AP English Literature Reviews for Class Taught by Ruth Green

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To Future APES: An Excellent Course posted by Sam Griffith on May 29 2008 at 14:21:58

Dear future APES:

This course definitely prepared me for the AP exam. This course is phenomenal, and I loved every minute of it. From the discussion questions to the group projects to the independent novel and Live Poet projects, this course is amazing. When the day came for the AP exam, I was so ready to take the test. I was very confident about my abilities. I feel that I was prepared for the MCQ questions. I was also ready for the 3 essay questions, the 3rd one especially, thanks to our work in class.

I put a lot of hours into this course, probably around 8 hours per week when we did not have reading assignments, and a few more when we did have reading. But believe me—all of those hours are worth it!

I had lots of favorite assignments this year, but a few really stick out at me. The short stories we studied at the beginning of the year were amazing—I had so much fun with them. Before that, I hadn’t liked short stories, but now I think that they are amazing. I even try writing some of my own short stories now.

I also liked Mrs. Green’s assignments during the time that we studied The Great Gatsby. She gave us a scavenger hunt about the 1920s, and required a great project. She had groups of three or four people write an in depth character study on one of the characters. I worked with two other girls on Jordan Baker’s character, and I loved it! We had a great time with it, worked nonstop, worked together, and got a %100 when the assignment was graded. We even had pictures to accompany our paper.

Also, I enjoyed the Live Poet project and the independent novel project. I chose Bob Dylan for my Live Poet, and Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett for my independent novel project. I learned so much from these detailed studies. It taught me how to really examine and understand text.

Finally, I enjoyed the poetry aspect of this course. My favorite poems were To His Coy Mistress and the Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock.

This course enhanced my interest in the subject. I already loved literature, but I did not love short stories or poems. Now I love both!

I love my APE classmates! We had great discussions, and lots of encouragement from one another. In our group projects, we all worked together well. One student and I even helped each other out on our The Remains of the Day papers, because we had worked together for much of the year, and it was an easy, fun way to complete our assignments.

A motivated, hard working student would do well in this course. This course is amazing, hard, and so much fun! I would unequivocally recommend this course to other students! It’s phenomenal!

~Sam

For future apes... posted by Lia Campbell on May 21 2008 at 13:13:23

Dear prospective APE,

Don’t miss the opportunity to take the best AP English class that has ever existed! Hyperbole? Maybe, maybe not.

Mrs. Green prepares us APEs to finally face the AP exam without fear, by training us with short story boot camp, poem explications, timed essays, novel projects, and weekly discussion questions. It’s a lot of work, and it’s challenging work, but it’s interesting work. Moreover, the heavy workload is tempered by Mrs. Green’s enthusiasm and plenty of fun assignments (such as compiling a top 10 list from Huck Finn, and writing a fictional Dear John letter).

Before taking this course, I already considered myself a literature enthusiast, and I don’t think this course made me much more interested in English literature than I was before, but it has given me tools and knowledge that allow me to understand and enjoy literature more.

In short, take this course. Not only will it prepare you for the AP Exam, but it will impart skills to you that you’ll benefit from the rest of your life…IF you’re willing to do the work!

Say Goodbye to Boring Assignments! posted by Elise Porter on May 19 2008 at 11:41:09

Remember that old assignment that you had to do every year: "What did you do this summer?" Well, in Mrs. Green's AP English Literature and Composition, you'll never have to do another boring assignment again. I guarantee it. You'll be reading and writing and learning like never before. Of course, you'll have the basics of a good English class: weekly homework, timed essays, practice AP tests, poem explications, extra fun projects...

...oh dear, you shouldn't have gotten me started. Though it may seem like a lot, don't be overwhelmed. As an AP class, it is supposed to be challenging, but it is not always as hard as it looks. If the workload does get to feeling like...well...a load, just know, it is worth it!!! You come away with a superb appreciation for good literature (and for great English teachers!), and an understanding of what it really means to read. And, of course, after several practice tests and lots of timed essays, you'll feel very prepared for the AP exam. Your eyes will no longer glaze over nor your head begin to nod when you encounter such fun terms as "anaphora," "synesthesia" and "synecdoche."

Interacting with and discussing what you've read with the other students and Mrs. Green might be one of the best parts of the class, because as you discuss and debate, you come to better understand just exactly what it is you are reading... Additionally, Mrs. Green is a superb instructor, especially because of her great enthusiasm for literature, and she is always ready to help explain whatever you need whenever you need it. With her as your guide, you can't help but become engaged and involved in what you are reading!

On average, I spent about 2 hours a day on assignments. I did a lot more, however, when working on larger projects such as the novel project, my absolute favorite assignment. It seemed simple enough: choose a novel to read in-depth and then tell my classmates about it. It wasn't all that easy, but no experience could be more challenging or more rewarding than the hard work of really reading into the novel and looking for all those key elements that made it a great book.

There is no question about it, if you are willing to work diligently and want to learn to love literature and really understand it, you have to take this class! Don't expect the same old boring assignments. Mrs. Green's are interesting and worthwhile, and besides that, you actually learn from them, instead of rehashing what you did in the summer...

Eat Peaches!
~Elise Porter, Class of '08

To the APEs of the Future posted by Connor Hamilton on May 19 2008 at 03:07:06

Writing, reading, and thinking are all valuable skills, ones that we want to hone over our whole lives. One of the best places to learn and exercise these skills is among the great works of past and present. Mrs. Green's class is an excellent environment for this: she will immerse you in great literature and have you read it, write about it, and think about it. In addition to these general skills, the course will also leave you well prepared to tackle the AP English Literature exam, as long as you diligently complete the coursework and pay attention to Mrs. Green's instruction, advice, and criticism.

The class is set up to provide a broad range of reading and writing assignments around a core of, at least in my year, 7 novels containing the kind of literary depth and themes that make them suitable for the AP Lit exam. I found the breadth of the reading and the analysis I honed in the writing assignments to be both enjoyable and instructive. The weekly poetry explications also force students to pay close attention to detailed and compact literary works (really valuable on the exam!), and after struggling through your own explication you can see Mrs. Green's, and of course those of other students.

This brings up another good aspect of this class. The student interaction (it is mandatory to respond to a certain number of Discussion Question responses by other students) adds a nice extra dimension to the study, because one, fallible reader may miss some of what the combined observations of 20-odd readers will produce. I certainly had my "Oh, yeah..." moments reading other students' thoughts.

Another asset, of course, is the many practice AP tests, essays and multiple choice alike. The class does far more than just "teach to the test," but there is plenty of specific preparation as well, allowing you to know what's ahead, get teacher feedback, and work toward the ultimate AP goal: sticking to the prompt like a burr. :-)

I have seen other students reviewing the class give different hours that they spent weekly on the class from mine; obviously, it will vary from student to student. At the beginning of the class, before I got used to the DQs (Discussion Questions), I spent a little longer, but once I got into the groove, it took me about 5 or 6 hours a week.

I would definitely recommend this course to any serious student with a love for reading and writing and the desire to synthesize and analyze great works of the English language. If you work hard, listen, interact with the other students, and keep those pesky literary devices in your head, you'll make a class A APE--and blow away the College Board.

Dear APES posted by Stefan Jentoft on May 16 2008 at 21:36:56

I jumped into this class at the last moment, but it was worth every minute of toil, trouble, and tribulation I went through this year. A week ago today, I took the final exam and found myself thinking "I can't believe there are only x minutes left of the final exam." I found the class remarkably helpful, and felt well prepared for the exam. Even though I found the prose passage more difficult than I was expecting, I found that I had mastered the concepts and felt like I did well on the exam.

I have always enjoyed reading books, but this was my first true literature class, so I learned much about analyzing poetry and prose, and my appreciation of literature grew immensely. Although I often put more than three hours a day into the class, I think this is unusual. The papers that we wrote on each of the books we studied were useful, and gave me a greater understanding of the main point of the book/play.

Mrs. Green encourages communication between students, and the interaction, especially on the papers we wrote, helped build my understanding of literature and my writing abilities. To participate in this course, you have to have a strong work ethic, and have to enjoy reading and understanding literature. Mrs. Green has a wonderful sense of humor that lightens the student-teacher relationship.

Just a little insignificant review... posted by Joseph Marlin on May 14 2008 at 22:57:48

I went into this class thinking, as I so often do, that I already knew everything.

