ENGLISH IV & ENGLISH IV HONORS

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Course Code: 1001400
Honors Course Code: 1001410
AP Course Code:
Description:

Choose any door, and the person inside will let you in. Dozens of authors will invite you in to experience their works of fiction, nonfiction, drama and poetry. After that, it’s up to you. What you think about their ideas and the ways in which they present them is what will matter.

In this course you will be asked to choose the literature that interests you, analyze the subject matter as it is presented, and persuasively express your own ideas. Every genre of literature has its own conventions for expressing emotions, perceptions, information and biases. You will develop the tools to critically analyze what is being said, and share your insights with others.

As high school seniors, what you choose and what you say becomes very important. The purpose of this course is to provide you with doors to open, ideas to experience, and opportunities to effectively express what you think.

Prerequisites: Recommended: English I, II & III

Estimated Completion Time: 2 segments / 32-36 weeks or 1 block/18 weeks

Major Topics and Concepts:

Segment 1

* Choosing Your Path: Knowing what you want, knowing your strengths
* Timeline: College Application Process
* Evaluating Colleges
* Career Interest Inventory: Knowing what you want
* Career Skills and Abilities: Knowing your strengths
* The Military
* How to make Quality Decisions
* Creating Flow Charts, Goal Setting
* Research Skills
College Comparisons
College Rankings
Financial Aid and Scholarships
* Senior Project College: Composition
Personal Profile
College Essay
* Senior Project Career: Research Skills
Job Market
Community Colleges and Vocational Training
* Senior Project Career: Composition
Summary Paragraph
Resume
Cover Letter
* Senior Project Career: Job Interview Skills
* Senior Project Military: Research Skills
Military Placement Exams
Enlistment vs. Officer Training
College Opportunities
Career Paths
* Senior Project Military: Composition
Paragraph
List of Questions
* Composition: Self Reflection/ Personal Essay
* Students complete a diagnostic test through the Get a Clue program.
* Students create a vocabulary list of terms they choose and create original sentences
* Students continue the Get a Clue program based on the suggested level from the diagnostic test.
* Students discuss a word of their choice.
* Non-fiction
* 5 levels of characterization, plot, conflict, complication, resolution
* MLA research paper
* Vocabulary
* Major thematic elements of non-fiction novel.
* Examining the Dramatic Structure of the Five Act Play
* Elements of Drama
* Examining the tragic hero: Hamlet
* Contrasting Film Adaptations of Shakespeare’s Hamlet with the Shakespeare’s
* Methods of Decoding Shakespearean Language
* Responding to drama through: Newswriting, Original Art, Creative Writing,
* Making Connections to drama: Art, Soundtracks, and Poetry
* Examining the Comedy of Manners
* Purpose of Satire
* Writing About Satire
* Examining Satire and Techniques of Humor
* Responding to drama through: Original Art, Creative Writing, and Critical Review
* Vocabulary Concepts
* Writing Original Sentences

Segment 2

* Poetry
Narrative poem
Epic
Lyric poem
Sonnet
Ode
Free verse lyric
Elegiac lyric
Dramatic poetry
Dramatic monologue
Soliloquy
Stanza
Couplet
Quatrain
Octave
Alliteration
Metaphor
Simile
Hyperbole
Personification
Paradox
Irony
Inversion
Carpe diem
Pastoral
Allusion
Romantic poets
Dialect
Mood
Imagery
Theme
Understatement
Text references
Rhyme
Rhythm/meter
* Honors – poetry terms and concepts:
Metaphysical poetry
Thesis
Sound patterns related to structure and aesthetic unity
Rhetorical devices
Sentence variety
Transitional elements
Diction
Syntax
Symbol
Relationship between speaker and addressee in poetry
Dramatic structure
Imagery
Tone
* Beowulf – the epic, oral tradition literature
* Honors: Metaphysical Poetry
* Cavalier Poets
* Romantic Poets
* A Woman’s Point of View
* Poetry of War
* Creation of Poetry Project - student selection of 5 - 7 poems, personal response and identification of poetic devices
* Composition: personal response, literary analysis, informational writing, paraphrasing, character mapping.
* Completion of online vocabulary lesson; personal word list and original sentences from a variety of sources.
* Science fiction
* Novel elements
* Primary character web: overview of protagonist
* Plot chart: major elements from text
* Vocabulary

Course Assessment and
Participation Requirements:

Besides engaging students in challenging curriculum, VLACS guides students to reflect on their learning and to evaluate their progress through a variety of assessments. Assessments can be in the form of self-checks, practice lessons, multiple choice questions, writing assignments, peer review, projects, research papers, essays, oral assessments, and discussions. Instructors evaluate progress and provide interventions through the variety of assessments built into a course, as well as through contact with the student in other venues.