Congratulations—or maybe condolences? You just found out you are teaching an Advanced Placement^® (AP) English class next year. Whether it’s AP Language and Composition or AP Literature and Composition, the news likely came with a mix of excitement, dread, and the overwhelming question: What do I even do now?

Take a deep breath. You’re not alone and you’re more prepared than you think. Here’s a guide to help you move from panic to plan, whether you’re a first-year teacher or a seasoned educator new to the AP world.

Step 1: Know What You’re Teaching—AP Lang vs. AP Lit

First, clarify which AP English course you’re teaching. AP Language and Composition (AP Lang) focuses on rhetoric, nonfiction, argumentation, and analyzing how writers craft meaning to persuade. Think essays, speeches, articles, op-eds, and lots of writing. AP Literature and Composition (AP Lit) centers on fiction, poetry, and drama (and you will also do a lot of writing). This course digs into theme, character, tone, and style through literary analysis.

Each course has distinct skills and expectations, so your planning starts with knowing which one is yours. If you’re unsure, ask your department head or administrator. You don’t want to plan an entire unit using dystopian literature only to find out that your department expects you to be teaching Hamlet.

The final part of knowing what you are teaching is this: these courses are both meant to be college-freshman-level courses. AP Lang is the first year writing course that nearly every college freshman takes. AP Lit is more like an introductory college literature course: either taken as the first course by English majors or non-majors as a humanities elective. These are not junior level college English seminars. Keep those things in mind as you begin thinking about assignments and the structure of your course.  

Step 2: Visit AP Central, Sign Up for AP Classroom, and Then Find and Sign Up for an AP Summer Institute (APSI) for Your Course

AP Central is the hub for everything you need to know from the College Board^®. AP Classroom will be your guide to all things AP and will help you and your students navigate the necessary expectations and preparation. You need to go there, create an account, and then follow the prompts. It’s fairly user friendly and there are a number of videos on their YouTube channel to help. You and your students will be able to practice, track progress, explore questions and essay prompts, and other things. 

Now, you probably want to attend an AP Summer Institute (APSI). Unless you are teaching a few certain courses (AP Seminar or AP Research, for example), then you aren’t required to attend an APSI, but it is strongly recommended. They happen all summer long, all over the country (and world), and there are also virtual options. These institutes are led by some of the most skilled and accomplished AP teachers and college professors you can find. And it isn’t just about the content of the course, but also some of the best teaching practices for getting results for students of all backgrounds. 

PLEASE REMEMBER: Other than the scaffolded units of the Course and Exam Description (see #3, below), AP does not tell you how to teach the course or what to read or write. AP respects teachers in their contexts and knows they are best positioned to make decisions for their students. This also means that the APSI Consultant is not there to tell you what or how to teach. Their (Our) job is to get you familiar with the expectations, the exam, and to share some approaches to planning and teaching. 

Step 3: Explore the Course and Exam Description (CED)

Though you will do this at an APSI, you may want to spend some of your own time with the CED. Especially if you choose not to attend an APSI (though, again, you really should). Start by downloading the PDF of the official course and exam description (CED) from AP Central. The AP Lang and AP Lit CEDs outline:

• The course skills and learning objectives.
• The units recommended for the year.
• Sample texts, writing tasks, and scoring rubrics.
• Weighting of different skills on the exam.
• The format of the AP exam.

This document reflects the expectations for the college level courses that correspond to the course you are teaching. Those expectations and the exam were developed by a committee of professors, teachers, and experts in ELA from around the country. 

Reading this document might not be riveting, but it’s the blueprint for your course—and the exam your students will take in May. It will help you plan backwards from what students need to be able to do.

Step 4: Choose Your Core Texts (Especially for AP Lit)

First, neither course has a required textbook, though it is suggested you use a textbook. Likewise, neither course requires that certain books or speeches or poems or anything be taught. Since the idea is that students learn skills related to texts through their study of those texts, they will be learning to transfer their newly learned skills to any text given to them (making it a lifelong skill). 

