Course Length: Full academic year (30 weeks)
This Year's Schedule: Click here to view
Aims of the Course
The main aims of this course are to introduce students to an array of famous texts written in England’s history, like Beowulf and Canterbury Tales, plus more modern takes on knights and knighthood in, for example, Idylls of the King (Tennyson), all the while guiding them in regular, consistent written exercises to improve their writing skills and grammar usage in context.
Homework Expectations
As in all the English courses at Dreaming Spires, the homework each week is to read about 50-60 pages of text, write a short summary, answer three short discussion questions, and attend a one-hour webinar where, mostly, the tutors talks on the mic and students type in the chatbox. Three times a year, they will be assigned presentations to take over some of the teaching (the best of learning, right?).
Add-On Options
The add-on writing extension for this course uses our main texts as the basis for many forms of transactional writing. These include speeches, persuasive essays, story writing, a literary analysis, and more. The homework for this averages 2 hours a week, and when combined with the main course, affords any US student an “honors” designation on their completion certificate.
How It Supports Your Child's Education
For UK students and others doing UK-style IGCSE exams, the add-on writing option has been specifically designed to support the CAIE First Language English exam, and when combined with my short crammer course in January or over Easter, provides comprehensive revision preparation. For this reason, it's not uncommon for students in England to sign up when they are 14, and use the British Novel course as their first introduction when they're between 11 and 13.
For US students, it's a good way to get early high school credits since the pace of the course is somewhat less intense than the others that we offer, and there is good support for them as they learn to work at a level higher than they've probably been asked for up till now. This course provides one credit for high school English under the US system.
For US students, it's a good way to get early high school credits since the pace of the course is somewhat less intense than the others that we offer, and there is good support for them as they learn to work at a level higher than they've probably been asked for up till now. This course provides one credit for high school English under the US system.
Who Teaches Middle Ages Literature?
Dr. Kat Patrick now resides in her home state of Texas with her four children, all of whom are Dreaming Spires students. Before that, she lived for 25 years in England. Her background includes an MA from Durham (UK), a PhD from Delaware (US), and a UK PGCE teaching certificate, all in the subject of English. She continues to examine for both the Cambridge Assessment International Education and Oxford, Cambridge, RSA examinations boards for both IGCSE and A-level. Her revision guide is available to purchase via Amazon.See all courses taught by Kat