English Course Offerings
Pomperaug High School
The English Department
The Pomperaug High School Language Arts program is designed to foster students’ skills and engagement in the areas of reading, listening, viewing, writing, and speaking. These receptive and expressive skills cross genres and require students to have control over their understanding and use of language. Students will read fiction and nonfiction each year, exploring classic as well as modern literature. They will practice the skills of literary analysis and reading for information while furthering their appreciation of literature and of well-written texts.
Throughout their four years of English, students will write clearly, effectively and confidently, for a variety of purposes and in narrative, informative, and argumentative modes. As part of the learning process, students will set literacy-based goals and reflect upon their progress throughout the year.
Planning for your English program at PHS
Students must earn 4 credits in English to graduate from PHS
Those 4 credits must include:
*Students may elect to take American Studies or AP Language in place of English III
**Students may elect to take AP Literature in place of Senior English
In addition to these requirements, students may choose elective courses that will allow them to earn additional credits for graduation.
Course offerings
Courses required for graduation
English I (academic/honors)
Freshman year is naturally a year for discovery. Students face a new environment, new challenges and new expectations. Students in freshman English will focus on a wide range of genres and forms, both as readers and writers, for the purpose of exploring who they are as consumers and producers of text. Through an inductive approach based on detailed observation of shared mentor texts, students will discuss and write about our common human experiences and their own individual identities. Students will read several classic works of literature and also engage in extensive choice reading.
English II (academic/honors)
The literary emphasis of English II is a broad-based study of World Literature and authors. The required works cover a variety of genres including: novel, poetry, drama, short story and film, some of which are presented in English translation. These works range from classical epics to contemporary plays and are intended to encourage students to view the world from varied cultural perspectives. Many of the reading and writing assignments are designed to reflect important literacy skills. Expository, analytical and research-based writing assignments, such as the Independent Poetry Project, predominate, although some narrative and personal connection pieces are also included.
English III (Academic/Honors)
To examine the role of language in a democracy, instruction in this course will focus on the transformative power of American voices, specifically through studies of: “Voices from the American Edge,” “Conflicting American Voices,” “Opportunity and the American Voice,” and “The Reliability of American Voices.” Students will be taught to make meaning out of a variety of texts, both written and visual, from across the spectrum of American literature. The course includes an emphasis on developing students’ research skills for success in the inquiry-based learning environment of the 21st century.
American Studies
(may be taken for credit in English III)
This two-credit course (English and Social Studies) will focus on providing an exciting, investigative lens through which American history and American literature are taught, including their relationship to the concepts of art, music, and social science. Team-taught by a history and English teacher, this interdisciplinary course provides Junior students with a unique instructional approach, reinforcing course content in history and literature and providing a personalized, humanistic study of the integral issues and themes prevalent in both disciplines. Throughout the course, students will be engaged in research, critical thinking and literacy skills, decision-making, writing, and group discussion.
Senior English and Composition
Looking through the lenses of argument and media literacy, students in this course will examine what it means to be an engaged citizen in a global community. Students will learn how to be active participants in conversation—both written and spoken—with themselves, their peers, their critics, and their community, in the broadest sense of the word. Students will have the opportunity to identify a global issue about which they are passionate and explore that issue through an inquiry-based methodology.
Elective offerings
Creative Writing I
This course is a writer’s workshop in which students will create poetry, short stories, memoir and nonfiction. As authors, students apply their skills to real world opportunities such as publication in local newspapers, literary journals, internet magazines and poetry contests.
Science Fiction: The Human Mind & The Modern World
What is the role of science fiction in predicting and inspiring scientific and technological innovation and invention? Can science fiction accurately predict the future? In this course, students will read classic and contemporary works of science fiction and examine the accuracy and impact these works have had on technological advancements. Students will also produce original works of fiction that focus on a chosen scientific or technological development.
Philosophy and Film
In this course, students will reflect critically on a number of diverse philosophical approaches for understanding the world around them. They will consider the role and nature of knowledge in their own culture and in cultures around the world. Students will study a number of philosophical perspectives and then explore the different interpretations that can be formed when these perspectives are used as lenses for understanding the actions and decisions of characters portrayed in film and television. This course does not meet NCAA core course requirements.
Shakespeare on Stage and Screen
This course focuses on performing, viewing, reading, and evaluating the dramatic works of William Shakespeare. A wide variety of plays will be investigated as living drama. Students examine numerous plays as theatrical texts. In addition, they will review the performance aspects of the plays; character; historical context and culture; language; political context; and production methods of the past and present to bring the drama of England’s greatest playwright to life. Much emphasis will be placed on seeing Shakespeare’s works performed whether they be cinematic or live theatrical productions.
Public Speaking
Public Speaking is a course that focuses on the elements and processes of oral communication: the connection between listening and speaking; the use and techniques of the voice; standard spoken English; forms of oral interpretation and presentation; and varieties of speech acts, group or individual. The control of one’s speech is a valuable skill in modern American society. Among the goals and objectives of this course is that the students will gain some measure of vocal control, leading to increased verbal self-confidence and the ability to express themselves and their ideas clearly in a public speaking venue. Special features of the syllabus may include constructing and delivering a speech, group presentations, listening, parliamentary procedure and terms, persuasive speaking, choral speaking, making a proposal, preliminary debate, and the art of constructive criticism.
He Said, She Said
In this course we will look at how cultural expectations have shaped the roles of men and women in society. We will look at how these roles have evolved over the course of time both in our own country and in others. Of particular importance will be our examination of how different aspects of popular culture-music, cinema, TV shows, advertising, sports, fashion, the internet, etc.-have played and are continuing to play a significant role in maintaining or changing the way we think about men and women in society.
The Power of Storytelling: The Literary and the Visual
In this course, students will focus on the comparative analysis of literature in its relationship to other visual media as a means of telling a story. Students will strengthen their analysis of literature through close reading and application of New Critical/Formalist theory, and compare the effects of moving from the written word to the visual and its impact on meaning and intent. The course will focus on considering works not only as a reflection of literary genres and aesthetic forms, but also the consideration of the cultural and social conditions when transforming the work to a visual medium.
Advanced Placement offerings
AP Language and Composition
The goal of this course is to develop the students’ awareness of language and to sharpen their skills in effective writing and critical reading. Students will develop individual styles adaptable to different occasions for writing in college. Students will hone writing and reading skills for critical analysis of a variety of prose.
Follow this link for sample assignments/syllabus for AP Language: CLICK HERE
AP Literature and Composition
This course is designed for students who want to earn college level credit while in high school and who have an interest in developing skills in literary criticism. The historical growth of literary genre, the refinement of analytical techniques, and the development of expository writing skills are stressed. Students are required to complete challenging reading assignments, participate in class discussions, and complete weekly written assignments. Close textual analysis and library research are the major format of the class.
Follow this link for sample assignments/syllabus for AP Literature: CLICK HERE