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High School
English 3/English 3 Honors
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Course Description: In English 3, students will acquire language, reading, writing, and speaking/listening skills necessary for success in college, career, and beyond. Students will become critical readers, thinkers, and writers as they dive deeply into the texts presented throughout this course including American literature. Students will learn how to effectively research and integrate findings as well as cite sources in their writing.
Major Topics and Concepts
SEGMENT ONE
Module One: Interpreting Literature
Interpretations of American Drama
Interpretations with Shakespearean Drama
Using Context Clues to Make Meaning
Denotations and Connotations
19th Century Foundations of American Literature
Module Two: Informative Writing
Citing Textual Evidence
Sequence of Events and Central Ideas
Analyzing Effectiveness
Integrating and Evaluating Sources
Thesis Statements
Creating an Outline
Developing Body Paragraphs
Module Three: Narrative Writing
Making Inferences
Determining Themes
Analyzing Author’s Choice
Establishing Narration
Writing Narrative Introductions
Writing Narrative Body Paragraphs
Revising the Narrative Essay
The Narrative Essay Final Draft
Module Four: HONORS Novel Study
Choose Your Novel
Identify Theme
Developing Theme
Writing About Theme
SEGMENT TWO
Module Five: Understanding Poetry
Hyphenation and Syntax
Reading Poetry
The Art of Language
Understanding 20th Century Poetry
Analyzing 20th Century Poetry
Module Six: Analyzing History
Analyzing Language
Evaluating Speech
Evaluate Reasoning
Analyzing Purpose
Evaluating Rhetoric
Gathering Information
Integrating Information
Module Seven: Argument Writing
Evaluating a Speaker
Establishing Argument Writing
Developing a Claim
Introductions for Argument Writing
Writing an Argument
Conclusions in Argument Writing
Revising Arguments
Presenting an Argument
Module Eight: HONORS Shakespeare Study
Analyzing Author’s Language
Analyzing Plot
Analyzing Personal Style
Writing About Relevance
Competencies
Elements of Fiction in Shakespeare
Students will demonstrate an understanding of elements of fiction in Shakespeare by explaining elements of Shakespearean tragedy, analyzing a Shakespearean text, and explaining universal themes in literature.
Literary Analysis
Students will demonstrate an understanding of literary analysis by evaluating an author’s style, analyzing for author’s substance, and creating a literary analysis essay.
Literary Argument
Students will demonstrate an understanding of literary arguments by formulating a claim for a literary argument, explaining the components of a literary argument, and creating an argumentative literary analysis.
Language and Rhetoric
Students will demonstrate an understanding of language and rhetoric by analyzing elements of a nonfiction text, evaluating rhetoric in nonfiction texts, and creating an argumentative presentation.
Narrative Writing Techniques
Students will demonstrate an understanding of narrative writing techniques by evaluating elements of a narrative and creating an original narrative.
Poetry Analysis
Students will demonstrate an understanding of poetry analysis by describing techniques for interpreting poetry, analyzing historical context in poetry, and formulating a comparative poetry analysis.
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Projects allow students to demonstrate competence and understanding of concepts and skills by completing a career-related task. The project assignment might be to create a mural, a package design, a speech, a film review, or a movie set – you name it! These creative projects are about applying your learning acquired through in-depth research to real-world career tasks.
Here are the careers you will explore in English 3 Projects: Director, Museum Tour Guide, Conservation Scientist, Content Writer, Librarian, Campaign Manager, and Neuroscientist.
Projects
Director
You will take on the role of a director for a theater company, tasked with creating a guide that shows how to use context clues and connotation/denotation to clarify the meaning of unknown words, explain interpretation strategies, and compare and contrast an original Shakespearean play with a more modern interpretation.
Conservation Scientist
You will take on the role of a conservation scientist for the National Parks Service, tasked with creating an informative presentation for the general public that answers the question: What is the importance of National Parks?
Content Writer
You will take on the role of a content writer for a literary website, tasked with creating an original short story that mimics the style of the original author and follows the structure of a narrative.
Librarian
You will take on the role of a librarian, tasked with creating a multimedia presentation discussing American poetry of the early-20th century.