"A class on reading? That's stupid. I already know how to read. For pete's sake, I learned how to read around first grade! Even before that, I think! Why am I taking a class on English Literature?"

But the class wound up, as they so often do, showing me that really, I knew nothing.

This class has had tremendous impact on me. If you are one of those who believe that anything that is a so-called "classic" should be thrown into a so-called "bonfire," and that the conglomerates of words referred to as "poetry" should be put in the "trash can," as I was when I entered the class (Hamlet? I don't think so. I'll take Redwall, thanks), if you are one of those people, I will just say this. Take this class. You don't realize how much you are missing.

Since most of these other reviews say the same thing as this though, I'll leave it at that. I'll just tell you what you really want to know, since, yes, I do realize that as amazing as my personal conversion has been to me, you probably couldn't really care too much less.

So...

-Expect to spend about 1-2 hours a day on the coursework. That includes reading stuff.
-Make a check list every week- there are many little assignments that are easy to forget.
-Expect a fair amount of interaction with classmates from around the country.
-Expect a lot of support from Mrs. Green.
-Expect a difficult course- this isn't AP Psych...
-Expect a hand-cramping-ly long essay section on the AP exam- two hours straight.
-Don't get behind in assignments. I kept up with my AP coursework, though I didn't touch math for the entire second half of the year. And you have to do that. If it's a choice between falling behind in AP EngLit, and falling behind in a regular class, AP EngLit must take priority-

w = d_b²

where w = workload and d_b = days behind in English Literature.

-Don't expect an extremely light-hearted class- the assignments are quite serious most of the time. This isn't the place for blooming comedians.
-Don't expect a physics class either. We do have fun, even if it is just writing. And Mrs. Green's weekly updates are always fun to read.
-Expect a lot of writing. You will be writing a lot. If you don't like to write, learn to. You'll be doing it a lot. There is no euphemism, no better way for me to put it. There is just a lot of writing.
-Expect debate- not everyone is going to agree with you, and defending your points is half the fun. The other half is arguing others' points!
-Don't expect a nice easy start. You'll learn a whole new definition of "trial by fire"!
-Expect a prety crazy clas that u to write good!
-Expect a life-changing experience!

I hope this tells you some things you actually needed/wanted to know! =]
Joseph Marlin

Difficult but Enjoyable--I strongly reccommend this class posted by Erin Mundahl on May 14 2008 at 16:57:31

Dear Baby APES (this is Mrs Green's personal term of endearment):

Legend says that AP Lit is one of the most difficult AP classes. I have always loved reading and discussing literature at home, so I threw caution to the wind and signed up. I found that part of the legend was true, AP Lit took much more time than my US history class. However, with a good weekly planner it is manageable and all of that time is well spent. This was a valuable class. I found that after weekly poetry explications and discussion questions and many other assignments, the actual AP test was easier than I expected. Mrs Green had prepared me well for dealing with the mysteries of the Roman numeral questions and the pains of the poetry essays.

If you take this class, expect to jump right in during the first week. These are the hardest weeks of the class, mired deep in short story boot camp. But things brighten substantially and Mrs Green has a lot of creative assignments that keep things from getting boring. (Let's just say that Hamlet's "To Be or Not To Be" has never really looked like this before.) In addition to the class texts, each student does a project on a novel of their choice, which really exposed us all to a variety of literature.

Mrs Green is a wonderful surrogate mother to all of her APEs, ready to send chocolate before the exam and answer questions about baffling poems or test questions. I think her enthusiasm rubs off on the class. If this has confused or scared you in any way, let me sum up by saying that this class was difficult by enjoyable and is certainly worth taking.

posted by Anna Rebmann on May 14 2008 at 11:09:57

Dear Future APE,

If you are reading this letter, you are probably considering Mrs. Green’s A. P. English Literature Class. That is wonderful! If you are a hard worker who enjoys reading and writing, you have the potential to become an AP student of merit.

Of course, winning your AP spurs is no easy matter. Mrs. Green expects each student to work on the class for about 7 ½ to 10 hours each week. Writing accounts for about three to four of those hours. Discussion questions, book reports, timed essays, creative assignments and poetry explications all make an appearance during the class.

One of my favorite assignments was the independent poetry and novel projects. I choose Robert Pinsky as my contemporary poet and Charles Dicken’s Hard Times as my novel. I learned so much about literature from focusing on their work. I was thankful for the opportunity to study men of my choice and present them to the class.

Reading is an integral part of any Literature class. Mrs. Green chose the novels, poems, articles, and short stories with impeccable taste. Each reading assignment had a purpose, whether it was to get our mental juices flowing or give us advice for the exam. A heavy reading week could consist of a hundred pages. However, heavy reading weeks are light on writing, and vice versa.

In addition to reading and ‘riting, there are other assignments such as peer critiquing and group discussions. Sometimes, Mrs. Green would offer an opportunity to earn an English muffin by participating in a bonus project. I never felt like I was wasting my time with “busy work.” Although some assignments weren’t necessary to prepare for the AP exam, they deepened our understanding of literature. However, by the end of the year, I felt well prepared for the English test.

Did APE encourage my love of literature? You bet! I enjoyed myself so much that I decided to teach a co-op English class in the coming school year. Hopefully, my students will eventually take Mrs. Green’s course.

Before you command me to lay down my pen—or else, I’ll say a quick word about APE class interaction. Mrs. Green is an excellent teacher; she has a deep passion for her subject. She read all of our writings, giving us feedback on the majority of them. Mrs. Green promptly answered the questions we posted on the website. If she would be unavailable for a couple days, she always let the class know.

APEs, despite their nickname, are very human. Last year, we had classmates from all over the country representing a variety of interests. We all shared a love for literature, a jumping-off place for closer relationships. English Literature isn’t as interactive as AP U.S. History, my class from last year, but it still encouraged me to make several new friends. I look forward to meeting a few of them in person at the End of the Year Party!

AP English Literature is demanding commitment. However, it will encourage you to reach new academic heights. Indeed, an APE career is a grand one.

Yours Sincerely,

Anna Rebmann

To The Incoming Class: posted by Matthew Roseti on May 13 2008 at 09:57:39

Dear Incoming Students

Mrs. Green's course was more than adequate preparation for the exam! She took the time to prepare us without making us feel nervous or pressured. It was obvious that she enjoyed the contents of the course; she was not just interested in us aciing a test. She wanted us to love the experience. We did.

I put in one to three hours of work a day (depending on my procrastination methods for the week). The work was very enjoyable and valuable. My favorite assignment was the independent novel project. Each person had to pick a different novel, keep a journal on it, and present the novel to the class. Not only was it interesting to see the many different ideas people came up with to present their books, but it was also an amazing experience to keep the journal. After keeping this journal, I noticed myself being so much more alert in my reading, especially of the Bible.

Since fiction writing has always been my passion, I was afraid I would miss not being able to write much fiction of my own. Instead, I was inspired by reading all of wonderful works of fiction in the course. After this course, I feel more prepared to write than ever before.

Although not much personal interaction took place on the site between students, the constant encouragement from sudents' comments was invaluable. But I have had the chance to talk with a few students on facebook. I have become inseparable friends with one of these students and this has been the best part of the entire class for me!

Students who would do well in this course are students who are up for a challenge. If you are interested in writing, enjoy it, and are looking to stretch yourself, this is the course for you!

To Future APES... posted by Julianne Mccobin on May 12 2008 at 12:57:37

Dear Future APES,

I’m glad you’ve found this course and that you’re interested enough to read the reviews! But you can stop now because I can give you the answer you’re searching for: take this course!

Although I had already enjoyed reading, this course just ignited that passion. Before, the ‘indecipherable’ classics and poems seemed like work to me, but now I can read them with confidence and absolutely love doing it. Even through the year, I enjoyed almost every single assignment immensely, while learning so many literary techniques and rhetorical devices--and how they relate to meaning, as Mrs. Green will stress =). And I think The Great Gatsby is my favorite book of all time now.

As to the workload, don’t be afraid. While it looks like loads, once you get into it, it doesn’t feel overwhelming. Of course, maybe that’s because you’re thoroughly loving the great literature you’re reading, or because you can discuss why you love (or hate) that one character from The Remains of the Day with your insightful, fun, and brilliant classmates. Or maybe it’s because Mrs. Green tacks English muffins on her refrigerator for you if you do extra credit.