One excellent resource is the list of National Book Award^® nominees and winners. These include separate lists of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction (and other categories, too). These books are notable as examples of great writing, but also (since they are awarded yearly) are often very connected to the zeitgeist in different ways. There are a number of other awards that could be considered as you explore texts for your course: Booker, PEN-America, Thurber (humor writing), Pulitzer, and many others. Choosing from these lists may help ensure that texts you choose are well written and timely so you can expose students to good writing while also engaging them with ideas and events current to their experience. 

AP Literature and Texts

If you’re teaching AP Literature, text selection is a big deal. The course requires students to analyze works of literary merit—so no, you can’t build your syllabus around young adult fiction or “easy reads.” You’ll need:

• Some classic texts (Frankenstein is still the most often used novel on college syllabuses) 
• Some contemporary works (check-out the NYT list of the “100 Best Book of the 21st Century,” so far)
• A variety of genres, including short stories, poetry, and drama
• Consider some comedy or satire
• Sets of excerpts and very short stories to teach skills
• Some alternative texts just in case

You might start with titles you know and love—teaching is easier when you’re passionate. Remember, though, the students’ interest in a text is one of the greatest motivators for their engagement. Just because you love it or it’s a classic doesn’t mean they will connect with it. Though you may feel the need to start the course with a strong example of what you think about regarding literature, you will likely get better results, buy-in, and engagement by starting with a high interest and accessible (not necessarily “easy”) text. You may even forgo a book and choose to start with short stories.  

Once you’ve chosen how you will start, then fill gaps with proven AP texts like Beloved, The Great Gatsby, Frankenstein, or Othello. A list of texts included on the exam of over the years lives here if you need inspiration (and thanks to Sandra Effinger for maintaining that list). That said, you are not obligated to use those.  

Since 2019, AP has focused on providing more contemporary texts on the exam (at least 25% 21st century, no more that 50% 20th century, and no more that 25% pre-20th century), so keep that in mind as you make choices. You might also decide to allow for some student choice for independent reading or limited choice for small groups, especially since student choice is one of the greatest motivators for reading. 

AP Language and Texts

If you’re teaching AP Lang, you’ll rely more on nonfiction texts—essays, editorials, speeches, memoirs, letters—and build units around rhetorical modes like argument, analysis, and synthesis. You might use some longer nonfiction and, if your students will take AP Lit or another English course after your AP Lang course, then you might work in some literature that you then supplement with related nonfiction texts. Your colleagues in your department will appreciate you for that. 

For both courses, remember that you’re not teaching the texts you’re using. Instead, you’re using the texts to teach skills and develop understandings. They don’t have to know any one text for the exams, but they must be able to use their learned skills to read new texts and write effectively about them. 

Step 4: Plan with Purpose—But Keep It Flexible

Once you’ve got your standards and your texts, it’s time to sketch out a course calendar. Many teachers plan by quarter, building around the units provided in the CED (which are only organized and scaffolded skills), so you will need to decide what texts you will use to teach which skills and during which units. 

AP Lit units follow a pattern that suggests a unit focused on short fiction, then one focused on poetry, and then one focused on longer works (novels/plays). These then repeat through nine units. Of course, you can use other texts during those units, they are only organized like this to accommodate skills related to different genres. (Sample Planning and Pacing Guide for AP Lit | video)

AP Lang units are not organized in a way that suggests certain genres of texts, but most teachers do choose to organize their units based on the types of exam writing: Argument, Rhetorical Analysis, or Synthesis. Though there are successful examples of organizing these in different ways, many teachers save synthesis until last as they see it relying on skills taught with the other two. Again, none of this is required and you should feel free to strategize with your colleagues and ultimately do what you think is best for your classroom and your students. (Sample Planning and Pacing Guide for AP Lang | video)

But don’t overdo it—you don’t need to have every lesson ready by day 1. Focus instead on the first few weeks:

• What will your first unit be?
• Which skills will you emphasize early?
• How will you set expectations for reading, writing, and discussion?

Remember, AP English is a marathon, not a sprint. Students (and teachers) need time to build endurance. Start slow and let the complexity grow.

