US High School English/Language Arts¶

Title: US High School English/Language Arts (Grades 9–12)

Target Audience: High school students (grades 9–12, ages approximately 14–18)

Prerequisites: Completion of US Grade 8 English/Language Arts or equivalent. Students are expected to enter with grade-band 6–8 proficiency in reading literary and informational texts, multi-paragraph writing across argumentative, informative, and narrative modes, foundational grammar and usage conventions, and structured academic discussion.

Course Overview¶

This four-year course covers the complete US High School English/Language Arts curriculum as defined by the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI) — developed jointly by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). The course addresses the two CCSS-ELA grade bands for high school: grades 9–10 and grades 11–12, and is organized around the five strands of the Common Core ELA framework: Reading Literature, Reading Informational Text, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Language.

Strong literacy is the foundation of academic success, civic participation, and economic opportunity. By the end of this course, students will be college and career ready (CCR) as defined by the CCSS Anchor Standards: capable of independent close reading of complex texts, of producing clear and well-reasoned writing for varied audiences and purposes, of participating in evidence-based discussion, of conducting research that integrates multiple credible sources, and of using the conventions of standard English with control and effect.

The course balances literary study (fiction, drama, poetry, and foundational works of American and world literature) with informational and argumentative reading (US founding documents, seminal essays, scientific and technical texts, journalism, and digital media). It develops the four interrelated capacities the Common Core identifies for literate students: reading widely and deeply, writing for a range of tasks and purposes, listening and speaking purposefully, and using language precisely. Across all four years, students engage in research, close reading with textual evidence, and the analysis of arguments as recurring practices, culminating in a senior capstone project.

Main Topics Covered¶

The course is organized around the ten College and Career Readiness (CCR) Anchor Standards in each strand of the Common Core ELA framework.

Reading: Literature (RL)¶

Key ideas and details: theme, central ideas, character, plot, and textual evidence
Craft and structure: word choice, figurative and connotative meaning, text structure, point of view, cultural perspective
Integration of knowledge and ideas: comparing source material and adaptations, analyzing multiple interpretations
Range of reading and complexity: literary fiction, drama, poetry, and foundational works of American literature
Shakespeare and other foundational dramatists
Poetry from multiple periods, including American and British traditions
Mythology, classical literature, and world literature in translation

Reading: Informational Text (RI)¶

Central ideas and supporting analysis with textual evidence
Rhetoric, argument, claims, and reasoning
US foundational documents of historical and literary significance (e.g., the Declaration of Independence, the Preamble and Bill of Rights, the Federalist Papers, presidential addresses)
Seminal essays and works of American public discourse (e.g., Emerson, Thoreau, Lincoln, King)
Scientific, technical, and historical informational texts
Author's purpose, point of view, and rhetorical strategies
Evaluation of multiple sources presenting differing views

Writing (W)¶

Argument writing: claims, counterclaims, warrants, evidence, and logical organization
Informative/explanatory writing: thesis, definition, classification, comparison, cause/effect
Narrative writing: real or imagined experiences, technique, sequencing, sensory detail
Task, purpose, and audience awareness; tone and style
Production and distribution of writing: planning, revising, editing, rewriting, publishing
Use of technology and digital tools for producing and sharing writing
Research to build and present knowledge: short and sustained research projects
Gathering relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources
Assessing source credibility; avoiding plagiarism; following a standard citation format (MLA/APA)
Drawing evidence from literary and informational texts to support analysis
Writing routinely over extended and shorter time frames

Speaking and Listening (SL)¶

Comprehension and collaboration in structured academic discussion
Preparing for discussions; building on others' ideas; civil disagreement
Integrating and evaluating information presented in diverse media and formats
Evaluating a speaker's point of view, reasoning, evidence, and rhetoric
Presentation of knowledge and ideas: organization, development, style, audience adaptation
Use of digital media and visual displays to enhance understanding
Adapting speech to context and task; command of formal English when indicated

Language (L)¶

Conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking
Conventions of capitalization, punctuation, and spelling
Knowledge of language: making effective choices for meaning and style; syntax
Vocabulary acquisition and use: context clues, morphology (roots, affixes), reference materials
Figurative language, word relationships, nuances in word meaning
General academic and domain-specific vocabulary at the college and career readiness level

AI and Writing (AIW)¶

Artificial intelligence tools — including large language models and AI writing assistants — are reshaping how students draft, revise, and research. This strand prepares students to use AI as a responsible, critical coauthor rather than a shortcut. Students explore both the productive and problematic dimensions of AI in academic writing contexts:

