AP English Language & Composition

College-level rhetoric and writing covering rhetorical analysis, argumentation, and synthesis. Aligned to the College Board AP English Language & Composition Course and Exam Description. Develops the analytical reading and persuasive writing skills essential for college success.

14 Units

Early Units (Foundation)

Building Skills

Advanced Concepts

Capstone/Synthesis

The Rhetorical Situation

Understand the SOAPS framework and how writer, audience, purpose, context, exigence, and message interact in any act of communication.

3-4 days

Claims and Evidence

Learn to identify and evaluate types of claims, marshal evidence effectively, reason soundly, and recognize the logical fallacies that undermine arguments.

3-4 days

Rhetorical Strategies: Ethos, Pathos, Logos

Analyze how writers deploy ethos, pathos, and logos — and the full range of rhetorical strategies — to achieve their purposes with specific audiences.

3-4 days

Language and Style

Study how diction, syntax, tone, figurative language, and voice operate as tools of meaning — and learn to deploy them with intention in your own writing.

3-4 days

Structure and Organization

Examine how writers choose methods of development, sequence ideas, use transitions, and create coherence — and apply these principles to your own arguments.

3-4 days

Reading Nonfiction Closely

Develop systematic close reading strategies for nonfiction prose — annotation techniques, identifying purpose, evaluating credibility, and reading between the lines.

3-4 days

The Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Master the AP rhetorical analysis essay — structure, thesis construction, body paragraph development, and the rubric criteria that determine your score.

4-5 days

Argumentation

Build complete, complex arguments — constructing clear positions, anticipating opposition, using concession and refutation, and achieving the nuance that distinguishes great argumentative writing.

3-4 days

The Argument Essay

Master the AP argument essay — crafting defensible theses, developing lines of reasoning, integrating evidence types, and meeting the rubric criteria for a high-scoring response.

4-5 days

Synthesis Skills

Learn to work across multiple sources — evaluating credibility, identifying agreements and tensions, and integrating source material into a coherent argument without losing your own voice.

3-4 days

The Synthesis Essay

Master the AP synthesis essay — developing a position from multiple sources, structuring a coherent argument, incorporating sources with attribution, and meeting rubric criteria.

4-5 days

Satire and Irony

Analyze satirical techniques and irony types in nonfiction, political writing, and essays — understanding how writers use indirection, humor, and exaggeration to make arguments.

3-4 days

Visual Rhetoric

Analyze how images, advertisements, political cartoons, and infographics make arguments through composition, symbol, color, framing, and juxtaposition.

3-4 days

AP Exam Preparation

Consolidate skills for the AP English Language exam — multiple-choice strategies, time management across three free-response questions, and a complete review of rubric criteria.

4-5 days

Learning Progression

This course is designed to be taken sequentially. Earlier units establish foundational concepts that later units build upon. While you can explore units in any order, following the numbered sequence provides the most coherent learning experience.