8th Grade English

Teacher

Online 8th Grade English Course

This online English course for 8th Graders continues to lay strong foundations for reading literature and engaging in critical analysis through close-reading, discussion, and writing. In our classroom of one, the student will explore texts by reading carefully to decipher meaning and arrive at paragraph- and text-level interpretations. The course texts—which all include conflicts between individual characters and their larger communities—are selected in order to encourage debate and argumentative writing; and the student will work to sharpen their critical thinking by exploring them from all angles. Even as they work to construct clear arguments and thesis-driven essays, they will begin to notice and unpack nuance and complexity in their understandings of literature.

Weekly Cadence & Style

This full-year course runs for 26 weeks, divided into two semesters. The weekly cadence is asynchronous with 1 live video meeting weekly.

We will very much follow an inquiry-based learning model in our weekly get togethers where together the teacher and student will explore the texts and ask open-ended questions about character development and themes.

This course introduces the student to a process approach to writing—with drafting, peer and teacher review, and editing as integral components—whether the student is writing essays, fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry.

Course Features

Lectures 0
Quizzes 0
Duration 26 weeks
Skill level 8th grade
Language English
Students 1
Assessments Yes

Curriculum is empty

Hadley Westman

Hadley Westman has over a decade of teaching experience in middle and high school settings. With a B.A. in English from Swarthmore and an M.A. from Middlebury’s Bread Loaf School of English, Hadley is a highly qualified master teacher trained in textual analysis, creative writing, and literary theory. Beyond this, though, Hadley has the ability to make a text come alive for students using an inquiry-based method. The daughter of teachers, Hadley’s classes always feature a strong dialogic component and a focus on process-driven writing.

Hadley has taught both middle and high school English classes in public and private school settings in the U.S. as well as abroad in Jordan. She has also served as an instructional leader and graduate school professor to support the development of other first- and second-year English teachers. At North Star Academy in Newark, NJ she was awarded the Frederick Douglass Teacher of the Year award in recognition of her outstanding commitment to her students.

In addition to her traditional classroom experience, Hadley has several years experience teaching 1-on-1 as a part of Cicero Learning. Parents and students alike have remarked on Hadley’s ability to connect with students and create a vibrant, intellectually curious environment for exploration of the written word.