1.      referral by the junior English instructor

2.      a 3.0 average in junior English

3.      an ACT English score of 20 or above

4.      a maintained 3.0 average in Honors Class

Honors English is the study of British literature, combined with the study of vocabulary, and a brief review of grammar and usage.  The literature is chronologically studied, following the time periods of British literature:  the Anglo-Saxons, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Restoration and 18^th century, the Romantic period, the Victorian period and the Modern era.  The major literature units include Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales, Macbeth, Of Mice and Men, and Flowers for Algernon..  Also many essays, poems, and short stories are read.  Each student is also required to do a quarterly independent reading project.  Each student reads a classic novel and completes one of the chosen projects to illustrate his/her understanding of the literature.   The goal of this class is to prepare seniors for the kinds of writing and reading interpretation skills needed for college level work; therefore, writing is an major part of the Honors English curriculum.  Each student is required to write a 30 chapter Senior Memory Book (a compilation of reflective essays, personal narratives and poems); a research paper; a critical literary analysis paper, and additional essays and paragraphs.  Each student will be writing at least one developed essay a week.   A 30-lesson vocabulary series is used requiring students to constantly review words previously studied.  Part of the vocabulary series is the study of analogies, which requires the students to think very critically.  Grammar and usage are reviewed daily through the use of DOL (Daily Oral Language) exercises and weekly quizzes.  It is also assessed in almost all writing assignments, including the major Senior Memory Book unit.  Honors English is subject to the weighted grading scale used at Groton Area High School.

Texts Used:

Holt McDougal Literature:  Grade 12: British Literature. Common Core Edition.  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2012.

Holt Handbook: Grammar, Usage, Mechanics, Sentences, Sixth Course; John E. Warriner, Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2003.

Major Supplementary Materials:

Novels – Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

- Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

Drama – The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare

DVDs  -    Of Mice and Men

-          First Knight

-          Dead Poets Society

-    Flowers for Algernon