- Wall High School
- AP Language and Composition Syllabus
BARCLAY, KRISTIN
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AP Language and Composition
Wall High School
2024-2025
Teacher Name & Email:
Ms. Kristin Barclay
Extra Help Schedule, Location, and Procedures:
Ms. Barclay:
Unit Lunch Extra Help: BCD UL, C7
Procedures: Arrive prepared and on time.
Marking Period Schedule
Marking Period 1
Marking Period 3
Marking Period 2
Marking Period 4
Midterm Exams
Final Exams
Course Description:
Prerequisite: 91 in English 10 Honors with teacher recommendation
Grade: 11
The AP English Language and Composition Course is a college-level survey course with a rhetorical emphasis. Students will be expected to read widely and critically, to explore rhetorical strategies, and to respond to their readings both with discussions and with in class timed and out-of-class writings that emphasize the particular forms of argumentation, narration, and exposition. All students enrolled in Advanced Placement courses are required to take the Advanced Placement Examinations in May (see Policy 2429 & Program of Studies page 5).
Units of Study
Unit 1: Rhetorical Analysis
Unit 2: Synthesis
Unit 3: Argument
Unit 4: Rhetorical Analysis
Unit 5: Synthesis
Unit 6: Argument
Unit 7: Exam Review
Unit 8: Studying Literature
Classroom Expectations
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Be prepared
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Attendance is very important
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You are responsible for making the arrangements to complete missing assignments and assessments.
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Be respectful
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No cellphone use
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Homework
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Homework must be handed in on time for full credit. Late work is not accepted. When absent, please get your homework in as soon as possible. All work you miss when absent will be located in your class folder.
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Gradebook
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0’s will be placed in the grade book for missing assignments. This policy stands even if you are absent. The reason I do this is to show you what your grade will be if you choose not to make up the missing assignment. Once the missing assignment is completed, your grade will be changed accordingly.
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Materials & Available Resources
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A binder or folder
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Pens and pencils
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Notebook
Grading Breakdown
Each quarter grade is based on a percentage model; the following grading formulas have been established.
Marking Period Category Percentages
Category
Minimum Number
Percentage
Major Assessments
3+
50%
Minor Assessments
7+
30%
Homework/Classwork
9+
20%
Course Grading
Category
Percentage
Marking Period 1
20%
Marking Period 2
20%
Midterm Exam
10%
Marking Period 3
20%
Marking Period 4
20%
Final Exam
10%
Marking Period 1*
Big Ideas
Topics/Themes/Concepts
Activities & Assessments
Timeline
Unit 1:
- Individuals write within a particular situation and make strategic writing choices based on that situation.
- Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and
often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
- Identify and describe components of the rhetorical situation: the exigence, audience, writer, purpose. context,
and message.
- Identify and explain claims and evidence within an argument.
- Develop a paragraph that includes a claim and evidence supporting the claim.
- Rhetorical Situation
- Practice Multiple-Choice
- Practice Rhetorical Analysis Free-Response Writing
- Summer Assignment
- “In Defense of a Liberal Education” Close Reading
- Unit 1 Quiz: multiple choice and rhetorical analysis writing
- Unit 1 Test: multiple choice and rhetorical analysis writing
16
Unit 2:
- Individuals write within a particular situation and make strategic writing choices based on that situation.
- Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and
often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
- Explain how an argument demonstrates understanding of an audience’s beliefs, values, or needs.
- Demonstrate an understanding of an audience’s beliefs, values, or needs.
- Identify and explain claims and evidence within an argument.
- Develop a paragraph that includes a claim and evidence supporting the claim.
- Identify and describe the overarching thesis of an argument, and any indication it provides of the argument’s structure.
- Write a thesis statement that requires proof or defense and that may preview the structure of the argument.
