AP English Literature and Composition (AP Lit) - Syllabus Packet - Student Contract

Sep 23, 2026

AP English Literature and Composition (AP Lit) syllabus packet outlines the college-level expectations for senior students, including weekly class website resources, strict deadlines for papers and journals, and a broad definition of academic integrity violations. The document explains skills required to succeed on the AP Literature exam, emphasizing careful, analytical reading of diverse literature. It details curricular requirements, including interpretation based on textual evidence, extensive writing practice, and teacher feedback before and after revisions, plus instructions for returning the final syllabus page and student contract.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages8

Reading Time20 min

AccessFree to download

Curricular Requirements

Course Description and Authors

Writing an Interpretation

Writing Practice and In-Class Responses

Teacher Instruction and Feedback

Respectable Senior, Welcome to AP English Literature and Composition (‘AP Lit’) . This is a college-level course, but you may already know that by reputation. Some find succor in ‘Comp’ and pick up surefire college credit or flounce through English IV Honors and earn the same quality point, but you know that universities smile most kindly on students who don’t shy away from AP courses. In fact, one of the most reliable predictors of college success (in both real life and in the eyes of university admission officials) is a highschool student’s performance in AP courses; a B or higher in 3 or more AP courses makes you highly desirable to universities. While you could be doing anything else with this portion of your pivotal senior year, you choose to challenge yourself as a learner by enrolling in AP Literature. For that, I respect you. By the way, [bentonenglish.com](bentonenglish.com) is the class website. Despite its deceptively narcissistic name, it’s designed to be quite useful to you. Expect weekly schedule updates, downloadable handouts, e-texts, audio-texts, and other posh resources to be at your disposal. I am strict in a few ways: papers and journals need to be submitted by the due date even if you are not. My definition of “cheating” is also very broad. If you write something, you are personally guaranteeing that it is an idea of your own creation. Even closely imitating another human's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions while representing them as your own original work is an intellectual, academic, and moral failure. Zeroes, referrals, banishment from honor societies, a general fall from grace, and blacklisting by legitimate universities are all reasonable (and probable) consequences for an individual who sins in this way. Approach the coursework with a teachable mindset – as an opportunity to improve your academic thinking and writing – and you will find reward. If you endured AP Language (not at all necessary in order to succeed in this course, though many of its concepts do carry over quite well), you recall that course’s exam focusing on rhetoric: specifically nonfiction. The AP Literature exam is a wholly different beast. To succeed – that is, to avoid wasting your time – you’ll need to be comfortable reading a diverse range of challenging literature on a confidently analytical level. No matter the text, you must be capable of considering its structure, style, figurative language, imagery, symbolism, tone, and themes. I will help with this. That said, you must do the assigned reading to succeed in this class; I truly mean that. Once we start on new texts by the second or third week of class, you’ll have received a detailed reading schedule that asks you read about 15 minutes a day. You’ve (hopefully) read all sorts of literature already in your academic career. For this year’s class, there are about a dozen diverse works that I’ve selected to add to your experience; all of them require unhurried, careful reading. You will truly reap what you sow. Within this packet you’ll find the College Board’s Curricular Requirements for this course, a brief Course Description, a Wish List of supplies I am shamelessly begging for, and a mandatory Student Contract. After reading this packet thoroughly, please detach and return the final page, the Syllabus Form, by the date listed on the agenda board or within three school days of your receipt of this packet. Mr. Benton Curricular Requirements C.1- The teacher has read and will fully abide by the most recent AP English Course Description, available for download download on the AP English Literature and Composition Course Home Page. C.2- The course includes an intensive study of representative works such as those by authors cited in the AP English Course Description. (Note: The College Board does not mandate any particular authors or reading list.) The choice of works for the AP course is made by the school in relation to the school’s overall English cu

FAQs

What are the core expectations for AP Lit students?

Students must complete assigned reading, meet paper and journal deadlines, and approach coursework with a teachable mindset focused on improving academic thinking and writing.

How does the syllabus define cheating and academic integrity?

It treats cheating broadly, including representing another person’s language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one’s own original work. Consequences range from zeroes to removal from honor societies and possible blacklisting.

What does the AP Lit course require students to do in their writing?

Students engage in writing to understand through informal exploratory work, writing to explain via expository and analytical essays, and writing to evaluate using analytical argumentative essays grounded in textual details.

Sep 23, 2026

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