Step 5: Understand the Exam—and Teach Toward It Gradually

Some new AP teachers try to make everything “exam-like” from Day 1. Don’t. The exam is important, but if students don’t have the skills, throwing practice prompts at them just leads to frustration.

And don’t worry about “teaching to the test.” The exam assesses the skills in the CED and those skills are what college professors around the country agree are necessary for the course. So teach those skills and students will be ready for the exam (though you should include some exam prep so they know what to expect—but AP Classroom will help with that). 

Instead:

• Begin with skill-building assignments that scaffold toward AP-level writing.
• Introduce exam tasks (rhetorical analysis, literary analysis, synthesis, argument) slowly.
• Use released questions and rubrics from the College Board to guide instruction.
• Model annotation, close reading, and writing strategies often.

Remember: You are their expert, but not necessarily an expert in all of the texts and writing. Instead, you are their expert in learning how to read and write for these courses. Model, share, think aloud, and ask questions. 

By second semester, ramp up the timed essays and multiple-choice practice. But in the beginning, focus on building students’ confidence.

Step 6: Create a Writing Workflow That Won’t Burn You Out

You will assign a lot of writing. That may not mean entire essays. Also, remember that assigning writing is not teaching writing. Teach sentences and paragraphs and then build. Students think they know what those are, but they likely have not thought of how those things relate to thinking and a line of reasoning. 

Be reasonable with your expectations of yourself and do not try to “grade” it all. Feedback, conferences, and discussions about their writing will help them (and you).  

Develop systems that allow and encourage students to:

• Write frequently, even if not everything is graded.
• Trust small assignments (i.e., writing and revising sentences and paragraphs).
• Revise their work after conferences and/or feedback.
• Evaluate their own writing using rubrics.
• Collaborate with peers in workshops and peer reviews.

Reserve your full, detailed feedback for major essays. For smaller pieces, use checklists, brief margin notes, or even just a quick “complete/incomplete” to keep things moving.

Step 7: Build a Classroom Culture That Supports Risk

Many students take AP English because they love English—or they love getting the GPA bump. Either way, they often arrive with anxiety stemming from perfectionism or self-doubt.

Set the tone early:

• Encourage intellectual risk-taking.
• Normalize struggle with complex texts.
• Provide models and mentor texts.
• Celebrate progress, not just performance.

Let students know it’s okay not to “get it” right away. That’s part of the process.

Step 8: Find Your People

You don’t need to go it alone. There are entire online communities dedicated to helping AP English teachers navigate the chaos.

Start with:

• Facebook groups like for AP Literature Teachers (this one and this one) and AP Language and Composition Teachers (these are moderated and very professional).
• The College Board’s Teacher Community (free with an account).
• YouTube channels like Marco Learning, The Garden of English, etc.

Colleagues in your building or district may also be AP veterans. Ask to borrow their syllabi, units, or assessments. Most are happy to share.

Final Thoughts: You’ve Got This

Yes, teaching AP English is demanding. Yes, it can feel like you’re building the plane while flying it. But it’s also deeply rewarding. You’ll get to read great literature, engage in meaningful conversations, and watch your students grow into thinkers and writers.

You’re going to make mistakes your first year. That’s okay. Just keep showing up, keep refining, and keep believing that what you’re doing matters—because it does.

And remember: even if you feel overwhelmed now, you’ll be amazed by how much you and your students can grow in just one year.

TL;DR

Let’s Recap: Where to Start

• Confirm which AP English course you’re teaching.
• Read the Course and Exam Description.
• Select strong core texts (especially for AP Lit).
• Don’t teach texts, use texts to teach. 
• Build out your first few units.
• Teach skills before you teach the test.
• Focus in their ability to apply skills to new texts.
• Don’t drown in grading—be strategic.
• Foster a culture of risk and growth.
• Tap into the AP teaching community.

Welcome to the AP club. The fact that you’re reading this tells me you’re going to do great. 

Note: “AP” is a registered trademark of the College Board; “National Book Award” is a registered trademark of the National Book Foundation.