Welcome!

1. Welcome! John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science Mr. Marotta Grade 11 English-American Literature 2009-2010 School Year

2. I am pleased to be with you again because… • This particular group of students is very important to me. • I want to share in your success as you move towards your path to college. • Because of the relationship I have with many of you, I feel that my instruction and your learning will both benefit.

3. Agenda/Topics to Be Covered • What is the goal/purpose of an American Literature course? • How will the units be divided? • How will the course be taught? • What are the expectations for grade 11 students? • Special Projects • How will students be graded? • Summary

4. What is the goal/purpose of an American Literature course? • The goal of an American Literature course is to help you learn to be a literary historian: that is, to introduce you to American literature as it has evolved over time and to stimulate you to make connections between and among texts. Like a literary historian, when you make these connections you are telling a story: the story of how American literature came into being. • Grade 11 English is the first English course taught in the Boston Public Schools that is specifically themed. (I. E. American literature)

5. The study of American Literature seeks to answer five questions: 1. What is an American? How does literature create conceptions of the American experience and American identity? 2. What is American literature? What are the distinctive voices and styles in American literature? How do social and political issues influence the American canon? How do place and time shape the authors’ works and our understanding of them? What characteristics of a literary work have made it influential over time? How are American myths created, challenged, and re- imagined through this literature?

6. How will the units be divided? This American Literature course is taught within the context of seven Literary Movements or units and Historical Change. A literary movement centers around a group of authors that share certain stylistic and thematic similarities and differences. Each unit will include several authors that are representative of the styles and themes of their time period. The units are divided into the following themes and time periods: • Unit 1: Early America (Beginnings–1800) • Unit 2: American Romanticism (1800–1860) • Unit 3: The Civil War Era (1850–1880) • Unit 4: Regionalism and Realism (1880–1910) • Unit 5: Beginnings of the Modern Age (1910–1930s) • Unit 6: From Depression to Cold War (1930s–1960s) • Unit 7: Into the Twenty-First Century (1960s–Present)

7. How will the course be taught? • Format Classroom activities will include teacher lectures, class discussions, in-class activities, note taking, oral presentations, independent and class reading, independent and group projects, quizzes, tests, and writing. Homework will be given.

8. What are the expectations of 11th grade students? • I expect a generally quiet, calm, and professional atmosphere during class. • I expect your level of independence to be reasonably high at this point in your school career, and expect you to be responsible enough to understand that your learning is your responsibility. Why is it important to have a professional atmosphere in class? Well, I am glad you asked!

9. Are you ready for the answer? • Your textbook is nearly 1400 pages! And we will read all of it! • We need to cover nearly 500 years of American literature that includes nearly 200 authors! • We will also read a Shakespeare play-Othello, and four other novels. • You will also be required to read four independent reading books. • Your research paper will be a persuasive text that must be between 15 and 20 pages in length. • We will also be writing your college essay in order to be well prepared for your application process.

10. Classroom Policies • Homework is designed to be an extension of the classroom lesson and is assigned nightly. You generally can expect one hour to one hour and a half of homework per night from my class. I do not accept late homework, and I will not accept work that is incomplete, sloppy, or does not represent a genuine effort on your part. • I am not late to class for you-do not be late to class for me. • Get up and go to the bathroom on your own, please do not raise your hand and ask me if you can go to the bathroom. Simply sign the bathroom pass logbook in front of the class, and use the facilities. • My general style of teaching is to have a discussion based classroom, and you will be working together much of the time, therefore, I fully expect you to treat each other as well as I treat you.

11. Classroom Policies Continued • I ask that you turn in assignments such as typed essays and similar work on your way out at the end of class. Put your clearly identified and stapled work in my inbox at that time only. I don’t like to waste time at the beginning of my class providing staplers, highlighters etc. when this ultimately should be your responsibility. • When you come into class, there will be a do now activity described on the board. If it is a handout, you will take one and begin your work. The do now is designed to either review the previous days reading and lesson, or to quickly enforce a writing or grammatical skill. It is not designed to take any longer than 10 minutes- if a do now takes longer than 10 minutes it then becomes a lesson and no longer a do now. Towards the end of each term, I will collect your bundled do now assignments properly dated and put in order. I will give you a test grade based on the completeness, neatness, and quality of work on this packet. This should be an easy 100%.

12. Special Projects • Throughout this course, you will be designing and presenting PowerPoint presentations, speeches, debates, and other projects that will require technology. One of the expectations of all O’Bryant students is that they will become proficient users of technology for academic purposes. • We will also be writing a research paper that will be between 15 and 20 pages of text. I am looking forward to this being your best research paper yet. We will discuss this in more detail as the year progresses, but for now just remember it is not a “report” you are writing, but rather a research paper that takes a definite stand on a particular issue. It is to be persuasive in nature.

13. Q&A • If you have questions now-ask me anything you need to know about this class. I am always available to you for extra help, problem solving, or other issues that may come up for you.

14. Summary • We have a lot of learning to do this year, and I look forward to your continued effort. I challenge you to do your best at all times. • Businesslike professionalism is the key to your success in this class, and will allow you to take in and understand the material being presented.