Our English and French courses are meticulously designed to develop strong reading comprehension, critical thinking, and vocabulary skills. Using a structured methodology, students engage in active reading through paraphrasing, tackling comprehension questions, and even crafting their own questions to deepen their understanding of texts. The curriculum incorporates thought-provoking and intellectually enriching passages, selected to introduce advanced vocabulary in context and train students to identify main ideas, arguments, and authorial tone. Through this step-by-step approach, learners not only gain mastery over complex texts but also build confidence in analyzing and articulating ideas effectively, fostering an enduring skill set for academic and professional success.

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Text Selection Examples for English Courses

1. From Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
   “It was all Mrs. Bumble could do to keep the pew-opener from shrieking aloud, by holding her hand tightly over her mouth and dragging her into the hall.”

   • Use Case: Paraphrasing and vocabulary building

   • Potential Activities:

     • Paraphrase the sentence to simplify the description.

     • Explore the word “shrieking” for its meaning and synonyms like “screaming” or “wailing.”

2. From Walden by Henry David Thoreau
   “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”

   • Use Case: Analyzing tone and answering comprehension questions

   • Potential Activities:

     • Identify the main idea of the sentence.

     • Discuss the tone (e.g., reflective) and the term “live deliberately.”

3. From Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
   “I wandered like an evil spirit, for I had committed deeds of mischief beyond description, horrible, and more, much more (I persuaded myself) was yet behind.”

   • Use Case: Vocabulary and reading comprehension questions

   • Potential Activities:

     • Define “mischief” and explore its synonyms, like “trouble” or “wrongdoing.”

     • Ask questions about the character’s emotional state, like “How does the narrator perceive their actions?”

4. From Essays, First and Second Series by Ralph Waldo Emerson
   “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men, -- that is genius.”

   • Use Case: Interpretation and style analysis

   • Potential Activities:

     • Paraphrase the sentence into simpler language.

     • Analyze the author’s use of repetition and its impact on tone.

5. From The Sea Wolf by Jack London
   “He was certainly an anomaly, in that he was all that he was, and in contradiction to what he was.”

   • Use Case: Critical thinking and question creation

   • Potential Activities:

     • Explore the meaning of “anomaly” in context.

     • Create questions such as, “What does the author mean by describing someone as an ‘anomaly’?”