Cowriting with AI: using AI tools to brainstorm topics, generate outlines, explore counterarguments, and receive plain-language feedback on the clarity and structure of a draft
AI feedback on writing: interpreting AI suggestions critically, distinguishing helpful revision from stylistic flattening, and preserving the student's own voice
Prompt engineering for writing: crafting effective prompts that produce useful AI responses for academic tasks
Ethical and academic-integrity considerations: understanding when AI use constitutes academic dishonesty, how institutions define AI plagiarism, and how to disclose AI assistance transparently
AI limitations in writing: recognizing hallucination, factual error, formulaic prose, bias embedded in training data, and loss of authentic voice
AI-generated text detection: understanding how educators and platforms detect AI-generated work and what that means for student authorship
AI disclosure and citation: following emerging MLA and APA guidance for citing AI-assisted content

Cross-Cutting Skills¶

Close reading and annotation of complex texts
Citing strong and thorough textual evidence
Critical thinking skills
Systems thinking skills that take a holistic view of problems and use causal loop diagrams to show balancing and reinforcing forces
Look for unintended consequences in systems thinking
Understand human cognitive bias
Learn skills to detect misinformation in social media
Argumentation and rhetorical analysis (ethos, pathos, logos)
Media literacy and evaluation of digital sources
Research methodology and citation conventions
Independent and collaborative project work, including a senior capstone

Topics Not Covered¶

The following topics fall outside the scope of this course:

Foundational reading instruction (phonics, decoding, fluency) — assumed mastered in K–8
Elementary handwriting and keyboarding instruction
World languages other than English (e.g., Spanish, French, Latin) — covered in separate World Languages courses
English as a Second Language (ESL/ELL) foundational instruction, although ELA accommodations are referenced
Creative writing as a standalone genre course (e.g., advanced poetry workshop, screenwriting) beyond the narrative writing standards
Journalism, broadcasting, and yearbook production as standalone electives
Speech and debate as competitive activities beyond the Speaking and Listening standards
AP English Language and AP English Literature exam-specific preparation (covered in separate AP courses)
SAT/ACT test-preparation strategies as a primary focus
Foreign-language literature in the original language (translations only)
College-level literary theory (e.g., post-structuralism, deconstruction) as a primary framework
State-specific standards that extend beyond Common Core (e.g., Texas TEKS, Florida B.E.S.T., Virginia SOL additions)

Learning Outcomes¶

After completing this course, students will be able to:

Remember¶

Retrieving, recognizing, and recalling relevant knowledge from long-term memory.

Recall the five strands of the Common Core ELA framework (Reading Literature, Reading Informational Text, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language) and their anchor standards
Identify literary genres, subgenres, and conventions (epic, tragedy, comedy, sonnet, lyric, novel, novella, short story, memoir, essay)
Recognize common literary devices and figures of speech (metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole, irony, symbolism, allusion, motif, imagery)
Recall the names and significance of foundational US documents (Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, Federalist Papers, Gettysburg Address, "Letter from Birmingham Jail")
Identify the parts of speech, sentence types, phrases, and clauses
Recall major periods and movements in American and British literary history
Name the standard parts of an argumentative, informative, and narrative essay
Identify the components of MLA and APA citation formats
Recognize logical fallacies by name (e.g., ad hominem, straw man, false dichotomy, slippery slope)
Recall the rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, logos, and kairos

Understand¶

Constructing meaning from instructional messages, including oral, written, and graphic communication.

Explain the theme, central idea, or argument of a literary or informational text in one's own words
Summarize a text accurately, distinguishing key ideas from supporting details
Paraphrase complex passages while preserving meaning and avoiding plagiarism
Describe how an author develops and refines a claim or theme over the course of a text
Interpret figurative, connotative, and technical meanings of words and phrases in context
Explain how text structure (chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) contributes to meaning
Explain how point of view, narrator, and cultural perspective shape a text
Describe the historical and cultural context of foundational US and world literary works
Compare and contrast multiple interpretations or adaptations of the same source material
Explain the conventions of standard English grammar, usage, and mechanics
Describe the differences among argument, informative, and narrative writing modes
Explain common cognitive biases (e.g., confirmation bias, availability heuristic, anchoring) and describe how they affect reading, reasoning, and interpretation of texts
Describe how systems thinking takes a holistic view of problems by identifying balancing and reinforcing feedback loops in causal loop diagrams

Apply¶

Carrying out or using a procedure in a given situation.

