⚔️ Honors English I ⚔️

Common Course Syllabus 2025-2026

Course Description

In Honors English I, students will build on their prior knowledge obtained in their previous English course, the prerequisite for Honors English I. The aim of the course is for students to gain and take responsibility for their own learning and prepare them for Honors English II. The goal of this course is for students to gain knowledge and skills in order to be college and career ready as required by the South Carolina State Standards. During this one semester course, students will learn to use evidence from texts to support their claims, recognize elements of the author’s craft in fiction and nonfiction reading selections, and argue effectively in their own writing.

Instructional Philosophy

Learning takes place when students take responsibility for what they learn in the classroom setting; therefore, the teacher acts as a guide and models skills, strategies, processes and learning for  the students. Students are expected to be self-directed learners during classroom activities such as close readings, group discussions, oral presentations, student written speeches, and writing assignments such as journals and essays.

To view the South Carolina College and Career Readiness Standards, please go to the following URL:

https://ed.sc.gov/instruction/standards/english-language-arts/standards/2023-sc-ccr-ela-standards-approved/  

Course Goals

By the end of this course, students will be able to: 

•  ELA.E1.AOR.1.1 Analyze how perspective, context, and/or key elements deepen meaning or enhance style.

• ELA.E1.AOR.1.2 Analyze how figurative language impacts mood, tone, and meaning in a text(s); explain an author’s use of allusion.

• ELA.E1.AOR.2.1 Determine a universal theme(s) and explain how key details contribute to its development over the course of a literary text.

• ELA.E1.AOR.2.2 Evaluate supporting details an author uses to develop a central idea(s) over the course of an informational text.

• ELA.E1.AOR.6.1 Summarize and/or paraphrase content from grade-level text to enhance comprehension.

• ELA.E1.AOR.7.1 Determine or clarify the meaning of known, unknown, and multiple-meaning words and phrases, choosing from an array of strategies such as context clues, prior knowledge, or consulting reference materials.

• ELA.E1.AOR.8.1 Interpret an author’s use of figurative, connotative, and technical language in literary, informational, and multimedia texts. 

• ELA.E1.R.1.1 Conduct short and more sustained research to answer a question(s) or solve a problem(s) by generating and answering a research question(s) about a topic; and by using a variety of print and multimedia sources to refine the scope of inquiry as relevant to the topic, purpose, and audience.

• ELA.E1.C.1.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of a topic or texts. When writing, introduce and support a precise claim with sufficient evidence, and acknowledge and refute at least one counterclaim with an appropriate tone. 

*In regards to relation to units, please visit the following Power Indicator Overview Map. 

Major Course Assignments and Projects

• Students will be assessed on the works of literature which will include short answer and constructed response questions.

• Students will write essays (narrative, argumentative, and literary) in which they explore the relationship between specific literary texts and related informational texts.

• Students will write in a variety of formats including essays and short research projects in which they use evidence as support.

• Students will participate in small group and large group planned class discussions.

• Students will demonstrate their command of the conventions of Standard English Grammar through writing and speaking.

Course Assessment Plan and Grading

Grades will be calculated for this class using the following Greenville County Schools recommended percentages:

• Major assessments account for 60% of the quarter grade- these include but are not limited to essays, unit tests, and projects. 

• Minor assessments account for 40% of the quarter grade- these include but are not limited to classwork, quizzes, and writing assignments. 

• Each quarter will count as 45 % of the overall grade, and the final exam will count as 10% of the overall grade. 

• Objective test questions will be scored with an accompanying grading key. 

• Short answers, constructed responses, and essays will be graded with district approved rubrics. 

• Projects, classroom discussions and oral presentations will also be graded with rubrics.

Grading Scale

A — 100 - 90      B — 89 - 80      C — 79 - 70      D — 69 - 60      F — 59 - below

Late Work Policy

• 
  
  A zero will be put in the gradebook as a placeholder until the assignment is completed and turned in.

• The teacher will deduct for lateness:

  • For major grade assignments, 5% for assignments turned in before the next  unit’s major assessment and 10% for assignments turned in after the next unit’s major assessment.

  • For minor grade assignments, 10% for assignments turned in before the unit assessment and 30% for assignments turned in after the unit assessment.

• All late work must be turned in before the date determined by the grading deadlines. (Ex. end of grading period)

Example:  A minor assignment is due on March 8.  The student turns in a completed assignment on March 11. The test is on March 15.  If the student’s completed work is equivalent to a 100%, the grade, factoring lateness, will be a 90%. 

Required Reading

• Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) requires students to choose their own grade level text for independent reading and analysis 

• Excerpts or entire readings of varying texts (see the Cumulative Text List for summaries):  

  • The House on Mango Street

  • The Odyssey

  • Romeo and Juliet

• Selected short stories related to the thematic unit from the HMH 9th Grade Into Literature Student Edition (2022) textbook

• Selected non-fiction texts (informational, speeches, blogs, articles, etc) related to the thematic unit from the HMH 9th Grade Into Literature Student Edition (2022) textbook

• Selected poems related to the thematic unit from the HMH 9th Grade Into Literature Student Edition (2022) textbook

Potential PG-13 Films:

• Films or clips used within the semester will be related to the thematic unit’s essential questions and encourage critical thinking through written response or oral discussions regarding the relatedness to the theme and texts read. 

