📣 Get $5 off your first class: Coupon code CONNO9TIBC5
📣 Please note: Due to the discussion-based nature of this course, there must be at least 3 learners enrolled in order to run it. Sections with fewer learners will be cancelled or asked to transfer.
📣 This class qualifies for the Summer Smash 2023 #academic badge”

🌟 General 🌟
Join us for this fun and laid-back summer book club, full of high interest Young Adult novels that will have your teen hooked on reading! 

In this summer book club, students will read one novel per week. We'll discuss different elements and themes of the book each week, coming together to appreciate and celebrate great writing! Students are welcome to join for any or all of the books.

This is a relaxed discussion-based course, where students come together to talk about what they loved about each book, and what they didn't like so much. We'll also discuss themes, symbols, motifs, character development, conflict, literary devices, cultural relevance, and other elements at work in each novel. Where appropriate, students will practice analytic writing and receive feedback from me on their writing in each class. Students finish each novel with a cohesive and analytic understanding of the novel. 

Throughout this course, students will have a chance to get a feel for what a college-level literature course is like by participating in analytic reading, writing, and discussion. 

The aim ultimate of this course is to:
✅ promote a love of reading
✅ strengthen critical engagement with literature
✅ practice speaking and writing analytically about literature with their peers
✅ prepare students for college-level reading

This course is great for students who:
✅ love reading and discussing literature
✅ are looking for a fun book-club to keep their learners engaged in reading during the summer months
✅ are ESL or ELL students looking for advanced reading classes from experienced ELA teacher with TEFL certification
✅ are neurodivergent learners seeking a safe space to learn with peers
✅ want to supplement their English language arts classes
✅ are looking for a welcoming and inclusive space to interact with peers


🌟 Weekly Breakdown 🌟

1. July 10 - July 16: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer 
2. July 17 - July 23: NO CLASSES
3. July 24 - July 30: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
4. July 31 - August 6: When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb
5. August 7 - August 13: Nothing More To Tell by Karen McManus
6. August 14 - August 20: The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
7. August 21 - August 27: The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon

**Please see book details below! Some novels contain adult themes that may not be appropriate for every family/learner. 

🌟 Teaching Methods 🌟
In this course, I gently guide students toward critical engagement with the text through socratic questioning and light direct instruction where necessary. I also engage students in short writing exercises were needed to develop their skills in thinking and writing critically about texts. Often times, students will be reluctant to answer analytic questions without thinking or writing time. Asking students to write before discussing allows students to organize their thoughts and better prepare for sharing out. 

While there are no black and white answers when it comes to analyzing literature, there are pathways that lead to rigorous critical engagement with the text. My aim is to set students on these pathways, and the challenge their thinking, all within a relaxed and engaging environment.  

🌟 Interaction 🌟
This course is heavily discussion-based and requires students to actively engage with each other in discussion about the novels, either through speaking or through the chat-box. Because of the heavily interactive nature of this class, I highly encourage students to open their videos whenever possible. 

🌟 About the Teacher 🌟
Meg Connolly is a certified teacher with bachelors degrees in literature and philosophy. She has masters degrees in teaching ELA, grades 7-12, and in teaching students with disabilities. In addition to her masters, she is TESOL certified and experienced in working with ESL students. She has nine years of teaching experience both in the US public school system and online. She also writes her own fictional short stories for podcasts. Check out her teacher profile for more info.

🌟 Meet and Greet 🌟
If you or your learner are hesitant to sign up before meeting me (understandably!), feel free to book a meet and greet here: https://outschool.com/classes/meet-greet-15-minute-session-MGpwi3mP#usXSuDFS3Z

🌟 Book List Details🌟
1. The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer 
Matt Alacrán wasn’t born. He was harvested. His DNA came from El Patrón, the drug-lord ruler of the country of Opium. Most people hate and fear clones like Matt—except for El Patrón. El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself, because Matt is himself. As Matt struggles to understand his existence, he is threatened by a sinister cast of characters, and realizes escape is his only chance to survive. But escape from the Alacrán Estate is no guarantee of freedom. (Dystopia/fantasy; Ages 12 - 17)

Contains dystopian themes; reference to drugs

2. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Barnes & Noble: Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he's pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he's never met.

Incredibly funny and poignant, this twenty-first-century coming-of-age, coming out story—wrapped in a geek romance—is a knockout of a debut novel by Becky Albertalli. (Fiction; Ages 14 - 17)

Contains some adult content such as sexual identity, homosexuality, alcohol use, and smoking; profanity

3. When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb
Barnes & Noble: For fans of “Good Omens”—a queer immigrant fairytale about individual purpose, the fluid nature of identity, and the power of love to change and endure.
 
Uriel the angel and Little Ash (short for Ashmedai) are the only two supernatural creatures in their shtetl (which is so tiny, it doesn't have a name other than Shtetl). The angel and the demon have been studying together for centuries, but pogroms and the search for a new life have drawn all the young people from their village to America. When one of those young emigrants goes missing, Uriel and Little Ash set off to find her.
 
Along the way the angel and demon encounter humans in need of their help, including Rose Cohen, whose best friend (and the love of her life) has abandoned her to marry a man, and Malke Shulman, whose father died mysteriously on his way to America. But there are obstacles ahead of them as difficult as what they’ve left behind. Medical exams (and demons) at Ellis Island. Corrupt officials, cruel mob bosses, murderers, poverty. The streets are far from paved with gold. (Fantasy; Ages 12 - 18)

Contains religious themes/references

4. Nothing More To Tell by Karen McManus
Barnes & Noble: Four years ago, Brynn left Saint Ambrose School following the shocking murder of her favorite teacher—a story that made headlines after the teacher’s body was found by three Saint Ambrose students in the woods behind their school. The case was never solved. Now that Brynn is moving home and starting her dream internship at a true-crime show, she’s determined to find out what really happened. (Mystery; Ages 14 - 18)

Contains violence

5. The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
Barnes & Noble: The Davenports are one of the few Black families of immense wealth and status in a changing United States, their fortune made through the entrepreneurship of William Davenport, a formerly enslaved man who founded the Davenport Carriage Company years ago. Now it's 1910, and the Davenports live surrounded by servants, crystal chandeliers, and endless parties, finding their way and finding love—even where they’re not supposed to.

There is Olivia, the beautiful elder Davenport daughter, ready to do her duty by getting married...until she meets the charismatic civil rights leader Washington DeWight and sparks fly. The younger daughter, Helen, is more interested in fixing cars than falling in love—unless it’s with her sister’s suitor. Amy-Rose, the childhood friend turned maid to the Davenport sisters, dreams of opening her own business—and marrying the one man she could never be with, Olivia and Helen’s brother, John. But Olivia’s best friend, Ruby, also has her sights set on John Davenport, though she can’t seem to keep his interest...until family pressure has her scheming to win his heart, just as someone else wins hers.

Inspired by the real-life story of the Patterson family, The Davenports is the tale of four determined and passionate young Black women discovering the courage to steer their own path in life—and love. (Historical fiction; Ages 12 - 17)

Contains racial themes

6. The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon
Barnes & Noble: 
Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.

Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.

The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true? (Fiction; Ages 12 - 17)

Contains mild sexuality, alcohol/drug references, profanity