Speaking of Mrs. Green, she is an awesome teacher. Her assignments are out on time, she responds to your questions, and her grading system is extremely fair. She explains everything you need to know, and posts interesting and informative articles about the discussion topics throughout the year. And she has a sense of humor that prompts her to send pencils in the mail that say, “Mrs. Greens’ APES eat peaches”—it’s an inside joke that you’ll get if you take the course, and if you explicate “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.”

On testing day, I felt completely prepared and supported. I also knew that it wasn’t really about the test—it was about being a critical and insightful reader for the rest of my life. This course has given me the tools and knowledge I need to do that, and I just wish I could take it again! Seriously.

So…TAKE THIS COURSE! If you love literature, or even just like it, this is for you. Besides, aren’t you dying to know about the peaches?

To thine own self be true - take this course! posted by Elizabeth Deatrick on May 11 2008 at 16:19:18

Hello, prospective APEs!

So, you’re interested in Mrs. Green’s course, are you? I must congratulate you most sincerely upon picking such an excellent teacher to guide you through the next year. Now, on to the letter…

I would highly recommend this course for anyone with an interest in literature of any sort. By the time you are done with this course, you will know all that you need to know about literature (and a good deal more besides) in order to do excellently on the test. I had a lot of fun with the novels we read together (particularly The Great Gatsby- we even had a mock trial to decide… oops, mustn’t give away any spoilers, in case Mrs. Green assigns it again) and I feel much more comfortable with discussing all kinds of literature, especially poems, than I did at the start of the year. I felt very prepared going into the test.

As for the amount of work required (which is almost always a consideration when deciding upon new AP courses) I would say I put in anywhere from 5 to 10 hours a week on this course, 15 when I was putting together my independent novel presentation. That’s only because I chose a very time-intensive novel (and presentation method), though, and I could have spent far less time on it. (Speaking of which, the independent novel project is an amazing twist on the “pick a book of your choice and read it” and is one of the best parts of the class.) The assignments for APE are spread out over the week (usually about half of the work is due on Wednesday, the other half on Thursday or Friday) which discourages procrastination and ensures that it works well in conjunction with other classes.

To sum up: Mrs. Green is an amazing teacher who really cares about her students and the subjects she teaches, the novels we cover are fun to read and even more fun to discuss, the work is engaging and interesting but not overly time-consuming, the class prepares you excellently for the AP exam, and you will leave with a new-found (or newly-renewed, if you’re like me and loved to read to begin with) love for novel-discussion.

Now go eat some peaches, young APEs!

Elizabeth Deatrick

You lucky person, you! posted by Abigail Murdy on May 10 2008 at 19:17:37

If you are considering Mrs.Green's class, and if you deign to take my advice seriously, you will make a definitive decision to take this course. It has been one of my favorite high school courses and certainly my favorite course this year. I have thoroughly enjoyed it.

The great thing about this class is not that you add books to your reading list or learn to write a good AP essay in forty minutes, but that you learn to analyze and consider literature in a way you couldn't before. Mrs. Green gives you tools that will last you forever! This course doesn't just end when you confidently finish the AP test. You will benefit from it forever. You will learn how to read a poem and understand it. You will learn how to read a novel critically, enjoying it, but always being aware of what the author is doing behind the scenes. You will learn to love literature in a way you never did before.

Mrs. Green herself is a wonderful and inspiring teacher. Her weekly assignment e-mails were always a pleasure read and a cheerful way to start the week. Expect some nice surprises via snail mail as well.

In short – and I know this review is already short, but I think I made my point – take this course! You won't regret it, and you will love every minute of it! I promise!

To APE or not to APE, that tis the question... posted by Peter Cahill on May 09 2008 at 16:46:54

Dear baby APE,

I have yet to find out why you are not a baby APEL (or perhaps APELit), but that is irrevelant. I am writing to assure you that your AP adoptive mother, Mrs. Green, will take extremely, ridiculously good care of you. You will make sure that, like me (a grown up APE who is leaving the nest), you will feel extremely confident of your performance on the AP exam. Mrs. Green does require a lot of work (8-10 hours a week), but she attempts not to overload you, and does a pretty good job of knowing how to keep you busy, yet not dead. I personally enjoyed the (challenging) poetry explications. Sometimes I could not stand the poem, but that was only once in a while. Her selection of novels for the Q3 prompt is also superb, and through her Independent Novel project, I discovered the amazing world of Bram Stoker's Dracula, a book whose lofty literary merit I had yet to grasp.

I was not sure how I would like an AP English course when I was a baby APE, but now I can tell you that I loved it. I am going to miss all those DQs and Voice Lessons. Mrs. Green has also made me fall in love with some of my now-all-time-favorite books, such as Dracula, The Remains of the Day, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (I hated this book before this class), and The GREAT GATSBY! Furthermore, I believe that thanks to Mrs. Green I will be an analyitical and passionate literature fanatic for the rest of my life.

I had an amazing group of classmates and hope that you do to. Interaction is constante in this class, and very enlightening. I cannot possibly tell you how often I was able to learn from the insights of my fellow students (my own claim to fame is the fog from the Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock).

Anyone will dedication and a desire to understand the world of literature better would do well in this course. Obviously you will need perserverance, as sometimes you will feel that her assignments are "the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune," but if you make it through, you will be so happy I hope to see you soon, an all grown up APE! (or is it APEL, or perhaps APELit?) (Notice the parallel structure ;-)

Sincerely your big brother APE,

~Peter Cahill

To Future APES posted by Klara Stumpf on May 09 2008 at 14:06:16

Hello future APES!

Mrs. Green’s class is amazing. Period.

At the beginning of the year, I was incredibly nervous about taking the class. I had never taken an AP class before and since my sister had already taken Mrs. Green’s class, I knew how challenging the class would be. When I looked at the syllabus that first week before the class started, my anxieties shot up about 20 degrees higher from where they were already! Everything on the syllabus looked and sounded so foreign: Voice Lessons, Speed dating, and Personal ads?! What in the world, did they have to do with English Literature?

A small bit of advice to you future students: Do not worry about the syllabus and the workload! Yes, it is a lot of work, but it is all very manageable if you handle you time wisely. Mrs. Green understands that her students have other classes and activities and is very willing to give extra time on the assignments if you have a good excuse. =) Oh, and Mrs. Green is very organized and always posts the next weeks assignments sometime on Sunday, so you can get a head start on the work for the week if you are so inclined. I always loved it when Mrs. Green spiced up the weeks work with adding some interesting article related to what we were doing or found something that would just make us laugh—and she does this often. =)

Mrs. Green prepares you very well for the exam by assigning lots of practice for the multiple-choice section and for the essays. I felt fully equipped to take the exam—and it went much easier than I had thought it would! Of course, I had the normal jitters before taking it, but when I was actually sitting in the classroom taking the exam, I was relaxed because I knew what to expect and felt well prepared.

This class is well worth your time, effort, and money! I have learned and developed a completely new way to read books critically and now have a new appreciation of poetry. Even with all the hard work, this class totally pays off to the diligent students who are willing to work and persevere. My fellow classmates were all very friendly and wonderful, and I loved interacting with them in the discussions! You will not be disappointed with this class if you are willing to work, think, and write lots and lots! I thoroughly enjoyed my experience and would do it over again in a heartbeat.

Cheers!

Klara Stumpf

A class that prepares you and is enjoyable!!!! posted by Jami Acker on May 09 2008 at 12:24:49

Dear Prospective Apes,

Don't let the title "AP" scare you away. Mrs. Green is a wonderful teacher, and she knows exactly what to do to help you prepare for the exam and enjoy the process. The course is not easy, but you come away able to analyze poetry in order to better appreciate the author's talent as well as with a number of classics firmly mastered in your mind...(and hopefully some college credit?!) I can honestly say that after taking this course I felt so prepared for the test that I was not the least bit nervous on exam day! Also, although my senior year was stressful and busy, this course did not add to that, but rather was a source of enjoyment. I feel that after taking this class with Mrs. Green, I truly appreciate and love Literature and Comp.

Words of Wisdom (hahaha) from a Fellow APE posted by Ginny Hartnett on May 08 2008 at 19:20:33

Dear Baby APES,

First of all, I’m so excited for you to have discovered Mrs. Green’s class! Of all the English classes I’ve taken, Mrs. Green’s has been the most challenging and most rewarding. I’ve learned more from her than from any other teacher. (And no, this does not affect my grade!)

