Plan for College
Honours Essay Writing Class

Honours Essay Writing Class Introduction


The honors essay writing class is a weekly opportunity for students with high aspirations to improve and refine their essay writing skills. 

Each semester has a different focus: semester one is for strengthening academic essay writing skills; semester two is for developing personal essay writing skills.

In semester one, students work on the five vital essay types - descriptive, narrative, expository, argumentative and analytical. The curriculum is designed in conjunction with the VIS humanities department, providing an integrated learning experience for the students. 

In semester two, students work on their personal essay writing. They do this through two mediums: reflective writing and college application essays. The reflective writing element is the foundation of good personal essay writing, and college applications are a vital upcoming challenge for all students at VIS.

The class works in a discursive seminar/workshop format. This allows increased diversity of thought and opinion (beyond that of the teacher), which directly leads to the synthesis of new ideas and thus, better essays can be written. The small class size allows for more detailed discussions, as well as greater involvement on the part of each individual.