Upcoming Assignments/ Projects

English 12

Clay Smith - Teacher

Email: clay.smith@sccboe.org

1. Senior English consists of grammar, British literature, and composition. The grammar focuses on the usage of the language covered in chapters 15 – 21 in Glencoe’s Writer’s Choice. The literature connects Britain’s history to the writings of its various periods. The composition begins with the basics of paragraph and writing and gradually moves to 5-paragraph essays that deal with literary topics. Also in the senior English class is a 3-week block of time used for a class play. Following is a chronological listing of the class projects. No daily time frame is given because each class learns at a different pace, and extra curricular interruptions can present themselves unannounced.
2. The Anglo-Saxon Period –
   1. This study includes a set of questions about the period and a study of the epic poem Beowulf.
3. Verb Usage –
   1. This study includes a test of irregular verb principal parts, various daily exercises and a mastery test.
4. Medieval Period –
   1. This study includes an introductory video about the building of a medieval cathedral, a test of the significant medieval history, a study of Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, a video about King Arthur and a study of two King Arthur tales.
5. Subject-Verb Agreement –
   1. This study focuses on the problem areas found in maintaining subject-verb agreement. It includes various daily exercises and a mastery test.
6. Pronoun Usage –
   1. This study includes various daily exercises found in the textbook and two teacher-made drills aimed at correcting the most common problems. The study ends with a mastery test.
7. Modifiers –
   1. Because there is little new found in a study of modifiers, the chapter is approached as a self-study. The mastery test is open-book with a major focus on the importance of using necessary resource materials.
8. Renaissance –
   1. This study has its focus on note-taking skills. During a teacher’s lecture, students take notes concerning the origins of Renaissance in Western Europe. The teacher holds the notes for approximately a week and then allows the students to us the notes during a test. Any number of sonnets are also read and studied.
9. Usage Glossary –
   1. This study covers a number of words often misused in English (for example: accept/except). The study includes various daily exercises and a mastery test.
10. 10 Writings –
    1. At this time the students submit a collection of 10 writings. These include works that range from paragraphs to 5-paragraph essays that have been assigned during the previous weeks of the class.
11. Shakespeare –
    1. This study begins with a biography of William Shakespeare, a study of the playwright and his theater, a test of the historical material, a reading and study of Macbeth and a test of Macbeth.
12. Capitalization –
    1. This study covers the rules of capitalization with various daily works and a mastery test.
13. Class Play –
    1. In this 3-week block students take part in a class play that is performed for the student body and for the general public in three performances. Proceeds from the play support the Bill Tucker and Judy Cox scholarships.
14. Punctuation –
    1. This study covers the rules of punctuation with various daily exercises and a mastery test.
15. The Bible –
    1. This study covers the English translations of the Bible along with examples of spiritual writings found in religions of the world. The material all is found in Holt Rinehart and Winston’s Elements of Literature.
16. Paradise Lost –
    1. This study covers the significant historical information about the poet John Milton and a reading of an excerpt of the epic poem.
17. Romantic Period –
    1. This study covers the origins of the Romantic Period and a reading of poems by Robert Burns, William Blake, William Wordsworth, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. A test of the material ensues.
18. British Literature 1850 to the Present –
    1. This study is a quick look at the high points of British literature since 1850, again with emphasis on the history that brought that literature to life. Readings will be made of works by Alfred, Lord Tennyson and Wilfred Owen.
19. 10 Writings –
    1. A second ten writings is due at this point, a collection of writings done in the second half of the class.
20. Final Exam –
    1. This test for those not exempt includes 40 literature questions, 40 grammar questions, and a 20-point 3-paragraph essay.