Although I decided not to take the exam in May, I did feel fully prepared for it. Mrs. Green’s assignments, especially the multiple choice practice and the timed essays, all helped me feel adequately prepared. Taking the assigned full-length practice test in April also helped in knowing what to expect from the actual test. Even if you opt not to take the exam, the timed essays and multiple choice questions are still valuable assignments to help you hone your understanding and close reading skills.

Don’t panic when you look at the syllabus for the year! It looks like a lot of work, but you will eventually get through all of it. I thought I would die when I saw the syllabus at the beginning of the year, but I was surprised by how quickly the year went. And no, a ghost is not writing this letter. ☺ Although many of the assignments are rather lengthy, all of the work really can fit into a week. It can be overwhelming to look at the week’s assignments (trust me—I remember panicking on more than one occasion), but don’t let them intimidate you. I would not classify myself as a fast reader, and the reading assignments took me quite some time to complete. However, they are certainly doable. The most important thing to remember is do NOT procrastinate! I am a terrible procrastinator, and it makes finishing all the assignments that much more intimidating and difficult. Usually, part of the assignment is due on Wednesday, and part is due on Friday. Don’t wait to do the assignments that are due on Wednesday! Get them out of the way quickly. Too often, I waited until Wednesday afternoon to complete them and had to turn in work that I could have done better on if I had allowed myself enough time (yes, these are true confessions). Pace yourself so you don’t have to rush through an assignment to get it turned in on time. Allowing yourself enough time to think through the assignment and really consider what you’re going to say (instead of just making up something that sounds like it might work) is a much better strategy!

The assignments really are, for the most part, enjoyable (or at least not torture!). I especially enjoyed reading all the extra articles and essays Mrs. Green posted. Don’t let discussion questions intimidate you; they’re really not that hard at all! The poem explications were, for me, more difficult assignments, but I certainly have a greater appreciation for poetry now than I did before.

One small tidbit of advice: pay attention to the HTML codes! They are extremely simple to learn, even if you know very little or nothing about computers. Be especially careful not to forget the closing code! But don’t worry too much if you mess it up; chances are that everyone else will too. ☺

Another great part of this class is the other students. At the beginning of the year, I started e-mailing with a few of them, and I made some great friends with whom I hope to stay in touch. It was also encouraging to be in a class with so many thoughtful, intelligent people who really took the subject seriously. Another unexpected (but wonderful, none the less!) bonus was meeting a certain sweet, funny guy who eventually asked me to be his girlfriend. Needless to say, I am forever indebted to Mrs. Green for being the cause of our coming together. But all of that is another story! ☺

To sum up: this class is amazing! Even though I have always been a bookworm, I feel that I have an even greater appreciation for literature now. Being a senior, I also feel very well prepared for college English classes next year! If you enjoy reading, writing, and thinking, and you’re willing to work hard, you won’t regret signing up for Mrs. Green’s class!

Eat peaches!

Ginny Hartnett

Thoughts of a Former Student posted by Mark Jackson on May 31 2007 at 19:19:24

Incoming students,
Let me first compliment you on the promise that you have already shown by choosing to read this letter! But let us get down to business.
Above all, do not worry about this class. Though the assignments require a good amount of your time and possibly even (gasp!) some thought, they are not impossibly difficult. Allotting two hours a weekday is usually sufficient for completing the week’s assignments, and leaves the weekends free!
Also, due to Mrs. Green’s superior teaching skills, you will be prepared academically and confident emotionally for the year-end exam. If you do your work all year the exam will seem easier (and more enjoyable) than you thought possible.
Now for a word of advice: communicate!! This is imperative for your success in the class! Don’t be afraid to ask questions to Mrs. Green if you don’t know what a DQSR or TE is, what the different types of irony are, or aren’t sure if Cliffs pp. 23-47 is an assignment or a description of geography. If you are confused about something in a book or a poem the class is reading, just send Mrs. Green an email and she will kindly and clearly answer your question.
And don’t forget your fellow classmates! Getting to know the other students is one of the best things about taking this class. Converse on the social board, leave a comment on another person’s essay, or debate (in a friendly manner) issues raised by a Discussion Question.
So fill out that application, send it in, and get ready for one of the best classes you will ever take!

Mark Jackson
Class of ’07, “the best yet”

Words from a former student posted by Melissa Ciandella on May 31 2007 at 12:48:29

Dear Future APES,

So, you’ve made, or are in the process of making, the decision to register for Mrs. Green’s AP English Literature and Composition class. Congratulations, I only wish that I could join you. You are in for a year of work that will be compelling, fun, sometimes tough, but always very rewarding! Hopefully you enjoy reading and writing, because you’ll be doing a lot of both in the coming year. Mrs. Green, while very kind and understanding, expects nothing less than your best effort on all the work that you will do. However, her assignments are usually a lot of fun, so I’m sure that you’ll enjoy every minute of it! Each week’s workload usually takes (or at least took me) about 10-15 hours. She would give us different articles or short stories to read (many of which were humor-filled), timed essays to write, poems to explicate, and other assignments that, above all, forced you to really understand what you were reading. Throughout it all, Mrs. Green and your classmates will help you every step of the way. The high level of communication and interaction in this class was a big plus for me. Whether it’s a discussion about one of the novels that you are reading (which Mrs. Green will start up nearly every week), collaboration with your group ‘huddle’ as you work together on an assignment, or simply a friendly chat on the social board; you will really benefit from your classmates’ thoughts and ideas, and make a lot of new friends at the same time!

One thing that I should recommend, however, is that you leave yourself plenty of time to finish all the work. Since Mrs. Green usually sets most of the assignments to be due on a Friday, it’s easy to procrastinate (!), and put off most of the work until Friday afternoon. By then, however, you don’t have nearly enough time to produce 10-15 hours worth of adequate work! Some of the work then gets pushed into the following week’s workload, and the process repeats itself. On the brighter side, if you just remember to avoid this (sadly inadequate) habit, you’ll have no problem completing all of the work.

With that said, I heartily recommend Mrs. Green’s class to all fellow literature-lovers out there. I’m sure that you’ll have a great time. And when May rolls around, you’ll feel prepared and confident about the exam, as I did. I haven’t received my score back yet, but I feel like I did well on the test, and I’m confident that you will too.

Happy Reading! -Melissa

Class Review posted by Grace Johnson on May 30 2007 at 14:11:10

My Very Dear APES-To-Be,

The first thing you should know is that APES stands for Advanced Placement English Student(s). The second thing you should know is that if you're in a hurry, you can read only the bolded sentences of my letter. Now, on to the real meat.

Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition with Mrs. Green has been one of my favorite classes in my entire high school career. It was one of those gems that I was truly sad to see end.

I felt that the course prepared me very well for the AP exam. The frequent timed essays were very helpful preparation, as well as the various multiple choice practice sets. The test was challenging, but not intimidating, and though I haven't received my score report yet, I feel confident about how I did.

The workload for this class is indeed intense. My other courses this year were all taken at community college, but none of them were as time-consuming as AP Lit. On a typical week, you will have either a full essay, about five mini-essays (DQs—Discussion Questions), or a practice test due, along with some reading assignments and a poetry explication. I felt the workload grew a bit lighter as the year progressed, mainly because writing became a more quick and easy process for me. I would say that in the lightest weeks I probably spent around five hours (rare!), and in the heaviest, approximately thirteen or fourteen hours (thankfully also not so common).

Some of my favorite assignments were the fun ones that resembled creative writing—for example, emulating the form and rhythm of the "to be or not to be" soliloquy from Hamlet while musing on a dilemma of my own choosing, planning birthday presents for the characters of The Great Gatsby, and creating a "Top Ten List" for some topic from Huck Finn. Not only were these exercises fun, but they also aided my understanding of these texts. The emulation exercise helped me to truly understand the structure and meaning of that famous soliloquy. The birthday presents really got me thinking about the Gatsby characters and what each one lacked. The Top Ten List helped me discover themes and patterns in Huck Finn. Mrs. Green is good about that—the whole school year through, you will find yourself learning and having fun at the same time.

