Advanced Placement (AP): Literature and Composition

AP: Literature and Composition; What Good is a Good Story, Part One

(click on course title to register)

ADDENDUM: The course fee has been reduced to $245.00

Note: This is a 2-part course. Students are expected to also register for Part Two in the spring semester.

Class dates: Tuesdays and Thursdays, Sept. 4 to Dec. 13, 2011. No class Nov. 1 and Nov. 21.

Total classes: 28

Starting time: 8:00 pm Eastern (7:00 Central)

Duration: 1 hour

Prerequisite: Students should be ready for upper division English and 17- to 18-years old. Instructor’s permission is required for students 16-years old or under. Students are expected to take the AP test (May 9, 2013)

High school credit: One full semester

Suggested grade level: 11^th to 12^th

Fee: $245 for all 28 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.

                  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 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. Contact us for the complete reading list.

Homework: The course requires roughly an hour of reading every day, with additional discussion/posting responsibilities. Each reading unit (approx. every 3 weeks) also includes a major writing assignment that will go through draft, conferencing and revision stages. Students should plan on spending an average of 30-60 minutes, 5-6 days a week outside of class on reading and writing for this course. All grading provided by the instructor.

Note: Please email homeschoolconnections@gmail.com for a complete syllabus.