Magen David Yeshiva High School English Language Arts: Grade 10 September 2013-June 2014 Instructor: Mrs.

Roxanne Maleh Instructor Contact Information: rmaleh@mdyhs.net Class website: rmaleh10.weebly.net Course Description: Students will read, write, analyze and discuss literature across cultures in order to better understand other societies and make connections to their culture and identities. Course Outline/ First Trimester: Sept- Oct "Two Words" by Isabel Allende Art as a means of understanding Magical Realism In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez Video interview of Trujillo and Julia Alvarez Membean Vocabulary Nov- Dec The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy Images of the French Revolution Non- fiction articles discussing French Revolution Membean Course Outline/ Second Trimester: Dec- March Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare Eyewitness account to Lincolns assassination by James S. Knox Second edition Woonsocket newspaper announcing Lincolns assassination General Grant on Lincolns Assassination Membean Course Outline/ Third Trimester: March-June Russian Literature: various short stories Membean Course Objectives/ First Trimester: By the end of the first trimester you will be able to: Understand how historical fiction is a means of understanding a time period Conduct research about historical time periods to understand context of narrative as well as authors purpose and perspective Compare the use of Magical Realism in different mediums, specifically art and literature Determine multiple perspectives in a narrative Identify symbols and figurative language in a text and understand the use of characters as symbols Make connections to different characters and historical figures in multicultural texts Define domain specific words and understand how they add meaning and texture to a narrative Develop an expository essay discussing a character's role and development in a text Identify the features of a strong argument essay Construct an argument essay determining the presence of history in a fictional text

Required Texts and Other Supplies/ First Trimester: In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy Binder with two sections- literature and vocabulary/literary terms Folder for handouts and short stories Pens, highlighters, sticky notes Optional- separate section or notebook for journal entries

Assignments: (Sept- Dec) Exams (15%): Summer reading: Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs Exams on various texts and novels discussed in class Writing assignments and Projects (30%) Individual and group research project Family Tree Assignment Expository essay Argument essay Homework (15%): Journals/ writing sprints Research Posting via weebly or other internet source Membean workshops Writing Assignment/ Homework Policy: All assignments are to be typed. Late assignments due to printer issues will be marked late. Assignments may be emailed if prior permission is given. Homework is graded on a scale of 1-3 or by a rubric. Some homework may be resubmitted for a higher grade. Larger writing assignments and essays will be graded with a rubric. Homework with recurrent dirty dozen errors will receive point deduction, it will be returned and must be resubmitted in the following class. Recurrent errors may result in a zero on the assignment. All written assignments are to be typed using proper formatting. Improper formatting will result in grade deduction. Cheating is unacceptable and work that has been suspected of plagiarism will receive no credit with no opportunity for make-up. The lowest homework grade is dropped once a trimester. Class Participation (15%): Students are expected to come to class on time and prepared. Missing supplies will lower your classroom participation grade. This class is based on student discussion. There will be various forms of discussion and all students are required to participate in a respectful manner. Students who violate code of respect will receive deduction in class participation and be subject to school wide penalties. Group work is essential to this course. Sometimes the groups will be pre-assigned and other times students will create their own groups. Either way, students are expected to participate in all aspects of group work and presentations, as well as to remain on-task at all times. There are no switching groups once they are created.

Lateness and unexcused absences will be penalized. Self-evaluations will be handed out periodically to assess student performance and participation during class discussion and group work.

Quizzes (15%): Reading comprehension quizzes Vocabulary quizzes Pop-up quizzes to monitor student understanding Test/Quiz Policy: Students must sit in their assigned seats when taking a test or quiz. Otherwise, they will not be allowed to take the exam. Students who are late to a test or quiz will not receive extra time. Students who call out during a test or quiz, or come to class unprepared, will lose ten points for each infraction. If a student misses a test, he/she can retake the test on the school make-up day with a note from a parent. If a student misses a quiz, there will be no opportunity for a make-up. The lowest quiz grade is dropped once per trimester. Grade Breakdown/ First Trimester NYT Project 10% Homework 10% Exams 15%

Writing Assignments /Projects 30% Quizzes 15% Class Participation 15%

Please feel free to e-mail me throughout the term if you have any questions! I hope to have a great year!!