CLASS DESCRIPTION

***Please Note: This class has a rotating book list so that students may take the class more than once.***

Good Books is a gentle but thorough introduction to the Literary Tradition for Middle School students.  With an emphasis on reading slowly, we will cover basic story patterns and archetypes, motifs and themes that dominate the Great Works of Literature. Through Guided Reading, rather than the typical discussion-based class, students will learn how to read closely and metaphorically.  But the biggest emphasis will be on falling in love with literature!

The most important way to be prepared for the Great Books is to be immersed in the imagination that created those works. Bible stories, myths, fairy tales, legends–these are the soil from which Western literature has blossomed.  Students will learn how authors over time have used those building blocks of stories to create new stories and new imaginative worlds that are anchored in the works of the past.

Assessment:  In keeping with the idea that this is a gentle introduction to classic literature, there will be no papers, no tests, and no grades given.  Parents tell me that even their quiet students won’t stop talking about our class books outside of class! Spontaneous narrations and thoughts outside of class are a far better assessment of learning than worksheets and tests.

Asynchronous Option: Students have access to the streaming videos of the course to watch on their own time plus the LIVE Canvas Discussion forum for a full year.  The classes are not discussion based and instead focus on the skill and art of reading well. Many students even prefer the asynchronous option because they can pause and rewind when taking notes. (Live students also have access to the course videos to rewatch for note-taking.)