Multicultural Reading and Writing for the College-Bound Student

The study of multicultural literature offers insight into American experiences from different perspectives.  In this class students will study common themes in literature that link all of us as a together as common humanity Students will gain knowledge of American society through works from writers of different cultural, racial, and ethnic backgrounds, fostering an understanding of humankind, thereby developing empathy, and understanding of others in a way that is meaningful..  

It is my hope that this course will help to broaden and deepen a student’s understanding of the concept of being a citizen of the world, while sharpening their reading, writing, and thinking skills.  This course is designed as a prelude to college level courses which require critical thinking, reading beyond the obvious and insight into multicultural literature.

In this class students will learn how to write college level papers while reading short stories, poems and prose penned by and about prominent Asian, LatinX, African American, Middle Eastern, and First Nation men and women. This course relies on class discussion and writing projects. While the class meets once a week, students are expected to join the online classroom Canvas, where they will access the class materials and upload their homework at any time.

Each week students will respond to the online class discussion questions and participate. Students will be graded on writing projects, reading comprehension questions. class discussion and completion of college vocabulary activities. Grading is optional and students may opt just to get comments on their papers without a numerical grade.  

The larger writing projects of this course are a literary analysis precis, college research paper and weekly reflective pieces. The class will conclude with students completing a Powerpoint or Google slides presentation. 

All these learning activities are divided into twelve modules. All reading, instructional and videos are posted in the online classroom. All reading materials are posted in the online classroom.

Each weekly learning module includes the following activities:
•	Reading material; Short story, prose, or poem to be read- posted in the online classroom
•	Writing instruction: Videos and simple instructions are posted in the online classroom
•	Vocabulary: College level words with accompanying definitions and examples of use
•	Optional background reading about the stories, poetry, or prose
•	Online class discussion about the writing process or weekly learning goals
•	Homework: Reflective, creative, or academic writing assignments

The Live Lessons on Outschool Zoom will consist of weekly discussion of the weekly reading, inquiries on the writing process and general review of the learning modules. The literary discussion will be driven by Socratic questions regarding the re, play or poem
Due to the strong discussion aspect of this class at least six students must register to conduct the class.

Authors include Toni Morrison, Chief Joseph, Sherman Alexie, James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Anne Frank, Eudora Welty, Jamaican Kincaid, Octavia Butler, Gabriel Marquez, Amy Tan, Maya Angelou, and Khaled Hosseini. Upon registration a complete weekly schedule will be posted in the Outschool classroom.