams
Steinbeck – The Grapes of Wrath
*Some selections may be added or substituted for another.
*Students are also responsible for a minimum of 18 pieces of writing. The 3.5 essay format will be taught and used for each of the essays completed.
Classroom Rules:
Set #1
- Arrive on time (three times tardy = one day in ISS, five times tardy = one day OSS).
- Bring materials and have them ready (you will not be allowed to go to your locker).
- Raise your hand before speaking.
- Listen to others and participate in class discussions.
- Use the pencil sharpener during non-instructional time.
- Stay on task.
- Do your assignments.
- Listen to directions.
- Cooperate with your group.
- Pick up after yourself (any material left in class will be sent down to lost and found in front office).
- Leave other people's materials alone.
- Do not interrupt other students' learning.
- Keep hands, feet and objects to yourself.
- Keep your hands clean and take care of personal hygiene.
- No vandalism. Don't write or carve on your desk or school property.
- Treat computers with care.
Class Rules Set #2
- One person at a time leaves the room with the hall pass (only at beginning or end of period, not in middle, or for emergency purposes only).
- Clean your work station appropriately.
- Absolutely no food, drink, gum, or candy permitted (My room in not a cafeteria!).
- Do not come to class late without a hall pass.
- Be organized and prepared for class.
Class Rules Set #3
- Come to class prepared to learn. (Pencils sharpened, pen, paper, and notebooks)
- Respect all property. (School property, personal property, and other's property)
- Respect all ideas given in class and do not criticize anybody's ideas or thoughts.
- Do your very best!
- Ask questions when you don’t understand something. Never be afraid of a question being stupid.
Summer Reading – English 11 Traditional and Honors
Argento
Due Date: ________________
The Glass Menagerie
Who do you think is the main character of the play – Tom, Laura, or Amanda? Why? Cite specific examples from the play and explain.
The Great Gatsby
Compare and contrast Gatsby and Tom. How are they alike? How are they different? Why might Daisy choose to remain with Tom instead of leaving him for Gatsby?
Macbeth
Discuss the role that blood plays in Macbeth, particularly following Duncan’s murder and late in the play. What does it symbolize for Macbeth or his wife?
Select one of the above prompts and answer in detail. Turn in a typed 3.5 essay on the above due date. No papers will be accepted after the due date!
In your essay make sure to include:
Introductory paragraph – motivator, thesis, idea one, idea two, idea three, transition sentence
Body of your paper – (three or more paragraphs)
- Idea one
- Idea two
- Idea three etc.
Closing paragraph – Restate your thesis, idea one, idea two, idea three…, close with a clincher statement.
Setup:
Name, Due Date, Period in upper right hand corner (single spaced)
Skip one Line
Type the title of book you chose (Remember titles are underlined or italicized).
Skip a line
Tab once – start typing your essay.
Use font size 12 and Times New Roman style. Also your margins should be one inch all around.
Your grade will be determined on content, focus, style, organization, and conventions.
If you have any questions please see me as soon as possible. Do not procrastinate!!