Mr. Dodge

English 11 Honors Course Description

        Welcome to English Honors 11. A major part of the curriculum this year will be a survey of American Literature. I believe that the way we think today is because of what people have thought in the past. I believe learning our  “intellectual history” is as important as learning what’s taught in history class. Students will be doing a number of assignments from the McDougal, Littell American Literature text. The major units will be Native American literature; the Puritans;  the Age of Reason; the Romantic Era; Transcendentalism; the Age of Realism; three key poets - Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson and Paul Laurence Dunbar; the Harlem Renaissance; and the Modern Era. Students will read a number of famous American novels and plays and will be given at least one independent reading choice.  

        As far as writing assignments, there will be some analyses, like book and movie reviews, persuasive essays, like editorials and commentaries, some creative pieces like poems and short stories, as well as descriptive and narrative writing. There may be a short research paper. There will definitely be a practice college essay.

        There will be vocabulary lessons and SAT prep. There will be 20 words every other week. I will take a week in October to prepare and practice for the PSAT, and thereafter there will be occasional lessons to prepare students for the SAT in May, including practicing for the SAT essay.

Grading: Grades will be based on the following formula:

Writing assignments (30%)

Homework assignments, including book quizzes (40%)

Vocabulary quizzes (20%)

Class work (10%)

Policies: Writing and homework assignments are marked down if late. Homework assignments cannot be handed in after class discussion of the assignment.

Vocabulary quizzes may be retaken if you do poorly the first time, although grades will be averaged together.

I will give students print outs of their grades weekly.