English Curriculum

Courses

Proficiency in communication in all of its forms — speaking, writing, reading and listening — is the major objective of the World Languages program. In each class, instructors seek an appropriate balance among these skills. The target language is used as much as possible, and almost entirely for the third- and fourth-year classes. Because language has built-in cultural aspects, a theme-based, context-rich approach in the target language broadens ways of looking at the world (both local and global) and expands exposure to and understanding of people of different ethnic, racial, religious and social backgrounds. 

  • AP French Language

    Prerequisite: B+ for two semesters in French III Honors and department approval; A- for two semesters in French III and Instructor recommendation.

    Advanced Placement French IV is designed to prepare the student for the Advanced Placement exam through constant work on oral fluency, vocabulary building, written composition and listening comprehension. The curriculum set for this class is the same as that of French IV with additional work in listening, speaking, reading and writing, AP practice exercises and AP exam practices. Some aspects of the French culture are also presented. The course is taught entirely in French.

  • AP Spanish Language

    Prerequisite: A- for two semesters in Spanish III Honors and department approval.

    Advanced Placement Spanish Language and Culture is a rigorous, college-level course designed to prepare students for the Advanced Placement Exam while improving their communicative and comprehension skills of speaking, listening, reading, and writing.  Emphasis is placed on cultural competency of the Spanish-speaking world and the linguistic skills necessary to communicate about these topics. The course is developed around AP themes and authentic materials from the Spanish-speaking world. Students should acquire advanced levels of proficiency while taking this course and be able to perform a variety of advanced tasks such as spontaneous conversation, oral presentations and cultural comparisons, persuasive essay writing, and reading/listening to a variety of texts (literary, expository, informative, historical, etc.). The course is taught entirely in Spanish.

  • French I

    Prerequisite: None

    French I is designed to develop a good command of simple conversational French, and to train students to comprehend simple questions, sentences, and commands. Emphasis is placed on speaking, listening, and writing skills. Reading exercises are done as well, and easy texts are read. Geography of France, along with some cultural aspects of the French-speaking world, is also covered.

  • French II

    Prerequisite: C- in French I

    French II is designed to enhance the student's knowledge of conversational French through the review of basic grammar and vocabulary from French I, the introduction of the imperfect and conditional tenses, with continual work on pronunciation and listening comprehension. The cultural aspects of the French-speaking world will be covered in more depth.

  • French III

    Prerequisite: C- for two semesters in French II and department approval

    French III is designed to build on all skills presented in French I and II through grammar and vocabulary review and more detailed presentation of certain points of grammar and idioms. Students discuss a variety of concrete topics in detail such as own background, family, interests, work, travel and current events using different time frames. Students are also exposed to various literary styles of French Literature (poems, fables, scenes from plays, extracts from novels) and write compositions regarding these passages found in the textbook. The class is taught primarily in French.

  • French III (H)

    Prerequisite: B+ for two semesters in French II and department approval

    French III Honors is an advanced course designed to build on and perfect skills presented in French I and II through grammar, vocabulary and cultural review. Students will learn about the history of France from ancient to modern times and are also exposed to various literary styles of French Literature. Further development of listening, speaking, reading and writing skills will prepare students for more advanced work. The class is taught primarily in French.

  • French IV

    Prerequisite: C- for two semesters in French III or French III Honors and department approval

    French IV is designed to provide students with a deeper understanding of the French language. Through reading, writing, and a variety of exercises, students will acquire good comprehension and communication skills. The same curriculum as AP French IV is set for this class. However, students are required to take a French final exam or work on a final class project in lieu of the AP exam. Some aspects of the French culture are also presented. The class is conducted entirely in French.

  • Honors Spanish V

    Prerequisite: B+ is AP Spanish and department approval.

    Honors Spanish V - Change Makers: Impact & Innovation in Our Spanish-Speaking World 
    In Honors Spanish V students will study the impact and innovation of key figures in our contemporary Spanish-Speaking World as they explore fields of study and interest in relationship to career, research and community.   The course will focus on the contributions to diverse and interdisciplinary fields and interest, such as Food Culture and Activism; Medicine and Public Health;  Sustainability and Indigenous Culture;  Murals and Street Art as Representation and Voice;  Indigenous Contributions in Sports; Testimonios, Writing as Witness and Oral Histories; among other topics.  Course and materials will be in Spanish in order for students to increase language proficiency and skills at the advanced level.

