Welcome to American Literature!
Course Description: This course will focus on landmark texts from a variety of genres including novels, plays, and poetry from throughout American history. Students will read, discuss, analyze, and respond to texts to understand how authors were influenced by and represented significant events in the United States. This course also provides several opportunities for cross-curricular learning with the American History classes. Possible texts could include historical documents, To Kill a Mockingbird, Warriors Don’t Cry, The Great Gatsby, Of Mice and Men, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, The Crucible, A Raisin in the Sun, selected works by Edgar Allan Poe, and various other poetry and short stories.
Expectations
I expect students to:
Students can expect me to:
If a student or parent has a concern that these expectations are not being met, arrangements will be made to meet outside of class time to discuss strategies and solutions. If students and I cannot agree on a successful strategy, parents and/or administration will be involved.
Classroom procedures:
Grading:
Course grades will be calculated according to the school’s uniform grading scale:
100-94% A 89-87% B+ 79-77% C+ 69-67% D+ 59-0% F
93-90% A- 86-84% B 76-74% C 66-64% D
83-80% B- 73-70% C- 63-60% D-
Academic Honesty:
Cheating will absolutely not be tolerated in my classroom. This includes copying from another student, the internet, or a published source without giving proper credit. As stated in the HHS student handbook, “Academic dishonesty will be handled in accordance with ISD#203 Policy 506 (Student Discipline). Students in violation of this policy will have five school (5) days from the incident to complete an alternate assessment. If a student fails to complete the alternate assessment a grade of zero will be recorded. The time and location of the alternate assessment will be set by the classroom teacher. Any student with a documented incident of academic dishonesty during the quarter will be ineligible for the honor roll. All documented incidents of academic dishonesty will be considered a violation of ISD#203 Policy 534 (Student Code of Responsibilities).”
Course Units and Themes (subject to change):
Women’s Voices (Emily Dickinson poems, various short stories)
Native American Experiences (various short stories)
Voices from War (A Separate Peace, various short stories)
The American Struggle, the American Dream (The Secret Life of Bees, Warriors Don’t Cry, A Raisin in the Sun, To Kill a Mockingbird, Call Me by My Name, movie Just Mercy)