But I think the thing about this class that I both enjoyed and learned from most was the interaction with my wonderful fellow students. As we commented on each others' essays and DQs, my eyes were opened to new insights and interpretations of the literature we were discussing. And the discussions didn't stop at literature—between the Discussion Question board, the WWW board, and the Social Board, we covered current events, theology, politics, snow, standardized tests, sci-fi and fantasy, future plans, C. S. Lewis, and more. I had never gotten to know people over the internet before, and it was a most interesting experience. Also, as a New York girl, I found it fascinating to have discussions and become friends with people who call the Civil War the "War for Southern Independence"! :-)

And besides all this, Mrs. Green is amazing. She knows her stuff, and she devotes herself to making sure you know it too. She consoles you when you get waitlisted at one of your top choice colleges. She sends lovely care packages. She is knowledgeable, caring, well-organized, clear, and altogether an excellent teacher. With Mrs. Green as my teacher, my already-strong interest in literature has grown and flourished even more over this past year. I've enjoyed reading all my life, but now I have come to better understand the richness and art of great books.

I recommend this class without reservation. If you don't already like to read, it will be harder for you, but don't write the course off completely—you might surprise yourself. Welcome to the APE family! Be prepared to work hard, and do not get behind—but don't worry. You will figure out HTML eventually, and stop infecting the whole class’s posts with bold type. You will learn to complete a DQ in the half-hour it is supposed to require, rather than an hour and a half. You will make friends from across the United States. You will learn a bloomin' lot, and you'll like it, too! Trust me.

Cheers,

Grace Johnson

posted by Sarah Whitesel on May 28 2007 at 15:54:42

Dear Students,

The reasons you are here is to find out what I thought of Mrs. Green’s AP Literature class and to find out whether you think it is the kind of class you would like to take. When it comes to my own thoughts on the class, I cannot think of any negative ones. From the beginning of the class to the end of it I felt as if I was learning very much about literary analysis and the art of writing. The class was not only about learning though, as the humorous articles that Mrs. Green would give us to read and the interesting social board conversations helped add some fun to all the work the class was required to do. At the end of the year I felt very well prepared for the AP test, and although I have not received my score yet, I think that I did well because of the excellent way that Mrs. Green prepared me and the rest of the class for the big test.

All that being said though, do I think that you should take the class? Well, I would say that the answer to that question depends on how good you are at taking on a challenge. If you are the kind of person that gets lazy and thinks of reasons not to do your work when you know that it is going to be hard, then I do not think that you should take this class. But, if instead you are the type of person that is motivated to push yourself even harder when you know that there is tough work ahead, then I think that this is the class for you. In class you will come across many challenges, including the need to budget your time carefully (I usually averaged 10 to 15 hours of homework a week), having to write a number of several page papers, and writing weekly poetry explications. If you think you can handle all this, then I highly suggest that you take the class; it will be well worth you while.

Confessions of a Former APE posted by Caroline Barta on May 23 2007 at 23:49:40

Dear Baby APES,
Words can barely express the experience of Mrs. Greens AP English Literature class. As a self-proclaimed bookworm, this class excited me very much when I chose it. But I had no idea what a rewarding experience this class would be! If you love English, reading or writing, this class is for you!

Mrs. Green is an amazing teacher-- quick to answer any questions, and always encouraging! Her helpful comments on papers and other writing assignments really helped me hone my writing skills. Mrs. Green has also helped me so much with understanding poetry—before this class I always suspected poetry to be written in a foreign language! Now I feel like I understand the language—even so far as to consider writing some myself sometime in the future! Best of all, the articles, weekly emails, and poetry explications that Mrs. Green posts are treasures to read. Save all of them for future reference!

While you will be doing quite a bit of reading and writing for this class, it is very doable as long as you pace the work out throughout the week. Plan on writing a good essay or several essay answers as well as reading at least 80 pages a week. I probably spent about 8-9 hours a week on this class, but I am a bit of a perfectionist, so take that into account. Don’t skimp on time, though. There is much to learn!

One of the best parts of this year has been getting to know my fellow classmates. Mrs. Green encouraged us to really be a class with group assignments and the always funny and wacky social board. Probably the most excitement this year came from a revolution regarding literary taste—about which we all had fun writing notes back and forth! (I’m proud to say that I was on the superior literary taste side, not the rabble-rousing rebels!) From email and other methods of communication, I have made some really amazing friendships this year! Make sure you introduce yourself, email others, and use the social board! ;) You will be in a class with amazing minds—learn from them!

Probably the most pressing question on your mind as you consider this class is a certain three-hour test in May. Don’t worry. Mrs. Green will ably prepare you for the AP exam with fun and helpful exercises. Do everything she tells you, work hard, and you will feel perfectly calm and ready to take on the test! (I know this from personal experience!)

I wish I could remain an APE the rest of my life, but alas, I must move on. Thanks to Mrs. Green’s class, I now have decided to major in English Literature in college. I only hope it will be almost as amazing as Mrs. Green’s class (nothing could be, but, hey, I can dream!). Get ready for a wild literary ride!

Eat peaches!
Caroline Barta
APES ‘07

To: Prospective APES posted by Elizabeth Wingfield on May 23 2007 at 10:53:24

Oops! When I posted my review before it came up without parahraph breaks. Let's try this again...

Dear Future APES (AP English Students,)

This course is excellent preparation for the AP English Literature and Composition exam. I entered and left the exam room feeling confident after having taken this course.

This course is demanding, involving between eight and eleven hours of work per week. However, the literature one reads and the essay prompts one answers are genuinely interesting. Plus, Mrs. Green always throws in a handful of fun assignments each week. My favorite assignment is when we had to write our own version of Hamlet's "To be or not to be" monologue replacing the nouns and verbs with our own. The opening line of mine was "To veg or not to veg."

Getting feedback from Mrs. Green and my fellow classmates was an especially helpful aspect of the course as it helped me to better edit my own essays, as I knew my weaknesses.

I would highly recommend this course to students hoping to do well on the AP exam or anyone hoping to enhance their understanding of literature. This is a fun, interesting course with numerous benefits.

Sincerely,

An APE Graduate

To: Prospective APES posted by Elizabeth Wingfield on May 23 2007 at 10:51:33

Dear Future APES (AP English Students,) This course is excellent preparation for the AP English Literature and Composition exam. I entered and left the exam room feeling confident after having taken this course. This course is demanding, involving between eight and eleven hours of work per week. However, the literature one reads and the essay prompts one answers are genuinely interesting. Plus, Mrs. Green always throws in a handful of fun assignments each week. My favorite assignment is when we had to write our own version of Hamlet's "To be or not to be" monologue replacing the nouns and verbs with our own. The opening line of mine was "To veg or not to veg." Getting feedback from Mrs. Green and my fellow classmates was an especially helpful aspect of the course as it helped me to better edit my own essays, as I knew my weaknesses. I would highly recommend this course to students hoping to do well on the AP exam or anyone hoping to enhance their understanding of literature. This is a fun, interesting course with numerous benefits. Sincerely, An APE Graduate

Dear Questors for Literary Wisdom posted by Luke Landtroop on May 22 2007 at 15:02:03

Where to begin. This class reminded me of how broad an ocean we embark on when we set out to study this thing clalled literature. Throughout this past year we have been swept on the crests of noble words and lofty ideas, swirled in the eddies of good humor, and pulled by the deep tides of pathos and high drama. All of these experiences were found, not only in the excellent choice of texts, but in the actual interaction and dialogue of the class. Discussion topics emerged, (you might say erupted) from texts to which at first glance they appear not to be related, but which demonstrated how the study of literature is really the study of life.

This class was a fertile seedbed for real thought and learning, all due to the careful and creative efforts of Mrs. Green, who aptly balanced challenging projects with good fun, all of which contributed to our appreciation of the great variety within the subject.

I heartily recommend this course to any student who really wants to learn what literature is all about. For the scholastic achiever or those simply crazy about literature, there is amble opportunity to go beyond the surface, and for the less enthusiastic or adept there is helpful explanation and constructive critisism. This truly is a class for everyone. Even if at the end of the year you still can't really remember the difference between metonymy and synecdoche, you will have gained a greater appreciation and, I daresay, enjoyment, of this great wonder, the literature of the English language.

Ian Sanders May 10 2004 at 10:25:18

Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

This course provided excellent preparation for the AP exam through its focus on literary analysis throughout the year.

