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Ms Amal's
English Language Arts Courses & Tutoring for Growing Minds

I offer Full-Year English Language Arts Courses for Homeschooling students in grades 6-8, as well as weekly Book Clubs/Literature Studies, Creative Writing Courses, Poetry Courses, Historical Fiction Courses, and one-on-one tutoring in Essay Writing and Creative Writing for both Homeschooled and Traditionally schooled students in grades 6-12.

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Open Book Flowers

Qualifications

BA in English (focus on American Literature)

University of Maryland

Teaching Writing Specialization Certification

Johns Hopkins University (100 hours of Training)

Excellence in Online Teaching Certification

Johns Hopkins University

Diversity & Inclusion in Education Certification

University of Glasgow

Growth Mindset Certification

UC Davis

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I believe education begins with supported curiosity. My journey as an educator is defined by an intention to nurture that curiosity and expand it by introducing students to literature that inspires, builds awareness, reflects the diversity of our human culture, and fosters empathy. When students engage with stories that open their world and stretch their understanding, it becomes a natural next step to build on that by developing critical thinking, inquiry, early skills in literary analysis, and writing. I am dedicated to creating an environment where students feel seen, supported, and inspired to reach their full potential.

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Teaching English Language Arts places me in a position where I have the honor of contributing to the development of communication and understanding. I understand that each student is unique and that students have differing levels of comfort and ease with communication. Therefore, across all my courses, I approach essay writing with the same enthusiasm and sensitivity as I do creative writing. I intentionally break essay-writing assignments into manageable parts, scaffolding students at each step to support the development of confident, independent writers. I have found that this also supports reluctant and anxious writers to thrive and find their voices.

 

Over the past 10 years, I've taught English Language Arts, Creative Writing, and History to Upper Elementary and Middle School-aged students, and have tutored High School students in literary analysis and writing. I have extensive experience working with students with ADHD and with students who have both academic and social anxiety, and I incorporate strategies into my curriculum and coursework to support them. In addition, I am trained in ADHD Coaching and am working toward becoming an ICF-certified ADHD Coach.

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Courses 

Full Year English Language Arts Courses for Grades 6, 7, & 8 
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These courses cover the entire English Language Arts curriculum for each grade. They are divided into two semesters and cover literature selections, interactive novel studies, a full year of writing instruction, and a creative writing project. Each year, the curriculum advances, developing students' abilities in literary analysis, academic writing, and creative writing.

(8th Grade Coming Soon!)

Creative Writing: Writing a Short Story
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This is a short course during which students will learn the major elements of story structure, how to create characters that feel real, and how to plan an excellent story.  We will create story maps to allow students to also experience a visual outline. The course will culminate in students sharing their stories (optional).

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Weekly Book Clubs & Novel Studies
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This is designed for students who might already have a writing curriculum or who want to expand on their reading and enjoy discussing books with friends. This course meets weekly and can be accompanied by an interactive Novel Study & Weekly Free Writes, or can just follow a Book Club approach. Projects can also be integrated if requested.

Creative Writing: Writing a Fantasy Short Story

This is a short course during which students will learn the major elements of story structure and fantasy world-building. Students will create their own artistic fantasy-world maps, design characters, plan conflicts and obstacles, and share their stories.

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History Through Literature Course
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This course is a literature course that combines middle-grade historical fiction, novel studies, and beginning research projects to create a living history experience. Topics will vary to cover a range of historical events and experiences, both American and Global. By request, this course can be adapted to serve as a Complete  English Language Arts course by incorporating essays and creative writing.

  Coming 
Soon!
Poetry, Poetic Devices, & Poets

Throughout this course, students will discover poets such as Amanda Gorman, William Butler Yeats, Maya Angelou, and more. We will approach each poet's work by studying the poetic devices they employ and the meanings they convey. Students will learn about metaphor, simile, assonance and consonance, imagery, alliteration, and more.

