Students of English at DeSales High School will utilize language skills that foster an appreciation of literature and ensure proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.  This competence serves as a foundation for a more far-reaching aim:  the study of English will enhance the DeSales graduate's success in future endeavors that require a solid understanding of the English language.  Furthermore, the literature that students read will help them to empathize with their fellow man while the language skills they learn will allow them to communicate successfully with one another.  In a time where compassion for and interaction with others is sorely compromised, these important tools will undeniably create an individual more prepared to live as Christ has taught.

Freshman English, Syllabus
Students will study literature, grammar, composition, and vocabulary.   They will write a series of essays after reading and analyzing a number of short stories. Furthermore, after reading a list of books and plays, they will discuss the themes, literary devices, and relevancy to Christian life experience.

Core Titles:

• Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
• Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
• The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Odyssey by Homer
• Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare
• Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Sophomore English, Syllabus
Students will continue to study literature, grammar, composition, and vocabulary.  They will write a series of essays after reading and analyzing a number of non-fiction works.  As in Freshman English, students will read novels and plays, as well as many poetic works.  All will culminate in discussions and essays regarding the deeper meaning of the work.

Core Titles

• Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
• Antigone by Sophocles
• Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington
• Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
• A Separate Peace by John Knowles
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Junior English, Syllabus, AP Lang and Comp Overview
Students will study American literature through representative writers, e.g., Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mark Twain, John Steinbeck.  Students will continue to hone their composition skills with an emphasis upon writing critical essays and a research paper, both of which will follow the M.L.A. format. Vocabulary building will continue.

Core Titles:

• The Crucible by Arthur Miller
• Excerpt from Moby Dick by Herman Melville
• The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
• Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Senior English, Syllabus
Students will read, discuss, and analyze the literature of Great Britain from the Anglo Saxon era through the present.  Weekly vocabulary study, advanced grammar, and daily engagement with texts builds toward goals of effective communication, synthesis of skills learned throughout high school, and an appreciation for the contributions of great works within a modern context.  Works studied include: 

• Beowulf
• Excerpts from The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer
• Macbeth by William Shakespeare
• The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde
• The Mayor of Casterbridge, Thomas Hardy
• Frankenstein, Shelley
• Excerpts from Paradise Lost, Milton
• Gulliver's Travels, Swift
• Selected poetry and short stories
• Pride and Prejudice,  Austen
• The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Stevenson
• The Poisonwood Bible, Kingsolver and A Doll’s House, Ibsen, (AP English Lit and Comp only)

A.P. English Courses: AP Language/Composition and AP English Literature
Offered at the junior or senior year to those students who wish to prepare for the exams potentially granting college credits and/or simply desire a more rigorous course.  In addition to the core English curriculum, students will read additional selections as well as meet weekly to prepare for the AP exam, which is administered in May.  Online test preparation materials through the College Board are frequently assigned and assessed.  Students are required to sign up through the College Board for the AP course and exam in October and to sit for the required exams in May.
Learn more about our AP and Honors courses