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

The assigments which I found to be most valuable were the poetry explications. These proved to be helpful on both the essay and Multiple Choice Sections of the exam.

What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students?

I would recommend this course to any student who has an interest in analyzing literature at a deeper level.

Blair Skinner June 19 2004 at 18:42:44

Greetings to all; my name is Blair Skinner and I was one of the senior students in Mrs. Green's class during the 2003-2004 school-year. I enrolled in this class having three basic goals: (1) to gain a better sense of how to write a good paper, (2) to be introduced to some good books, and (3) obviously to try to place out of some college hours by scoring legitimately on the AP English Literature and Composition Exam. Although I don’t yet know how I did on the exam, I can say I did feel prepared and was able to complete each section with a certain degree of ease. As far as meeting the other two goals, I can truly say Mrs. Green was able to help me to go far beyond them.

I want to first talk about the reading, since this is a literature course. Mrs. Green is extremely mindful of the classics as well as other works of literature that may not have earned quite the recognition, but play a valid role in a process of learning by reading, analyzing, and discussing. The amount of reading a student completes every day is crucial. While the class reads a central piece of literature together for a period of about three to five weeks, there are weekly reading assignments of poetry and relevant articles to the discussion of literature. I can't stress enough how important it is to complete these assignments in an orderly fashion, and thence proceed to the class discussions. Everything Mrs. Green will assign you has its own unique purpose in enhancing your experience as a scholar. I'm speaking from the viewpoint of a student that was not always on top of my assignments; I payed dearly for it. It's not at all easy to catch up in work that was left undone; however the assignment stands, and it must be completed. Read everything, try to interpret it on your own even before you start getting clues from Mrs. Green about how to go about this process (it never hurts to get a head start with this stuff), then be avid in discussion with the class on the "Discussion Board" and the "WWW Board." This will be an asset when the test day in May 2005 rolls around; and it will creep up on you before you know it.

Writing, writing, writing...and more writing. You will do quite a bit of writing; most is literature analysis and discussion, and then of course, papers. Take advantage of the discussions, they will make writing the papers much, much easier. You will find that paper topics (most of the time) have a certain trend toward the prior class discussions of the book or play about which you are writing. One of the things I appreciated most about the class was the scoring of papers. It gets more rigid and harder to score high. "How is this helpful and in any way fulfilling?" you ask. I will tell you. If you make for instance a "B" on a paper in the first quarter, and another "B" in the next quarter, that means your writing is improving, not stagnant. You have to earn your grades in this class, it's no cake-walk, but I know for sure that this has prepared me for college writing in so many ways as well as develop an appreciation for the written word in a way that I never before thought I could.

The last thing I would like to do is quote from a great book that has had a tremendous impact on my life; and that would be the Bible. The passage I would like to share is found in II Timothy 2:15, and it says: "In all things do your best to present yourselves to God as one approved, a workman that need not be ashamed and correctly handles the word of truth." Life will throw you one curve ball after another this year, especially the seniors. Some days will be worse than others, but always remember to do all that you do with your upmost ability, unto your creator, and you will have no reason to regret the outcome. Even if you don't end up with a "perfect score," you will learn from all the things that you do in this class; not only about books, poems, and plays, but about life. God bless you all in this year of study. I hope you find it exciting, eye opening, thought provoking, etc. I also hope you have fun, because that's really going to make every assignment much easier.

Sincerely,

Blair Skinner

Jessica Cotton June 19 2004 at 18:45:14

Hello all! Welcome to the AP Literature class of 2004-2005. I'm sure you will have a great year as I did, but you need to be prepared to work! I'm sure you'll figure that out soon enough. When I signed up for the course the workload didn't seem that big, but it definitely adds up! First let me advise you not to procrastinate this year. That was probably the biggest mistake of my high school years in general, not just my experience in this class. It applies especially to this class however, because once you miss an assignment it has to be added on to the next week's assignments. And let me tell you, there's always something else to be done tomorrow, so get done what you can today! If you keep up with the assignments I'm sure the year will go much smoother.

I'd also like to say that you should be bold about your opinions. Don't be afraid to say something you think may contradict your classmates, and even your teacher. If you differ in opinion with her, I'm sure she'll be very willing to hear what you think. Make sure you're always respectful, of course – no need to cause hard feelings.

Have fun with the assignments. Don't write what you think everyone else will write, or what everyone else will agree with, but rather write exactly what you interpreted the passage or book as meaning. Also, be sure that you don't take things out of context. If you do, your point will be unsupported and will lose meaning, and thus your writing will become pointless. Always, always, always back your writing up! Make sure that there is a reason in the text for an assertion you make about it. Never make the author say what you want them to say, always make sure that you know what they were trying to get across, and make your assertions from there.

I really loved picking apart the literature this year. I had never read so in depth before and it really made me appreciate the author's job much more than I had in the past. Although I won't read every book like I read Hamlet, getting down into the depths of the literature and finding the author's meaning and the purpose was interesting, to say the least! I also learned to appreciate all the hard work Mrs. Green did for our class. Explicating poems was the most difficult assignment in this class, but I think I enjoyed doing this the most. Mrs. Green's explications always cleared up the doubts I might have had on the author's meaning, they were always so comprehensive and clear.

I guess my final words to you would be these – appreciate your classmates' work and insights, as well as Mrs. Green's, and use them to improve your writing skills. And most of all, enjoy the class. Have a great year!

Jess Cotton

Christopher Green June 19 2004 at 18:49:49

Dear Students,

Some of you may have already taken AP classes, and thus have already passed through the purging flames. You come prepared with the knowledge of what you must face, and how to stare the AP test in the face until it backs down, quivering and whimpering for mercy. For others, this may be your first encounter with an AP class, and you come bewildered, a little hesitant, and maybe not sure you can take it. To you I will present some information on the long road ahead, that you may know your enemy and overcome it.

Most of you will have been well-trained in English classes your entire life. Your youth was spent writing 250, 500, and 750-word essays on sunrises, pets, visits to the museum and so forth. Perhaps you gave a speech or two — maybe even wrote a research paper. That is good; that will help you. But remember that this class does not teach you those things — it assumes you know them already. This means that you will be learning new ways of writing and thinking.

There are two main areas of study: poetry and prose. Without a doubt, prose is easier, and so we shall start with that. You have most likely read some classic books, but most of your reading has probably been confined to enjoyable yes easy reading, such as one of my old favorites, the Little House books. Maybe you've read some books by Isaac Asimov, or Tom Clancy, or any other reputable popular author, but none of them will be in this class. You will study the cerebral — perhaps even ponderous — Hawthorne, Poe, Fitzgerald, and that purported greatest of them all: Shakespeare.

The most important thought to keep in your mind as you read is that you are not reading for pleasure. You are analyzing. This is what most troubled me with the prose. I suggest that if you have not read any of the books on the list, and had intended to, you read them before this class. In addition to making these books familiar to you, you will be able to read them enjoyably first, and when it comes time to analyze them, you shan't be torn between immersing yourself in the story and analyzing the technical procedures.

When reading for this class, you must think critically. If you read something you like, think about why you like it and what would make it less likeable. If you see something which seems out of place, try to see how it connects. Try to find things which will foreshadow future events in the book. While no teacher will ever tell you that the classic authors ever made mistakes, they are human just as you and I are. They did make mistakes, and if you can identify them and defend your claim, you will also be increasing your critical analysis skills. Just be sure you have strong evidence.

Poetry is universally more difficult than prose, for a variety of reasons. Students receive much less exposure to poetry in both their schooling and in their recreation. While many people read voraciously, it is a rare one who reads poetry regularly. This means that you will generally find that every poetry analysis is several times harder than prose analysis. Again, do not forget that you are reading to analyze. With a poem, however, you can read it for pleasure the first time and then analyze it, as poems are short. I found that reading a poem three or four times greatly helped my understanding. Often a poem would seem completely incomprehensible the first and second read, but the third would reveal one key bit of information which made it all fit.

In poems, you must be vigilant, for anything can be used to further the author's often murky goals. In addition to use of rhythm, slant rhyme, internal rhyme, stanzas, capitalization, punctuation, verbs, nouns, colors, length, connotations, there is any lack thereof — not to mention metaphors and similes, allusions and personification, as well as implied subject matter which can only be inferred from material beyond the poem itself.

