Language Arts Course Descriptions

Public Speaking 1

This course will provide the motivated student with an overall perspective to the field of interpersonal communication.  This course is designed for students who possess a high level of interest in developing their public speaking skills in a competitive setting.

Research, debate, interpretation, and performance preparation will be stressed.

Tournament participation is highly encouraged.

Public Speaking 2

This course is a continuation of Public Speaking 1, and is designed to further the motivated student’s development in the area of competitive forensics.

Public Speaking 2 provides the environment for preparation, participation, and success in a tournament setting.  Tournament participation is required.

Speech

This is a beginning course aimed at developing poise and confidence in speaking situations.  The course deals with the fundamentals of speaking and listening.  The student learns to organize, write, and present speeches before class audiences.  This course is a requirement for graduation.

Introduction to Literature

In this course, students will experience a blend of types of literature.  Extra focus will be placed on longer works.  Opportunities will be provided for listening, reading, speaking, viewing, and writing.  Students will read a class novel, a play, short stories, poetry, and non-fiction selections.  Students will receive writing instruction, discuss literature selections, write responses to the selections read, and develop language skills, concepts, and thinking strategies.

English Strategies

This course provides students with opportunities to practice a variety of writing styles.  Other areas of study include reading strategies and study skills, information retrieval and research methods, reading and writing in content areas, and thinking strategies.  Although reading, speaking and viewing are integrated into this course, it is a writing intensive class.

Reading I and/or Reading 2

Reading may be taken for a semester (either Reading 1 or Reading 2), or the entire year (both Reading 1 and Reading 2).  This course focuses on improving reading skills and developing a lifelong love of reading.  Students read a variety of fiction and nonfiction materials such as newspapers, short stories, essays, and books.  This reading course has four major components: Sustained Silent Reading, lessons to improve reading skills, reading chosen by the students with the teacher’s assistance, and responding to reading through writing, group discussions, and projects.

Writing Today is a sophomore course that concentrates on solidifying a student’s current writing ability, as well as teaching new techniques and strategies to improve writing.  Some of the writing assignments are business writing, journals, personal experiences, and responses to literature.  Students use a wide variety of concepts and ideas to create writing of high quality that shows careful thought.

Journalistic Writing

This course meets the requirement for Sophomore Writing.  It can also be taken as an elective.  Successful completion of English Strategies is a pre-requisite.  This course offers specialized journalistic writing experiences include news, sports, editorials, features, informational surveys, and column writing.  Units on press law and ethics are included.  Students have the opportunity to write for the school newspaper and yearbook.

Writing Experiences

This course focuses on developing student writers by use of the process approach.  Writing assignments of varying lengths and types include expository, descriptive, and narrative writing.  This includes journal writing; writing based on literature; and speaking, listening, and viewing activities.  Attention is given to organization, unity, coherence, sentence variety, and information retrieval.

American Literature

This class explores the development of American literature.  A variety of authors, genres, styles and themes are selected to reflect the diversity in our culture.  Students read stories, plays, and poetry, and respond to literature in class discussions and written assignments.

American Readings (same as course guide)

American Authors

This course focuses on selected works by American authors from 1830 to the present.  Selected works reflect ageless concerns of the individual and society.  Reading short stories, novel, poems, and plays leads to discussion, writing activities and special projects.  This course is a pre-requisite to AP English.

Classical Literature (same as course guide)

Contemporary Ideas

This course is designed to prepare students to recognize and deal with social and ethical concerns involved in today’s current events.  Student-generated topics will include issues from school-wide, community, national and world proceedings.  Group discussion will be an important focus, and will be strongly supported by written work, including journals and formal papers.  The goal of this class is to encourage student consideration of the world in which they live, and response to issues using meaningful and concise writing.

Guided Literature Projects

This course is open to students who would like to continue reading in specific areas they find interesting.  Students complete at least four reading projects such as reading books by one author, reading books written about the same subject or idea, or reading books written about each student’s personal interests.  With the teacher, students must decide on a number of books to be read.  Readings are selected from projects prepared by the teacher and projects planned by both the teacher and the students.  Students are graded on projects which include written, oral or artistic projects.

AP English – Advanced Placement English, for twelfth grade students, is a three-term college level course that emphasizes literature and composition.  Literature is examined for its structure and meaning, with emphasis being placed on independent analysis. Both group and individual projects are completed during the three terms.  Pre-requisites:  Either American Authors or American Literature and Advanced Writing

U.S. Cultural Tapestry 1

This course combines the many cultures within the United States.  This course will allow students to earn Language Arts and/or Social Studies credit.  U.S. Cultural Tapestry focuses on the historical, literary, musical, artistic, and scientific contributions of  African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans and Native Americans.

In the Spirit of Poetry

This course focuses on studying, sharing, and writing poetry in a workshop setting.  Students study different styles and types of poetry with the opportunity to write their own poetry.

Advanced Writing

This course is recommended for students who wish to refine their writing processes.  Instruction in grammar, figurative language and data retrieval is provided.  Instruction and practice are provided in the writing of expository themes, personal narratives, descriptive writings, comparison/contrast papers, and research papers.  Assignments based on literature are included in this class, as is a writing workshop experience.  

This course is a pre-requisite for AP English and Scott Community College Composition courses.

Communications Studio (same as course guide)

Guided Writing Projects (ask Erin Becker)