Health Services Academy
College Thinking, College Writing
Instructor: Mrs. Edwards
Course: English Language Arts 11
Contact: [email protected]
Course Description
This course aims to train Health Services Academy juniors to think about and write up analytical,
narrative, expository, and two types of argumentative papers. The first semester of this course will
emphasize the SAT argumentative essay, recognizing, outlining, summarizing, and critiquing an
argument as well as reading many non-fiction texts. It is imperative that students are able to evaluate
arguments and be able to respond to arguments with sound evidence to produce a logical, complex, and
coherent understanding of what is read.
The second semester will emphasize argument literacy —in other words the ability to read, summarize,
and contribute to sophisticated arguments mainly on political, social, and moral issues. Surveys show
that only twenty percent of American students know that summarizing and making arguments is the
name of the game in academia. By the end of the second semester Health Services Academy juniors
will be among the twenty percent who know the game and how to play it.
Primary Learning Goals
By the end of the course, students will understand:
• What they read: the thesis, the author’s motivation for writing, tone and style, and the
occasion or context.
• How a text is created to develop meaning and purpose including genre, organization,
paragraphing, syntax;
• The relationship of the text’s creation to its accomplishment, the purpose of academic
intellectual prose, its meaning and effects;
• How to articulate their analysis of what they read; how the organizational structure,
diction, syntax, imagery, figurative language flesh out the meaning of a text;
• How to create, develop and support an argument, acknowledging the complexities and
nuances of important issues that adults argue about in contemporary intellectual circles;
• How to become good citizens through public discourse issues
• How to enter into a conversation with sources and develop a thesis or argument or
exposition by synthesizing these conversations into their own writing;
• How to analyze and incorporate their analysis of visual texts into their writing;
• Effective research skills and proper MLA citation;
• How to read a question, so they know how to approach it
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How to enhance their vocabulary as a means to effective writing; how to grapple with
archaic prose
How to demonstrate command of language in an oral presentation
How to write using various rhetorical strategies
Writing Requirements: The goal of the writing program implemented in this course is that
students will be prepared to write the type of position papers required in college as we explore
The American Experience This will require you to generate an effective thesis, support your
thesis with major premises and evidence, and to justify your argument. In order to do this
effectively, you must synthesize information from multiple sources to create a coherent and
sustained case for your position, and cite your sources using an approved method of citation. To
do this, we will read multiple authors that have vast experiences and perspectives, as well as
examine various supplemental materials. Informal journal writing will also be implemented in
order to form our arguments.
In-Class Timed Writings: In-class timed writing will be given on a regular basis. These will
consist of writing prompts from past SAT exams, as well as responses to assigned readings and
current events in the local, national, and global news. All in-class essays are hand written in
black ink and simulate the SAT exam experience. When essays are revised and rewritten beyond
the initial in-class “rough draft” and are reviewed, edited, and reflected upon by the teacher
and/or peers, they must be typed and in accordance with MLA format.
Nonfiction Presentation Project: Students will choose an American nonfiction author in order
to research his/her major work(s), rhetorical devices, mode of discourse, and style. Students will
develop a PowerPoint presentation and speech that will be delivered during class. This project is
completed in the 2nd semester. Students will be given specific guidelines and an approved list of
authors.
Reading Requirements: In order to be prepared for college, you must be able to read a wide
variety of texts throughout the disciplines. Departing from the rest of your English courses thus
far, we will focus primarily on nonfiction texts. You will also be required to read the following
two books:
The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Materials: Copies of most texts will be provided for you. However, it is recommended that you
purchase your own copies of the following: Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style and The
Brief Holt Handbook. These texts will serve you in this course and throughout your college
career in understanding mechanics of writing and using MLA method of citation.
Habits of Mind: The University of California and California State University released a joint
report in 2003 listing those “habits of mind” that lead to university success, and it is expected
that students in this class practice these Habits of Mind. They are:
· Exhibit curiosity
· Experiment with new ideas
· See other points of view
· Challenge one’s own beliefs
· Engage in intellectual discussions
· Ask provocative questions
· Generate hypotheses
· Exhibit respect for other viewpoints
· Read with awareness of self and others
Classroom Policies:
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Homework is due at the beginning of the period. If it is not completed, students will
follow the guidelines established by Health Services Academy in regards to making up
all assignments. There are no excuses. All work must be completed.
You must come to class each day prepared and on time. Once you come in, you are to
complete the Do Now activity that will be on the board. Credit will be given each day for
the completion of the writing activity.
To be successful, you must bring in the required material and assignments each day. This
includes the following
1. An English five subject interactive notebook
2. Two glue sticks
3. Blue or black pens
4. Highlighters
5. Loose leaf college ruled paper
6. A pocket dictionary
7. Post-It Tabs (essential for annotating texts)
8. One pack of index cards
9. Los Angeles Public Library Card (lapl.org)
Scholarly discussions are a big part of the learning environment in this classroom. Thus it
is imperative that we value the opinion of others. Students are free to express their
perspective in an educated manner, and will be given the upmost respect. In exchange,
you are free to voice your opinion, challenge a claim, or justify an argument. Please
remember that the same level of respect you desire from others should be given.
Students are required to read all reading assignments that are assigned in a timely and
prompt manner. This class offers students the opportunity to discuss various subjects, so
it is crucial that all parties stay on top of the reading. In addition, students should stay
abreast of current issues around the world, so that they can make an educated and
insightful contribution to classroom discussions surrounding political and social topics.
