Description
English III: Journeys Course Description
This class is approved by the NCAA.
English III students will build upon the basics introduced in English I and II and will develop grammar, writing, poetry, vocabulary, and literary analysis skills. Students will build a solid foundation for grammar concepts and write well-constructed sentences, paragraphs, and essays. The class focuses majorly on literature elements that offer lessons on a variety of literary themes and concepts which include plot, poetry, rhyme, dialogue, sound effects, and figurative language.
Students are ready for this course if they can do the following:
- Label all (or almost all) eight parts of speech
- Can identify the subject and verb of a sentence
- Has experience working with compound and complex sentences
- Can read at at least a 6th grade reading level
- Can memorize 10 new vocabulary words per week
- Can write a well-structured paragraph (5-7 sentences) with little to no help
Grade Levels
- 6th – 9th grade
Prerequisites
- English I and English II recommended but not required
Curriculum
- Visit www.royalfireworkspress.com to view Michael Clay Thompson’s Grammar Voyage, Practice Voyage, Caesar’s English II, and Essay Voyage (video about MCT’s books).
- Novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, Phineas Gage: A Gruesome by True Story about Brain Science, and No Fear Shakespeare: A Midsummer Night’s Dream. ISBN numbers for the novels don’t matter.
English III: Journeys Course Outline
FALL SEMESTER
Week 1
- Live Class—Introduction and Overview. Begin Grammar Boot Camp: Nouns, Poetics: Patterns of Sound.
- Outside Class— “Finding Nouns” quiz; “Vocabulary Matching Lesson I” quiz; Short poem assignment
Week 2
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Pronouns and Adjectives, Poetics: Rhyme, Introduction to “The Lottery.” Vocabulary: analogies, antonyms, and stems in context (CE pages 15-24).
- Outside Class—Pronoun and Article Quiz. Rhyme quiz. Vocabulary quiz. Read “The Lottery.” Take “The Lottery” quiz.
Week 3
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Verbs, Poetics: Alliteration and Assonance, Discuss “The Lottery.”
- Outside Class—Verb quiz and Characterization Paragraph.
Week 4
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Adverbs, Conjunctions, Prepositions, and Interjections. Poetics:
Consonance. - Outside Class—Complete Parts of Speech Quiz (page 75 GV).
Week 5
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Parts of Sentence. Poetics: Reversal and Onomatopoeia. Vocabulary: Lesson II.
- Outside Class—Complete Parts of the Sentence quiz, Patterns of Sound quiz, and cumulative vocabulary quiz.
Week 6
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Phrases. Poetics: Review of Sound Ideas. Introduction to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
- Outside Class—Complete the Identify Phrases quiz and Three-Level Analysis quiz (both for participation grade).
- Read Tom Sawyer, chapters 1-7, and complete The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Quiz 1.
Week 7
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Phrases. Discuss Tom Sawyer, chapters 1-7.
- Outside Class—Complete the Three-Level Analysis Quiz. Read Tom Sawyer, chapters 8-15, and complete The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Quiz 2.
Week 8
- Live Class—Grammar Boot Camp: Clauses. Vocabulary: Lesson III. Discuss Tom Sawyer,
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentence 1-5. Complete Vocabulary Lesson III and read Tom Sawyer, chapters 16-26. Complete The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Quiz 3.
chapters 8-15.
Week 9
- Live Class—Grammar: Four-Level Analysis Practice. Discussion of Vocabulary Lesson IV and The
Adventures of Tom Sawyer. - Outside Class—Complete Sentences 8-10 in Practice Voyage and Vocabulary Test for Lesson IV. Read Tom Sawyer, chapters 27-conclusion and complete The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Quiz 4. Listen to The Genius of Edgar Allan Poe lecture and write journal entry.
Week 10
- Live Class—Grammar Review, Discussion of Vocabulary Lesson V, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,
chapters 27-conclusion. - Outside Class—Practice Voyage Sentences 11-13, Vocabulary Test for Lesson V, Study Vocabulary Lesson VI. Read “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe. Complete Journal for short story.
