Course Syllabus

Syllabus:  2026-2027

room 230 

tan block

Teacher:  Ms. Dubé

Office Hours:  Mondays, 2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. or by appointment

Dear Students, 

I write to you today with great excitement.   I’m eager to get to know each of you, to hear about your summers, your goals for the year, and your hopes and dreams for the future. 

I'm also looking forward to hearing your thoughts on our summer reading book:  Free here online, if you haven’t had the chance to read it yet. https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/american-born-chinesepdf/259707408Links to an external site.

Let’s make this a year in which we connect, sharing both our inspirations and our frustrations.  You can reach me at dubec@wellesleyps.org.  

See you in class.

Best, 

Ms. Dubé

Carol M. Dubé

English Teacher

Wellesley High School 

Wellesley, MA

Course description:  In The Individual in Society, we examine a diverse selection of texts from all genres of literature, taking a close and careful look at the creation and evolution of individual and group identity.  We focus on the power of literature to help us understand and express our own identities and hone our writing skills so that we can best express ourselves as individuals and artists.

Sample Texts:

• Jimmy Santiago Baca,  “I am Offering You this Poem.”
• ee cummings, “since feeling is first.”
• Rita Dove,  “Grape Sherbet.”
• Martin Espada, “Jorge the Church Janitor Finally Quits.”
• Martin Espada,  “Rednecks.”
• Robert Frost,  “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.”
• Li-Young Lee,“Eating Together."
• Michael Patrick MacDonald, All Souls: A Family Story from Southie.
• William Shakespeare, Macbeth.
• William Shakespeare, “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?”
• Art Spiegelman, Maus I:  My Father Bleeds History.
• Art Spiegelman, Maus II:  And Here My Troubles Began.
• Dale Wasserman, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, a play in two acts. 
• Gene Luen Yang, American Born Chinese
• Assorted student and teacher choice poems from the following websites:

http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/ (Links to an external site.)

http://www.poetryoutloud.org/ (Links to an external site.)

http://www.favoritepoem.org/ (Links to an external site.)

http://www.martinespada.net/Poems.html (Links to an external site.)

 

Objectives:

• Students will be able to read analytically and will be able to explain this analysis in terms of form and function in their writing.  
• Students will be able to connect the literature to their own experiences in a creative response.  
• Students will be able to speak in front of the class in a thoughtful, appropriate, and sophisticated manner.  

 

Homework: 

As we read a text, there will be nightly reading homework.  The nightly reading will be quizzed in the next class without exception.  Students may ask to postpone a quiz, but all quizzes for a text must be complete by the time that we start the final assessment for that text or by 2:30 p.m. on the last day of the quarter, whichever comes first. 

Writing

Writing will be taught, practiced, and assessed in class. 

Turn in Times:

Managing Assignments: 

• All assignments will be posted in Canvas.  
• Papers and quizzes will be completed in class and turned in and graded in Canvas.  Grades for these assignments will be posted on PowerSchool weekly.
• Membean study will be graded on the Membean website and posted in PowerSchool weekly. 
• Membean tests will be graded on the Membean website and posted in PowerSchool within a week.  
• Participation will be graded in class daily according to the participation rubric (See Canvas Announcements) with the grade posted in PowerSchool at the end of the quarter. (Students who are unsure of how they are doing in participation may meet with the teacher for feedback during office hours.) 

Wellesley High School Gmail

I will also use Wellesley High School Gmail to communicate with you by email.

 

Teacher Absences:

When I am absent, I will post the day's assignment on Canvas, and it must be completed by the due date. 

 

Grading:  

Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4 (Worth 22% of Y1 Grade):  

Major Grades:  60%

Homework:  20%

Participation:  20%

E1 (Worth 12% of Y1 Grade) 

Final Experience: 100% (Final Experience grade will be based on full attendance and participation in both the group and individual portion of the College Essay Coaching Event.) 

 

“District accommodations (DCAP) are available to all students, and in the 26-27 school year, WHS is committed to moving this forward with fidelity.  

While some accommodations can be offered at the moment, others require advanced notice. 

For example: Extended time on an in-class assessment is a collaborative decision made by the teacher, student, and family to meet individual student needs.  The WHS guideline is up to 25% extra time.  This accommodation relies on proactive student communication prior to the date of the assessment.  The student and teacher must establish how the accommodation will be provided.”