Course Offerings

ACCELERATED ENGLISH 1

ACCELERATED ENGLISH 2
Accelerated courses in all grades are designed for the student who has shown strong academic ability. In the 9th/10th grade, these classes serve as preparation for AP Language and AP Literature. In the 11th/12th grade, American literature will be studied with emphasis on parallel reading of major American authors to obtain critical understanding. Accelerated students – at every level - are expected to synthesize all aspects of the literature studies: history, literature, music, and art. Composition will focus on academic papers based on literary studies. Correct grammar, usage, and mechanics will be incorporated in the writing process. Vocabulary building and spelling will be emphasized in all areas. The student will be exposed to oral communication skills through various speaking activities.
Prerequisite – To be advanced from CCR to Accelerated or Advanced Placements classes, any student shall meet or attain at least 2 of the following 3 requirements: 
     - Maintained an A/B average in the previous English Language Arts course (including 8th grade for incoming freshmen) 
     - Met or exceed RIT band requirement of 225 (Grade 9), 230 (Grade 10), 235 (Grade 11) or PLAN/ACT benchmarks 
     - Teacher Recommendation
*These same standards must be maintained to REMAIN in accelerated strand courses.

COLLEGE AND CAREER ENGLISH 1
 This course is designed to present a wide range of reading experiences with print and non-print materials that have literary, informational, persuasive, and practical purposes. This course also requires students to use the writing process and criteria for effective writing to demonstrate their abilities to write in a variety of forms and for multiple audiences and purposes. Students use writing-to-learn and writing-to-demonstrate-learning strategies to make sense of their reading and thinking experiences. Speaking, listening, and observing skills are used to communicate information for a variety of authentic purposes. In addition, students continue to integrate inquiry skills and technology to communicate ideas. Course adheres to Program of Studies requirements.

COLLEGE AND CAREER ENGLISH 2 
This course is designed to present a wide range of reading experiences with print and non-print materials that have literary, informational, persuasive, and practical purposes. This course also requires students to use the writing process and criteria for effective writing to demonstrate their abilities to write in a variety of forms and for multiple audiences and purposes. Students use writing-to-learn and writing-to-demonstrate-learning strategies to make sense of their reading and thinking experiences. Speaking, listening, and observing skills are used to communicate information for a variety of authentic purposes. In addition, students continue to integrate inquiry skills and technology to communicate ideas. Course adheres to Program of Studies requirements.Prerequisite: College and Career English 1

COLLEGE AND CAREER ENGLISH 3 
This course is designed to present a wide range of reading experiences with print and non-print materials that have literary, informational, persuasive, and practical purposes. This course also requires students to use the writing process and criteria for effective writing to demonstrate their abilities to write in a variety of forms and for multiple audiences and purposes. Students use writing-to-learn and writing-to-demonstrate-learning strategies to make sense of their reading and thinking experiences. Speaking, listening, and observing skills are used to communicate information for a variety of authentic purposes. In addition, students continue to integrate inquiry skills and technology to communicate ideas. Course adheres to Program of Studies requirements. Prerequisite: College and Career English 2

COLLEGE AND CAREER ENGLISH 4
This course is includes a study of English literature, oral and written composition, vocabulary building, and a sharpening of skills in conventional grammatical usage as evidenced through writing assessment. Students will develop the ability to interpret various literary works while mastering skills of literary discussion, speaking, and listening. Composition involves expository writing and culminates in long themes as well as a required senior portfolio. Parallel reading is a part of the course requirement. Prerequisite: College and Career English 3

ADVANCED PLACEMENT LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION
AP English Language and Composition - This course engages students in becoming skilled readers of prose written in a variety of rhetorical contexts, and in becoming skilled writers who compose for a variety of purposes. Both their writing and their reading should make students aware of the interactions among a writer’s purposes, audience expectations, and subjects, as well as the way genre conventions and the resources of language contribute to effectiveness in writing. Although the composition element provides students with opportunities to write about a variety of subjects from a variety of disciplines and to demonstrate an awareness of audience and purpose, the overarching objective is to enable students to write effectively and confidently across the curriculum. © 2012 The College Board

ADVANCED PLACEMENT LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION 
AP English Literature and Composition – This course engages students in the careful reading and critical analysis of imaginative literature. Through the close reading of selected texts, students deepen their understanding of the ways writers use language to provide both meaning and pleasure for their readers. As they read, students consider a work’s structure, style and themes, as well as such smaller-scale elements as the use of figurative language, imagery, symbolism and tone. The course includes intensive study of representative works from various genres and periods, concentrating on works of recognized literary merit. The pieces chosen invite and reward rereading and do not, like ephemeral works in such popular genres as detective or romance fiction, yield all (or nearly all) of their pleasures of thought and feeling the first time through. The AP English Literature and Composition Development Committee agrees with Henry David Thoreau that it is wisest to read the best books first; the committee also believes that such reading should be accompanied by thoughtful discussion and writing about those books in the company of one’s fellow students.

THEATRE ARTS 1 
This course emphasizes comprehension of theatre history, acting techniques, and play production. The purpose of the course is to develop the student's understanding of the major movements in art history as well as the theatre as a creative art. Participation in programs before the public is a class requirement. Some after-school practice hours will be required. This course also will include the core curriculum for history and appreciation of visual and performing arts and may be used as the Kentucky High School Graduation Requirement for Arts and Humanities.
 
THEATRE ARTS 2
This advanced topics course is open to students who have successfully completed Theatre Arts I. The class will further investigate topics that were introduced in Theatre Arts I. Students will study influential playwrights and their plays as well as play production. Topics for play production will include acting techniques, scenic design, costume design, lighting design, makeup, playwriting, and directing. After-school work hours will be required. Prerequisite: Theatre Arts 1 and teacher recommendation

THEATRE ARTS 3
 This advanced topics course is open to students who have successfully completed Theatre Arts 1 and 2. The class will focus on advanced play production, including acting techniques, scenic design, lighting design, costume design, makeup, playwriting, and directing. After-school work hours will be required. Prerequisite: Successful completion of Theatre Arts 2 and teacher recommendation

THEATRE ARTS 4 
This advanced topics course is open to students who have successfully completed Theatre Arts I, II, & III. This class will focus on advanced play production, including scenic design, costume design, lighting design, scriptwriting, and directing. After schoolwork hours will be required. Prerequisite: Successful completion of Theatre Arts 3 and teacher recommendation
 
PROGRAM NOTE: ARTS AND HUMANITIES SPECIALIZATION – THEATRE ARTS 3 or 4 credits Open to 9, 10, 11, 12 Students wishing to pursue a specialized arts graduation credit may, through indication on his/her Individual Learning Plan AND with teacher recommendation may enroll for a minimum of three (3) years of a standards-based Theatre Arts course. Successful completion of a three-year course of study may be used as the Kentucky High School Graduation Requirement for Arts and Humanities.