This course is designed to help you gain a deeper understanding of literary analysis, introduce you to assignments and lessons similar to those in IB / AP courses, and your standard English Literature curriculum. It includes texts from a wide range of genres and literary periods, aiming to improve your skills in organizing, writing, and editing essays and other writing assignments.

We will delve into three captivating books: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen, and The Diary of Anne Frank (the PLAY version).

Among these works, The Hunger Games and The Diary of Anne Frank have official film adaptations. Students can watch the adapted videos to compare different narrative styles.

No Victorian novelist is better known today than Charles Dickens. While largely responsible for our understanding of his own era, Dickens is often also strikingly modern. Great Expectations, a coming-of-age story, demonstrates Dickens' deep insight into human nature, as the protagonist navigates his own and others' "great expectations" while discovering the power and perils of wealth. We will consider the novel in its own context as well as in our own.

While our reading schedule is demanding, we generally follow the original publication schedule, which Dickens expressly planned to maximize reader involvement and suspense.  We will examine features of Dickens’ style, including his gift characterization and his unique prose style. Assignments will include analytic and opinion writing, an oral presentation, and a final essay.

Schedule:

Students are not expected to do any reading in the book prior to the first class.

Class 1: Introduction and chapter 1

Homework: Read to end of chapter 8; character analysis

Class 2: Discussion and review of reading; supporting an opinion

Homework: Opinion writing; read to the end of chapter 15

Class 3: Discussion/review; character development

Homework: Test; read to the end of chapter 21

Class 4: Discussion/review; Dickens and food

Homework: Read to the end of chapter 29; write about meal scene; prepare to present

Class 5: Presentations on meal scenes; close reading

Homework: Read to the end of chapter 35; close reading practice

Class 6: Discussion/review; reader response

Homework: Read to the end of chapter 40; response/analysis writing

Class 7: Discussion/review; essay preparation

Homework: Notes for essay; read to the end of chapter 47

Class 8: Discussion/review; essay writing

Homework: Read to the end of chapter 53; work on essay

Class 9: Discussion/review; whole-text analysis

Homework: Read to the end of chapter 58; complete essay

Class 10: last chapter and alternate endings; whole-test analysis completed

This course is designed to help you gain a deeper understanding of literary analysis, introduce you to assignments and lessons similar to those in IB / AP courses, and your standard English Literature curriculum. It includes texts from a wide range of genres and literary periods, aiming to improve your skills in organizing, writing, and editing essays and other writing assignments.

We will delve into three captivating books: Hamlet by William Shakespeare, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.

Hamlet and The Handmaid’s Tale have complete film and screen adaptations, which enrich learning experience and allow students to compare different narrative methods.

The course dedicates five sessions to each book, with reading and writing assignments assigned after every class. All coursework will be carefully reviewed and graded by the instructor to facilitate consistent academic improvement.

Overview:

This course will teach students how to use the writing process to write well under time pressure. It will focus on the writing assignments that students do in class, on tests, and exams. 

The classes will feature mini-lessons, interactive exercises to apply the new skills, and analysis of exemplars to learn the qualities of effective expository prose. 

Each lesson will also include a skills tutorial on sentence structure and revision skills; these lessons will be tailored to the students’ needs as determined by diagnostic quizzes and exercises in the first few classes. The fourth class will feature one-on-one conferences with the teacher to discuss each student’s strengths and areas to improve in their writing endeavours. 

Students will do daily writing exercises and skills practice throughout the course.

Suitable Students:
This program is ideal for students who have demonstrated proficiency in English and a willingness to communicate and engage in the course of study. There are no requirements to joining this program, but it is recommended for students in G9+. 

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Lecture 2: The Middle East Crisis: Israel, Iran, and the Struggle for Regional Stability 

Lecture 3: America at 250: Reflecting on History and Reimagining the Future 

Lecture 4: The China Shift: Innovation, Education Reform, and the "New Quality" Era 

Lecture 5: The Future of Work: Careers, Skills, and the AI Revolution 

Lecture 6: The Great Attrition: The Russia-Ukraine War in its Fifth Year 

Lecture 7: The Energy Race: Powering AI, Industrial Policy, and Global Security

Lecture 8: The 2026 Midterm Elections: Power, Policy, and the Path Forward