Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2018 - ENGL 487W D100

Topics in Children's Literature (4)

Class Number: 1523

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 3 – Apr 10, 2018: Tue, 1:30–5:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Prerequisites:

    ENGL 387 or EDUC 465. Reserved for English honors, major, joint major and minor students.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Advanced seminar in children's literature. May be organized by author, genre, or critical approach. Students with credit for ENGL 487 may not take this course for further credit. Writing.

COURSE DETAILS:

Time Travel Texts for Young Readers

There is a surprisingly large canon of time travel texts in English that adult authors have written for young readers. The most iconic subgenre is the timeslip fantasy: a narrative in which a troubled and isolated protagonist on the verge of puberty travels by mysterious means into the past, learns about history, and returns to the present more mature and better able to make family and social connections. But there is much more to this field, and many authors use time travel for wider-ranging social commentary and/or redefining what it means to be a child. We will be studying six short novels from different decades and cultural contexts. Each student in the class will also choose an additional time travel novel/film/TV series for a young audience to read/watch and report on. This is a Writing-Intensive course, having built-in writing feedback, revision, and examples of academic writing in the discipline.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

  • to interrogate social ideology about children and childhood
  • to develop existing skills in writing both argumentative and expository prose, including skills in revising and proofreading
  • to develop existing skills in research using databases and the library catalogue
  • to develop existing skills in interpreting and applying literary criticism and critical theory

Grading

  • report on time travel work not on syllabus (c. 1000 words) 25%
  • essay proposal and outline 10%
  • peer feedback on writing (2 x 5%) 10%
  • research essay (c. 3000 words) 40%
  • participation 15%

NOTES:

Any student caught using time travel to gain an unfair advantage over other students will be put in a time loop and forced to relive the course over and over.

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

Note: A Chance Child is not currently in print: students will need to buy used copies from Amazon, ABEbooks, etc.; Out of Time is available from Amazon in Kindle format or as a used book. These two titles will NOT appear at the SFU bookstore but are still required reading. Students having difficulty finding copies should talk to Nicky.

REQUIRED READING:

Philippa Pearce, Tom’s Midnight Garden (1958)
ISBN: 9780192734501 or oth

Jill Paton Walsh, A Chance Child (1978)
ISBN: 9780745106595 or oth

John Marsden, Out of Time (1990)
ISBN: 9780765353030/kindle

Zetta Elliott, A Wish After Midnight (2008)
ISBN: 9780982555057

Rebecca Stead, When You Reach Me (2009)
ISBN: 9780375850868

Cuthbert Soup, A Whole Nother Story (2010)
ISBN: 9781599905181

Department Undergraduate Notes:

IMPORTANT NOTE Re 300 and 400 level courses: 75% of spaces in 300 level English courses, and 100% of spaces in 400 level English courses, are reserved for declared English Major, Minor, Extended Minor, Joint Major, and Honours students only, until open enrollment begins.

For all On-Campus Courses, please note the following:
- To receive credit for the course, students must complete all requirements.
- Tutorials/Seminars WILL be held the first week of classes.
- When choosing your schedule, remember to check "Show lab/tutorial sections" to see all Lecture/Seminar/Tutorial times required.

Registrar Notes:

SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://students.sfu.ca/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating.  Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community.  Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS