Basis for the Reading Program
“8 Steps of Literary Analysis”
Mortimer Adler was an educational philosopher and founder of
the Great Books Program. The 8 Steps of Literary Analysis is loosely based on
his classic text, How to Read a Book.
- Classify work according to kind & subject matter.
- Briefly state what entire work is about.
- Define parts in order & relation & outline them.
- Define problem author is trying to solve.
- Comes to terms with author by understanding key words.
- Grasp author's leading propositions by understanding key sentences.
- Know author's arguments.
- Determine which problems he has solved and which he has not.
Students will slowly move from the early steps through the
later ones as we progress through the year. The main goal is for them to be
able to confidently break down what problem or issue a given author is trying
to solve and then determine whether the proposed solution is valid or not.
Basis for the Writing Program
“6 Traits of Good Writing”
This writing model gives us a common language to talk about
the characteristics of writing and establishes a clear vision of what good
writing looks like.
- Ideas, the main message
- Organization, the internal structure of the piece
- Voice, the personal tone and flavor of the author's message
- Word Choice, the vocabulary a writer chooses to convey meaning
- Sentence Fluency, the rhythm and flow of the language
- Conventions, the mechanical correctness
Each quarter we will zero in on a particular trait or two and work to improve
that aspect of the student’s writing. The main goal is for them to be able to
understand what goes into a well crafted piece of writing and be able to use
that understanding to edit and improve their own work.