Phone:
Email:
Degrees and Certifications:
Kyla Free
Kyla Free
Contact: kyla.free@mps.k12.al.us
Education
Auburn University at Montgomery: Master of Science in Secondary English Language Arts Education
Auburn University: Bachelor of Science in Secondary English Language Arts Education
Publication
Free, Kyla. "Ken Burns's Documentary Film Thomas Jefferson: A Survey of Responses."
Critical Insights: Thomas Jefferson, edited by Robert C. Evans, Salem Press, 2020, pp. 187-201.
Experience
Brewbaker Technology Magnet High School, Montgomery, AL, July 2006 - present
- AP Literature and Composition
- English 12
- Pre-AP English 10
- English 10
- Honors English 9
A+ College Ready Contract Presenter, various locations in Alabama, August 2013-present
- AP Literature and Composition
Auburn University Montgomery Youth College, Montgomery, AL, Summer 2009
- How to Write a Research Paper
Hubei Institute of Education, Wuhan, China, August 2004-July 2006
- British literature
- American literature
- conversational English and debate
- English composition
English 12/AP Literature and Composition Class Expectations
Ms. Kyla Free
kyla.free@mps.k12.al.us
(334) 284-7100 office
Room 401
Course Description
English 12
The literary focus this year is British literature from the Anglo-Saxon period to the modern period. Readings will be arranged chronologically. We will work with a variety of works, including fiction (short stories and novels), non-fiction, drama, and poetry. Discussion and assignments will include a focus on style, literary devices, and interpretation. You will be asked to do close readings of texts and make meaning involving analysis of theme, character, and tone.
Our grammar and writing studies will cover standards required by the Alabama Course of Study as well as preparation for college studies. In this class you will write a number of compositions including daily journal entries, narrative essays, descriptive essays, expository (documented) essays, and persuasive essays. You will be required to speak in front of the class throughout the year for various formal and informal presentations. We will also work on developing vocabulary and spelling skills.
AP Literature and Composition
Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition is designed to be a college level course. This course will provide the student with intellectual challenges through critical thinking and problem-solving activities as well as a workload consistent with a college English course. As a culmination to the course, the student will take the Advanced Placement Literature and Composition Exam that is given in May. AP Exam practice will be ongoing throughout the school year. The student will practice with essay timed-writings and multiple-choice questions and work through a complete retired test.
In this course, the student will determine the qualities of great literature. The student will read literature from the sixteenth century to contemporary times. During this study of literature, the student will look at elements such as style, tone, structure, diction, imagery, and syntax through the analysis of a work.
Throughout the study of each writing genre, various special activities will be incorporated into the study. For example, the student will have opportunities to participate in Socratic seminars, panel discussions, group presentations, and cooperative learning groups. In addition to the group activities, there will be quizzes on the reading, daily response writing in journals, in-class timed essays, at-home essays, and peer-editing sessions. The student will write analytical essays demonstrating his ability to produce insightful writing based on AP prompts.
The student must read every assignment in order to discuss and write each day. Quizzes will be given on the reading in the form of multiple-choice questions, short essays, AP response questions, or short answer questions.
The writing assignments will include writing to understand a given work, writing to explain a work, and writing to evaluate a work. Throughout the entire course, the student’s writing will examine structure, style, theme, social, historical, and cultural significance. Essential literary techniques such as figurative language, symbolism, and tone will be addressed in writing workshops as well as various techniques of sentence combining and sentence patterns (inverted order, parallelism, balanced, periodic, rhetorical fragments). Writing workshops will also address lessons such as controlling tone of voice and using active and passive voice effectively.
Vocabulary study will be incorporated into the reading of the stories and the use of Vocabulary Workshop, Sadlier-Oxford.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The AP exam will be administered in May; students are responsible for the approximate $90 fee.
Expectations
I look forward to a fantastic, productive year. In order to be successful, there will be certain expectations for behavior in the classroom. First violations will receive a verbal warning. Second violations will result in a student-teacher conference and a call/e-mail to the parents/guardians. Any further violations will result in a referral to the office. Severe violations (such as verbal abuse, threatening behavior, or intentional destruction of property) will result in an automatic office referral.
- Be respectful. Treat everyone with respect and appreciate the equipment we are given to use. Show integrity.
- Be seated. You are expected to be in your seat and writing in your journal when the tardy bell rings.
- Be prepared. Bring all materials (pen, paper, books, assignments) to class each day. Do not ask to retrieve materials from outside the classroom.
- Be neat. Keep all food in the lunchroom. Take pride in our equipment and keep our classroom a clean and pleasant environment. Dispose of all trash properly.