  Coming 
Soon!
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Open Illustrated Journal

Outschool Class Links

6th Grade
English Language Arts:
Semester 1

6th Grade
English Language Arts:
Semester 2

7th Grade
English Language Arts:
Semester 1

7th Grade
English Language Arts:
Semester 2

Essay Writing &
Creative Writing Tutoring
for Grades 6-12 

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Reviews

The course is a great introduction to more formal writing. During the first session the kids wrote a research paper and an essay on the novel they read together. Amal does a wonderful job walking the kids through each step of the process. She is very encouraging and keeps it stress free. My son loved the class. Highly recommended! 
-Alia
Another amazing class with Amal! Amal is supportive, encouraging, fun and really gets these kids writing! She provides just the right amount of structure and scaffolding to help kids build confidence and gain skills in the mechanics of writing, while still letting their creativity shine through! I really appreciated the detailed, individualized feedback she provided on my son's writing. Amal also picks beautiful, age-appropriate books for the literature component of class. I feel a deep sense of gratitude and relief knowing that my son is receiving such high-quality language arts instruction for this entire school year.
-Megan
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I cannot say enough good things about this class and Amal J. the teacher. My 6th grade son is doing the full year with Amal as his 6th grade homeschool language arts curriculum. Amal is prepared, amazingly interactive, kind and creates a real effective classroom. There are amazing assignments but just the right amount. In the first semester she already taught the kids how to write a research report and a book report better then my son has ever learned in school. Amal is communicative with parents and gives the kids amazing feedback. We could not be happier about our choice to have Amal as my sons teacher! 
-Loren M
My 10 year old really enjoyed this class. She is a great reader but was less practiced with her writing. Amal broke down the steps of the writing assignments into manageable pieces that were easy to follow. Putting together the final reports was so much less daunting for my daughter and she enjoyed doing it. Amal's personalized reviews of her students work are so thorough and well thought out. If you have a student who is hesitant about writing and needs extra encouragement I highly recommend this course.
-C.R.
Wow! What a great class and teacher! My son loved creating the map of his fantasy world and developing his characters. He loves art and story-telling, but is somewhat of a reluctant, insecure writer. By focusing on the artistic and imaginative aspects first, and then providing clear, structured guidance in character development and plot outline, Amal gave my son the confidence and scaffolding he needed to happily start writing his own fantasy story! I also appreciated how she gave students time to share their ideas and give feedback to each other. Amal really created a warm, welcoming, inspiring, collaborative atmosphere for these young writers!
-Megan
I highly recommend this Language Arts class! My son is so motivated and eager that he does the reading and homework all on his own. I am so so grateful for Amal, she is an extremely gifted and passionate teacher, I am definitely signing up for all of them!
-Sarah
Miss Amal really broke everything down into bite sized pieces so my son was able to piece it all together really well and come up with quite impressive works. He learned a lot and I am looking forward to continuing next semester.
-Subul
Amal is a truly gifted and passionate teacher with an excitement that is contagious. Her lesson plans are thoughtful, inclusive, and hands on. My daughter has had classes with Amal for many years and is always excited for any of her offerings. Amal's understanding of neurodiversity and inclusion is rare and she is attuned to the needs of the class and individuals, supporting both. I could not more highly recommend Amal's classes - anyone would be lucky to have her offerings for their child.
-Cara
I have been fortunate to have Amal Jamal as my daughter’s homeschool teacher for the past several years. I knew that Amal would be the perfect person to help my daughter find a love and appreciation for writing and history, which was previously lacking. No matter the subject matter Amal is teaching, whether it be history, language arts, civics, or poetry, she always comes to class extremely organized and prepared. Amal is very passionate about teaching. She puts a lot of effort into planning rich, engaging, meaningful, and fun lessons. She is very supportive, and has a unique ability to motivate students and nurture their intrinsic desire to learn. Over the years, Amal has consistently encouraged my daughter to do her best. She saw her potential and knew how to spark her passion. I am thankful that my daughter now loves to read and write and that she is thriving.
-Teresa
My daughter had an amazingly thorough and interesting LA curriculum with Ms. Amal. This is her personal review:  "I had a great time, and I've learned so much throughout this year."
- Jessica & Ella
Amal is a truly gifted and passionate teacher with an excitement that is contagious. Her lesson plans are thoughtful, inclusive, and hands on. My daughter has had classes with Amal for many years and is always excited for any of her offerings. Amal's understanding of neurodiversity and inclusion is rare and she is attuned to the needs of the class and individuals, supporting both. I could not more highly recommend Amal's classes - anyone would be lucky to have her offerings for their child.
-Cara
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