Dystopian Book Club for Young Adults - FLEX (Ages 12-17)

This is a FLEX class that does not meet live on Zoom. Recorded videos with instruction and classroom posts will be available instead of a live Zoom meeting. The class structure will be much like an online class in which the learner will come to the Outschool course for independent work, technology (games, typing, etc), but will also still interact with their instructor and peers in the Outschool classroom. I will be available to meet with learners, if the need should arise. This is a perfect course for students who enjoy interacting through the process of reading. It is also a great opportunity for homeschool literature clubs or homeschool supplement.

In this FLEX book club, students will complete readings and self paced lessons independently while engaging with their peers and instructor in the Outschool classroom to discuss their selected novel. Each week, there will be links to the interactive self paced lessons that will aid students in reflecting on their readings for that week. Learners can read books and complete the lessons at their own pace.  There will be a different lesson once a week. The lessons will contain interactive Pear Deck activities and Quizizz quizzes. There will be questions and activities for comprehension, character analysis, and other story elements. We will be analyzing the literature just as we would in the classroom, but interacting virtually only. 

In this class, students may choose one (1) of the following novels to read during our course: 
- The Giver by Lois Lowry 
- Divergent by Veronica Roth 
- The Maze Runner by James Dasher 
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury 
- Legend by Marie Lu 


Weekly Schedule: 

Week 1 - What is Dystopian Literature? 
Learners will gain background knowledge for understanding the dystopian genre. We will take a look at information about each book so students can decide which book they would like to read. Learners will also complete an anticipation guide and make predictions.

Week 2 - Themes & Summarization
Learners will be introduced to common dystopian novel themes and will analyze how those themes are developing throughout their novels. They will also work on their summarization skills by writing a summary of the events of their readings so far. 

Week 3 - Plot & Conflict
Learners will explore the plot elements by analyzing how the order of the events impacts the story. They will also discuss and complete interactive activities to study the types of internal and external conflict present in their selected novel.

Week 4 - Character Study 
Learners will analyze the characters in their stories. They will discuss and complete interactive activities to understand the characters' motivations, personality traits, etc. 

Week 5 - Final Discussion & Closing 
Learners will engage in a final discussion about their thoughts, make text to world and self connections, revisit the themes of the novel, and their predictions from the anticipation guide. 

Why take a FLEX CLASS?
Flex schedule classes are a great option for families with a busy schedule, those who prefer or need to work at their own pace, or those who are interested in an online style course rather than a class with the live option. Flexible schedule courses meet asynchronously, meaning that students do not need to log in or "meet" at a certain time or on a certain day of the week. Content is posted weekly and remains available throughout the course. Students participate in the course by viewing recorded lectures/self paced lessons, playing the game to review or introduce the content for that week, and answering discussion questions and/or responding to others as they feel comfortable. All levels of participation are welcome! When engaging online with their peers, students are expected to respect all others' opinions, interpretations, and thoughts about the stories and characters. Any discrimination of race, religion, origin, sexual identity, or backgrounds are not welcome.