Skip to main content
  1. American Literature (Period 5)
  2. Assignments

American Literature (Period 5) Assignments

Instructors
Term
Fall 2019 - Spring 2020
Department
English
Description
Instruction in American Literature and Composition guides students to explore the American experience of democracy and free enterprise through the lens of significant American authors and literary periods. Analysis of key novels, poetry, short stories, works of non-fiction and drama encourages students to develop comprehension and critical thinking skills, while considering the unique character of America and Americans. Students develop writing skills through pre-writing, drafting and editing — placing most emphasis on persuasive essay writing. This course requires rigorous effort, asking students to think, work and perform at a truly college preparatory level. Using the panorama of American authors to explore the crucial elements of American culture, students hone the ability to weigh evidence, interpret logically and argue persuasively. Students read, analyze and discuss material both chronologically and thematically, coordinating whenever possible with the United States History curriculum. Major goals of this course include expanding students’ understanding of American culture, applying this understanding to the world today and enhancing overall communication skills.

Assignment Calendar

Upcoming Assignments RSS Feed

No upcoming assignments.

Past Assignments

Due:

Assignment

SAT Vocabulary Test #1- study sentences AND synonyms AND antonyms. 

Due:

Assignment

Metonym Assignment
due on the shared Period Google Slide by 8 am. 

Due:

Assignment

Vocabulary Sentences #1

You will have to write sentences of each vocabulary word and find at least one synonym and antonym. The sentences will be turned in on Monday and the antonyms and synonyms the following Thursday - right before you take a vocabulary test.   

Due:

Assignment

Orange Book Assignment #1: OBA#1
You will be graded on:
  • The format and amount of your Cornell Notes 
  • A paragraph: Using your Cornell Notes, answer the following question in a paragraph. Has the United States become what the early settlers first imagined? Use 3 CN's in your paragraph. Highlight, underline or use quotation marks for this CN EVIDENCE. 
  • The topics are questions that you wrote in your first column. 
 
 

Due:

Assignment

Orange Textbook Assignment # 2

Individual Work: 

Read the following pages and take at least three+ Cornell Notes from each section. 


  1. Pages 2-3 Snap Shot of the Period paragraph and paragraph under map
  2. Pages 4-5 Historical Background (all five paragraphs)
  3. Pages 6-7 Essential Questions Across Time
  4. Page 8 How did attitudes toward nature show up in literature?
  5. Page 9-10 (only top of page 10)
  6. 10 (What is uniquely American about those themes?)
  7. 11, 13 (only paragraphs on white page and top of 13)
  8. 13 What were the major roles of early American writers? 

You should have over 25 notes by the end of class. 

Then write a summary of all of the notes that you just took. (4+ sentences)

Due:

Assignment

Grade Issues:
Binder: If you are ready to turn in a corrected binder, please leave it on the floor next to Ms. De Vine's desk Tuesday. She will return it to you on Thursday.
 
Essay Issues:
Wednesday & Thursday Office Hours: 2:30-3pm 
Students wanting to have a five minute one-on-one should come to the classroom (room 201) on Wednesday. It will be first come, first serve and students should wait outside, so each student has a respectful private meeting. (no one likes to have their writing errors overheard). 
 
There will be NO office hours held this Tuesday 2:30, as Ms. De Vine has a meeting with administration. 
 
There are NO office hours on Fridays. 
 

Due:

Assignment

In-Class Essay
During our 50 minute class, you will be writing a 40 minute timed essay about the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. You should come to class prepared with your topic, your three quotes from the novel and your one quote from a secondary source which you found during your research that you will use anywhere in your essay to support your opinion about the topic you have chosen. This is your first essay for this junior year. From this essay, I will be able to assess your abilities as a writer to ORGANIZE your thoughts by using your essay writing skills, use SYNTAX to your advantage, and tocreate clear, concise and powerful ANALYSIS. Not only should you show that this topic exists in the novel, but you should COMMENT about WHY Twain has used this topic as a point of interest, and how this topic still exists in contemporary society. AND have fun writing it!
You will also be turning in your TOPIC work, PLOT quotes and Research quote with your essay. 
This essay will be worth 100 points and the other 3 assignments are worth 12 points each. 
 
NOTE: IF YOU WANT TO BE PREPARED FOR THIS ESSAY< THEN WRITE A 3T+ tonight!

Due:

Assignment

3T: 
On one piece of paper, write your name, period and your topic, theme and thesis. 
 
Research: 
If you have any questions about your research, you should bring it to my attention in class. 
 
Organize your Novel notes: 
As you will be using your novel, and your notes during the in-class essay, you should make sure you have everything handy. 

Due:

Assignment

Topics: Step 1: Please make sure that you have five topics list completed with five quotes and five commentaries. Step 2: Choose two topics and have three quotes for each. Step 3: Research. Find research for these two topics. 
 
ALL OF THIS WORK will be collected Monday morning. As you write Quickwrite #2, I will be putting in grades for this work. Check plus work will have all three steps completed fully. Check will have all completed but collected in a mess. Check minus will have bits and pieces completed and Circle work will be everything else and will have to stay Monday 2:30-3 to complete the work. 
 

Due:

Assignment

Topic List Assignment: Three columns: Topic, Quote & Evidence (Page number) and Commentary. 
Binder check. 

Due:

Assignment

Topics: Find at least 5 topics in Huck Finn. An example is Deceit, or Superstition. Find scenes in the novel which support these topics. You will be called on to offer topic and page numbers of where the scenes are. 

Due:

Assignment

  • All Missing Intro Day work: SSR, Signed Syllabus, Intro Card, Paragon Test score, Summer Work.
  • Homework Binder extra credit (2 points) will be given if binder is brought completed with tabs and pocket on  Wednesday (August 21). Otherwise binder is due Thursday August 22. 
  • Mark Twain Bio notes: Research Mark Twain and bring in about  5-10 notes about Twain, that you can share out to the class. 
  •  Novel Annotations: highlighting and underlining lines from your novel is NOT ENOUGH. You need to write notes on sticky notes about WHY you underlined it. I will not be giving credit for just mere highlighting. Interact with the novel!!!

Due:

Assignment

  • Summer Assignment must be handed in at the beginning of class on Monday! If you have any questions please email me prior to Friday August 16 @ 5pm. It is totally alright if you have written 1 page for your answer to the question, or three sentences per answer. Whatever you have completed you will use as notes for your in-class essay that you will writing in two weeks. 
  • Summer Novel: Bring book to class on Monday.
  • Syllabus Signature Paper: After you have read through the course policy and syllabus, on a separate piece of paper, sign it, have parents sign it. Date it and then answer the question.
  • Introduction Card: Find link Below Complete all lines to the best of your ability! Don't forget to write a letter to me on the back!
  • Paragon Test PLSI Website  Step 1)  Create a score sheet Step 2) Take the test PLSI Test   After you complete the 40 questions, check out your personality. Are you an ENFP? or an ISTJ? You'll be turning in your four letters to me. If you have a tie, tell me! we will break the tie together!
  • AP Lang: Remember to purchase the 4th Edition of the Cliff Notes book on Amazon. Buy NEW! We will begin using this text September 2nd. 
  • Homework Binder extra credit (2 points) will be given if binder is brought completed with tabs and pocket on Tuesday (August 20) or Wednesday (August 21). Otherwise binder is due Thursday August 22.