Course Description:

The work of Sophomore English builds upon the skills acquired in Freshman English. In this course students continue to develop their reading, writing, speaking and listening skills through a survey of various kinds of poetry, novels, short stories, plays, and nonfiction writings developed around universal themes that connect students to the world.  

Units in this class may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Semester One:

Punctuation skills mastery

Novel study – To Kill a Mockingbird and The House on Mango Street

Writing Literary Analysis Papers

Vocabulary

Short stories, TBA

Semester Two:

Study of plays- Antigone by Sophocles, and The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare

Study of poetry – mastery, oral interpretation

Persuasive essay and speech

Comparison/Contrast and other organizational writing skills

Novel study - Night, by Elie Wiesel

Short story study  - A variety from the class text, The Language of Literature

Writing  Literary Analysis Papers

Vocabulary

Texts:

The Language of Literature, McDougal Littell

To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare

Antigone, Sophocles

Night, Elie Wiesel

Other texts, (optional) - TBA

You are required  to have a small composition style notebook for this class, which you should bring daily, along with a pencil, pen and any assigned texts or homework.  You will also be required to provide one Pee Chee type folder with bottom pockets.  This will be stored in class and sent home periodically.