  • Spanish I

    Prerequisite: None

    Spanish I is an introductory course designed to develop a good command of simple conversational Spanish and to help students acquire novice-level listening, reading, speaking, and writing skills. Students will be exposed to level-appropriate texts (print, media, audio), as well as novice-level novels and authentic materials in order to increase linguistic skills and cultural understanding of the Spanish-speaking world.

  • Spanish II

    Prerequisite: C- both semesters in Spanish I

    Spanish II is designed to enhance the students’ knowledge of basic Spanish communication and build on the language skills acquired in Spanish I. Students will be exposed to level-appropriate texts (print, media, audio), as well as a level-appropriate novel and authentic materials in order to continue to increase linguistic skills and cultural understanding of the Spanish-speaking world and gain intermediate-low proficiency levels of communication. Students will be able to comprehend and communicate about past as well as the present.

  • Spanish III

    Prerequisite: C- for two semesters in Spanish II.

    Spanish III is a course designed to develop students' ability to communicate in written and oral Spanish through a comprehensive review of the grammatical elements essential for a good command of the language. The class is conducted primarily in Spanish. Course emphasis is placed on mastery of verb tenses, practical and enriched vocabulary, and active use of the language. In addition, level-appropriate readings and authentic materials from the Spanish-speaking world will allow students increase their cultural and linguistic proficiency. 

  • Spanish III (H)

    Prerequisite: B+ for two semesters in Spanish II and department approval.

    Spanish III Honors is an advanced course designed for students who were highly successful in Spanish II and who are potential candidate for AP Spanish. This course revisits and builds on prior knowledge of grammar, oral/aural, literacy and writing skills while advancing students to a wider scope of knowledge in Spanish. This course is conducted primarily in Spanish and students complete accelerated practices in all areas of language acquisition in order to achieve high-intermediate levels of proficiency. Many activities are designed to prepare students for the Advanced Placement course. 

  • Spanish IV

    Prerequisite: C+ for two semesters in Spanish III Honors or Spanish III and department approval.

    Spanish IV is designed to build on all language skills acquired during previous courses in order to further develop and strength linguistic skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing and allow students to confidently communicate and understand at the intermediate-high to advanced-low levels of proficiency. Students will be exposed to a variety of authentic materials (print, media, audio) in order to increase linguistic and cultural competency of the Spanish-speaking world. Students will read level-appropriate novels to increase linguistic skills, as well as create multi-media projects, write essays, give oral presentations, and improve spontaneous speaking skills. The course is conducted primarily in Spanish. This course is recommended for students who do not plan to take the AP Spanish exam, but want to complete a fourth year in Spanish and increase their language skills.
Flintridge Sacred Heart always challenged me to be a better student. The classes pushed me to expand my thinking and work hard. I'm ready for college because of the education I received here.

—Kayla Grahn '15

@fsha.english Instagram Feed

 

Honors Scientific Research Students Receive Grants

by Dr. Emily Wilkinson, Ph.D.

When I was in high school (back in the olden days), if I wanted to carry on a covert conversation in class, I had to undertake the dangerous work of writing and passing a note. For my students, such furtive exchanges happen via iPhone and are as often pictures or videos as they are texts. Where I would have written a paragraph (in cursive handwriting) about how boring my English class was, they send a SnapChat video of the boredom in process.

Dr. Emily Wilkinson English teacher at FSHA
Ms. Wilkinson encourages students to create visual images to attain deeper insights to texts read in class
Of course my students — and Flintridge Sacred Heart students in general — are so enraptured by their studies that they would never do any such thing, but my point is more that our world is increasingly visual and that as responsible educators we have to reckon with this truth in our teaching: The world changes and so our classrooms and our practices as teachers must change.

They pick a particular scene or image from the text that they translate into an image— a photograph to be shared on our class Instagram. Their first task is collecting quotations from the scene: details of setting and mood, descriptions of the postures, props, and expressions of the characters in the scene. This task forces them to read with a rigor and depth of attention they may never have exerted before. It’s an exercise in slow, deep reading.
I am a teacher of English and literacy is still the heart of what I do: I teach reading and writing, and the cornerstones of my English IV course are canonical great books such as “Jane Eyre” and “Hamlet” and more contemporary classics such as Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Kazuo Ishiguro’s “Never Let Me Go,” and Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God;” my students still learn grammar and vocabulary and strategies of argument.

Read more about Dr. Wilkinson's assignment and see examples of student work

English Faculty

FLINTRIDGE SACRED HEART

440 St. Katherine Drive
La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011
626-685-8300

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