• Potential films are as such, but are not limited to:

  • Ron’s Gone Wrong (PG; 2021)- Barney is a socially awkward schoolboy who receives a robot named Ron -- a walking, talking, digitally connected device that's supposed to be his best friend. Barney is excited to finally have his own robot -- until his new toy starts to hilariously malfunction, drawing the attention of a shady executive who wants to protect his company's stock price at all costs.

  • Coco (PG; 2017)- Despite his family's generations-old ban on music, young Miguel dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead. After meeting a charming trickster named Héctor, the two new friends embark on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel's family history.

  • Romeo and Juliet (PG-13; 1996)- Baz Luhrmann helped adapt this classic Shakespearean romantic tragedy for the screen, updating the setting to a post-modern city named Verona Beach. In this version, the Capulets and the Montagues are two rival gangs. Juliet (Claire Danes) is attending a costume ball thrown by her parents. Her father Fulgencio Capulet (Paul Sorvino) has arranged her marriage to the boorish Paris (Paul Rudd) as part of a strategic investment plan. Romeo attends the masked ball and he and Juliet fall in love.

  • O Brother Where Art Thou (PG-13; 2000)- Ulysses Everett McGill (George Clooney) is having difficulty adjusting to his hard-labor sentence in Mississippi. He scams his way off the chain gang with simple Delmar (Tim Blake Nelson) and maladjusted Pete (John Turturro), then the trio sets out to pursue freedom and the promise of a fortune in buried treasure. With nothing to lose and still in shackles, their hasty run takes them on an incredible journey of awesome experiences and colorful characters.

  • Hidden Figures (PG; 2016)- Three brilliant African-American women at NASA -- Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson -- serve as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation's confidence, turned around the Space Race and galvanized the world.

  • The Lost Boys of Sudan (Unrated; 2003) - The documentary Lost Boys of Sudan follows the harrowing journey of a group of young boys displaced by the Sudanese civil war. Forced to flee their homes, these boys trek thousands of miles across dangerous terrain to refugee camps in Ethiopia and later Kenya, facing extreme hardship, loss, and uncertainty. The film captures their resilience, hope, and determination as they struggle to survive, adapt to new challenges, and rebuild their lives far from home. It also highlights their eventual resettlement in the United States, exploring the cultural adjustments and challenges they face while pursuing education and a better future.

English 1 Pacing Guide

Units

Unit 1 - “Against All Odds”

Weeks 1-4

Students read a variety of literary texts and hone their critical reading capabilities. Students will continue to work on constructing coherent and organized responses both in short-answer and extended formats. During this unit, students build their foundational literary vocabulary, read a novel or nonfiction book of their choosing, annotate texts, and demonstrate their comprehension and interpretive skills on minor assignments and a test. Finally, students will define and apply principles of argument and craft an argumentative project. 

Unit 2 - “Breaking Through Barriers” 

Weeks 5-8

Throughout the unit, students will critically read and analyze memoir texts as well as  novels. Students will demonstrate their understanding and analysis of text through annotations, constructed written responses, and comprehensive questions. Students will craft a personal narrative, told in vignette form; students will represent their narrative piece in a visual manner as well. 

*The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros is a coming-of-age novel composed of a series of vignettes that tell the story of a young Latina girl named Esperanza Cordero. The narrative is centered around Esperanza's experiences growing up in a low-income Latino neighborhood in Chicago. 

Unit 3 - “Love and Loss” 

Weeks  8-15

Students will read one canonical piece of literature within this unit and will develop their essay writing capabilities. Students will read, interpret, and critically analyze a William Shakespeare tragedy. Students will develop their abilities to plan, organize, draft, revise, edit, and publish a literary essay. 

*Romeo and Juliet - This Shakespearean tragedy centers on the whirlwind meeting, courtship, betrothal, and downfall of two teenagers from feuding families in Verona, Italy. Through the study of this work, students will develop deep understanding of the elements of Shakespearean Tragedy, including tragic hero, tragic flaw, and catharsis in addition to analysis of the effect of conflict, irony, and characterization in producing powerful themes. 

Unit 4 - ”Freedom at All Costs” 

Weeks 15-18

Students will continue to write argumentatively and will explore the enduring impact of those who have used the written and spoken word to argue a central idea. In this unit, students will explore historical speeches, essays, and a variety of media to connect the concepts of the course to the world in which we live.  Students will research topics related to the themes presented in the unit and demonstrate their understanding by participating in discussions and creating a visual representation of their research. 

*The Odyssey - This classic Ancient Greek epic by Homer details the journey of Odysseus home from the Trojan War. Epics encourage students to analyze the ways that setting and human interactions can cultivate conflict- ultimately leading to powerful themes about human relationships and the impact of personal choices.  In addition to promoting deep understanding of the epic narrative form, this important piece of literature enables students to ponder themes related to leadership, personal responsibility, teamwork, retribution, and response to setbacks.  

Classroom Materials:

• Google Chromebook & charger 

• Pencils, pens, highlighters

• Loose-leaf paper or notebook paper

• Notebook or Composition Book

• Plug in headphones for Chromebook (NOT BLUETOOTH)

Academic Honesty:

Academically fraudulent behavior will NOT be tolerated. According to school policy, submitting academic work of another or copying work from the internet is forbidden. Additionally, any use of AI, or similar programs to ChatGPT, to present work as your own is considered academic dishonesty and is strictly prohibited without prior approval from a teacher.

• The first offense will result in a referral, a zero in the grade book, and an alternative assignment to be completed to replace the 0. For second offenses and beyond, an administrative referral will be completed and a ZERO will be submitted for your grade.