Students need to comprehend and analyze various perspectives on the issues they read
and write about, while also deciphering the rhetorical devices used to convey their
message.
All final drafts of major written assignments must be typed and follow the MLA format,
unless otherwise specified. This includes a works cited page. When credit is not given to
the original author, it is called PLAIGARISM!!!!! Students who plagiarize will be given
an automatic zero and will be reported to the office for further discipline.
Technology is integrated in the course throughout the year. Students and the teacher
utilize Microsoft Office, including Word, PowerPoint, and Excel for assignments,
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presentations, activities and projects. Students will also utilize the Internet for interactive
blogs, project research, and the school website for download of assignments and
homework. Students are required to interact with technology as a part of each unit.
Students will also be required to participate in discussions via their grade level blog.
Cell phones must be turned off and put away during the class period. If I witness a
cellular device being used without permission, it will immediately be confiscated and
turned into the office. Please see the student handbook for further information pertaining
to the confiscation of cellular devices.
Food, gum, and drinks (with the exception of water) are not allowed in the classroom.
Students are allowed two passes to leave the classroom during the instructional period
during each semester. When allowed to leave, individuals are not allowed to be outside of
the classroom for more than six minutes.
The Code of Conduct in your Health Services Academy student handbook will be strictly
adhered to. Inappropriate language, cruel remarks, bullying and other negative behavior
will not be tolerated. Please refer to pages 25 to 28 in your student handbook for further
details.
Health Services Academy ELA Pacing Guide 2011-2012
Beginning Date
August 15, 2011
August 29, 2011
October 10, 2011
Instructional Activities
Class Introduction
Policies and Procedures
Introduction to Close Reading and Effective
Writing
Unit 1: Beginnings – 1750
Navajo, from The Navajo Origin Legend
Iroquois, from The Iroquois Constitution
Alvara Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, A Journey Through
Texas
Olaudah Equiano, from The Interesting Narrative
of the Life of Olaudah Equiano
Edward Taylor, Huswifery
Anne Bradstreet, To My Dear and Loving Husband
Jonathon Edwards, Sinners in the Hands of an
Angry God
Duration
2 weeks
Unit 2: A Nation is Born
4 weeks
Benjamin Franklin, from The Autobiography and
Poor Richard’s Almanac
Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence
Thomas Paine, from The Crisis, Number 1
Patrick Henry, Speech in the Virginia Convention
George W. Bush, “Weapons of Mass Destruction”
Speech
6 weeks
November 7, 2011
January 9, 2012
February 6, 2011
Unit 3: A Growing Nation
Meriwether Lewis, Crossing the Great Divide
John Wesley Powell, The Most Sublime Spectacle
on Earth
Edgar Allen Poe, The Fall of the House of Usher
and The Raven
Ralph Waldo Emerson, from Nature, from Self
Reliance, and The Snowstorm
Henry David Thoreau, from Walden and from Civil
Disobedience
Emily Dickinson (poetry)
• Because I could not stop for Death
• I heard a fly buzz- when I died
• The Soul Selects her own Society
Walt Whitman (poetry)
• from Song of Myself
• I Hear America Singing
Langston Hughes, I, Too
Angela de Hoyos, To Walt Whitman
Unit 4: Division, Reconciliation, and Expansion
Stephen Crane, An Episode of War
Spiritual, Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
Spiritual, Go Down Moses
Frederick Douglas,
• from My Bondage and My Freedom
• The Hypocrisy of American Slavery HO
Abraham Lincoln
• The Gettysburg Address
• Second Inaugural Address
• The Emancipation Proclamation
Paul Laurence Dunbar
• Douglass
• We Wear the Mask
Kate Chopin, The Story of an Hour
Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
6 weeks
Unit 5: Disillusion, Defiance, and Discontent
Richard Lederer, The Development of American
English: Slang as It is Slung
Robert Frost (poetry)
• Birches
• “Out, Out-“
F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
6 weeks
4 weeks
March 12, 2011
Unit 6: Prosperity and Protest
Flannery O’ Connor, The Life You Save May Be
Your Own
Alice Walker, Everyday Use
Julia Alvarez, Antojos
Lorna Dee Cervantes, Freeway 280
Martin Espada, Who Burns for the Perfection of
Paper
Simon Ortiz, Hunger in New York City
James Baldwin, The Rockpile
Sylvia Plath, Mirror
Gwendolyn Brooks, The Explorer
Tim O’ Brien, Ambush from The Things They
Carried
CST TESTING
6 weeks
May 2012
TEACHER’S CHOICE of NOVEL
Grading Scale
A = 4 = 84-100%
B = 3 = 67-83.9%
C = 2 = 50-66.9%
NP = 1 = Below 50%
Absences
To best succeed in school, you ought to be in class every day. But if an absence is unavoidable, then you
are responsible for making up all class work and homework within forty-eight hours of your return.
Students will find all assignments posted on PowerSchool and/or the school website. Remember, taking
the initiative to do this make-up work is solely your responsibility.
----------------------------------Return Portion Below to Teacher------------------------------I have read and reviewed this syllabus with my child:
______________________________________________________________________________________
Parent Signature
Date
I have read and reviewed this syllabus, and understand my responsibility as a student:
Student Signature
Date