Assessments
The students will access poems on a weekly basis. There will be one day a week that is solely reserved for the explication and analysis of poetic works. The students will keep a running poem “database” of sorts that will be the basis for their review before the AP Literature exam. It will be invaluable for them to have access to a minimum of 30 poems that are already annotated and internalized through the use of TPCASTT (Title, Paraphrase, Connotation, Attitude, Shift, Title again, and finally Theme)- a very common and useful AP Literature strategy. This will also serve as a formative assessment for me as I follow their individual progression. Before the use of TPCASTT it is sometimes valuable for the students to explore the poems through the use of the Question Paper as outlined by the AP Collegeboard.8 These are all models for possible formative assessments I would incorporate into the study of poetry.
Along with the use of various formative assessments the students will also be tested at regular intervals with multiple diagnostics, one of which is the Socratic Seminar. This will allow students the opportunity to consider, as a large group, the importance of literary devices, figurative language, time periods, authorial intent, and various themes that appear repeatedly throughout literature. The Socratic Seminar is a focal point in my class as it necessitates the conversations that are the engine of my classroom. While I do encourage expression of thought though various modalities, I place specific importance on the ability to read and speak.
I will be ending the year by giving the students the opportunity to explore a new poet and offer a critical analysis of three of their poems. This will allow them to apply their newly acquired skilled with new content. In reality though, the final assessment for this class is the A.P. Literature exam.
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