All Courses
Intermediate Course (13 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course– Prerequisite: Intro to High School Writing
(If an interested student can demonstrate sufficient writing ability at a high school level, they can contact Nicole Noster, nicole@wisdomhomeschooling.com, for a possible exemption from the prerequisite.)
This high school level writing course endeavours to give students the ability to use their imaginations in expressing themselves through story, and to cultivate their writing abilities through studying the basics of story composition. Students will learn to brainstorm ideas, create characters, develop plot, write description and dialogue, proofread and edit, and "show, not tell." To assist with this thought and process development, students will read selections from classic literature and discuss them each week. At the culmination of the course, students will have written a short story (10-15 pages), with different elements being covered in each week's assignment. This course includes a weekly private tutorial time.
Intermediate Course (13 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course– Prerequisite: sufficient experience in English grammar to understand proper sentence structure and grammatical concepts (parts of speech, mechanics, and usage). Samples may be requested.
In this high school level introductory writing course, students will focus on thought organization, idea formation, critical analysis, and creative reasoning to become more confident and capable writers. Through reading and discussing selections from classic literature and studying proper argumentation, they will begin to develop a foundational understanding of the elements of good and compelling compositions. They will create and submit a writing assignment to their tutor weekly, as well as receive weekly private tutorials. Assignments include paragraphs, essays, poetry, and short stories. Students must have a high-school level grasp of formal grammar and sentence structure, as well as a strong commitment to this course.
Homework will take several hours each week. Students would do well to organize a reasonable weekly schedule that will help them to prioritize the course according to their needs and the assignment deadlines.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course – Prerequisite: Intro to High School Writing
(If an interested student can demonstrate sufficient writing ability at a high school level, they can contact Nicole Noster, nicole@wisdomhomeschooling.com, for a possible exemption from the prerequisite.)
This course is a sequel to the prerequisite courses. Like Intro to High School Writing and Mastering the Essay, it is a practical course designed to help the students improve their writing skills by expanding their writing experience through a diverse collection of styles. Students will delve deeper into specific writing genres, such as critique, allegory, persuasion, and tragedy, and continue to hone their writing abilities in preparation for any post-secondary choices. In this high school level writing course, the writing study will be enriched by pertinent selections for discussion from classic literature. This course includes a weekly private tutorial time in addition to the weekly assignment.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course – Prerequisite: Intro to High School Writing
(If an interested student can demonstrate sufficient writing ability at a high school level, they can contact Nicole Noster, nicole@wisdomhomeschooling.com, for a possible exemption from the prerequisite.)
(Extra Evaluation Version available - see below)
Sharpen the sword of your thought and make it clear, strategic, and effective! Writing an essay is so much more than cover pages and footnotes – it's the process of bringing truth to life in ink on the page! This hands-on course demystifies the essay-writing process, walking students through the mechanics of writing argumentative, research, personal, and literary essays in a practical way. Students complete a writing assignment every week and study stellar examples of great writing to inspire their own work. They meet in class with other students to discuss the writing process, and receive a short private tutorial time weekly with the tutor. This is WISDOM's most challenging writing course, and students will gain valuable writing skills if they are strongly committed to the process of their study.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course – Prerequisite: Mastering the Essay
(If an interested student can demonstrate sufficient writing ability at an advanced high school level, they can submit samples for consideration to Nicole Noster, nicole@wisdomhomeschooling.com, for a possible exemption from the prerequisite.)
Hone your ability to read and understand great works of literature! This class will take the mystery out of formal literary analysis and give students the skills they need for upper level and collegiate literature classes. We will study different kinds of fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and master the technical vocabulary and skills necessary to discuss and write about literature in an academic setting. Students will complete a pre-reading assignment to discuss during each class and complete a follow-up writing assignment, including several long essays. They will also be able to discuss the writing assignments each week with the tutor in a private fifteen-minute tutorial. While this course is not specifically directed to the Alberta diploma exam, students will find that the course content will provide them with skills and experience to poise them for success in the exam. This is a challenging, upper-level course aimed towards future academic study—and a life-long love of reading!
This course is fairly time intensive, so students and parents should plan accordingly for their schedule throughout the term. Students should expect to spend approximately 6-8 hours each week on homework.
Intermediate Course (12 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
It has been said beauty is the greatest doorway to truth; it's time to fling the doors wide open. Bring your curiosity and sense of wonder, and prepare to revel in a festival of some of greatest masterworks of art ever created. Trace the story of art and the men and women who chiseled, daubed, moulded, and breathed life into it through the ages. Train your eye for art and your reason at the same time. Guided by weekly readings, students will examine featured paintings each week, and explore the great ideas hidden in them by means of Socratic discussion. This course will broadly cover the past millennium of art, studying the various eras, styles, methods and history of the great artists. Can a picture really speak a thousand words - can a few brush strokes really have so much to say about truth? Come and find out for yourself.
Interested students should view the sample lesson below to determine if the course readings will be a good fit.
Intermediate Course (13 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
This course is a delightful introduction to the poetry of the English language with a focus on learning to understand and take pleasure in verse. While gaining the skills and nuance of reading poetry, students will concentrate on a different theme each week and study how various poets explore and challenge that theme through their poems. This is primarily a reading course, but students do have the voluntary opportunity to write and share their own verse in imitation of the week’s poems.
Intermediate Course (13 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
A girl secretly helps an enemy soldier to escape from the soldiers of her own country – and finds herself bound to a dangerous game of secrecy. A Russian village is convinced that a spy is among them – unaware that he is only a bored young man with a tremendous imagination who loves to see what he can get with. A king and a humble gondolier were mixed up at birth – now that they are of age, not even they know which should inherit the crown! Lights dim, the curtain rises, and the audience is swept away by side-aching laughter, fantastic thrills, and deeper questions that stay with us. Students read through the scripts of these timeless plays, and get a chance both to discuss them Socratically and to perform scenes from them in class, readers’ theatre style. From Shaw to Shakespeare to Sophocles, come unleash your flair for the dramatic, and dive into some of the world’s greatest works of theatre.
Intermediate Course (12 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
It has been said by many that "Music is the universal language of mankind"; music tells a story through the use of sound to convey emotion and depict imagery throughout the ages. In this course, students will listen to the works of the masters, spanning the centuries, and discover the light that music sheds in the understanding of truth. They will engage in listening activities, readings, and class discussion to experience the historical processes by which musical styles grow, develop, mature, and decline. This process will help them to make connections between historical eras, art and music to understand the role music plays in the bigger picture of the elements that have shaped our cultures and societies.
This course covers the music periods of medieval music (1150-1400) through to the late Romantic era (1860-1920).
Intermediate Course (12 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
Robert Schumann, pianist and composter, said, "To send light into the darkness of men's hearts - such is the duty of the artist." In this course, students will listen to the works of the masters, spanning the centuries, and discover the light that music sheds in the understanding of truth. Through the use of audio and visual activities and exercises, as well as reading, the students will experience the historical processes by which musical styles grow, develop, mature, and decline.
This course covers the music periods of Romantic (1860-1920) through to the modern era.