ESSAY WRITING CLASS
LEVEL 1
This course is for grade 5 & 6 and will provide a balance of reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language skills essential for success. Major goals of the course include: strengthening writing and organization, reading comprehension, critical thinking, and developing effective communication through group discussions and oral presentations. Vocabulary and grammar will be focused on a weekly basis to ensure sustained growth and improvement. In literature, we will read a variety of texts, including short stories, novels, poems, and news articles. Writing types include paragraphs, compare and contrast, creative writing, and narrative essays.
LEVEL 2
This course is for grade 7 & 8 and will provide a balance of reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language skills essential for success. Major goals of the course include: strengthening writing and organization, reading comprehension, critical thinking, and developing effective communication through analytical group discussions and oral presentations. More complex vocabulary and grammar will be focused on a weekly basis to ensure sustained growth and improvement. In literature, we will read a variety of longer texts that build upon previous grades including short stories, novels, poems, and news articles. Writing types will include argumentative, informative, and narrative essays. The course is designed to build upon language skills so students can express their feelings and opinions coherently both in formal, creative writing and in an oral presentation.
LEVEL 3
This course is for grade 9 and 10, and students will build on the skills required to deeply engage and analyze increasingly more difficult texts from a variety of text formats including short stories, poetry, journalism, and novels. Students will develop their writing abilities and learn increasingly academic forms of writing and styles, such as MLA and APA formatting to produce outstanding high-school-level essays.
Private-Lesson (Gr. 9-12 only)
In this class, the instructor teaches students to read and write at an advanced level. The instructor will work with students to hone their writing skills and develop arguments at a University level. Students are also taught to critically reflect on what they read and to engage with complicated arguments and themes. The program’s goal is for students to become skillful, confident communicators, skills that will serve them regardless of what career they pursue.