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English Reading Program

Our reading program is highly-individualized with 6-8 students in each class. Teacher and students meet once a week for 1.25 hours and each class lasts for 6 weeks.  Our engaging and interactive program focuses on cultivating critical thinking skills through discussion, reflection, portfolio building, and process learning.  Due to the intimate size of our class, student interview is required for enrollment.

  • Non-fiction Reading :

Non-fiction reading can be daunting for its lack of “story”.  However, proficiency in nonfiction reading is a major requirement of US colleges.  This course aims to diffuse students’ fear towards non-fiction reading through research-based strategies, guided reading, reflection, annotation, and peer discussion to help students thrive in non-fiction reading.  

  • Poetry and Drama Reading :

Some students dread reading literary works, such as poetry and drama, citing difficulty in interpreting meaning and understanding literary devices. This course adopts evidence-based strategies to guide students into the literary world.  Students will study works by major English and American literati and enjoy creating their own mini literature.

  • Historical Novel Reading :

Historical novels are heavily used in the US history curriculum to develop students’ critical thinking skills.  Such an approach, crucial for success in social studies, can be unfamiliar to non-US based students. This course enhances abilities in social studies and English literacy through  the use of historical novels and primary documents. 

  • The New York Times Reading :

The New York Times, known for its powerful and elegant style, is often served as supplementary learning material for elite US high school students.  This course will introduce students the power of journalism in topics of international affairs, politics, economics, social issues and civilization.  Students will learn skills in critical thinking and information synthesis through dynamic discussion.  

  • Pre-College Reading :

US students have been trained to read in volume throughout their schooling and consider college-level academic reading a natural extension of their previous training.  However, such demand can be overwhelming for non-US students, thus negatively affecting their academic performance and college experience. This course prepares students to thrive in English academic reading at college level.

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