English

Department Chair
Matt Parrilli
847.692.8139

Administrative Assistant
Rita Antoni
847.692.8563

Department Information
Engagement as a citizen, in a career, and as a lifelong learner, requires strong literacy skills, and English classes provide a deep foundation for students with reading, writing, listening, and speaking. English classes range from focusing on reading and understanding fiction and non-fiction text, conducting original research, and writing and speaking for a variety of audiences. Additionally, there are a number of courses that offer college credit as part of successful course completion through both Advanced Placement tests as well as through dual-credit with Oakton Community College.

The major goals of English classes are that students will be able, at various levels of skill development to…

• read with understanding and fluency
• understand the expressed meaning in literature representative of various societies, eras, and ideas
• write in order to communicate for a variety of purposes
• listen and speak effectively in a variety of situations
• use reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills to research and apply information for specific purposes.

Regardless of the course selected, students will have experiences leading them to the successful accomplishment of these five goals.

2018 Summer Reading Program

Maine South English Department Chair Matthew Parrilli welcomes all Maine South students to the school’s 2018 Summer Reading Program with this message:

“Since we believe that student choice is a powerful motivator when it comes to reading, we have decided to move to a summer reading program where choice is its primary focus. The English Department, with assistance from Mrs. Kowalski, one of our librarians, have created a diverse list of high interest and high quality summer reading titles from which to choose. All incoming 9th through 12th graders are required to read one book from the 2018 Maine South Summer Reading List. Accelerated and AP English courses have additional reading assignments.

Books may be obtained at book stores, libraries, or online. Students are free to read a paper or digital copy of their selection. The book list includes ISBN-13 numbers to ensure the reading of the correct edition of each book. A limited number of copies of the summer reading title are available digitally on OverDrive, Maine South’s online library. Use your Maine South username (without @s207.org) and password to check out a book. OverDrive may be found here.

Students should read their book at their leisure over the course of the summer. In August, students will be assessed on their reading of their book. Assessments will be determined by course and may include a written response, a graded discussion or another format to gather information about the student’s experience with the book he or she chose to read.

Reading is vital to success in every academic pursuit. It is a skill that requires consistent practice, and fortunately, it can also be an enriching activity. Research shows that avid readers read better, write better, and concentrate better. They also tend to be more nimble in their thinking and empathetic in their interactions.

We hope you find the books in this year’s program to be both interesting and engaging. We invite parents to join in on the reading too. The teachers of the English Department look forward to hearing your thoughts about your selections at the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year.”