- Be patient. Raise your hand and wait to be called on if you wish to speak. Wait for the teacher to dismiss class.
- Follow the guidelines set forth in the school handbook. This includes the Acceptable Use Policy for computers, dress code, attendance policies, etc.
Materials
You will be expected to have the following materials in class:
- Blue/Black ink pen or pencil
- Multicolored highlighters (for annotation)
- Three-ring binder with paper (for taking notes and completing assignments)
- Sticky notes (such as Post-its)
- Outside reading required texts (TBA)
The following texts will be assigned to you or provided in class each day:
- Into Literature, Grade 12 – HMH (standard classes)
- Elements of Language: Sixth Course - Holt
- Elements of Literature: Essentials of British and World Literature - Holt (standard classes)
- Perrine’s Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense - Arp Johnson (AP classes)
- Vocabulary Workshop (Level G) - Sadlier-Oxford (AP classes)
The following materials are not mandatory but are needed for classroom use:
- tissues
- sanitizing (bleach) wipes
- hand sanitizer
Tardies
You will be expected to be on time for class. The following consequences will result from tardies:
1st Offense: Teacher counsels and warns student
2nd Offense: Teacher counsels and warns student
3rd Offense: Teacher contacts parents by phone or email
4th Offense: Student receives an office referral
Absences and Make-up Work
If an absence is excused (verified through the office), it is the student’s responsibility to attain make-up assignments. The MPS Code of Student Behavior states that make-up assignments must be turned in within three school days (or the number days equal to the number of consecutive absences) after the absence. You must inform the teacher in advance if you wish to come in to make up a quiz or test.
No credit will be given for work missed during an unexcused absence. You will receive a zero for any work turned in that day.
If an assignment has been previously assigned and the student is absent on the due date, the assignment is due on the date the student returns to school. Students participating in a field trip or extracurricular activity on an assignment’s due date must either turn in the work before leaving for the trip or on the date of the return to school.
Late Work
All work is expected to be turned in on the assigned due date. Please be responsible and turn in work on time.
Web Resources
Resources including a class calendar, presentations, notes, announcements, and other resources are available on Ms. Free’s Schoology page.
Grading
All graded assignments (excepting some study sheets) will be filed in student folders in the classroom.
The grading scale for classes has been determined by the Montgomery Public Schools system:
A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
D 60-69
F 0-59
Major grades: tests/major assignments: 65%
Minor grades: quizzes/classwork/homework: 35%
Report Cards and Progress Reports
Report cards will be issued at the end of each nine weeks. Progress reports will be issued at the mid-point of each nine weeks.
Journals
You will be given a journal topic at the beginning of each class. You must meet the length requirement to receive credit for your journal entry. (Compose a well-structured paragraph with a topic sentence, supporting sentences, and a clincher sentence. “See Spot run” type sentences will not be acceptable at the 12th grade level. See the assignments in Writable for specific requirements.) Keep up with every entry, including days you are absent. The teacher will select five journal entries from the grading period to be turned in for a 100-point minor grade, so it is important that students keep up with all entries and are prepared to turn in those selected.
Cheating
Any form of cheating will result in a zero on the assignment and an office referral. This includes accessing unauthorized resources (e.g. notes, cell phone, etc.) during an assessment, copying another student’s work, providing your work to another student, or any other form of plagiarism. Students will be held accountable for intentional or unintentional plagiarism throughout the school year.
Plagiarism results from a failure to credit the source of ideas or from changing the language of another in attempt to make the thoughts appear to be one’s own. For a Brew Tech student, plagiarism is completely unacceptable. Specific examples of plagiarism include the following:
- Copying whole essays written by others
- “Cutting and pasting” selected sentences and phrases from another source without using both quotation marks and a reference page
- Paraphrasing or summarizing another’s original work that is not common knowledge without giving appropriate credit (parenthetical documentation and a reference page)
Students sharing or receiving quiz or test materials in any form (photographs, group chats, written notes, verbal discussions, etc.) will receive an office referral and a zero on the assignment. Be mindful that quizzes and tests are the academic property of the teacher.
System Policies
Students will be expected to abide by the following policies, which have been put in place by the Montgomery Public Schools System as well as BrewTech.
Acceptable Use Policy
Computers are to be used for educational purposes only. There will be no game playing, excessive emailing, Internet surfing, etc. One violation will result in a warning. Additional violations may result in the loss of computer privileges for a month, a semester, and the school year.
