This course is designed to help students become skilled readers and writers through engagement with the following course requirements:
- Composing in several forms (e.g., narrative, expository, analytical, and argumentative essays) about a variety of subjects
- Writing that proceeds through several stages or drafts, with revision aided by teacher and peers
- Writing informally (e.g., imitation exercises, journal keeping, collaborative writing), which helps students become aware of themselves as writers and the techniques employed by other writers
- Writing expository, analytical, and argumentative compositions based on readings representing a variety of prose styles and genres
- Reading nonfiction (e.g., essays, journalism, science writing, autobiographies, criticism)
- Analyzing graphics and visual images both in relation to written texts and as alternative forms of text themselves
- Developing research skills and the ability to evaluate, use, and cite primary and secondary sources
- Conducting research and writing argument papers in which students present an argument of their own that includes the analysis and synthesis of ideas from an array of sources
- Citing sources using a recognized editorial style (e.g., Modern Language Association, The Chicago Manual of Style)
- Revising work to develop:
- A wide-ranging vocabulary used appropriately and effectively;
- A variety of sentence structures, including appropriate use of subordination and coordination;
- Logical organization, enhanced by techniques such as repetition, transitions, and emphasis;
- A balance of generalization and specific, illustrative detail; and
- An effective use of rhetoric, including tone, voice, diction, and sentence structure.
Learn more about our High School and AP* Exam Preparation Courses
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