Dystopian Literature & Academic Composition
April 3, 2023 - 4 minutes read12 students maximum
Required Prior Knowledge/Skills: Students should be able to write paragraphs independently. Students should be able to read at an 8th grade level. No other prior knowledge/skills are required.
Required Materials: Required Book: Uglies by Scott Westerfield (Amazon Link)
Students will be required to bring their own basic school supplies. See list of supplies here. All other materials will be provided.
Description: Dystopian fiction offers a vision of the future. Dystopian novels can challenge readers to think differently about current social and political climates, and in some instances can even inspire action by encouraging critical thinking and engagement with real-world problems.
This class will provide an opportunity for students to improve their literary analysis skills through an examination of dystopian literature. Through our core novel, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, as well as excerpts from other works of dystopian literature and short stories, students will be given tools to better analyze the elements of dystopian literature, opportunities to discuss their reactions and responses with their peers in class, and chances to interact and wrestle with the themes and larger questions these novels present.
This class is a best fit for students ready to dive deeper into literary analysis and have an opportunity to refine their writing. This class will provide an introduction to three academic essays: expository essay, compare and contrast essay and narrative essay. Students will be introduced to a variety of writing methods and tools to improve their writing of each of these types of essays.
Throughout the fall session, students will receive feedback on each of these essays as they are drafted and refined into final drafts. Students will receive feedback on their rough draft copies of their academic essays to help them revise the essays for the final drafts. Each essay will have a rubric to help students focus on the elements required of each type of essay: research essay, compare/contrast essay, and narrative essay. These will be handed out to students and posted to Canvas.
Helpful to Note: Care was taken in selecting the core novel for this class, but this content may not be a best fit for every student. A review of the novel is available on Common Sense Media for families wishing to understand more about the novel. Dystopian literature can be more intense and include more mature topics than other genres of literature due to the themes and topics examined.
At-home Work is Required: At-home work is an essential component of learning in this class. Students should complete all assigned at-home work to be successful in the class. There will be weekly reading and journal response assignments as well as completion of essays. At-home work should take around 1-2 hours per week*.
*Specified at-home work time is an approximation. Individual at-home work times will vary by student.
Spring 2024 Companion Class: Dystopian Literature & Academic Composition (different book)
The fall and spring must be registered for separately.
