Synthesis of Course Material - Post 1

I didn't know what to expect walking into AP Lit in September. I knew we would be reading a lot of books...and not much else. I was surprised and glad to know that we would be doing much more than "just reading" to help us prepare for the big test in May.

We first learned about DIDLS:

• Diction  - How an authors choice of words sounds
• Imagery - Use of words to create pictures and images in the head of a reader while reading
• Detail - Specific features of a character or plot line in a novel
• Language - A group of text
• Syntax - The structure of a sentence

We learned how we could look at any authors use of diction, imagery, details, language and syntax to get a sense of the mood and tone of a essay, passage or novel. I had never learned anything like this in my other English classes and continue to find DIDLS extremely helpful when attacking a passage.
From day one we also learned about the Open and Close Prompt, three essays that are a huge part of the AP test.

Open & Closed Prompt: 

• Open Prompt: Use any novel/drama of literary merit to answer prompt 
• Closed Prompt: MUST use poem or novel to answer prompt
• Introduction should be short and to the point 
• Make sure the thesis answers all parts of the question 
• Use examples (if possible) from the text to support your thesis
• T+E = M (Technique + Effect = Meaning) 
• Answer the hidden "So what?" question
• TAP 

After learning these techniques we began to do practice essays that would be graded on the official AP test scale. Scores go from 1 to 9 and can be varied by minor things:

•   9-8: Focused on the prompt, answer all parts of the prompt, excellent use of evidence, show understanding of the text 
• 7-6: Less maturity, show limited understanding of work 
• 5: Mostly focuses on the prompt with some effort to comment on the analysis of the work 
•  4-3: Essay is underdeveloped and summarizes more plot than examples and comments on analysis
• 2-1: Poorly written in several areas and do not address parts of the prompt