Classics & Writing - Teen

Books & Materials:

Below is a list of some basic supplies students should have on hand for our class along with the books we’ll be reading this school year. It’s not absolutely necessary to have the same edition as the one I’ve linked below,* but it does help to have book in the same edition/format, so we can all turn to “page 15,” for example, and be looking at the same thing.

• Notebook or journal, and a 3-ring binder

• Loose leaf paper

• Dictionary

• Thesaurus

• Pens, pencils, general art supplies

• Access to Google Docs— not required but it is the easiest way for me to offer feedback and comments on students’ written work. If this is not an option for your student, his/her work can just be emailed in as typed assignments or scans and photos of handwritten work or other projects.

• Our books for the year:

  • Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (Simon & Schuster paperback)

  • Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott (Bantam Classics 1988 annotated edition if possible. ISBN 10: 0553213261 / ISBN 13: 9780553213263)

  • A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (any edition is fine)

  • 1984 by George Orwell (Mariner Books Classics 1984/Animal Farm hardcover edition)

  • David Copperfield by Charles Dickens (Penguin Classics paperback edition)

*Disclaimer: This link is to products on Amazon.com. If you click these links then purchase any of the books I recommend, this means I earn a small amount through the Amazon Associates program (at no extra cost to you).

Homework:

Aside from reading, homework will vary from week to week but, in general, I will be providing students with assignments as listed below. Please note the weekly reading will be required for everyone to be capable of keeping up and participating in weekly discussions. However, the rest of the assignments will be labeled “recommended/encouraged” (as in, please complete if at all possible), OR “extra” (as in, this is a fun enrichment project, please complete if you’re interested and have time). Ultimately, it will be up to each student and his/her parents to determine what assignments they need to complete each week in addition to the required reading. All of this is intended to take into account different schedules, understanding that students may have different work loads, and it allows for the class to be somewhat flexible and work for more students. So, if you want this class to serve as your child’s entire English class for the term, you may want them to complete all of the assignments. If this class is more of an extracurricular add-on for enrichment, maybe the extra assignments are less critical.

I will provide personalized feedback to each student, while recognizing everyone may be at different places in their learning—rather than expecting them all to produce the same level of work.

What readers can expect in terms of homework…

• Comprehension and critical thinking questions to think about as the read the assigned chapters for each week

• Reading or viewing recommended materials related to current read and writing skills

• Vocabulary words when applicable

• Writing assignments of various kinds (essays, creative writing, character analysis, etc)

• The occasional art, cooking, research, or other enrichment project on theme and related to whatever book we’re reading