- Rhetorical Appeals
- Practice Multiple-Choice
- Practice Synthesis Free-Response Writing
- Literary Device Quiz Marking Period 1 Quiz
- Mark Twain's "Corn-Pone Opinions" Writing for the audience Quiz
- Unit 2 Quiz: multiple-choice and synthesis writing
- Unit 2 Test: multiple-choice and synthesis writing
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Marking Period 2*
Big Ideas
Topics/Themes/Concepts
Activities & Assessments
Timeline
Unit 3:
Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
Writers guide understanding of a text’s lines of reasoning and claims through that text’s organization and integration of evidence.
Identify and explain claims and evidence within an argument.
Develop a paragraph that includes a claim and evidence supporting the claim.
Describe the line of reasoning and explain whether it supports an argument’s overarching thesis.
Develop a line of reasoning and commentary that explains it throughout an argument.
Recognize and explain the use of methods of development to accomplish a purpose.
Use appropriate methods of development to advance an argument.
Argument Response Quiz: “Conversation: Sustainable Eating”
Socratic Seminar: “Conversation: Sustainable Eating”
Unit 3 Quiz: multiple-choice and argument writing
Vocabulary Quiz
Rhetorical Device Quiz
Unit 3 Test: multiple-choice and argument writing
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Unit 4:
The introduction of an argument introduces the subject and/or writer of the argument to the audience.
An introduction may present the argument’s thesis.
An introduction may orient, engage, and/or focus the audience by presenting quotations, intriguing statements, anecdotes, questions, statistics, data, contextualized information, or a scenario.
The conclusion of an argument brings the argument to a unified end.
A conclusion may present the argument’s thesis. It may engage and/or focus the audience by explaining the significance of the argument within a broader context, making connections, calling the audience to act, suggesting a change in behavior or attitude, proposing a solution, leaving the audience with a compelling image, explaining implications, summarizing the argument, or connecting to the introduction.
A thesis statement may preview the line of reasoning of an argument. This is not to say that a thesis statement must list the points of an argument, aspects to be analyzed, or specific evidence to be used in an argument.
Methods of development are common approaches writers frequently use to develop and organize the reasoning of their arguments. A method of development provides an audience with the means to trace a writer’s reasoning in an argument.
When developing ideas through comparison-contrast, writers present a category of comparison and then examine the similarities and/or differences between the objects of the comparison.
When analyzing similarities and/or differences, categories of comparison must be used.
Identify and describe components of the rhetorical situation: the exigence, audience, writer, purpose, context, and message.
Write introductions and conclusions appropriate to the purpose and context of the rhetorical situation.
Identify and describe the overarching thesis of an argument, and any indication it provides of the argument’s structure.
Write a thesis statement that requires proof or defense and that may preview the structure of the argument.
Recognize and explain the use of methods of development to accomplish a purpose.
Use appropriate methods of development to advance an argument.
Rhetorical Analysis Song Lyrics Project
Rhetorical Analysis Free-Response: First Draft
Unit 4 Quiz: multiple-choice and rhetorical analysis free response
Rhetorical Analysis Free-Response: Final Draft
Vocabulary Quiz
Unit 4 Test: multiple-choice and rhetorical analysis free response
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*Subject to revision
Marking Period 3*
Big Ideas
Topics/Themes/Concepts
Activities & Assessments
Timeline
(Number of Blocks)
Unit 5:
- Individuals write within a particular situation and make strategic writing choices based on that situation.
- Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and
often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
- Identify and describe components of the rhetorical situation: the exigence, audience, writer, purpose. context, and message.
- Identify and explain claims and evidence within an argument.
- Develop a paragraph that includes a claim and evidence supporting the claim.
- Rhetorical Situation
- Practice Multiple-Choice
- Practice Synthesis Analysis Free-Response Writing
- “American Dream” Close Reading
- Unit 5 Quiz: multiple choice and synthesis analysis writing
- Unit 5 Test: multiple choice and synthesis analysis writing
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Unit 6:
- Individuals write within a particular situation and make strategic writing choices based on that situation.
- Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and
often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
- Explain how an argument demonstrates understanding of an audience’s beliefs, values, or needs.
- Demonstrate an understanding of an audience’s beliefs, values, or needs.
- Identify and explain claims and evidence within an argument.
- Develop a paragraph that includes a claim and evidence supporting the claim.
