Upper School Curriculum Guide
Note: This year, students will be registering for courses with their Advisor. We encourage students and families to make use of the Curriculum Guide to investigate their choices, check prerequisites, and confirm entry requirements. Current teachers, Department Chairs, and Grade Deans should also be consulted as resources. As we are distance teaching and learning through RCDS@home, when you read the below policies, please disregard references to signatures, sign-ups, conversations, and approvals. Once course selections are made, each Department will review them in order to approve or recommend another approach.
Overview
Overview
The principal goal of the English program is to equip students with the tools and the understandings they need to know about themselves and others. Who am I, what do I value, and why? How can I respond reasonably and sensitively to views that are different from my own? In order to engage with these and related questions, students must learn to read more perceptively, write more rigorously, and listen and speak with greater nuance. At all grade levels, students are expected to craft analytic essays; to experiment with journal writing, narrative, and poetry; to read challenging works of literature; and to come to class prepared to contribute to discussion every day.
Policies
Policies
COURSE SELECTION GUIDELINES
English Honors and AP placement is based on the following criteria:
- Year-end grade of B+ or higher in a regular section or a B- or higher in an Honors or AP section
- Recommendation of teacher from previous year
- Written statement of interest, if requested
- Approval of the department
Students who are currently in a regular section of English (grades 9, 10, or 11) and who hope to enroll in either an Honors (10) or an AP (11 or 12) English course, students must have the required B+ average (as reflected by 1st semester, 3rd quarter (projected), and exam grade) and should have had a conversation with their present teacher about their commitment to an advanced course.
Those who are currently in 10H or 11AP will already be listed as eligible if they have an average of B- (as reflected by 1st semester, 3rd quarter (projected), and exam grade) and if their current teacher approves.
The department will then meet to discuss the candidacy of all students (in regular, Honors, or AP sections) seeking admission to advanced English courses. If accepted, they will receive an email advising them to check the appropriate placement. In all cases, by year’s end, the above criteria will again be reviewed in June before permanent placement is made for the following year.
AP HOMEWORK GUIDELINES
AP English 11 & 12 Language and Composition: On average, 45 minutes of focused work per night.
AP English 12 Literature and Composition: On average, 45 minutes of focused work per night.
DEPARTMENTAL POLICIES REGARDING ENTRY TO HONORS/AP COURSES
There are Honors sections in grade 10 and Advanced Placement sections in grades 11 and 12. Admission to Honors and Advanced Placement sections is dependent upon:
- Year-end grade of B+ or higher in a regular section or a B- or higher in an Honors or AP section
- Recommendation of teacher from previous year
- Written statement of interest, if requested
- Approval of the department chair
During the course of the year, a student's standing in an Honors or AP section may be subject to review if performance is consistently below the B- mark.
Students in grades 10, 11, and 12 are also encouraged to take an English elective in addition to the required English course for each grade.
Curricular Sequence
Curricular Sequence
Courses
English Courses
Year-Long Courses
- ENGLISH 9
- ENGLISH 10 AND HONORS ENGLISH 10
- ENGLISH 11
- ENGLISH 12
- AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION
- AP LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION
ENGLISH 9
Readings in English 9 provide an introduction to literature, including poetry, drama, the novel, and the short story, with many of the texts addressing the tension between individual and community. Core texts include works such as Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and Yang's American Born Chinese. The writing program in English 9 is designed to improve all basic writing skills, with special attention given to the formation of thesis statements, the organization of ideas and paragraphs, and the clarity of sentences. All ninth graders participate in the Writing Lab program, which meets once per cycle, for additional practice and further development of their writing skills. Students also submit creative pieces of writing and collaborate on various projects with their classmates. Grammar instruction reviews punctuation, standard usage, parts of speech, sentence structure, and phrases and clauses. Vocabulary work consists of Vocabulary Workshop, Level E. (1 unit; Grade 9; required)
ENGLISH 10 AND HONORS ENGLISH 10
Students in English 10 and Honors English 10 read selections in British and world literature in a study of themes such as power, ethics, and cultural identity. The course includes such texts as Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus, Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold, as well as contemporary poetry, and short fiction, nonfiction, and film. English 10 and Honors English 10 emphasize the analytical essay and the research paper, but students also craft their own narratives and poetry. Assignments underscore the importance of the writing process and incorporate strategies for proofreading and revision. Grammar instruction reviews standard usage, punctuation, and sentence structure. Vocabulary work consists of Vocabulary Workshop, Level F.
English 10 Honors requires additional readings and has more demanding writing and speaking requirements. (1 unit; Grade 10; required)
ENGLISH 11
The readings in English 11 focus on American dystopias and attempt to perfect the American democratic experiment through radical social critique. In addition to application of literary terms and close reading of the class texts, students will analyze how class, gender, and race intersect with history to form hierarchies and distribute social power. The course includes such texts as Miller’s The Crucible, Douglass’s The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, Vonnegut's Mother Night, and McCarthy’s The Road. All students continue to practice analytical, persuasive, research, personal, and creative writing. Grammar review continues, with emphasis on revising and proofreading skills. Students also study vocabulary from Vocabulary Workshop, Level G. (1 unit; Grade 11; required).
