Kanta R.

I'm really impressed with this literary analysis course that uses The Giver alongside selections from How to Read Literature Like a Professor. Over the 12 weeks my 16-year-old became much better at recognizing patterns, identifying allusions, and crafting analytical paragraphs and essays. The lessons were substantial but not overwhelming, and the steady weekly rhythm made it easy to stay engaged. Working through ambiguous endings and archetypes encouraged deeper thinking, and the instructor feedback on the final essay helped refine his use of evidence and thesis development.

The focus on supporting claims with textual evidence and interpreting ambiguous endings was valuable for my 13-year-old. However, with only one 50-minute session per week the pace felt slow at times and some topics needed more practice between lessons. Overall it helped build skills but may require extra work outside class to fully absorb everything.

I appreciated how the course teaches symbolism, motifs, and archetypes alongside close reading. The weekly 50-minute lessons fit our schedule and the final literary analysis essay with instructor feedback showed clear progress.

This 12-week course was excellent—my 14-year-old improved her close-reading and analytical writing through focused 50-minute weekly lessons using The Giver and related excerpts.