Liberal Arts Level 5: American Classics

The course is a liberal arts class focused on enhancing students' communication skills through a comprehensive study of the English language. Students will engage with various literary genres, including poetry, short stories, novels, and essays, while exploring American classics and their historical context. Key learning areas comprise reading, writing, speaking, and listening, with an emphasis on developing narrative, expository, technical, and persuasive writing styles, as well as speech writing and delivery. The class follows a writing process that involves development, revision, evaluation, and improvement, covering elements such as organization, purpose, audience, narration, conflict, tone, and theme.

The course employs two composition books: one for an Interactive Literature Student Notebook to practice and improve writing styles, grammar, vocabulary, comprehension, and literary analysis, and the other for a Reading Journal to prepare for discussions and questions. Major units of study include poetry and short stories, various writing types, and speech writing. Throughout the year, students will work both individually and in groups, presenting information to their peers.