Week 11
- Live Class—Grammar Review and Poetics: Meter. Introduction to “Rip Van Winkle” and discussion of Vocabulary Lesson VI.
- Outside Class—Practice Voyage Sentences 16-18 and Vocabulary Lesson VI Quiz. Study Vocabulary Lesson VII, read “Rip Van Winkle” and take “Rip Van Winkle” reading quiz.
Week 12
- Live Class—Grammar Review and Poetics: Metrical Patterns. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson VII, “Rip Van Winkle” discussion and the Imaginative Paragraph.
- Outside Class—Practice Voyages Sentences 20-22, Vocabulary Lesson VII quiz, and the Imaginative Paragraph. Study Vocabulary Lesson VIII.
Week 13
- Live Class—Grammar Review and Poetics: More Metrical Patterns. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson VIII and
Introduce “The Gift of the Magi.” - Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences, Vocabulary Test VIII. Study Vocabulary Lesson
IX and read “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky.” Take “The Gift of the Magi” reading quiz.
Week 14
- Live Class—Grammar Review and Meter Lab. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson VI, “The Gift of the Magi,” and writing a dialogue.
- Outside Class—Complete Vocabulary Test VI and study Vocabulary Lesson VII. Write and submit the
Dialogue.
Week 15
- Live Class—Christmas Grammar and Poetics Practice (Meter). Discuss Vocabulary Lesson X.
- Outside Class—Complete Vocabulary Test X and the Meter Lab. Optional Phrases and Clauses Quiz
(extra credit assignment).
SPRING SEMESTER
Week 16
- Live Class—Grammar and Vocabulary Reviews. Poetics: Stanza Forms. Introduction to The Hiding Place.
- Outside Class—Practice Voyage Sentences 41-43. Vocabulary Test XI, read The Hiding Place chapters 1-5, and complete The Hiding Place Quiz 1.
Week 17
- Live Class—Practice Voyage sentence and Punctuating Dialogue lesson. Poetics: Couplets, Sonnets, and Haiku. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XII, and chapters 1-5, The Hiding Place.
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences 45-47 and Vocabulary Test XII. Study Vocabulary Lesson XIII, read The Hiding Place, chapters 6-10, and complete Alice Quiz 2.
Week 18
- Live Class—Practice Voyage Sentences in Breakout Rooms. Poetics: Stanza Forms. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XIII, Essay Voyage Chapter 1, Dialogue Capitalization, and The Hiding Place chapters 6-10 discussion.
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences 50-52 and Vocabulary Test XIII. Read The Hiding Place, chapters 11-15 and complete Quiz 3. Capitalization in Dialogue quiz. Read Essay Voyage Chapter 2.
Week 19
- Live Class—Grammar Practice. Poetics: Figures of Speech. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XIV, Essay Voyage, chapter 2 (Unity), The Hiding Place, chapters 11-15, and the Thesis and Sentence Skeleton Assignment.
- Outside Class—Complete Vocabulary Quiz XIV, and the Thesis and Sentence Skeleton for the Three-Paragraph Essay. Study Vocabulary Lesson XV.
Week 20
- Live Class—Grammar Practice. Poetics: Figures of Speech. Discuss Essay Voyage, chapter 3, and introduce Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleischman.
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences. Read Phineas Gage pages 1-22 (“Horrible Accident in Vermont”), and complete Phineas Gage quiz 1. Begin writing the Three-Paragraph Essay. Read Essay Voyage chapter 4.
Week 21
- Live Class—Grammar Practice. Poetics: Figures of Speech. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XV, Essay
Voyage chapter 4 (Formality), and Phineas Gage discussion. - Outside Class—Complete Vocabulary Quiz XV and the Three-Paragraph Essay. Study Vocabulary
Lesson XVI, read Phineas Gage pages 23-42, and complete Phineas Gage Quiz 2.
Week 22
- Live Class—Grammar Review. Poetics: Figures of Speech. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XVI, Essay
Voyage, chapter 5 Wordiness), and Phineas Gage discussion. - Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage sentence 65-67 and Vocabulary Test XVI. Study Vocabulary Lesson XVII, read Phineas Gage pages 43-75, and complete Phineas Gage quiz 3. Read Essay Voyage chapter 6.
