Havergal College Course Calendar, 2016-17 Academic Year

GRADE 7 Grade 7 English

The Grade 7 English course examines “her story”: the portrayal of women in literature. What do stories tell us about the diverse roles of girls and women? Why do we tell stories? Who tells the story? Has this story been told before? By exploring various literary genres through the lens of the female perspective, we hope to gain a richer understanding of ourselves and of the world around us. In particular, we will analyze both old and new stories in the following forms: mythology, the novel, the Shakespearean play, and narrative poetry. As an entry year course, we concentrate on core writing skills, foundational language, and grammar conventions. An emphasis is placed on the process of writing through careful planning, drafting, revising, and peer-/self-editing. In addition, students are given the opportunity to develop their oral communication skills by presenting literature-based investigative reports and structured persuasive arguments. Students will study a wide variety of literary genres, including short stories, a novel, non-fiction, poetry and a play. As well, there is a strong emphasis on helping students develop communication skills, both oral and written, to express themselves with fluency and confidence. This course gives adolescent readers better insight into who they are as they find a sense of self identity. Through this transition period from childhood to adolescence, students begin questioning, doubting, fearing, wondering and setting lifelong values. Students will use literature and writing to encounter situations similar to their own experiences and to discover their own emotions. Furthermore, it is through discovering ‘self’ that students will be able to improve their lives and better understand the lives of the people around them. Through reading, adolescents find solace in discovering that they are not alone in their thoughts and feelings and that someone understands them. 1 CREDIT This course is designed to develop the oral communication, reading, writing, and media literacy skills that students need for success in their secondary school academic programs and in their daily lives. Students will analyse literary texts from contemporary and historical periods, interpret informational and graphic texts, and create oral, written, and media texts in a variety of forms. An important focus will be on the use of strategies that contribute to effective communication. The course is intended to prepare students for the Grade 10 academic English course, which leads to university or college preparation courses in Grades 11 and 12. GRADE 8 Grade 8 English GRADE 9 ENG1D – English, Grade 9, Academic

78  HAVERGAL COLLEGE | Course Calendar 2016–2017