Englishwords have power.
English DepartmentIn our English classes, each student learns to communicate clearly and vividly, both orally and in writing, finding her unique human voice.
Students learn that writing is a process geared toward solving problems. Depending upon occasion, purpose, and audience, writing can reflect many forms, styles, and rhetorical strategies, and it can use varied media. We conceive writing as a series of ongoing attempts at solving these problems. Teachers are in dialogue with students throughout the writing process and use developmentally appropriate methods to help them navigate the series of writing choices they must make to produce strong writing.
Students read exemplary fiction and non-fiction (both “classic” and contemporary) by authors with diverse perspectives, to help them produce good writing. We encourage students to “close read” texts through annotation and by learning and applying various interpretive tools. Thinking creatively and critically about the world proceeds from reading and writing about society.
Program Outline and Descriptions
To explore the full curriculum click the link to view our book of studies which outlines each of the programs and the philosophy behind them.