This course provides opportunities to for students to develop the following skills:
1.Explain the function of character.
2.Explain the function of setting.
3.Explain the function of plot and structure.
4.Explain the function of the narrator or speaker.
5.Explain the function of word choice, imagery, and symbolism.
6.Explain the function of comparison.
7.Develop textually substantiated arguments about interpretations of a portion or whole text.

The course provides opportunities for students to write essays that proceed through multiple stages or drafts, including opportunities for conferring and collaborating with teacher and/or peers.

I have been a high school English teacher for ten years, working in both the United States and China. I have taught both AP English Language and Composition and AP English Literature and Composition. I have worked in education for nearly 20 years, including 15 years coaching speech and debate.  I specialize in writing instruction and literary analysis.

Homework Offered
Weekly homework time will vary based on individual student reading and writing speed.  Times listed are estimated per week. Students are always welcome to work ahead, reading or watching films in advance.
          -Complete 5 M.A.D.E.s (5-10 minutes a day, five days a week)
          -Read novel, complete annotation and analysis worksheet (reading times vary, about 100-150 pages per week, +30 minutes for annotation and analysis worksheet)
          -Watch Movie and complete film analysis worksheet (2-3 hours viewing time, 15-30 minutes for the worksheet)
          -Watch or read designated poems and complete poetry chart (30-45 minutes)
          -Complete designated prose or poetry writing and mini-project (1-2 hours)
          -Complete essay every two weeks (30-45 minutes, every other week )
4+ hours per week outside of class
Assessments Offered
Students will be assessed throughout the course, based on active participation during class discussion, proof of understanding concept in mini-projects, and through their essays, in terms of writing and analytical content.  Essays will be evaluated using the AP scale.  The final project will also serve as the major assessment, as students will have to use all of the skills and knowledge learned in this course.
Grades Offered

In addition to the sources listed below, as a literary analysis course, we will often reference other sources. These sources include Greek and Roman mythology, the Bible, and Dante's Inferno. These sources are taught from a literary perspective only as they relate to specific texts. 

Major works:
Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Salman Rushdie
Superman: Birthright, Mark Waid
The Killing Joke, Alan Moore
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
Lolita, Vladamir Nabokov
The Watchmen, Alan Moore
A Dirty Job, Christopher Moore

Films
Dead Poets Society
The Princess Bride
Life is Beautiful
It’s a Wonderful Life
12 Angry Men
Superman
Silence of the Lambs (R)
The Shining (R)
Seven (R)
Fight Club (R)
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (R)
The Shawshank Redemption (R)
Casablanca

Poem List
Students may omit poems at personal or parental discretion. Additional poems may be added at discretion of teacher.

“I Wanna Hear a Poem” Steve Colman
“Introduction to Poetry” Billy Collins
“Touchscreen” Marshall Jones
“Spelling Father” Marshall Jones
“To the Boy That May One Day Date My Daughter” Jesse Parent
“To This Day” Shane Koyczan
“Penny For your Thoughts” Gemini
“Like Totally Whatever” Melissa Lozada-Oliva
“10 Honest Thoughts on Being Loved by a Skinny Boy” Rachel Wiley

Taylor Mali
“What Teachers Make”
“Miracle Worker”
“Like Lily, Like Wilson”
“Like Totally Whatever”

Rudy Francisco
“To the Girl that Works at Starbucks…”
“A Lot Like You”
“My Honest Poem”
“To the Complainers”
“Love Poem Medley”

Sarah Kay
“If I should Have a Daughter”
“Hands”

Phil Kaye
“Repetition”
“Teeth”

Sarah Kay and Phil Kaye
“Origin Story”
“When Love Arrives”

Rives
“Sign Language”
“Mockingbird”
“If I Controlled the Internet”
“Kite”