Electronic Devices
Students are not permitted to use a cell phone or any electronic device in class unless they have teacher permission for instructional purposes. This includes but is not limited to an iPhone, Blackberry, Smartphone, Apple Watch or other adapted tablets/PDAs or electronic devices. Unless otherwise stated, cell phones and other electronic devices are to be out of view and not in use while students are in the school building, in classes that may be held outside of the building, and on school sponsored field trips. For safety purposes, there will be no earbuds/headphones or other listening devices.
Consequences
Conference with student
Conference with parents
Device may be confiscated on any offense
Parent/Legal Guardian shadowing
*If a violation of this rule also violates other Class B and/or Coffenses, other consequences will be imposed
Dress Code
Students must be dressed appropriately for the learning environment. Students in violation of the dress code must call their parents/guardians and have them bring appropriate clothing. Class time missed counts as an unexcused absence.
“I do not know anyone who has gotten to the top without hard work. That is the recipe. It will not always get you to the top, but it will get you pretty near.”
-Margaret Thatcher
English 12/AP Literature Class Expectations Acknowledgement
Students:
Please sign below to indicate that you have read the class expectations and syllabus. Please detach this section and return it to Ms. Free by the end of the week. It will be kept on file.
Student name (print) Class period
Student signature
Date
Parents/Guardians:
Please sign below to indicate your awareness that your child has reviewed the class expectations and syllabus in class. It will be available in Schoology throughout the school year.
Parent/Guardian signature
Date
E-mail is typically the most convenient form of communication for teachers. Parents/Guardians, please neatly print your e-mail address; it will be used for teacher-parent communication purposes only.
______________________________________________________________________________
Parent/Guardian name
______________________________________________________________________________
Parent/Guardian e-mail address
______________________________________________________________________________
Parent/Guardian name
______________________________________________________________________________
Parent/Guardian e-mail address
English 12 Tentative Semester Guide 2022
1st Quarter
And Then There Were None, Agatha Christie
- Character analysis
- Exploration of justice
1984
- Propaganda and language manipulation
- Character analysis
The Anglo-Saxon Period, p. 4
- Political and Social Milestones
- Introduction to the Literary Period
Beowulf, p. 8
- Character analysis of Beowulf and Grendel
- Characteristics of an epic hero
- Elements of Anglo-Saxon literature
- Symbolism
The Middle Ages, p. 2
- Political and Social Milestones
- Introduction to the Literary Period
The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer, p. 31
- Prologue analysis (supplementary)
- Character analysis project (Prezi)
- “The Pardoner’s Tale”
- “The Wife of Bath’s Tale”
Le Morte d’Arthur, Sir Thomas Malory, p. 48
- Elements of medieval romance
- Concept of loyalty
“Chivalry,” Neil Gaiman, p. 70
- Short story form
- Fantasy genre
- Character development
“The Wanderer,” Anonymous, p. 124
- Poetic form
- Tone analysis
“Loneliness,” Fanny Howe, p. 128
- Poetic form
- Tone analysis
Film Critical Analysis and Evaluation
- Characterization
- Theme
- Plot and Structure
- Symbol, Allegory, and Fantasy
- Humor and Irony
*Additional texts will be included to supplement learning
**Structure, sequence, and content may be subject to change
AP Literature and Composition Tentative Semester Guide 2022
1st Quarter
Summer Reading Texts
- Wuthering Heights
- 1984
Literary Analysis and Evaluation
- Characterization
- Theme
- Plot and Structure
- Symbol, Allegory, and Fantasy
- Humor and Irony
Short Stories
- “The Hills Like White Elephants,” p. 268
- “Interpreter of Maladies, “ Jhumpa Lahir, p. 141
- “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker
- “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Joyce Carol Oates, p. 311
- “ The Kugelmass Episode,” Woody Allen, p. 348
Vocabulary from Sadlier-Oxford workbooks
2nd Quarter
Elements of Poetry
- Essential terms
- Reading the poem
- Rhyme and meter
- Poetry analysis
- Sonnet form
- Villanelle
Poems
- “Dulce et Decorum Est”
- “The Chimney Sweeper” (paired poems)
- “Ozymandias”
- “Blackberry-Picking”
- “The Death of a Toad”
- Shakespearean, Petrarchan, and Spensarian sonnets
- “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night”
- Various poems for journal responses
Poetry Packet
- Reader response
- Poetry focus statements
Film Critical Analysis and Evaluation
Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton
- Character analysis
- Character tied to setting
- Symbolism
- Usage of color
Vocabulary from Sadlier-Oxford workbooks
**Structure, sequence, and content may be subject to change