Now, you may well read this and think: "Gosh! There's no way I can do that!" Now at first you will be right. But as you get the hang of it, the abundance of material can be made an ally. No analysis will be expected to be comprehensive, so as long as you comment on some half-dozen techniques, you will be safe. The trouble lies in making certain you are analyzing to the proper goal — the "correct" answer to the poem. While you may be often tempted to say "This poem is pointless" — and you will have many sympathetic voices to join in harmony (my own, badly off-key, joining in quite stridently) — this is never a correct answer. No matter how much evidence you have for your protest, you must swallow it and simply make due with what material you have in your analysis. Some poems are so vague that you can even imbue your own meaning, if you are convincing enough. This is one of the few downfalls of literature.

Above all else, do not get behind. Home schoolers have a propensity for free-flowing, unstructured work, which is grand for other classes, but untenable in an AP class. You must get your work done every week or you will be in great trouble. Much of the work is structured so that interaction will occur between students. If you do not keep up, you hurt yourself by not getting the advice and comments of your fellow students, and you hurt them by not giving them said advice. But that aside, the workload is large enough that it expands to fill a week, and if you let one week take a day extra, the next will take two days more, and then you have some obligation — and before you know it there you are, two weeks behind. Keeping up is vitally important in the final three months of class, for in those months your AP practice kicks into full gear, and if you don't get the practice done or work in a rushed and harried manner, your absorption of material and self-confidence will both plummet. At all costs maintain a steady pace, especially if you are taking any other AP classes.

This may seem like a grim and foreboding account of your class, but let me assure you that the class is not so draconian. I wish to present you with an accurate picture of the worst you may encounter. The class has many benefits as well. The literature you study is complex and ingenious. In studying it, you begin to feel your mind practically expand, and bend, and grow in new ways. You develop greater skills of observation, and greater appreciation for the work that goes into writing a classic book. The ability to analyze writing is a skill that, while it may wane with time, shall always be of use. Many students, after taking an AP English class have commented that the books they've read before are seen in a new light.

The test itself, while certainly an intimidating prospect, is not so fearful as you think. By the time it comes around, if you have done the class work throughout the year, you will be prepared. Your classmates will also be one of the enjoyable aspects of the class, as they are inevitably interesting and grand people, and Mrs. Green is not so horrible herself.

And finally, while the test may seem scary, and the work difficult, and the class long, you will all eventually come through it, and emerge on the other side and realize that it wasn't so bad, after all, and you will be full of knowledge, experience, and sage advise to pass on to those poor, trembling souls who shall next year make the same journey.

You shall be able to say, at least in regards to literature, that "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

And you will recognize that this uses the literary technique of anaphora.

My best regards,
Christopher

Robert Iannucci June 19 2004 at 18:55:36

Greetings, potential APES!!

I suppose you're all wondering, as I was, exactly what the class would be like. Seeing as I'm writing this letter, it should be supposed that I have gotten to the end of the class, and am, in fact, not a dead corpse (or even a live corpse... I wonder how that would work?).

I took this class as my 4th year English requirement, and of course, to further my knowledge of literature! I have taken multiple writing classes in the past, and I have had a long background of reading. If reading isn't your "thing", or if you have trouble plowing through a 500 page book, then I can safely say that this course is not for you. AP English Literature is about deeply reading and comprehending literature. That's not really too far fetched an objective, given the name of the course.

As an analytical class, there will be a great deal of analytical writing. If you despise writing essays, or if you don't like trying to follow the themes in a book, you'll be pretty miserable, because that's almost a total summary of the class. If you're looking forward to writing fiction or prose for its own sake, you'll be sorely disappointed. This class is about analyzing what other people have written.

This is not to say that the class won't help you to write creatively. By seeing what other authors have done, and understanding the principles of writing, you will be able to write more colorful and accurate representations of the stories in your head. It's like learning to understand the phrasing behind someone else's music in order for you to write your own. It's possible to do everything by ear, and to write music that is interesting, but there will be a definite lack of structure and format to the music. Eventually your music will begin to all sound the same. If you study how Beethoven arranged his music, you´ll be able to incorporate some of his understanding of music into your own. It is the same with writing.

Now, before I talk about the work you'll be expected to do, let me say that this was a fantastic class, and it has allowed me to both read and write more accurately, though I am obviously far from perfect. This class has given me, almost single-handedly, the ability to process poetry analytically, and has greatly increased my ability to read it without passing out from an overdose of boredom.

The work load itself is quite sizable. I was foolish enough to take this class along with two other AP classes, plus some other general education classes (I'm not dead, however, and I think I did alright on all three tests, so we'll see precisely how foolish it really was when I get my scores back!). There were some particularly painful times, as AP teachers seem to have this Borg-like quality of being able to read one another's minds and all increase the workload on precisely the same week. It's eerie, I tell you. Disregarding the other classes you take, you'll have about 10 hours of work per week in this class, give or take a bit depending on how hard the particular assignments are.

The actual class is generally in the format of "Discussion Questions", or DQs for short. Your responses to these DQs are the heart of the course, and are like mini-essays. 2 paragraphs is bordering on short, and 3 is usually sufficient to answer the question well. However, sometimes you'll find yourself getting carried away and you will write a whole page or so of comments (which can be quite fun, actually). Usually the DQs will be on the reading material for the week, which can be books, newspaper articles, or anything else that comes to the mind of your illustrious teacher... which can be tortuous at times, but equally fun at others!

The other half of the assignments will be poetry explications, increasingly common assignments as the end of the year approaches. These consist of a poem, and a short list of questions that you need to answer about the poem. When I received those assignments, I generally explained the poem in its entirety, explaining the meaning of all the juicy bits of the poem. I'm not sure that this was actually required, but it helped me to understand the poem better, and to understand future poems better also.

There will also be full-blown essays sprinkled throughout the year, generally one per book. These essays usually deal with some important element or theme of the plot, or the author's message to the reader. These require a really good thesis and outline for your own sanity! If you skip the thesis or the outline, you will die the most horrible death possible: Lots of hard work and a bad grade. So just save yourself the pain and make an outline first.

Mrs. Green assigned us work right up to the week before the test in order to keep our wetware* sharpened for the actual exam. This isn't a bad thing, just be aware of it. It caught me by surprise, because I was planning to use the last few weeks for review. Just plan on this, and start reviewing along with your other work a few weeks earlier.

My last work-related comment will be to say this: Falling behind is a very, very painful thing. I fell behind a few times this year because of my lack of educational veracity, and it's very difficult to catch up again. Start your work as soon as you get the assignments. Don't leave all your DQs till their due date, and start the poem explications as soon as you possibly can!

I hope you find this course at least as enjoyable and as informative as I did, and that you do well on your AP tests to wow those college entrance examiners!!

Robert A. Iannucci, Jr.

P.S. 'APES' supposedly stands for "AP English Student(s)," but it IS possible that it is more literal than one might realize on first sight! ;-D

*Wetware: The human nervous system, as opposed to computer hardware or software.

by Elizabeth Pepperman, May 17 2005 at 12:05:42

Dear 2005-2006 APES,


Welcome to the AP Literature class. I am writing this letter so you know what to expect! I wish I could have read some of the experiences past students who have taken this course. It is always better to be prepared for the unexpected. If your someone who likes to read, discuss, and write about literature, then you're already prepared to take this course.

However, one thing that you're never prepared for is how hard you need to work in order to get a good grade. When I first signed up for this class I was unsure about how much work it would be. In the beginning it's pretty easy, but if you don't complete your assignments on time, then it adds up to a lot of work. During the second half of the year, you get down to the more complicated stuff. The one really good piece of advice I can give you, is never wait till the last minute to do your assignments. If you stay on task though, your year will go much easier.

My favorite assignment was the poem explications. About once a week Mrs. Green would assign us a poem to explicate. This assignment is one that you should get use to doing because you have to do one every week! Learning how to explicate poems correctly helped me a lot, especially when it came to taking the AP exam.

Through this course you will not only get to learn a variety of literature, but you'll also make new friends. You will also get to have a great teacher, Mrs. Green.

I hope you'll love every minute of AP Literature like I did. If you work hard, respect the opinions of your fellow classmates, and praise your teacher for her generous help, then you'll be sure to have a great school year and you'll also pass the AP exam!

Elizabeth Pepperman(APE graduate!!!)