ENGLISH 12
English 12 emphasizes the close analysis of fiction and nonfiction works. We focus on some of the major achievements of English, American, and world literature, such as Shakespeare’s Othello, Orwell’s 1984, Gordimer’s Jump, Capote's In Cold Blood, and a selection of short stories. Students write frequent critical and analytical essays based on their reading and write a comprehensive research paper, in addition to shorter creative pieces. Students also collaborate on various group projects throughout the year. (1 unit; Grade 12; required)
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION
The readings in AP Language and Composition survey the major achievements of American literature from its beginnings to the present day; texts are selected for their intrinsic literary merit, as well as for their value in illustrating and extending themes encountered in the junior year American history curriculum, and an in-depth research paper is required of all AP Language and Composition students. The course includes texts such as Douglass’s The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Thoreau's Civil Disobedience, Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Wharton's The Age of Innocence, Larsen's Passing, and Capote's In Cold Blood, in addition to works by other poets and writers, including Emerson, Whitman, Dickinson, and Hughes. All students continue to practice analytical, persuasive, personal and creative writing. Grammar review continues, with emphasis on revising and proofreading skills. Students also study vocabulary from Vocabulary Workshop, Level G. AP Language and Composition course has great reading demands and stringent writing requirements. In addition, the course requires more focus on non-fiction reading and writing and a focus on rhetorical strategies and styles. All students in the Advanced Placement section are required to take the Advanced Placement Language and Composition examination given at the end of the year. (1 unit; Grade 11 & 12; required)
AP LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION
Advanced Placement Literature and Composition focuses on works by author’s such as Shakespeare, Austen, and Morrison, as well as on classic and contemporary drama and poetry that reflect diverse voices. The analytic writing requirement is intense, and students should expect to complete both reading and writing homework each night. Students produce a research paper and various forms of creative work. All students in the AP Literature section are required to take the Advanced Placement Literature and Composition examination given at the end of the 12th grade. (1 unit; Grade 12; required)
Electives
- CREATIVE WRITING 1
- CREATIVE WRITING 2
- EXPOSITORY WRITING
- JOURNALISM
- WILDCAT WORLD (BROADCAST JOURNALISM)
CREATIVE WRITING 1
Creative Writing provides an opportunity for working creatively on several planes: in word play, genre experimentation, and the cultivation of writerly habits and sensibilities. Students are invited to test the limits of the relationship between word and idea, form and pure content. In tandem with reflective study of important pieces by literary masters and new voices alike, students will develop their own craft through projects in fiction, nonfiction, and a range of poetic forms, including spoken word. Class time is largely dedicated to workshopping. (1/2 unit; Grade 10, 11, 12)
CREATIVE WRITING 2
Creative Writing 2 builds on students' fundamental understanding of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Structured in terms of advanced technique and approaches to process, the course seeks to deepen students' craft across the genres. It also offers exposure to humor writing (parody and satire) and screenwriting and, to stimulate further experimentation with the versatility of language, opportunities to collaborate on interdisciplinary projects with peers in the concurrent visual arts and filmmaking electives. Class time is largely devoted to creating, workshopping, and revising. (1/2 unit; Grade 10, 11, 12)
EXPOSITORY WRITING
Expository Writing is a semester course whose purpose is to bolster specific writing skills that are important for an individual’s success – not only in academics, but also in the world at large. Students review the basic “building blocks” of sentence, paragraph, and essay construction, with an eye towards both form and style. Class time is spent studying model essays, practicing composition, and engaging in peer review, and students ultimately build a portfolio of work from which they select pieces for formal assessment. In addition to sharing their work with an audience of their peers in class, students are encouraged to submit to a range of publications, from RCDS’s Crop to local and national newspapers and magazines. This is a non-homework bearing course. (1/2 unit; Grades 10, 11, 12)
JOURNALISM
Journalism is a semester course that is offered to all students in the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades. More than simply writing for a publication, students will learn a combination of highly developed skills in a number of areas: brainstorming, establishing contacts, interviewing, writing, and editing. Each student will have his/her own beat to cover and will submit multiple articles during each cycle; these articles will serve as the central form of assessment. Also, student submissions may be published in Crop, the RCDS online student newspaper. Daily reading of news is a requirement, as is the use of a stylebook and a journalism text. (1/2 unit; Grades 9, 10, 11, 12)
WILDCAT WORLD (BROADCAST JOURNALISM)
Broadcast journalism is a semester course that is offered to all students in the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades, who will help to create the Upper School news broadcast, Wildcat World. ~Students in all grade levels can sign up to learn all aspects of broadcast production, including how to pitch story ideas, conduct interviews, and edit their news stories. In addition to learning journalism skills, such as crafting interesting and informative stories and conducting professional interviews, students will learn filmmaking techniques, in order to turn out quality content in a short amount of time. (1/2 unit; Grades 9, 10, 11, 12)
