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Literacy Essentials
Course

A year-round way to inspire preteens and teens to fall in love with the English Language while deepening their writing and critical analysis skills.

Registration is open now! 
September 3rd, 2024 - June 24th, 2025

This course introduces students to great classics in poetry and literature, inspires students to expand their own writing abilities, and empowers students to communicate intelligently through both verbal and written discourse.

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During the course, each month will highlight the works of three famous poets and one classic novel. Students will compose one essay per month, plus one creative writing composition of their choice (poem, story, play, etc). They will participate in book discussions and "play" one Kahoot quiz together per month, based on the month's readings.

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Class sizes are limited to no more than 12 students, in order to encourage students to participate and to be comfortable sharing opinions, ideas and creations with their classmates.

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There are four levels for this course, based on the difficulty level of the readings. These levels correspond roughly as follows: Level 1 is appropriate for grade 9 and below, Level 2 is for lower high school, Level 3 is for upper high school, and Level 4 is designed to prepare students for post-secondary reading, writing and thinking. If you're unsure which level to select, please contact us at classicsallowed@gmail.com

Reading a Book

"These courses are so great... My kids have benefited so much from the selection of good books and poetry, from the class discussions, and from the gentle correction and huge encouragement that they receive from Savannah on their writing. With her encouragement, I have watched their writing improve with every essay they write."

-Kristina Hankyle, Homeschool Mother of Five

Children Reading

Level 1 Book List

September: MRS. FRISBY & THE RATS OF NIMH - Robert C. O'Brien

October: ISLAND OF THE BLUE DOLPHINS - Scott O'Dell

November: THE SECRET GARDEN - Frances Hodgson Burnett

December: THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER - Barbara Robinson

January: LOST IN THE BARRENS - Farley Mowat

February: ELIJAH OF BUXTON - Christopher Paul Curtis

March: ANNE OF GREEN GABLES - Lucy Maud Montgomery

April: FARMER BOY - Laura Ingalls Wilder

May: THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW - C.S. Lewis

June: WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS - Wilson Rawls

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This virtual course will run

on Tuesdays at 12:00 pm and 7:00 pm (ATLANTIC STANDARD TIME)

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Regular Cost: $40 (Canadian) monthly, or $400 for the year

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Reading in Park

Level 2 Book List

Reading a book

September: LITTLE BRITCHES - Ralph Moody

October: OLD YELLER - Fred Gipson

November: CARRY ON, MR. BOWDITCH - Jean Lee Latham

December: OWLS IN THE FAMILY - Farley Mowat

January: A GIRL OF THE LIMBERLOST - Gene Stratton Porter

February: THE CALL OF THE WILD - Jack London

March: THE JUNGLE BOOK - Rudyard Kipling

April: JUST DAVID - Eleanor H. Porter

May: LITTLE WOMEN - Louisa May Alcott

June: THE LONESOME GODS - Louis L'Amour

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This virtual course will run on Tuesdays at 1:00 pm

(ATLANTIC STANDARD TIME)

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Regular Cost: $40 (Canadian) monthly, or $400 for the year

Reading Student

Level 3 Book List

September: WHITE FANG -Jack London

October: BENDIGO SHAFTER - Louis L'Amour

November: JANE EYRE - Charlotte Bronte

December: A CHRISTMAS CAROL - Charles Dickens

January: CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN - Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

and Frank Gilbreth Jr.

February: THE PEARL - John Steinbeck

March: THE CHOSEN - Chaim Potock

April: ENDER'S GAME - Orson Scott Card

May: LITTLE MEN -  Louisa May Alcott

June: UNBROKEN - Laura Hillenbrand

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This virtual course will run on Tuesdays at 2:00 pm

(ATLANTIC STANDARD TIME)

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Regular Cost: $40 (Canadian) monthly, or $400 for the year

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Level 4
Post-Secondary Preparation

This course includes more complex and challenging texts and writing assignments. It also introduces students to some of the most influential and inspiring non-fiction documents, essays, letters and speeches in the English language.

September: UNCLE TOM'S CABIN - Harriet Beecher Stowe

October: FRANKENSTEIN - Mary Shelley

November: PRIDE AND PREJUDICE - Jane Austen

December: NIGHT - Elie Wiesel

January: THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO - Alexandre Dumas

February: AND THERE WAS LIGHT - Jaqcues Lusseyran

March: WATERSHIP DOWN - Richard Adams

April: THE VIRGINIAN - Owen Wister

May: DAVID COPPERFIELD - Charles Dickens

June: THESE HAPPY GOLDEN YEARS - Laura Ingalls Wilder

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Non-fiction texts for this course include Thoreau's CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE,

Martin Luther King Jr.'s LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL,

Churchill's Wartime Speeches, Emerson's SELF RELIANCE,

C.S. Lewis' THE INNER RING, THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS, and others.

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This virtual course will run on Tuesdays at 3:00 pm

(ATLANTIC STANDARD TIME)

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Regular Cost: $40 (Canadian) monthly, or $400 for the year

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A Young Woman Writing
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