ENGLISH I & II CP
COLLEGE PREP ENGLISH
College Prep English lives up to its name: the curriculum prepares participating students to enter college with a solid foundation in advanced reading, clear writing, and critical thinking. Honors and Advanced Placement classes also offer this foundation, but are taught at an accelerated and demanding pace, emphasizing the rhetorical skills and knowledge of classic literary works recommended by universities.
FRESHMAN YEAR
"Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." - Martin Luther King
Ninth grade instruction introduces our diverse student community to their advanced academic journey and future success. Thematic instruction anchored in enduring archetypes such as the American Dream, The Hero’s Journey, and Utopia provides an engaging focus for standards-based instruction. All classes study a wide range of full length works, selected articles, poetry, and essays. The freshman year introduces the elements of the Rancho Mirage writing program, including grammar and vocabulary development. Students compose literary and personal essays and complete an academic research paper. Independent Reading programs are an important part of the English curriculum at each level in support of our goal: multi-culturally and academically literate graduates ready for the next steps in their education.
SOPHOMORE YEAR
"You're afraid of making mistakes. Don't be." - Ray Bradbury--Fahrenheit 451
Focusing on social justice and personal moral development, sophomore students extend their writing and research skills, practice personal, reflective, and literary essays, and begin the independent persuasive essay. Advanced vocabulary development through study of roots is an important sophomore element, as are timed writing practices to prepare students for on-demand assessments. Independent reading programs are an important part of the English curriculum at each level. In addition to an evolving selection of full-length works, sophomores study poetry, articles, essays, and media in support of their development as readers and citizens of the world.
Great Reads For High School Freshmen And Sophomores
English I Course Description
This course is the first year of a college preparatory English sequence. Content is organized thematically and will employ the use of essential questions to guide critical thinking about texts that include short stories, novels, nonfiction, drama and poetry. There is a clear emphasis on the progressive development of skills identified in the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (9-10) including: reading for key ideas and details, reading for craft and structure, reading for integration of knowledge and ideas, writing a variety of text types, writing for a variety of purposes, understanding the writing process, speaking and listening skills, knowledge and practical application of Standard English (grammar and mechanics) and in-context vocabulary acquisition. English I places special emphasis on developing student writers who can produce well crafted, organized, multi-paragraph essays written for a variety of audiences, with a focus on evidence-based analyses of multiple sources. Students will be assessed, in part, through the use of regular district-wide benchmark assessments.
English II Course Description
This course is the second year of a college preparatory English sequence. Content is organized thematically and will employ the use of essential questions to guide critical thinking about texts that include short stories, novels, nonfiction, drama and poetry. There is a clear emphasis on the progressive development of skills identified in the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (9-10). English II places special emphasis on developing student writers who can produce well-crafted, organized, multi-paragraph essays written for a variety of audiences, with a focus on evidence-based analyses of multiple sources. Students will be assessed, in part, through the use of regular district-wide benchmark assessments.
Ms. Bennett
M.A. Reading Education/GATE & AVID Certified
English I & II CP
PSUSD Home & Hospital Teacher