Apply close-reading strategies (annotation, questioning, summarizing) to grade-level complex texts
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of both explicit and inferential meaning
Apply MLA or APA citation conventions correctly in a research paper
Use a writing process (plan, draft, revise, edit, publish) to produce a finished piece
Apply the conventions of standard English grammar, usage, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling in writing
Use context clues, morphology, and reference materials to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words
Apply rhetorical strategies (ethos, pathos, logos) appropriately when writing argument
Use digital tools to produce, publish, share, and update writing in collaboration with others
Conduct short and sustained research projects to answer a question or solve a problem
Integrate quotations, paraphrases, and summaries from multiple sources into one's own writing
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, using formal English when appropriate
Lead and participate in collegial discussions, posing and responding to questions
Apply critical thinking skills — including questioning assumptions, identifying evidence, and testing reasoning — when reading, writing, and discussing texts
Apply systems thinking to construct causal loop diagrams that show balancing and reinforcing forces in complex real-world situations
Apply strategies to detect misinformation in social media, including checking source credibility, identifying emotional manipulation, and cross-referencing claims with authoritative sources
Use AI writing tools as a cowriting partner: generate brainstorming lists, request outline suggestions, and solicit plain-language feedback on draft clarity and organization
Write effective prompts that elicit useful, task-specific responses from AI writing assistants for academic purposes
Apply institutional and MLA/APA guidance to disclose and cite AI-assisted content transparently

Analyze¶

Breaking material into constituent parts and determining how the parts relate to one another and to an overall structure or purpose.

Analyze how complex characters develop, interact, and advance the plot or theme of a literary work
Analyze the impact of an author's choices regarding structure, order of events, and time manipulation
Analyze how an author's word choice, syntax, and tone contribute to meaning and aesthetic effect
Analyze how two or more texts treat similar themes or topics, including foundational US documents
Delineate and analyze the argument and specific claims in a text, evaluating reasoning and evidence
Analyze seventeenth-, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century US foundational documents for their themes, purposes, and rhetorical features
Analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance a point of view or purpose
Analyze the representation of a subject or key scene in two different artistic mediums
Analyze multiple accounts of the same event or topic, noting where the accounts differ in emphasis or evidence
Analyze the structure of complex sentences and the effect of syntactic choices on meaning
Analyze how authors of informational text structure exposition and argument
Analyze systems for unintended consequences by tracing feedback loops and identifying second-order effects in causal loop diagrams
Analyze how cognitive biases (e.g., confirmation bias, in-group favoritism) shape an author's perspective, argument, or a reader's interpretation
Analyze AI-generated writing samples to identify hallucinations, factual errors, stylistic flatness, and embedded bias
Analyze the differences between AI-assisted drafts and the student's own unassisted writing, including losses of voice, nuance, and original argument

Evaluate¶

Making judgments based on criteria and standards through checking and critiquing.

Evaluate the validity of reasoning and the sufficiency, relevance, and credibility of evidence in arguments, including identifying false statements and fallacious reasoning
Evaluate the credibility and accuracy of print and digital sources during research
Evaluate competing interpretations of a literary work, defending one with textual evidence
Evaluate the effectiveness of an author's structural and stylistic choices in achieving purpose
Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, use of evidence, and rhetoric in a public address or media presentation
Critique peers' written work using established criteria (rubrics) and offer substantive revision suggestions
Evaluate the impact of media, format, and modality on the meaning of a message
Judge whether a text meets the standards of college and career readiness for complexity and rigor
Evaluate one's own writing against task, purpose, audience, and standards-based criteria
Make reasoned, evidence-based judgments about contested issues addressed in a body of texts
Evaluate social media posts, viral content, and online sources for misinformation by assessing evidence quality, source authority, logical validity, and the presence of manipulative rhetoric or cognitive-bias exploitation
Evaluate the academic integrity implications of a given AI use scenario, distinguishing legitimate cowriting from prohibited substitution of student effort
Judge whether an AI-assisted draft preserves the student's authentic argument and voice or has compromised them, and revise accordingly

Create¶

Putting elements together to form a coherent or functional whole; reorganizing elements into a new pattern or structure.

Compose argumentative essays that introduce precise claims, develop counterclaims fairly, supply sufficient evidence, and maintain a formal style
Compose informative/explanatory texts that examine and convey complex ideas with effective organization and analysis
Compose narrative texts that develop real or imagined experiences using effective technique, well-chosen detail, and structured event sequences
Produce a sustained research paper of grade-appropriate length that integrates multiple authoritative sources and answers a self-generated research question
Plan and deliver a multimedia presentation that conveys findings, supports a claim, and adapts to an audience
Engage in original close-reading analysis of an unfamiliar literary or informational text
Design and conduct a peer writing workshop with criteria, drafts, feedback, and revision cycles
Construct an annotated bibliography evaluating sources for credibility, relevance, and bias
Synthesize ideas across multiple texts into an original argument or interpretation
Capstone project options:
Senior research thesis: a sustained research paper (3,000–5,000 words) on a self-selected topic, with a public oral defense
Original literary portfolio: a curated collection of original argument, informative, and narrative pieces with a reflective introduction
Rhetorical analysis project: a multimedia analysis of a contemporary public controversy, tracing the argument across at least five primary sources
Literary criticism portfolio: original analytical essays on three works of American literature spanning three different periods
Civic engagement portfolio: a written argument, public letter, and oral presentation on a current civic issue, addressed to a real audience and informed by foundational US documents