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A NOVEL APPROACH: THE ART OF ARGUMENT

 

Students will learn the art of argument by discussing books. We will read and discuss

important books throughout history, focusing on ideas they bring to our culture

today. Basic logic and faulty thinking will be touched on, but the emphasis will be on

arguing a viewpoint based on the evidence found in the reading material.


We will cover vocabulary, spelling, and reading comprehension while promoting active

reading and how to use the text as supporting evidence in an argument. One goal of

this class is to be well versed in a wide array of authors.


Literature studies will provide the stimulus for critical thinking, argumentation, as well as

analysis of methods of writing. We will focus on the six traits of exceptional writing

(Ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, mechanics) as we read and

analyze the texts.


All language arts skills will be challenged and refined through classroom discussions.

Required: There will be three 5-page papers due each semester.

We will focus on the following novels, poems, & short stories: *covered by materials fee

Julius Caesar by Shakespeare

Selected readings of the KJV of the Bible

The Bet” by Anton Chekov

Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift

Swift’s “A Modest Proposal”

Animal Farm by George Orwell

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

MLK’s “I Have a Dream”

Passing by Nella Larsen

Selected poems by Langston Hues

The Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Fahrenheit 451 – Ray Bradbury

Frankenstein – Mary Shelley

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

A Tale of Two Cities ­by Charles Dickens


Grades: 11-12

Day: Tuesday

Time: 12:30-2:00

Teacher: Mrs. Kathy Abelanet

Tuition: $19.50/week for 32 weeks and a one-time $100 material fee.




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