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In the winter of last year, to keep up a rigorous course load for my senior year, I decided to take the AP Literature course offered at LFHS.
I was nervous signing up for it as someone who wasn’t typically a huge reader. I have always liked to write, but I had grown away from my enjoyment of reading because of all the times over the past few years in which I was forced to read books I didn’t enjoy to meet the curriculum for the English classes I was taking.
My experience in the AP literature class completely changed my perspective. I relearned to enjoy reading, to truly connect and sympathize with the characters in the book, and to relate the things I learn in the classroom to everyday life.
Incoming seniors are offered the choice to take a variety of English classes, such as Creative Writing, Speech, and Grammar and Composition.
“In AP Lit, our goal is to create a thoughtful community based on asking the right questions rather than knowing the right answers,” a teacher who has been teaching different English classes at Lake Forest since she was 23 years old, Jane Eccleston said.
In AP Lit, we have class discussions every single Tuesday. In most classes, students dread graded discussion because the thought of speaking in front of everyone terrifies them. This is not the case in AP lit.
The discussions are engaging, fun, and enlightening.
Being able to hear my peers’ opinions and thoughts on our books, hearing them make connections, and unpacking whatever we are reading allows me to see the book from multiple perspectives and overall gain a deeper understanding of what we are reading.
“We strive to be open to the lessons we can learn from our authors, characters, and each other. Literature is a dialogue across time and space, and it’s a really special thing to be part of that conversation alongside other people who believe that literature matters in our lives,” Eccelston said.
My favorite part of class has been our project-based assignments. These projects replace an essay at the end of reading the book. AP Literature projects are a creative take on an essay and provide students with new ways to deepen their understanding of the symbols and messages of the books they are reading.
“Although the AP literature class initially seemed intimidating for me to take, I can confidently say that it’s definitely grown to be one of my favorite classes I have taken throughout my 4 years of high school,” senior Rachel Silvers said. “The structure, organization and consistency the class has just makes the learning and reading we do very enjoyable.”
Students at LFHS take the skills and work ethic they learn in AP Lit and use them towards new experiences they encounter. It’s an important class to take because it benefits students academically and sets them up for the future.
