During the first semester, the class focuses on the study of short stories and poetry. Students develop a vocabulary of literary terms pertaining to each literary form and use these terms in order to discuss and analyze, not only the works of noted literary figures, but their fellow classmates as well. Some of the notable short story authors that we read are: Edgar Allen Poe, Anton Chechov, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ray Bradbury, Leo Tolstoy and O’ Henry. The poetry authors span a wide variety of the literary spectrum, such as: John Keats, William Shakespeare, Dylan Thomas, and William Carlos Williams. These selections come from the students main text, Prentice Hall Literature Grade 10. Students write analytical essays focusing on elements of these different literary forms, as well as many pieces of their own creative writing.

In the second semester, the focus is on novels and drama. The class reads JD Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. In addition, students read several plays, including: Julius Caesar and Antigone.