August 4-8, 2025

Online

English Language and Composition

Taught by Nanci Bush

Description

Welcome! This AP® English Language and Composition Summer Institute will offer teachers a strong foundation for setting up new AP® courses, guidance for creating AP® Units relevant to each participant’s students, invigorating ideas for energizing existing courses, and ample strategies for the pre-AP® classroom.

As a current AP® English Language teacher, the workshop consultant will offer numerous strategies for improving students’ abilities to read critically and write purposefully. Additionally, participants will receive an overview of My AP® Classroom (web-based resources and support from the College Board) [small cut right here bc the AP® Audit is not as stringent right now]. Plus, as an AP® Reader and Table Leader, the consultant will provide scoring experience on recent AP® essays and practice with AP® multiple choice passages.

The workshop will be structured with many hands-on lessons to help teachers choose classroom strategies to strengthen student success on AP® English skills.

Goals

Schedule

Daily asynchronous time: 9:30-10:30am
Divided small groups and asynchronous time: 12:30-2:00pm

Monday, Day 1

Course and Exam Overview

  1. Acquire an overview of AP® English Language and Composition
  2. Explore the Course & Exam Description
    • 9 Key Units
    • Big Ideas
    • Skill Categories
  3. Explore My AP® Classroom

Tuesday, Day 2

Rhetorical Analysis

  1. Understand the Rhetorical Situation
    1. Develop a Foundation for Rhetorical Analysis
    2. View a range of prompts and practice scoring sample essays
    3. Share teaching strategies for building student competence
  2. Discuss the relationship between claims and evidence and line of reasoning

Wednesday, Day 3

Argument

  1. Understand Argument
    1. View prompts and practice scoring sample essays
    2. Discuss how to teach skills with your favorite texts
    3. Develop an AP® Unit
    4. Group activities
  2. Peruse Available Resources for AP® English courses
  3. Share & Explore Technological Resources

Thursday, Day 4

Synthesis

  1. Understand Synthesis – A Researched Argument
    1. View sample prompts and practice scoring sample essays
    2. Strategies for Instruction from Introduction to Essay Success
    3. Write Synthesis Essay
    4. Create engaging synthesis prompts
  2. Discuss Available Resources for AP® English courses
    • Diversity and Inclusion; Equity in Access to AP® courses
    • Grading vs. Scoring
    • Managing the AP® workload

Friday, Day 5

Instructional Design

  1. Review Unit/Syllabus
  2. Discuss Tips for Test Preparation for Students/Final Review
  3. Participant Sharing of Best Practices