Read Closely. Write Confidently. Love the Novel Again.
We read the novel your child is studying at school together, highlighting and commenting as we go, so essay evidence is already collected by the time the essay is due.
Why Novel Study?
Students read, discuss, and analyse a novel together, practising the close-reading skills that unlock almost any text, whether it's for pleasure or for a class. They learn to pick out literary elements, central themes, and key ideas, and to explain them in their own words.
The result is thoughtful written responses that work as strong models for English class.
Which novel?
The one you'll study at school.
Studying at school? We can help prepare you.
Book a free consultationExamples only. Your child's school decides the novel; we match to it.
See Exactly What One Hour Looks Like
No mystery. Your child reads, highlights and comments live with a tutor.
5 min
Set the focus
What we're looking for in this chapter, and which chapter we're reading.
20–30 min
Active reading
Read together in Kami, highlight key quotes and add comments, discussing as we go.
~20 min
Chapter activity
Questions and an activity that put the highlights to work.
Wrap-up
Homework
A short task to carry the chapter forward.
This Is What Active Reading Looks Like
Highlights mark what to notice. Comments capture what it means, so the evidence is ready when the essay is.
The library at the end of our street had once been a schoolhouse with a bell that rang for every season. The floor was pine, scuffed in wide arcs where desks had been dragged, and the iron stove still stood in the corner though no one had lit it in years. A narrow stairway climbed to a loft, and I thought I could smell, faintly, like the ghost of something warm, the chalk dust and wet wool of children long grown, humming with the sound of lessons nobody remembered finishing.
There was a quiet in the room that felt like waiting, the kind of stillness a house keeps when it expects someone back. I remember how my grandmother would stand in the doorway, saying nothing, one hand resting on the frame as if to steady the whole building.
We were told the bell would never ring again. Still, every autumn, someone swept the steps, and kept the brass polished like it might be needed by morning.
memory and the past — the building is empty but the details show the past is not gone, it stays in what people still do
symbol: the bell = tradition that nobody is ready to let go of
What students learn to spot and highlight
Illustrative mock-up with original text, not a real excerpt.
Beyond Highlighting: Thinking Deeper
Reading closely is the start. These habits turn it into stronger discussion and stronger writing.
Chapter questions move from what happened, to what it means, to why the author chose it, to what we think about it.
We connect the novel to today's world, from current events to students' own lives, and debate why it still matters.
New words are worked out from the sentence around them first, then checked, so they stick.
A short reflection each chapter, building toward a written response students can use as a model for school essays.
From Highlight to Essay
- 1Highlight
Mark the quotes that matter as we read.
- 2Comment
Say what each one shows, guided by the tutor.
- 3Discuss & question
Chapter questions and talk push the thinking further.
- 4Write
Turn the evidence trail into paragraphs, then a full response.
Patrick is a very patient teacher. He helps me with my reading and writing. During the tutorial, he proofreads my essay and corrects my grammar mistakes. He also gives me some advice on how to develop a thesis statement. I am very glad to have class with him. He is a very good teacher! I am so happy I found him and received amazing marks that helped me enter the University of Hong Kong, ShenZhen Campus.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about our service.
We choose novels your child will study in school, matched to their current grade or the grade they're about to enter, so class time supports what's coming up in their English class.
Both are available. Tell us which suits your child when you book.
A computer with internet access and a webcam. We share the novel through Google Drive and show your child how to open and mark it up in Kami, so no experience is needed.
- A computer with internet access and a webcam
- The novel, shared through Google Drive
- Kami, which we walk your child through in the first class
Grades 7 to 12.
Novel Study is priced at our standard tutoring rate. There's no separate package to buy.