GEHRHSD Curriculum Guide 2026-27

This is a college preparatory course designed for students in grades 11 and 12. Adventures in Literature traces the development of the “adventure narrative,” in both fiction and non-fiction, from its formative years to the modern exploits of twenty-first century adventurers and athletes. This class will consider both the literary and literal conventions of “story-telling” as a part of this narrative. The class readings challenge a unified concept of adventure writing beginning with journals of sixteenth-through nineteenth century explorers, then to contemporary descriptions of wilderness from London to Krakauer. Students will examine modern expressions of “genre” stories from Harry Potter and The Hunger Games, to Kindred and Lord of the Rings. This course is aligned to the NJ Student Learning Standards in English Language Arts for Grades 11 and 12 and fulfills an English graduation requirement. ADVENTURES IN LITERATURE: THE ODYSSEY OF THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE Grades 11-12, 5 Credits This is a college preparatory course designed for students in grades 11 and 12. Students will explore themes in literature from the 20th century through various media and genres. Students will understand how these themes have helped shape modern culture through surveying The Lost Generation, The Harlem Renaissance, The Beat Movement & The Golden Age. The course will examine memoir and drama, specifically, while also providing students reading choice through independent reading and research projects. Long-form fiction includes the work of Albom, Atwood, Gibbons, Huxley, McCarthy and Waugh. This course is aligned to the NJ Student Learning Standards in English Language Arts for Grades 11 and 12 and fulfills an English graduation requirement. CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE Grades 11-12, 5 Credits Prerequisite: Teacher recommendation and/or a 90 or above in current College Prep English course.