EKS Posted April 5, 2011 Share Posted April 5, 2011 Has anyone here done an AP Language and Composition course? I was planning to model my son's English course next year on AP Lit and Comp, and hadn't even considered the Language and Comp course. But I realized today that the nonfiction and more grounded focus on writing (not just literary analysis papers) would be just the thing for him. I am having trouble letting go of the idea of a literature course though. I'd appreciate any input you may have. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwen in VA Posted April 5, 2011 Share Posted April 5, 2011 My ds did AP Egnlish Lang & Comp through PAH a few years ago. I was actually surprised by how much reading the course entailed. The reading focused more on essays and other nonfiction genres, but the course does involve a reasonable amount of reading. My dd did AP Lit, and frankly I think the Lang & Comp class was more relevant to my non-literature-focused kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted April 5, 2011 Author Share Posted April 5, 2011 My dd did AP Lit, and frankly I think the Lang & Comp class was more relevant to my non-literature-focused kids. Thank you for this! This really helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CO MOM Posted April 5, 2011 Share Posted April 5, 2011 I would echo what Gwen said, even though my dd enjoys lit. She also took the AP Lang/Comp course through PA homeschoolers, and it taught her a different type of analysis and writing that has been very helpful for essays and college level writing in courses other than lit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moira in MA Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 [Dd] also took the AP Lang/Comp course through PA homeschoolers, and it taught her a different type of analysis and writing that has been very helpful for essays and college level writing in courses other than lit. I agree. My eldest dd credits that course with teaching her how to write an academic essay. If you have time to do only one course, make it Language and Composition. ~Moira Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joan in GE Posted April 8, 2011 Share Posted April 8, 2011 Has anyone here done an AP Language and Composition course? I was planning to model my son's English course next year on AP Lit and Comp, and hadn't even considered the Language and Comp course. But I realized today that the nonfiction and more grounded focus on writing (not just literary analysis papers) would be just the thing for him. I am having trouble letting go of the idea of a literature course though. I'd appreciate any input you may have. Thanks! I agree about the usefulness of English Language - our son is doing it this year and he's learned a lot. Here's an old thread where people gave a lot of ideas for developing the course.. Experiences with AP Eng. Language vs AP Eng. Literature Joan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RENEEinVA Posted April 8, 2011 Share Posted April 8, 2011 I agree. My eldest dd credits that course with teaching her how to write an academic essay. If you have time to do only one course, make it Language and Composition. ~Moira My dd would like to try taking both classes (one junior year, one senior year). Does it matter which one comes first? Does the College Board website say anything about class order? Just wondering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted April 8, 2011 Share Posted April 8, 2011 Schools tend to offer Lang. to 11th graders and Lit. to 12th graders. That's what our dd did, and it worked out well because the analysis terms used in Lang. were a subset of those used in Lit. But really, whichever you choose should work out fine. GardenMom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moira in MA Posted April 9, 2011 Share Posted April 9, 2011 My understanding is that most do Language and Composition first then follow up with Literature and Composition. jmho ~Moira Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura in CA Posted April 9, 2011 Share Posted April 9, 2011 Schools tend to offer Lang. to 11th graders and Lit. to 12th graders. That's what our dd did, and it worked out well because the analysis terms used in Lang. were a subset of those used in Lit. But really, whichever you choose should work out fine. Same here. Our local high school offers Lang to 11th graders (which I find baffling; 11th-graders have to choose between "bonehead English" classes aimed at prepping the kids to pass the (easy) high-school exit exam, because many of the students are "English learners," and AP English -- there is no "honors" English for 11th-graders. Either the AP class is dumbed down to accommodate many bright but overwhelmed kids, or a lot of them can't keep up and don't get a good score on the AP exam :glare: Sorry about the side track LOL), and Lit to 12th graders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lisabees Posted April 9, 2011 Share Posted April 9, 2011 Same here. Our local high school offers Lang to 11th graders (which I find baffling; 11th-graders have to choose between "bonehead English" classes aimed at prepping the kids to pass the (easy) high-school exit exam, because many of the students are "English learners," and AP English -- there is no "honors" English for 11th-graders. Either the AP class is dumbed down to accommodate many bright but overwhelmed kids, or a lot of them can't keep up and don't get a good score on the AP exam :glare: Sorry about the side track LOL), and Lit to 12th graders. Hmmm...our local high school has just made these changes! People around here are MAD. New exit-exams with classes that teach to those tests; no honors classes in junior and senior year; tracking starting in 9th grade (the "career" placement test - that is used for tracking purposes - revealed that ds14 could be an aggressive inline skater, a pool manager, a custodian or a doorman). :glare: And now, they are offering three high school diplomas - the "I'm the average Joe" diploma, "I'm better than the average Joe" and the "Cup-a-Joe with a shot of espresso". We're in PA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura in CA Posted April 9, 2011 Share Posted April 9, 2011 Hmmm...our local high school has just made these changes! People around here are MAD. New exit-exams with classes that teach to those tests; no honors classes in junior and senior year; tracking starting in 9th grade (the "career" placement test - that is used for tracking purposes - revealed that ds14 could be an aggressive inline skater, a pool manager, a custodian or a doorman). :glare: And now, they are offering three high school diplomas - the "I'm the average Joe" diploma, "I'm better than the average Joe" and the "Cup-a-Joe with a shot of espresso". We're in PA. Wow, Lisa, that's interesting that it's happening in PA too :tongue_smilie: ... As far as I know, we don't have different levels of high-school diplomas (yet). I see you have some kids in ps. As of this year, I do too -- my older son asked to do 10th grade at our local ps, and to our dismay he just had to choose between bonehead English and AP Lang for 11th grade -- he's a slow reader and writer, and we just couldn't see him doing AP-level English (he'll have AP Calculus and Honors Physics at the same time). OTOH, he's a bit worried about being in what he's heard is basically a remedial English class. Why don't they have "honors" English for regular Joes :confused: (or should I say, "better than the average Joes" :001_smile:) Anyway, on a brighter note, thanks to this and similar threads over the past few days, I've become SO excited about my younger (homeschooled) son taking AP Lang when he's a bit older ... it sounds like a fantastic class! I appreciate everyone who has posted in this and similar threads recently -- I didn't realize there was such a difference between AP Lang and AP Lit. My kids are *much* more interested in nonfiction than in fiction. Plus in AP Lang they learn about argumentation and rhetoric ?!?! ... I can't wait!!! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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