Mrs. Ward's Website

Graduation Project concerns?

Please stay up to date on the graduation project.  Click on the link on Ragsdale's home page "Graduation Project Information" and check out the student manual which explicitly shows what the student should be doing and when.  Have your student print this document at school because he/she will need all the documents included in this manual to complete the portfolio part of the assignment.  I will be happy to answer your emails about this undertaking or meet with you in person if you have concerns about completing this task.  It is 20% of his/her grade in English IV, so I want this to be a successful experience.  Many students have used what they have learned in this process to impress admissions counselors and potential employers.  It is really worth the effort.

AP English Literature (aka English IV)

This course combines a survey of British Literature (English IV in the Common Core Standards) with a whirlwind tour of several major texts (listed below), practice in AP free-response writing, practice in poetry and prose analysis, and multiple-choice strategies for succeeding on the AP exam in May.

The texts we examine in class: Lord of the Flies, Their Eyes Were Watching God, 1984, A Tale of Two Cities, Heart of Darkness, Macbeth, Othello, Taming of the Shrew, and The Things They Carried. We will do AP portfolios on LOF, Eyes, 1984, and Tale from this list.  Mastery of each text will be assessed with a teacher-made test.

In addition to the above, we will do an intensive analysis of poetry culminating in a research/analysis paper. 

You will receive a syllabus for each unit detailing our day-to-day progress.  You will be expected to have the appropriate text, pen, pencil, paper each day for whatever adventure the syllabus promises.  The syllabus will also be posted on this website.

We will preface our discussions of these texts with a Socratic exploration of Joseph Campbell's The Power of Myth.  This philosophical dialogue (Campbell with Bill Moyers) will be the basis for many class discussions as we weave the various texts into a coherent fabric of archetype and world view.

It is critical that you be in class every day.  Recouping a lost day's conversation with your classmates (and me) is impossible; someone else's notes are inadequate. 

Late work: There should never be any.  Papers/portfolios/written assignments are due whether you are present in class on the due date or not.  To avoid any late penalties, you should email the assignment attached as a document to me before midnight on the date due.  This email will "stop the clock" but will NOT replace a hard copy of the assignment.  I must have a hard copy of the assignment within two school days; otherwise you will receive no credit for it.  If  you do miss a deadline (midnight on the date due), work submitted one day late can receive a grade no higher than 70; two days late, no higher than 50.

Grading

Portfolios (including summer work).................20%

Tests.......................................................20%

Essays (in-class writings).............................15%

Classwork(quizzes, presentations, participation, etc.)20%

Graduation Project...................................25%

Your portfolio, presentation board, product, and speech will be your final exam for this course.  It is 25% of your final grade.  Be sure you are meeting the deadlines detailed in the student manual available on line at Ragsdale's home page.  We will NOT be spending class time on the preparation for these components of your project, but I will be happy to hear your speech, check your board, and offer suggestions before/after school.  Just tell me when you need to see me.

Honors English IV

This is a exploration of the classics of British Literature blended with the emphasis on informational text as described in the Common Core Standards.  We will do a chronological exploration of the major texts in British literature beginning with Beowulf and ending with George Orwell's 1984.  Along the way we will have numerous writing assignments to prepare for the rigors of college English courses.  In addition, we will explore the complexities of non-fiction, especially informational text through the newpaper and internet sources.  The syllabus for the course is attached.

Late work: There should never be any.  Papers/portfolios/written assignments are due whether you are present in class on the due date or not.  To avoid any late penalties, you should email the assignment attached as a document to me before midnight on the date due.  This email will "stop the clock" but will NOT replace a hard copy of the assignment.  I must have a hard copy of the assignment within two school days of the due date; otherwise you will receive no credit for it.  If  you do miss a deadline (midnight on the date due), work submitted one day late can receive a grade no higher than 70; two days late, no higher than 50.

Graduation Project

Your portfolio, presentation board, product, and speech will be your final exam for this course.  It is 20% of your final grade.  Be sure you are meeting the deadlines detailed in the student manual available on line at Ragsdale's home page.  We will NOT be spending class time on the preparation for these components of your project; however, we will practice speeches in class, and I will check your boards as per the deadline in the student manual.

Grading

Portfolios (including summer work).................................................20%

Tests...................................................................................................20%

Vocabulary..........................................................................................20%

Classwork/Homework............................................................................20%

Graduation Project (Exam)..................................................................20%