Electives:

There are several options for electives. Please click the appropriate course title to view each course's info or select from the pulldown menu under "Electives" at the top of this page.

Note that all of our electives are offered at the Honors level. Questions? See your English teacher.

Effective Communication

Journalism, Grades 9-12:

Students will study and practice the fundamentals of writing in the journalistic styles of news writing, feature writing, and editorial writing. They will study and practice information-gathering techniques such as interviews, press conferences, and research. Students will learn to write under the pressure of deadlines, as well as to proofread and to edit. Terminology specific to the field of journalism and issues relevant to the craft of journalism will be explored, particularly journalistic ethics. Students will write for publication.

Creative Writing, Grades 9-12:

Creative Writing is a 10-week (1 term) English elective in which students will create writing portfolios in a workshop atmosphere. Students will collaborate both online and in person, perform pieces in small groups and in front of the class, and publish a substantial number of works in an on-line portfolio and, hopefully, the school's literary magazine. The culminating activity (final exam) for the course is a "Book Release Event" in which our newly published authors will perform a number of their works in front of the class and discuss their writing process and style. The goal is to introduce them--and include them--in the community of writers that is thriving in the real world. To that end, most of the authors we will read in class are currently publishing authors, many of whom live in the surrounding communities or the region. Whether they are first-time or experienced writers, students will be encouraged to go beyond what they ever thought they could accomplish. By the end of the term, they will have surprised others---and themselves.

Writing Fiction, Grades 11-12:

Writing Fiction is a fiction writing workshop for upperclassmen in which students will develop a substantial portfolio of original work in the genre of fiction. There will be weekly word count benchmarks to be met in pursuit of this goal. Students will collaborate both online and in person, perform pieces in small groups and in front of the class, publish a substantial amount of work in an on-line portfolio and, hopefully, the school's literary magazine. The culminating activity (final exam) for the course is a "Book Release Event" in which our newly published authors will perform a selection of their work in front of the class and discuss their writing process and style. The goal is to introduce them--and include them--in the community of writers that is thriving in the real world. To that end, most of the authors we will read in class are currently publishing authors, many of whom live in the surrounding communities or the region. Whether they are first-time or experienced writers, students will be encouraged to go beyond what they ever thought they could accomplish. By the end of the term, they will have surprised others---and themselves.

Advanced Writing Workshop, Grades 11-12:

Students appropriate for this course have received a teacher recommendation or successfully completed either #122-CreativeWriting or #160-Writing Fiction.

Advanced Writing Workshop is an opportunity for writers to expand on the portfolio of work they developed in Creative Writing and/or Fiction Writing. Students will approach the creative process in the same manner, building on the importance of the word and the poetic image to convey meaning. There will, however, be greater opportunity to focus on fiction writing, multi-media works, and publishing in this course. Students will be given the time to write and their choice of products. Students will focus more on depth of revision and craft than on generation of a large number of new pieces. Students will develop, refine, and present a substantial portfolio by the end of the course. The culminating activity (final exam) for the course is a "Book Release Event" in which our newly published authors will perform a selection of their work in front of the class and discuss their writing process and style.