TB or not TB? That is congestion. by Peter Iannucci, May 17 2005 at 12:52:52

I'm very happy I took AP English Literature with Mrs. Green this year. Why, you ask? Well, firstly, it's over now, and any lingering disinclination towards homework is entirely vanquished: it yields to a sparkling sense of success. Hyperbole... check. Alliteration... check. Needs litotes. And synechdoche. Synechdoche is my favorite though -- or perhaps chiasmus. *ahem* Back to the topic. Yes! besides all the cool and impressive words you will learn in AP English Literature (impress your friends by pointing out syllepsis!), you also get three invaluable bonuses. First, you get exposure to a wide variety of really great books like Huckleberry Finn and The Chosen. Second, you get discussion, feedback, and guidance in sufficient profusion to hone your critical reading skills to an industrial keen. And third, you get a crash course in understanding poetry. For some reason, English lyric poetry is the hardest thing to understand, despite its nominal adherence to our native tongue. With one scintillating verse, it refracts a dictionary of feelings... ok, that was terrible. Nevermind. *cough* Right, poetry. What really makes the difference in understanding poetry is knowing what to look for, and where to find it. Between rhythm, rhyme, syntax, imagery, diction, and choice of details, the reader has all the necessary tools to understand the writer's intent. The rest is just a matter of concentration and taking notes. Speaking of which -- take notes. I didn't at first. It's much easier to work out your thoughts in the margins of a page than to work them out in your head. The act of writing your thoughts down forces you to translate them from the comfortable, fuzzy half-bakedness of intuition to the crisp, specific logic of the pen. I spend a lot of time on the computer, so I used Notepad (since I can type faster than I can write). It does what I need well, and has none of the distractions of a real text processor like MS Word. Taking notes has another big benefit: the paper is bound to remember better than you do yourself. When the exam comes, it will help to be able to look over your notes.

All of that said, one thing is certain: if you are willing to make the effort, you can get a great deal out of AP English Literature. The "Parlor Games" are pretty fun, too.

-Peter I.

Recommendation by Atlee Lang, May 19 2005 at 07:28:03

Dear baby APES,

So, you are considering joining or already have joined Mrs. Green’s AP English Literature class. Doubtless you have many questions: What is this class like? How exactly do you study English literature? Who is this Mrs. Green and why is she obsessed with monkeys? Although no explanation on my part can help you understand this class better than experiencing it yourself, I will nonetheless do my best both to explain and recommend it to you.

As I see it, this class has two primary goals. The first is to help you do well on the AP exam so that people will think you’re smart, and the second (and in my opinion, more important) is to give you a deeper understanding of and appreciation for literature. At the core of the curriculum are several major novels and/or plays; our class used The Chosen, Night, The Great Gatsby, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Remains of the Day, and Hamlet.You read the works, and then study them by writing several free-form mini-essays (DQs) each week on various aspects of them. In addition, both Mrs. Green and your fellow students can respond to what you write, often leading to interesting discussions. I really enjoyed this approach; it allowed each student to form and express their interpretations of the books at length, and the discussions often led to debates over a wide variety of issues (our class ended up debating everything from the causes of the Civil War to the value of modern feminism). You will also learn how to dissect and explicate poetry, how to write the timed essays that will appear on the exam, and how to analyze a passage based on subtle things like diction (word choice) and syntax (sentence structure). You will probably write a lot; our class did more writing than reading. This is a good thing because so much practice makes you a better and faster writer. All of these skills: fast writing, poetry comprehension, and experience with syntax and diction, will prove invaluable on the exam.

The class site is really a massive forum with one student responding to another’s work and a second responding to the response and so on. My classmates were all intelligent, interesting people and I am sure yours will be as well. We were polite and respectful to each other, and you will certainly enjoy this experience if you are the same. Mrs. Green’s main interest is to make sure that you learn the subject and are ready for the exam; she doesn’t put you in your place or show off how much she knows about literature and her corrections are specific and instructive, not critical. The site is definitely a friendly environment.

I highly recommend this class. I could never have gotten through the exam without it, and I am glad to have studied so many books so thoroughly. It was great to get to know a lot of other homeshoolers too. Sigh up, you won’t regret it.

My AP Literature year! by Nori Perrine, May 19 2005 at 07:53:08

So, after a long year of classes I've reached the end of the school year. I was taking a heavy load of courses this year and my AP literature class was one of the hardest. Last year I took the AP U.S. government and politics course through PA Homeschoolers, and was thus somewhat prepared for the load of work that I was about to undertake.

Usually throughout the year I would spend anywhere from one to three hours a day on AP English literature. The course load is a lot, but doable. It helps to do some of the reading in advance. During the weeks that there were papers to write I would spend a lot of time thinking/drafting/writing/editing. Weeks without papers were lighter, but still full of discussion questions, poem explications, articles/essays to read, and vocabulary exercises. I really enjoyed the final Novel Project in which the student was able to choose the novel and write a paper on it.

Having completed the course I feel like I have gained a lot. I know much more about vocabulary terms, poetry metrics, stylistic elements of literature, and an overall better understanding of the thematical and structural elements behind wonderful classical literature. I feel like I have gained much more from an advanced course such as this than I would have in a different course.

This is a course that is challenging, interesting, fun, and full of lots and lots of literature. I would recommend it to a student that is self-motivated and ready to tackle a big subject in a less hands-on form than in the typical teacher/classroom setting. This is a wonderful course that is beneficial no matter what. You get what you want from it. And I feel like i've gained a lot from this course.

by Meredith Castor, May 20 2005 at 08:20:33

Dear possible APES-to-be (AP English Students),

My name is Meredith Castor and I was part of this past year’s AP English Literature and Composition course with Mrs. Green. I’d like to tell you a little about it.

I would definitely say this class is hard. I generally did about 6-10 hours of work a week, and had to budget my time very carefully to make sure I made deadlines. The discussion questions were often hard, focusing on what seemed like the smallest minutiae and complicated, difficult topics and themes. And I sometimes found myself bogged down in the very particular demands of the assignments. Still interested? Read on; it gets better!

One of the things I enjoyed the most about this class was the reading. We read some really great books: some were classics (Hamlet), some were newer and less well-known (The Remains of the Day, by Kazuo Ishiguro). We also read a lot of poems that developed similar themes to those in the books, and that stretched our minds to consider shorter works into which so much meaning is stuffed. And finally, we read a number of articles and short stories, many of which were humourous and offered breaks from the intensity of the class.

Another aspect of the class that I really enjoyed was the independent novel project, in which we were allowed to choose a novel (I picked A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway), read it, take notes, and then write a book review. I enjoyed this because it was different from the rest of the class. I jumped into my book quickly so that I would have plenty of time to think about it and write my paper. I found this freedom to go at my own pace very welcome. After a whole year of ever-present deadlines, I relished the chance to really get to delve into this book more than any of the others, and be able to think through it thoroughly.

I learned a great many things from this course. I will admit that I am glad it’s over, but looking back, I can see all the hard work and effort has strengthened me as a reader, discusser (is that a word?), and writer. Many of the requirements of this course – meeting deadlines, fast reading, and clear, thoughtful writing – are good habits to develop. I found I grew into meeting the deadlines until it was practically second nature: I’d look at the list of assignments, and see exactly what I had to do today, before Wednesday, or by the end of the week. And while the class is more of an analysis course than a writing course, my ability to communicate my ideas in a clear, concise way – and often very quickly – has definitely been strengthened and enhanced by the discussion questions, papers, and timed essays.

I also learned – and here’s one of the harder aspects of the course – to accept criticism, and a lot of it! It is often discouraging, but just as often very helpful, even if you don’t agree with it. I found it’s no use fighting against it, but a much better idea is to look at it realistically and realize that it doesn’t reflect on you as a person.

If you’re willing to work long and hard, to wrack your brain for good ideas, to wear your fingers out typing, and to take criticism every week, you can do this course. The best thing to do is to come to it realistically, knowing what you’re in for, yet aware of how you’ll be stronger when you come out. One of the most satisfying things I’ve experienced this year is the pleasure of seeing the huge stack of all the paperwork I did!

I wanted to give you a true picture of what this class is about, so I hope this has been helpful. Mrs. Green is a great teacher, and gives helpful suggestions and encouragement. (She also sends comics and jolly monkey stickers on your packages!)

Best wishes for the coming year,