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Book Club for Teens

In this ongoing class students will read a different book each week and discuss it during class.
Phyllis Bixler - Just Help Me Learn, LLC
Average rating:
4.8
Number of reviews:
(346)
Class

What's included

1 live meeting
50 mins in-class hours per week
Homework
2-4 hours per week. Students will need to read each book before class begins.
Assessment
Informal

Class Experience

US Grade 9 - 11
Books can be an escape filled with adventure, a window into another time, an opportunity to learn something new, and so much more!  During this book club learners will expand their minds while reading books for pleasure over the summer.  Independent reading can expand vocabulary, keep students engaged in the learning process, and establish friendships with other learners from across the US and around the world!

Our book club will meet weekly and discuss the selected book. Students will be assigned reading and should arrive to class ready to discuss topics from the assigned text.  Students need to be able to read an entire book each week.
      
September 18-24     Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
Sept 25-Oct 1           I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
October 2 - 8           The Way by Kristen Wolf
October 9 - 15         From the World of Percy Jackson: The Sun and the Star (Nico Di Angelo Adventures) by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro
October 16 - 22       NO CLASS
October 23 - 29       Caraval by Stephanie Garber
Oct. 30 - Nov. 5       Posted by John David Anderson
November 6 - 12      Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
November 13 - 19    Shadows Cast by Stars by Catherine Knutsson
November 20 - 26   The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
Nov. 27 - Dec. 3       Trust by Hernan Diaz
December 4 - 10      The Ivory Key by Akshaya Raman
December 11 - 17      Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram
January 8 - 12           The Book Thief  by Markus Zusak  
January 13 - 19         Night by Elie Wiesel 
January 20 - 26        The Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse
Jan 27 -  Feb 2          My Real Name is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih
February 3 - 9         Dear Martin by Nic Stone
February 10 - 16      The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
February 17 - 23      As Long as the Lemon Tree Grows by Zoulfa Katouh
Feb. 24 - Mar 1        Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
March 2 - 8              The Lightening Dreamer: Cuba's Greatest Abolitionist by Margarita Engle 

           
          
          Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy
          The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime that Changed Their Lives by Dashka Slater

     

This class is largely discussion based and require learning engagement and interaction.  “Book club is not a spectator’s sport!”  
At least 3 learners are required to discuss each title. 
Participants should come ready to share their thoughts and ask questions about the assigned reading during our session.  Cameras will need to be on throughout class.  If extenuating circumstances prevent a learner from turning their camera on, please send me a message to discuss it prior to enrolling.   

Some of the books contain mature content, including sexual assault, gender identity, suicide and suicidal thoughts, self harm, genocide, murder, terminal illness, racism, lynching, and more.  Students MUST me mature enough to discuss this content with others. 

Please note that I do allow for deviations from the schedule.  Sometimes the group wants to go deeper on one particular aspect of our content, requires more time on a topic to truly grasp it, or gets so engaged in rich conversation that it requires us to adjust our agenda.

**********PLEASE READ*************
Outschool has recently changed its policy regarding class cancellations. We know how disappointing canceled classes can be for learners, so we too are amending our policy.  In the past we have waited for late enrollees, of which we have had MANY!  Unfortunately we can no longer do that. 

Instead we will evaluate class enrollment for ongoing classes on teach Sunday at 5pm Eastern.  IF enrollment falls below 3 students, we will push the class back a week.  When other sections are available students will have the option to transfer to another class.  Full refunds will be provided for learners who cannot attend the newly scheduled class time.  All other refunds will be provided as per the Outschool Limited Refund policy (see below).  If for any reason the class does not meet your expectation, you have the confidence of knowing that Outschool has a Happiness Guarantee and will provide a refund upon request via their Customer Support. 

Transfer requests within 24 hours of a scheduled class will NOT be approved.  At that point it is too late to reschedule the class, and it is unfair to other families who may have enrolled thinking there were multiple learners enrolled. Instead students will be encouraged to watch the video of the class.
 
Thank you for understanding, and for your loyalty.
Learning Goals
Students will: 
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and developed, and the connections that are drawn between them.
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a newspaper).
Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.
Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g., a person's life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.
Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. 
Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.
learning goal

Other Details

Parental Guidance
Some of the books contain mature content, including sexual assault, gender identity, suicide and suicidal thoughts, self harm, genocide, murder, terminal illness, racism, lynching, and more. Students MUST me mature enough to discuss this content with others. PLEASE review the book's description before your learner reads it if they are a sensitive learner.
Supply List
Students will need their own copy of each book. 

For US students with a processing or other reading challenges, I encourage you to use the following link to submit an application with the National Library Service and Library of Congress to acquire free resources which may be helpful for this class: 
https://www.loc.gov/nls/about/eligibility-for-nls-services/talking-books-reading-disabilities/
Another free and valuable resource for students who learn differently is: 
https://www.bookshare.org/cms/promo/adwords/audiobooks-learning-disabilities
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined September, 2020
4.8
346reviews
Profile
Teacher expertise and credentials
Ohio Teaching Certificate in English/Language Arts
Phyllis Bixler, M.Ed., NBCT
Master's Degree in Education from Lourdes College
Phyllis Bixler, M.Ed., NBCT
Bachelor's Degree in Education from Auburn University
Tina Kaye Houston
I have been an English teacher in middle and high school as well as at the college level and discussed literature with mature topics for decades.  Additionally I am a Holocaust and genocide educator who has taught for nearly 2 decades about the atrocities committed by humans on one another.  This mature content is ALWAYS handled in a way that gives the victim(s) faces and identities without sensationalizing their trauma and experience.  The intent is to demonstrate the humanity in each situation and how we can be better humans by learning from the literature to treat one another with love and respect.  
I have a graduate degree in English, as well as another in Education and countless courses on how to teach content as described above. 

Reviews

Live Group Class
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$15

weekly
1x per week
50 min

Completed by 21 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 14-17
3-8 learners per class

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