Havergal's Uncalendar, 2016-2017 Academic Year

ENGLISH

GRADE 7 Grade 7 English

Think about the last time you heard or read a great story. Perhaps it was a story your friend told you about her weekend, or maybe this story is found in your favourite novel, the one you re-read every summer because you enjoy it so much. No matter what form a story takes, it has the power to make us laugh, cry, think, and dream. Stories also help us better understand ourselves and the world around us. The Grade 7 English course focuses on the power of the story and the many forms a story can take. In particular, we look at how stories shape our own identity by exploring “her story”: the portrayal of girls and women in literature. We read and discuss different types of stories that represent different types of women: creators, rebels, pioneers, and historical figures. As we learn about the diverse roles of girls and women, we ask ourselves: Where do I see myself in this story? What is MY story? What will my story be?

GRADE 8 Grade 8 English

In many respects, Grade 8 English doesn’t differ from most other English courses. Are there many different genres? Check. Do we study grammar? Check. Will it cover paragraph writing? Yes. Sounds pretty familiar, right? So what makes this course unique? First, you will get a chance to read and discuss some interesting, thought-provoking short stories and try your hand at writing your own. Also, you will read three novels—one on your own, two with your classmates—and create a multimedia project related to their themes, as well as a monologue from the perspective of a character of your choice. Later in the year, you will explore the wacky world of fairies and errant mortals in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and try your hand at applying Shakespeare’s language and ideas to modern contexts in the playbill project. Finally, you will create a rich social media profile based on a novel character of your choice. Through it all, you will make connections with various Jungian archetypes - the Sage, Ruler, Jester, and the Magician - which help us understand basic human motivations as well as our own set of values and personality traits. Ultimately, you will have many chances to become a better writer through practice and a lot of step-by-step instruction to demystify the art of crafting strong, effective paragraphs and creative pieces of writing.

16  HAVERGAL COLLEGE | Uncalendar 2016–2017