AP English, Part Two

Advanced Placement: Literature and Composition; What Good is a Good Story, Part Two

(click on course title for registration page)

Note: This is a two-part course. See Fall 2011: High School for Part One.
Class dates: Tuesdays (instruction) and Thursdays (discussion/lab), January 10 to May 3, 2011. No class April 3 and 5 (Holy Week).
Total classes: 32
Starting time: 8:00 pm Eastern (7:00 pm Central)
Duration: 1 hour
Prerequisite: Part One of this course. Instructor’s permission is required for exceptions. Students are expected to take the AP Literature and Composition test on May 10, 2012.
Suggested high school credit: 1 full semester credit for AP English
Suggested grade level: 11th to 12th grade
Fee: $300 if you enroll on or before November 1, 2011. $375 after November 1 for all 32 classes. (Note: enrollment is limited.)
Instructor: Laurie Navar Gill, M. Ed
Course description: This course syllabus has been approved by the College Board to bear the designation “AP.” All students in the class will be receiving a preparation that will help them to succeed on the AP Literature and Composition exam, which many students take for Advanced College Credit. You may also be eligible for a weighted grade.
     Building on representative texts from the western literary tradition, this course will particularly examine the nature of storytelling and its relationship to life and culture. We will look at different storytelling media, including the epic, drama, the novel, non-fiction prose, and poetry. We will analyze story structure and storytelling techniques and examine the interplay between life and story. As we read stories, we will also talk about them, write about them, and tell some of our own.
     The course approaches the goals of AP Literature through a Catholic lens. The primary themes under consideration are God’s universal charity and the consequences of sin. As we travel with the pilgrims of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, imagine the end of the world, examine the tragedies of Othello and King Lear, look at Gothic horror novels through the lens of contemporary bio-ethical dilemmas, and finally, ponder how God’s plan is worked out through very imperfect instruments in The Power and the Glory, students can mature and deepen in their understanding of human weakness and God’s sovereign mercy.
Course outline: Please contact Homeschool Connections for the complete course outline.
Course materials: Each student will need 7-11 books; all are available in inexpensive paperback editions. Specific editions will be suggested, but library copies are fine. In the case of literature in translation, particular translations will be required. Some of the texts are available free online.
Homework: The course requires roughly an hour of reading every day, with additional discussion/posting responsibilities. Every reading unit (approx. every 3 weeks) also includes a major writing assignment that will go through draft, conferencing and revision stages. Conferences are one-on-one meetings with the instructor that can take place via computer or telephone [SKYPE]. Students should plan on spending an average of 60-90 minutes 5-6 days a week outside of class on reading and writing for this course.