Campaign Manager
You will take on the role of a campaign manager for a presidential candidate, tasked with creating a report to share with your team, evaluating the use of persuasive appeals in a past presidential speech.
Neuroscientist
You will take on the role of a neuroscientist consulting for a local school board, tasked with creating a persuasive video or multimedia presentation making a recommendation on whether or not school start times should be adjusted.
Competencies
Elements of Fiction in Shakespeare
Students will demonstrate an understanding of elements of fiction in Shakespeare by explaining elements of Shakespearean tragedy, analyzing a Shakespearean text, and explaining universal themes in literature.
Literary Analysis
Students will demonstrate an understanding of literary analysis by evaluating an author’s style, analyzing for author’s substance, and creating a literary analysis essay.
Literary Argument
Students will demonstrate an understanding of literary arguments by formulating a claim for a literary argument, explaining the components of a literary argument, and creating an argumentative literary analysis.
Language and Rhetoric
Students will demonstrate an understanding of language and rhetoric by analyzing elements of a nonfiction text, evaluating rhetoric in nonfiction texts, and creating an argumentative presentation.
Narrative Writing Techniques
Students will demonstrate an understanding of narrative writing techniques by evaluating elements of a narrative and creating an original narrative.
Poetry Analysis
Students will demonstrate an understanding of poetry analysis by describing techniques for interpreting poetry, analyzing historical context in poetry, and formulating a comparative poetry analysis.
Open
Experiences allow you to explore a career field you’re curious about while mastering competencies for school credit. Through experiential learning, you will learn skills and apply them to tasks you would complete as part of a career rather than completing traditional assessments like essays or tests. During your Experience, you’ll work with a professional in the field to support your learning whom we call a “mentor.” You’ll earn a badge for your accomplishments to share on social media and higher education platforms, or with colleges, potential employers, peers, and colleagues to display your qualifications.
Here’s how Experiences work:
- Each competency you work on is addressed through a separate deliverable predetermined by you and your instructor.
- Guided learning for each module consists of research and/or work with a professional in the field. Your instructor will coach you through this process.
- Each module culminates in a final demonstration of understanding, which includes a deliverable and a discussion-based assessment with your instructor.
- Here’s an example:
Let’s say you’re curious about a career in healthcare. You decide you’d like to learn about this career area, make a professional connection, earn a badge, and meet competencies for your 9th-grade English requirement. While enrolled in English 1 Experiences, you conduct research to better understand language and structure in writing. Then you may work with an Occupational Therapist to help apply your writing skills to the creation of an informational video about adaptive equipment for patients. The video aims to advise family members of patients regarding the use of accommodations and equipment to help patients perform daily tasks. Now you’ve earned the Language and Structure in Writing competency! This is just one example of the many ways Experiences can bridge competencies to careers.
Obtaining a Mentor: Prior to enrollment, please have an idea for a mentor in mind. We have partnered with hundreds of mentors you can work with during your Experience, who you can find in our Career Mentor Catalog here. Or, you may consult with our counseling department by emailing [email protected] for help in identifying one.
*A parent/guardian permission form and background check of the mentor are both required to work with mentors without parental supervision.
Competencies
Elements of Fiction in Shakespeare
Students will demonstrate an understanding of elements of fiction in Shakespeare by explaining elements of Shakespearean tragedy, analyzing a Shakespearean text, and explaining universal themes in literature.
Literary Analysis
Students will demonstrate an understanding of literary analysis by evaluating an author’s style, analyzing for author’s substance, and creating a literary analysis essay.
Literary Argument
Students will demonstrate an understanding of literary arguments by formulating a claim for a literary argument, explaining the components of a literary argument, and creating an argumentative literary analysis.
Language and Rhetoric
Students will demonstrate an understanding of language and rhetoric by analyzing elements of a nonfiction text, evaluating rhetoric in nonfiction texts, and creating an argumentative presentation.
Narrative Writing Techniques
Students will demonstrate an understanding of narrative writing techniques by evaluating elements of a narrative and creating an original narrative.
Poetry Analysis
Students will demonstrate an understanding of poetry analysis by describing techniques for interpreting poetry, analyzing historical context in poetry, and formulating a comparative poetry analysis.
