Open to: Grades 2 and 3
Format: Web-based
Challenge Level: Grade 5+
Prerequisite: Qualifying verbal score and reading at 5th grade level (Take this short reading test)
Materials Purchase Required: Visit our textbook web page
Session Based: Session Dates and Application Deadlines
Length: 10 weeks or 5 weeks Intensive Mid Summer session

About the Younger Readers' Series

Here's the perfect course for younger readers who enjoy getting lost in a good book. In this series for children reading at about Grade 5 level, students read thematically connected, age-appropriate books. Students first read for enjoyment, then re-read more carefully to respond to discussion questions and short writing assignments. Students learn to make accurate inferences to understand plot and character. They also learn to cite the text in written discussions. Vocabulary and some literary devices are introduced, and discussions challenge students to apply life experience to the texts and engage in higher order thinking. This series is good preparation for the analytical and critical discussions in the Young Readers Series for Grades 4 and 5. Parents are encouraged to review the books in each series before deciding on the theme that would be most interesting and appropriate for their child.

Themes for Spring, 2008:

Dog Stories.

This theme focuses on relationships between dogs and “their” humans and requires students to empathize with the joys and sorrows of another species. Each book told from a dog’s point of view, the four tales include humor, heartbreak, fantasy, realism, and adventure.  Ribsy by Beverly Cleary, A Dog’s Life: The Autobiography of a Stray by Ann M. Martin, 101 Dalmatians by Dodie Smith, and The Good Dog by Avi.

Detailed Course Information Forthcoming

Course Code: YYDS

Horse Stories.

This theme examines the lives of horses and horse lovers. Students are immersed in the lore of horses and horse racing. The four books (including one non-fiction, Barbaro: America's Horse) include humor, heartbreak, mystery, realism, suspense, and adventure. Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry, Barbaro: America's Horse by Shelley Mickle, The Black Stallion by Walter Farley, and The Wild One (Phantom Stallion) by Terri Farley.

Detailed Course Information Forthcoming

Course Code: YYHS

Time Required:

• about 3 hours weekly for 10 week sessions (Fall, Early Spring, Mid Spring, Early Summer)
• about 2 hours daily during intensive Mid Summer session

System Requirements