This middle school language arts class is a great companion to your homeschooling experience.  Students are provided with opportunities to engage in deep discussion about what they read, learn key elements of literature, and complete creative projects, all while growing their abilities to think critically.  The focus of this class is world literature-- authors and subjects that span the globe. 

Each week during class students will discuss the reading assignments from the past week using Blooms Taxonomy question starters, with student-created questions.  As a teacher, I am always amazed at the depth of questions student ask and engage in!  There will be interactive teaching time where students learn different components of literature or writing, or anything else students need to be equipped for the week's assignments.  

Because this is a homeschool class, much of the work is done outside of class.  Students will be given weekly assignments that cover reading, writing, and reinforcement of literary concepts.  Assignments are not broken down by day so they can be adapted to each family's learning style and schedule.  Assignments have a checklist for learners to grow in their ability to track their own progress and be responsible for their academic work.  Work is clearly marked so students and parents know what is required to be able to fully participate in the next class, and what is up to the parent's discretion. Parents of younger students may wish to simplify assignments, while parents of older students will be given many opportunities for enrichment each week.  This is truly a homeschool language arts class that you can customize to your family's needs. 

Topics below are the main reading selections that will be discussed during each week's class. 

Week 1: Introduction to class format / assignments, guided poetry discussion ("Ozymandias")
               
Week 2: "I, Juan de Pareja" chapters 1-5 

Week 3 "I, Juan de Pareja" chapters 6-10

Week 4 "I, Juan de Pareja" chapters 11-15

Week 5 present "I, Juan de Pareja" project (creative historical newspaper), "The Story of an Hour"

Week 6 "Inside Out & Back Again" Part 1 and 2

Week 7 "Inside Out & Back Again" Part 3 and 4

Week 8 present "Inside Out & Back Again" project (one pager), "The Gift of the Magi"

Main literary selections for this section include "I, Juan de Pareja" by Elizabeth Borton de Trevino (Spain), "Inside Out & Back Again" by Thanhha Lai (Vietnam), "The Gift of the Magi" O. Henry (United States), "The Story of an Hour" Kate Chopin (United States), and other short selections. 

Literary concepts that will be covered include (but are not limited to): plot elements (rising action, falling action, climax, etc), types of conflict, symbolism, irony, imagery, setting, foreshadowing, point of view, simile, metaphor, personification, genre, characterization, cause and effect, compare and contrast. 

Who would do well in this class?  Because this course is aimed at students in grades 6-8, students should have completed grade 5 Language Arts (any curriculum or course of study, homeschool, public, or private school).  Students reading and writing at or above grade level should be able to work on this class independently.  Students reading and writing below grade level can still be successful in this class if they have support at home to be able to help with weekly assignments.  Reading and writing levels should not affect student's abilities to participate during weekly class meetings. 

This class can be taken alone, or as part of a full year of Homeschool MS ELA. If you would like to use this class as part of a full year of curriculum, combine this class with ONE of the writing courses linked below as well as the two other literature sections. Students are most successful when they take an essay class either before or after World Literature Section 1. 

Informative Research Essay (this class is offered as a live or self-paced class; this link is for the live option:
https://outschool.com/classes/essay-essentials-the-complete-informative-research-essay-gVAL0qKb

Argumentative Research Essay (this class is offered as a self-paced class):
https://outschool.com/classes/writing-an-argumentative-research-essay-YIE7jMUK

Homeschool Middle School Language Arts: World Literature, Section 2
https://outschool.com/classes/homeschool-middle-school-english-language-arts-world-literature-section-2-Iyb7MQwx

Homeschool Middle School Language Arts: World Literature, Section 3
https://outschool.com/classes/homeschool-middle-school-english-language-arts-world-literature-section-3-ixlyij8c

REFUND POLICY: I understand that booking in advance is appealing to guarantee a spot in the class, but I also realize that plans can change. Please know that if you need to withdraw your learner for any reason up to ten days before the start date of this class, I will be happy to issue a full refund. Please contact me if this is the case.