Getting in to the high school years means delving in deeper into subjects you may have already covered.  It means reading relevant works of literature and understanding their place in history. One of the subjects I cover with all of my kids in high school is Homeschool High School American Literature.

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While we have used multiple resources for covering Homeschool High School American Literature, I was just giddy when I found out Apologia was putting one out because the material they produce is usually quite extensive and in-depth!

While we are a secular homeschooling family, we have used and loved many of the resources that Apologia produces. My 6th grader is currently using Readers in Residence and Writers in Residence Volume 1 and is so excited that Writers in Residence Volume 2 is out for her to use next year!

If you are wondering how we handle that, we do it in one of two ways: When it comes to Bible Based curriculum we sometimes just skip the overtly Bible Based references, or we use it to spur conversation about Biblical World View vs. Secular World View.

About Homeschool High School American Literature

Apologia’s American Literature course is nothing if not meaty! It satisfies both a composition and an American literature credit. Therefore, the student would earn two high school credits!

The American Literature curriculum includes a hardcover textbook and a soft cover spiral-bound student workbook, as well as online access to extras like an extensive Answer Key, and Daily Lesson Plan outline.

What’s Does The Text Cover?

When the books first arrived our first thought was, “Whoa, the textbook is huge!” At almost 850 pages with a solid cover, the American History Textbook is one heavy book! While that does make it a little harder to tote around, or curl up on the couch with, it also means that almost all of your reading materials are included in it!

Yes, that’s right, most of the works that are studied in this course have been reproduced in their original form in the textbook. There are just 5 exceptions to this: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Great Gatsby, The Old Man and the Sea, To Kill a Mockingbird, and A Raisin in the Sun.

The Apologia American Literature curriculum covers the following periods:

• The Colonial Age
• The Age of Reason and Revolution
• The Romantic Age
• The Age of Realism
• The Modern Age

It includes works from authors such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Henry David Thoreau, Edgar Allen Poe, Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain, Robert Frost, Earnest Hemingway, and more!

Since the text book is organized chronologically by American History, it makes it easy to mirror an American History study with this. Adding in things like time period movies or documentaries, research and geography you will also easily have one credit of American History to add to the 2 credits this course already covers!

Answer Key & More! There is an extensive Answer Key, along with the Daily Lesson Plan outline available for free on the Apologia Book Extras site. You will find the login information for this special site inside your American Literature textbook.

The Student Notebook

The American History Notebook is done in my most favorite style! It is spiral bound with a soft cover so it can easily lay flat for students to write in! You will notice in the photo below that my son did not write in the notebook itself. We have found that allowing him to type the majority of his school work makes him happier. He thinks it’s easier and faster to type (plus he can easily make corrections and adjustments when needed).

Within the notebook you will find:

• All the study questions from the textbook, with space to record answers.
• Both Chapter Tests and Semester Exams. These consist of a myriad of question styles including matching, short answer and essay.
• Detailed instructions to help your student rite persuasive literary analysis papers.

We couldn’t be happier using this Apologia Homeschool High School American Literature course. With the wide variety of material covered, the depth of study, and the extensive help and practice with analytical thinking and writing, this is a great course to prepare high school students for the rigor of college.

See Inside for Yourself

From the Author of Homeschool High School American Literature

The author of Apologia’s Homeschool High School American Literature is Dr. Whit Jones. He is a homeschooling father himself as well as the 2017 Recipient of the Educator of the Year Award from Bryan College, where he is a professor. Dr. Jones has also taught his American Literature courses to homeschool students.

Check out this video where Whit talks about his American Literature curriculum:

Words of Advice from Zan Tyler Herself!

As director of Apologia Press, Zan’s goal is to develop and publish Bible-based resources that will empower parents for homeschooling.

She says, “In 1984, I read a book that gave me the courage and the vision to homeschool despite overwhelming obstacles. I know firsthand the power of the written word to equip us to pursue God’s calling in our lives. My passion at Apologia is to bring the best possible authors and resources into the lives of homeschooling parents.” ~ From ZanTyler.com

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Zan after she spoke at a 2:1 Conference I attended this past year!  You can see some of her points about Apologia from her speech at the 2:1 Conference in the photo below!

This one on one time gave me the opportunity to talk to her specifically about this Homeschool High School American Literature curriculum from Apologia. After looking the program over and beginning to dive in, I was worried that it might be too much for my short attention span, check the boxes and be done, son.

It was so reassuring to hear her validate my feelings, imploring me to remember I know my son’s needs better than anyone, saying I should keep him in mind and adjust accordingly.

Did you see there are 90 literary works! That is a lot of reading and questions to answer! She suggested modifications like not reading ALL the literary works, choosing not to have him answer all the questions, maybe just assigning the odd or even numbered ones. I also read through all off the questions ahead of time and cross out any I think are too challenging for him. Also, for a child like my who thinks things take way too long, she suggested working through the questions verbally together. This is not only faster than writing them up, but more engaging and fun than doing it on his own. It also allows me to see what he has learned and help him through any sticky spots.

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