- Identify and describe the overarching thesis of an argument, and any indication it provides of the argument’s structure.
- Write a thesis statement that requires proof or defense and that may preview the structure of the argument.
- Rhetorical Appeals
- Practice Multiple-Choice
- Practice Argument Free-Response Writing
- Literary Device Quiz Marking Period 3 Quiz
- Writing for the audience Quiz
- Unit 6 Quiz: multiple-choice and argument writing
- Unit 6 Test: multiple-choice and argument writing
Marking Period 4*Big Ideas
Topics/Themes/Concepts
Activities & Assessments
Timeline
(Number of Blocks)
Unit 7:
- Individuals write within a particular situation and make strategic writing choices based on that situation.
- Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and
often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
- Identify and describe components of the rhetorical situation: the exigence, audience, writer, purpose. context, and message.
- Identify and explain claims and evidence within an argument.
- Develop a paragraph that includes a claim and evidence supporting the claim.
- The Conversation Articles
- Practice Multiple Choice
- Practice Free-Response Writing
- Socratic Seminar:
- Unit 7 Quiz: multiple-choice and synthesis writing
- Unit 7 Test: multiple-choice and FRQ
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Unit 8:
Characters in literature allow readers to study and explore a range of values, beliefs,
assumptions, biases, and cultural norms represented by those characters.
Setting and the details
associated with it not only depict a time and place, but also convey values associated with that setting
Identify and describe
what specific textual details
reveal about a character, that character’s perspective, and that character’s motives.
Identify and describe specific textual details that convey or reveal a setting.
Explain the function of a particular sequence of events in a plot.
- Rhetorical Appeals
- Practice Multiple-Choice
- Practice Free-Response Writing
- Literary Device Quiz Marking Period 4 Quiz
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Make-up Work as per Student Handbook
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Students who are absent from class for any reason will be required to make-up the work missed in each class. Completion of this work should take approximately the same amount of time as the student missed from class. In extreme cases of prolonged absence, (more than five consecutive days,) the Principal may grant extra time for the students to complete missing assignments. Students will receive an incomplete grade pending the submission of the missing assignments. Students will receive a zero for any work that is not completed by the designated timeline.
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It is the student’s responsibility to obtain all make-up work from his/her teachers immediately upon return to school. Failure to obtain makeup work is no excuse for not completing work missed. Students have the same amount of time that they have been absent to make up the work.
Academic Integrity Policy as per Student Handbook
Plagiarism Policy
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Freshmen: On the first offense, the student may rewrite for a maximum grade of 55. The rewrite should be closely monitored by the teacher because on the freshmen level we are concerned with students’ understanding of the process. On the second offense, the student receives a 0 grade for the final product. (Students' offenses will be filed in the supervisor’s office.)
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Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors: If the teacher finds that the plagiarism is flagrant or pervasive and can document the same, the assessment may receive a grade of zero.
Cheating
Students are expected to conduct themselves honestly and with integrity in their work. All forms of cheating and plagiarism are prohibited. Behavior that is unacceptable includes, but is not limited to the following:
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Copying another student’s work;
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Working with others on projects that are meant to be done individually;
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Looking at or copying another student’s test or quiz answers;
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Allowing another student to look at or copy answers from one’s test or quiz;
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Using any other method (ie “cheat sheets”, communicating in any form) to get/give test or quiz answers;
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Taking a test or quiz in part or in whole to use or to give to others;
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Copying information from a source without giving proper acknowledgment;
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Taking papers from other students, publications, or internet sources and claiming it as one’s own work;
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Academic dishonesty in any other form including, but not limited to, tampering with computerized grade records;
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Giving or receiving answers and/or test questions to or from another student.
Violators of this policy will be disciplined on a case-by-case basis, depending on the seriousness of the violation, prior violations and other factors.
Disciplinary measures/consequences may include, but are not limited to the following:
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Redoing the assignment (see policy on plagiarism);
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Receiving a zero grade on the project, test or quiz;
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Letter sent to parent and placed in the student's file;
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Detention, suspension or expulsion.
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