Writing in AP Lang
To get to know students, the first assigned composition is a personal narrative that is due in September. Generally, students write timed essays more than anything else. There are only
a handful of out-of-class assignments. Usually,
students write timed essays on an AP prompt, but
there are times that the prompt is slightly modified for the book or
unit that's being studied. Essays will be analytical, expository, and argumentative. Additionally, students will have to research and then synthesize the gathered information to write essays for an identified purpose and particular audience.
Style ~~
AP strictly refutes the philosophy of the formulaic essay. AP states:
"An AP English Language and Composition course should help students
move beyond such programmatic responses as the five-paragraph essay
that provides an introduction with a thesis and three reasons, body
paragraphs on each reason, and a conclusion that restates the
thesis. Although such formulaic approaches may provide minimal
organization, they often encourage unnecessary repetition and fail
to engage the reader. Students should be encouraged to place their
emphasis on content, purpose, and audience and to allow this focus
to guide the organization of their writing.
MLA~~
Students must use MLA rules for citations and documentation on all assignments. AP added this requirement in 2007 to align the curriculum with college composition courses throughout the country.
When you get to college, however, please be aware that some of your professors may require the APA format instead of MLA. When the assignment is given, be sure to ask the professor if he or she requires MLA or APA. You can find the APA and MLA formats on the links provided to the right in the gray box.
