Our Program

Introduction to English in North Carolina and at OHS

In North Carolina and Orange County, all students are required to take and pass four consecutive English courses: English I, II, III, and IV. Courses in English at Orange High School closely follow the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction's Standard Course of Study. For a detailed summary and listing of those courses, please go to this link and read through the Orange County High School Course Guide.

English classes are by nature process-oriented, with students demonstrating increasingly sophisticated levels of performance in reading and writing, speaking and listening, viewing and crafting multi-media productions. Additionally, according to the state curriculum, each grade level course has certain literature requirements. Ninth graders are expected to study the various literary genres (poetry, fiction, non-fiction, and drama) and accompanying terms; tenth graders, world literature with the exclusion of literature from the U.S. and the United Kingdom; eleventh graders, the literature of the United States; and seniors, the literature of the United Kingdom (Britain, Scotland, Wales, Ireland).

At OHS, students learn and apply grammar and usage rules to written compositions and spoken language. While preparing multi-media projects (projects that incorporate written text, images, and speech or sound), pupils also practice public speaking.

In the ninth grade year, students complete a research paper on a career to introduce them to the research process. Tenth graders research some aspects of cultures and literatures outside of the United States and the United Kingdom. Juniors begin their research for a paper whose final draft will be completed in their senior English class. Finally, seniors refine skills in research, argumentation as they continue with their study, revise their research papers from junior English, and deliver a multimedia presentation based on the topic of their research paper.

In their ninth and tenth grade years, students have two choices: English I and English II in the Regular Program; Pre-AP/Honors English I and Pre-AP/Honors English II in the Honors/AP Program.

A representation of the suggested course sequence is available in table form HERE (.pdf).

Additionally, students interested in the difference between Honors English IV and AP English Literature (for twelfth grade) will find a brochure HERE (.pdf).