Dystopian Literature: The Giver Series
Societal structure has the power to promote or limit freedom, choice, and desire. Beginning with annotation of their text and moving on to asking one another questions from their annotations, students will master the basics of Socratic discussions. These skills and conversations will guide class interactions as they begin to see the shades of gray and the nuances of people and events.
Through Socratic discussion, students will use The Giver Series by Lois Lowry to examine and answer the following critical questions over the course of 10 weeks:
1. How can societal rules help or hurt us?
2. How can society balance individualism with responsibility to community?
3. Think of our current society – what aspects of utopias and dystopias do we have?
4. When should one conform to the wishes or rules of others?
5. How do personal choices impact a society?
Students are asked to consider and engage these carefully crafted questions as their window into “the Great Conversation.” Occasionally, the teacher will present biographical, literary, and historical context through brief lectures, but all other classes are seminar-style discussions on the literature texts. Students are assessed on their curiosity, participation, and diligence during discussions.
Syllabus
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- The Giver by Lois Lowry
- Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry
Kristie Stoddard holds an M.Ed. in History from American College of Education and a BS in Government from Evangel University. Born into a military family and spending her early childhood and teenage years living in Germany, Kristie has traveled extensively and served on mission projects all across Europe and Africa. Currently, she travels regularly to Northern Italy in partnership with her home church to assist church planting missionaries. Teaching has been one of Kristie’s passions for over 20 years, beginning with a love of learning for personal enrichment, she taught adult basic education in NM, then went on to home-school her six children – three of whom have gone on to higher education – and finally has taught in the formal classroom setting for 12 years. In addition to studying and teaching Latin, History, and the Liberal Arts, Classical Educational is one of Kristie’s central passions, believing that Classical Education, enlivened by a Christian worldview, can help “repair the ruin of our first parents” (Milton). When not teaching, traveling, and spending time with family, Kristie enjoys reading, trail running, and gardening. She looks forward to cultivating a vibrant learning environment in which the subject matter comes to life for students in fresh and meaningful ways that train their minds to think, to perceive wisdom, pursue virtue, and proclaim truth. kristiestoddard@gmail.com
Computer: You will need a stable, reliable computer, running with a processor with a speed of 1 GHz or better on one of the following operating systems: Mac OS X with Mac OS 10.7 or later; Windows 8, 7, Vista (with SP1 or later), or XP (with SP3 or later). We do not recommend using an iPad or other tablet for joining classes. An inexpensive laptop or netbook would be much better solutions, as they enable you to plug an Ethernet cable directly into your computer. Please note that Chromebooks are allowed but not preferred, as they do not support certain features of the Zoom video conference software such as breakout sessions and annotation, which may be used by our teachers for class activities.
High-Speed Internet Connection: You will also need access to high-speed Internet, preferably accessible via Ethernet cable right into your computer. Using Wi-Fi may work, but will not guarantee you the optimal use of your bandwidth. The faster your Internet, the better. We recommend using a connection with a download/upload speed of 5/1 Mbps or better. You can test your Internet connection here.
Webcam: You may use an external webcam or one that is built in to the computer. Webcam Recommendations: Good (PC only) | Best (Mac and PC)
Headset: We recommend using a headset rather than a built-in microphone and speakers. Using a headset reduces the level of background noise heard by the entire class. Headset Recommendations: USB | 3.5mm
Zoom: We use a web conferencing software called Zoom for our classes, which enables students and teachers to gather from around the globe face to face in real time. Zoom is free to download and easy to use. 
To download Zoom:
- Visit zoom.us/download.
- Click to download the first option listed, Zoom Client for Meetings.
- Open and run the installer on your computer.
- In August, students will be provided with instructions and a link for joining their particular class.
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