At IDS, we recognize that reading and writing sustain the core of a vibrant academic life, as essential skills for every other pursuit. For this reason, we concentrate on making each student an incisive reader and effective writer through guided practice and reflection. In small classroom communities here, students exchange ideas, stretching their own through dynamic dialogue and gaining, in the process, the public speaking experience expected at IDS.
Students in our Middle School English program enjoy a range of texts, from plays and to classic novels and short stories to modern poetry and memoirs. Though obviously we appreciate each text for its own unique merits, we also use them all to teach how to, more generally, read for meaning and respond in writing. As readers, we interact with the text, learning to summarize, predict, respond and reflect. As writers, we think deeply and critically about literature on paper, developing both a personal and an academic voice. We write poems to explore literary devices like extended metaphor, dramatic irony, alliteration, and personification. We have grammar and vocabulary lessons that inform our reading and writing. Throughout, we hone key classroom skills necessary for general academic success, including how to take notes and participate in discussions and how to work from a brainstorm to a draft to a polished paper.
Though texts may vary from year to year, standards often include The Giver, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Lord of the Flies, Raisin in the Sun and other cornerstone works of literature that facilitate our discussion and understanding of our primary theme of identity. As we read, we ask and attempt to answer questions about the nature of the individual, both within and without society, and consider how one impacts the other. We explore this essential tension between the individual and society and follow it like a thread through many fascinating discussions that lead us to often-unexpected conclusions about our texts and ourselves.
In all grade levels, special activities ignite students’ imaginations and engage their individual interests. Students draft personal responses to the literature read, extrapolating from the central themes. They craft letters to characters that demonstrate comprehension of persona and plot and sensitivity to subtext and nuance. They select independent reading texts and present two “Book Talks” each year. To cultivate critical self-editing skills, students draft, revise and polish their written work. The purpose of the program is to guide students to become life-long readers and writers.