English teacher Andrea Donaghe’s AP language students dive into a new unit focusing on the topic of gender, Jan. 8. Students discuss gender roles and expetations in society and their own opinions they have for each one.

They read letters of second president of the United States John Adams to and from his wife, Abigail Adams, and consider their relationship to one another. The class analyze the gender roles they have with one another through their correspondence back and forth. It shows how some male and female characteristics and expectations have changed over the years and some remain.

Along with discussions, reading and writing about the subject, Donaghe also assigns the book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks”, by Rebecca Skloot. The novel introduces students into a life of an African American women in the 1940’s and 1950’s who died of cancer but her cells were used for research. Lack’s story pushes the class to question if her gender along with her race, played a role in the way her life folded out.

Topics they plan to discuss along with gender in their unit are culture and language.

Other units AP language has covered in the past are race, persuasive strategies and work.

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