Our students will read and analyze above-grade level novel. Students will read together for the purposes of slowing down the reading, practicing close-reading strategies, and reading with a pencil in hand. The value lies in taking the time to closely read, stop, think, and write deeper analysis of the story’s characters, themes, mood, point of view, and purpose. Each story we will read is written by our favorite authors who have their own unique style of writing, with unique plot lines, multi-dimensional characters, and complex themes. Introducing stories that have multi-layers as well as historical backdrops, our goal is to give students ample opportunity to develop a greater confidence in reading harder texts while also discovering under-the-surface implications, figurative language, and unfamiliar vocabulary. Each week, we will make sure to develop greater confidence in comprehension of texts.