BJU Press Literature for Junior and Senior High

Name: BJU Press Literature for Junior and Senior High
Brand: BJU Press

by BJU Press

ElaGrades 7–12

BJU Press Literature: Traditional Christian Worldview Approach

BJU Press Literature is a grades 7-12 series that teaches literary analysis through a Protestant Christian worldview, featuring six courses from Exploring Themes in Literature through British Literature. The curriculum emphasizes connecting literature to biblical principles while developing critical thinking skills through discussion questions and writing assignments.

Best for

Homeschool families and Christian schools seeking a literature curriculum that integrates biblical worldview with rigorous literary analysis for grades 7-12

Evaluation Criteria

5 strengths · 1 concern · 2 neutral · 1 insufficient evidence

Knowledge RichStrength

The curriculum builds substantial cultural and historical knowledge through literature organized by historical periods and philosophical movements.

American Literature covers colonial period through 21st century with discussion of philosophical movements; British Literature spans Middle Ages to present with attention to religious developments and cultural issues

Text ComplexityStrength

The curriculum features appropriately complex texts that progress in difficulty across grade levels.

Includes challenging works like The Odyssey, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, and works by authors like Hawthorne, Melville, and Milton; critical thinking questions become more challenging at higher levels

Teacher TrainingStrength

Comprehensive teacher support materials enable instruction even for teachers without literature backgrounds.

Teacher editions provide extensive support including background, analysis, suggested answers, color-coded highlighting system, and Teacher's Toolkit CD-ROM with additional resources

Direct InstructionStrength

The curriculum strongly supports direct instruction with detailed teacher guidance, though requires significant teacher preparation.

Teacher editions provide background, analysis, suggested answers, objectives, instructional material, and applications; review notes teachers need to invest time preparing for lessons

Writing InstructionStrength

The curriculum includes structured writing instruction with specific assignments across genres, though instruction comes primarily from teacher editions.

American Literature includes six major writing lessons (narrative essay, persuasive essay, short story, historical report, poetry, literary analysis essay); discussion questions can be used for writing assignments

Retrieval PracticeConcern

Limited evidence of systematic retrieval practice, with unit reviews serving as assessments rather than learning tools.

Each unit has reviews that are tests with multiple-choice, true/false, matching, and essay questions; separate tests available but focus appears to be assessment rather than retrieval practice

Vocabulary BuildingNeutral

Vocabulary instruction appears limited, with definitions provided in footnotes rather than systematic vocabulary development.

Review mentions 'vocabulary words with definitions are in footnotes' and Teacher's Toolkit includes 'standardized test practice in reading and vocabulary'

Whole Books Vs ExcerptsNeutral

The curriculum includes a mix of complete works and excerpts, with novel studies like The Last Battle and Across Five Aprils supplementing anthology selections.

Review mentions complete works like Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Cyrano de Bergerac, and novel studies, though many selections appear to be excerpts from longer works like Ben-Hur and David Copperfield

Systematic PhonicsInsufficient Evidence

Not applicable for this grade range.

Curriculum designed for grades 7-12, beyond the phonics instruction stage

Sources: cathyduffyreviews.com