Course Overview—English 9
This course is a holistic English course. It includes a survey of world literature as well as practice
of written and oral communications. Students will read a variety of literature, including short
stories, poetry, drama, non-fiction, and a novel.
Objectives
Students will read a variety of selections by great world authors to better understand themselves
and others, to develop a set of values for everyday living, to be discriminating in the choice of
reading materials, to develop skills in comprehension, and to build a larger working vocabulary.
Students will also engage in various writing activities and grammar reviews to improve their
communications skills.
A. Students will be able to define, explain, and analyze a story’s plot, characters, point
of view, setting, and theme.
B. Students will be able to read, interpret, and critically analyze a novel.
C. Students will be able to read, comprehend, analyze, and critique drama.
D. Students will be able to read, comprehend, analyze, and critique poems.
E. Students will be able to organize and develop a five-paragraph essay.
F. Students will improve their writing style through the study of effective sentence and
paragraph.
Requirements
1. Each unit will consist of reading assigned selections, answering questions about the
selections, and discussing the selections in small groups and/or as a large group.
2. Quizzes will be given after many of the selections. These are designed to check for reading
comprehension and will consist primarily of recall questions. Quizzes will range from 10-20
points.
3. Exams will be given after each unit. They will range from 100-150 points, depending on the
number of selections in the unit.
4. One project will be required with each unit. With most units, students will be given a list of
projects to choose from. The number of points assigned to projects will depend on how
extensive the project is for the unit.
5. A writing assignment will be required with each unit. These assignments will range from 5060 points.
6. A notebook is to be kept for this class. This notebook will consist of various journal entries
and assigned activities. The notebook is checked twice per quarter—midway through the
quarter and at the end of the quarter. The number of points assigned to the notebook will
depend on the number of entries and activities assigned in it during that evaluation period.
Content
Weeks 1-7
Unit 1: Spine Tinglers
1.
2.
3.
4.
Weeks 8-13
“The Most Dangerous Game”
“The Cask of Amontillado”
“The Birds”
“The Red-headed League”
Unit 2: Challenges and Choices
1. from “Rosa Parks: My Story”
2. “There is a Longing”
3. “I Hear America Singing”
4. “The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind”
5. “The Road Not Taken”
6. “To be of use”
7. “New Directions”
8. “Old Man of the Temple”
9. “Slam, Dunk, & Hook”
10. “The Spearthrower”
11. “Shoulders”
Weeks 14-17
Unit 3: Moments of Discovery
1. “Rules of the Game”
2. “Checkouts”
3. “Fifteen”
4. “Sympathy”
5. “Caged Bird”
6. “We never know how high we are”
7. from “My Place”
8. “The Interlopers”
9. “The Rug Merchant”
Weeks 18-21
Unit 4: The Lighter Side
1. “Go Deep to the Sewer”
2. “The Talk”
3. “An Entomological Study of Apartment 4A”
4. “Macavity: The Mystery Cat”
5. “Problems with Hurricanes”
6. “One Ordinary Day, With Peanuts”
Weeks 22-25
Unit 5: Short Stories
1. “The Gift of the Magi”
2. “Sonata for Harp and Bicycle”
3. “The Scarlet Ibis”
4. “The Man to Send Rain Clouds”
5. “The Invalid’s Story”
Weeks 26-31
Unit 6: Drama—The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet
1. Act I
2. Act II
3. Act III
4. Act IV
5. Act V
Weeks 32-37
Unit 7: The Novel
1. Plot
2. Themes
3. Character Development
4. Setting
5. Author Background
Course Overview—English 11
This course consists of a college-bound review of English through an extensive study of grammar
and usage. Students will engage in various writing activities, including the writing of essays,
reviews, short stories, and a research paper. Students will read and critically analyze the writing
of short stories and a novel to help them develop their own writing skills. A combination of
grammar study, formal writing, and creative writing will be used to best meet the students’ needs.
Objectives
A. Students will learn how to improve their writing style through the study of effective sentence,
paragraph, and essay.
B. Students will write with clear expression of ideas and moods.
C. Students will use proper subject-verb agreement, pronoun-antecedent agreement, and tense
agreement.
D. Students will use correct punctuation and capitalization.
E. Students will develop research techniques.
F. Students will read, interpret, and critically analyze literature.
Requirements
1. Students will complete a variety of daily assignments, including worksheets, textbook
activities, and short writing assignments. Daily work will be worth 10-25 points.
2. A notebook is to be kept for this class. The notebook will consist of various journal entries as
well as assigned activities from the textbook. The notebook is checked twice per quarter—
midway through the quarter and at the end of the quarter. Students are also required to read
one journal entry during each evaluation period. The number of points assigned to the
notebook will be dependent upon the number of entries and activities assigned during that
evaluation period.
3. Exams will be given after each chapter. Exams will range from 60-100 points, depending on
the content of the chapter.
4. Quizzes will be given to check students’ understanding of new concepts. They will be worth
10-20 points.
5. A variety of writing assignments will be completed for the class. These will include
paragraphs, short compositions, five-paragraph essays, short stories, reaction papers, reviews,
and a research paper. Smaller assignments will be worth 50-60 points, while longer
assignments will be worth 100 points. The research paper is one third of the third quarter
grade.
Content
Weeks 1-3
The Writing Process
1. Pre-writing
2. Drafting
3. Revising
4. Editing and Publishing
Writing Application Essay
Week 4 Complete Sentences
1. Fragments
2. Run-ons
Writing Application Goldilocks Story
Weeks 5‐7 Developing Writing Style
1.
2.
3.
4.
Choosing Vivid Words
Writing Concise Sentences
Creating Sentence Variety
Correcting Faulty Sentences
Writing Application Object Composition Weeks 8‐9 Novel
1. Author Background
2. Symbolism
3. Theme
Writing Application Literary Analysis
Weeks 10‐11 Writing Paragraphs
1. Analyzing Paragraphs
2. Process of Writing Paragraphs
a. Narrative
b. Descriptive
c. Expository
d. Persuasive
Writing Application Narrative, Descriptive, Expository, and Persuasive Paragraphs
Weeks 12‐13 Persuasive Essays
1. Fact/Opinion
2. Reasoning
3. Thesis
4. Developing an Argument
5. Fallacies
6. Persuasive Language
Writing Application Persuasive Essay
Weeks 15‐19 Phrases
1. Appositive
2. Verbals
3. Dangling and Misplaced Modifiers
Writing Application Short Story
Weeks 20-23
Commas
Writing Application Proverb Essay
Weeks 24-28
Research Paper/Punctuation
1. Research Paper
A. Bibliography
B. Paraphrasing
C. Note taking
D. Outlining
E. Drafting
F. Citing Sources
G. Revising
2. Punctuation
A. Semicolons
B. Colons
C. Underlining
D. Hyphens
E. Dashes
F. Parenthesis
G. Brackets
Writing Application Research Paper
Weeks 29-30
Shakespeare Play
1. Historical Background
2. Themes
3. Character Analysis
Writing Application Essay
Weeks 31-37
Novel
1. Genre/Style
2. Character Development
3. Author Background
4. Theme
Writing Application Book Review