Week 23
- Live Class—Practice Voyage Sentence 68. Poetics: Poetic Grammar. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XVII, Essay Voyage, chapter 6 (Content), and Phineas Gage discussion. Introduce the Five-Paragraph Essay Assignment.
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences 69, 70, & 71 and Vocabulary Test XVII. Study Vocabulary Lesson XVIII and do research and complete thesis and outline for Influential Author Five-Paragraph Essay.
Week 24
- Live Class—Practice Voyage Sentence 72. Poetics: Poetry and Science. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XVIII, Essay Voyage, chapter 7 (Quotation), and the citation lesson.
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences 73, 74, & 75. Complete Vocabulary Test XVIII. Study Vocabulary Lesson XIX. Write Influential Author rough draft.
Week 25
- Live Class—Practice Voyage Sentence 76. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XIX and Essay Voyage, chapter 8 (conclusion). Revising and Editing essay. Introduce A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
- Outside Class—Practice Voyage Sentences 77, 78, and 79. Vocabulary Test XIX. Study Vocabulary
Lesson XX and read A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act I. Take Midsummer Quiz 1. Turn in Influential Author final draft.
Week 26
- Live Class—Practice Voyage sentence 80. Discuss Vocabulary Lesson XX, Essay Voyage – Meaning, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act I.
- Outside Class—Practice Voyage Sentences 81, 82, and 83. Complete Vocabulary Test XX. Study Vocabulary Lessons I-V for review quiz and read A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act II. Midsummer Quiz 2.
Week 27
- Live Class—Practice Voyage sentence 84. Punctuation Practice Competition. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act II discussion.
- Outside Class—Practice Voyage sentences 85, 86, and 87. Complete Vocabulary Review Quiz Lessons I-V. Read A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act III.
Week 28
- Live Class—Practice Voyage Sentence 88. Poetics Review. Mystery Questions review and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act. III.
- Outside Class—Complete Vocabulary Review Test Lessons VI-X and read A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act IV.
Week 29
- Live Class—Grammar and Poetics Review. Mystery Questions review and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act IV.
- Outside Class—Complete Practice Voyage Sentences 94, 95, and 96. Vocabulary Review quiz I-VX. Read A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act V and take last reading quiz.
Week 30
- Live Class—Grammar: A Final Challenge. Poetics: Review and Practice. Discuss A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act V.
- Outside Class—Complete Poetics Posttest. Optional A Midsummer Night’s Dream Quiz (extra credit.)
Estimated Workload
- 4-5 hours of studying, reading, and homework completion
Testimonials / Reviews
My daughter Sarah took Eng III, Eng IV, and Writing the Research Paper with [Mrs. Bontrager]. I just wanted to share an update with you. This year Sarah was a junior and took Eng 1101 and Eng 1102 through the…dual enrollment program. I have always felt that Sarah was a good writer and you always complimented her and she received high grades in your classes, but in the back of my mind I also wondered if you were just being really nice and maybe not a super tough grader.
Well, this year threw all my questions out the window. Her two classes were very rigorous and the expectations were clearly high. She excelled in both! Sarah’s English professor is also the director of the [college]. In his comments on her last research paper, he encouraged her to take his advanced writing class once she is a student on campus that includes an internship position in the Writing Center. Sarah is only a 16 year old junior, and she was praised by more than one of the staff members at the Writing Center during her 2 classes for her maturity and skill.
I say all this, not to brag about Sarah, but to thank you so much for all that you poured into her and helping her develop a love for writing with the skills to go along with it. You were always one of Sarah’s favorite teachers, and I just wanted to reach out and let you know your effort is paying off for her! She is considering English as a major, though she still has senior year before even setting foot on campus as a college student so who knows where God may guide her heart. But, wherever it is, I know that Sarah is more than prepared!
I just wanted to let you know how much Grace enjoys your class – English 3! Big River has been easy to deal with and love the posts letting me know new grades are listed. Been a joy to work with you all thank you!
