Teaching a World Literature class can be so overwhelming! Excuse me, I just need to teach a globe’s worth of literature?! No big task or anything…

The first time you teach World Literature, you might feel a little (a lot?) overwhelmed. How do you go about picking the novels? How do you connect units when each focuses on a different part of the globe?

And, unless you love reading foreign literature, you might not have a clue where to start.

Not to worry. While starting to plan your World Literature class might feel like, well, a lot–it’s totally worth it! (And it can even be fun–promise!)

A World Literature class gives high school students the opportunity to explore great works of literature from different cultures and historical periods.

This course goes beyond American and British literature, immersing students in the global cultural landscape today. It can even foster a deeper appreciation of literature. 

In this post, I’m going to talk about how to make your World Literature class a successful one. 

If you’re looking for a World Literature class that works for all of your students–even those whose skills might be a little behind–check out my complete World Literature Curriculum here!

Designing Your High School World Literature Course

If you’re mapping out your World Literature curriculum, you might be wondering what is typically on a World Lit syllabus. 

​Most World Literature courses provide a survey of world literature, covering major works from ancient times to the modern era. 

Students often read literary texts from Ancient Greece, such as The Odyssey or Antigone. They might also study epics and oral traditions from various cultures.

Common in World Literature curriculums include medieval works like The Green Knight, Renaissance and Enlightenment literature, and sometimes modern classics like Things Fall Apart, One Hundred Years of Solitude, or Persepolis. 

I’ve also seen Shakespeare frequently on World Literature curriculums.

Units might focus on themes like the hero’s journey, allegory, satire, and colonialism, incorporating both primary texts and secondary sources for historical context. Through these works, students engage in literary analysis, comparative literature discussions, and research projects that develop critical thinking skills.

A strong World Literature class should provide a survey of world literature from the earliest periods to modern times. Incorporating literary works from ancient cultures, the Middle Ages, and beyond helps students see the deep roots of today’s global cultures.

(You can check out this post for more ideas on structuring your World Literature class.)

What About Struggling Learners?

Now, if you’re trying to plan a class for readers who aren’t reading or writing at grade level, the above section might sound terrifying and impossible. I know that’s how I felt.

There’s no way my struggling students were going to be able to read Antigone or The Inferno. At least, not without spending a ton of time breaking the texts down for comprehension.

I also knew that getting engagement from a high school student on what is predominantly a bunch of “old, white” texts would be difficult. 

For students who struggle to read at grade level, lean into modern English translations. For many of the classics, you can find scaffolded texts and use targeted reading strategies to bridge comprehension gaps. 

YA and Modern Texts for Struggling Readers

I, personally, love using modern and young adult texts to make World Lit more accessible.

I know it’s sometimes hard in public schools to add new texts without risking some controversy. If this is your concern, check out The Alchemist. In this blog post, I discuss why it’s a great novel to teach, but it’s also super-low controversy (in my opinion). 

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah is also a great pick. I go into more detail about why Born a Crime is a great novel to teach right here. It’s available in a young reader’s edition with the swearing removed.

I love that it discusses heavy themes like injustice that are relevant today but in the context of an outside country. That might make discussing these ideas easier if you find yourself teaching in a very conservative area. 

With engaging narratives and relevant themes, these novels help struggling students connect with literature. They’re easier to read and comprehend, which means you can skip defining individual words for students and move on to having deeper discussions and getting analytical. 

This blog post talks all about World Literature books for struggling readers.

Comics and Other Scaffolding Tips

And don’t sleep on graphic novels!

More and more World Literature-friendly comics are being published. These texts are perfect for struggling readers and ELL students; their format makes them naturally scaffolded.

But they still offer plenty of rigor and lots of detail to analyze for more advanced students.

My favorites for World Literature are Persepolis and The Complete Maus. I talk about the merits of Persepolis in this post and why you should teach Maus here.

Whether you use traditional or more modern texts, scaffold, baby, scaffold! Guided reading strategies, annotation exercises, and vocabulary support ensure that high schoolers engage with texts meaningfully, strengthening close reading and literary analysis skills. 

Using structured assignments and discussion questions at different learning levels helps students build analytical confidence. Remember, any scaffolds you offer will help not only your struggling learners but your advanced ones too!

Incorporating Various Literary Texts and Genres

​An ideal World Literature curriculum includes varied artistic modes, from oral traditions to tragic drama and short stories. By reading great writers from different time periods, students see how literature reflects the universal human experience and major issues that transcend national literature.

When you choose your big reads for your World Literature, don’t forget to support those texts with others. Try pairing some poetry with your novel choice. Or watch a foreign film if it works with one of your units.

You might take a comparative literature approach, analyzing texts from Ancient Greece alongside biblical worldview influences. For example, students could explore The Green Knight or historical reference books that provide insights into historical periods and cultural contexts. 

These readings spark discussion questions and short essays that refine research and writing skills.

And for your struggling learners, accessible literary texts with engaging themes and audio versions of readings can make a big difference. 

Planning Your Assessments

As your students explore the world through their reading, you’re going to need to assess what they learn. 

As I discuss in this post, I prefer to make my units skill-based rather than solely based on a text or essential question. For each unit of study in your World Lit class, make sure you know what skill you’ll be teaching so that you know what to assess at the end of it.

We all know literary analysis and short essays are essential. In my Born a Crime unit, I have students gather textual evidence as we read. At the end of the unit, they use that evidence to write a thematic analysis essay on the text. 

For my The Alchemist unit, students research and write a paper on their “Personal Legend” or lifelong dream.

However, literary analysis is the only way to assess your students’ learning.

Using Creative Projects to Enhance Learning

Creative writing and projects deepen students’ understanding of literary production. 

A final project might have students reimagine a classic work through digital media, illustrating how ancient world themes resonate in modern literature.

In my Persepolis unit, I have students create their own comic book memoir stories. While students read Maus, they research and create a World Genocide Research Project. Don’t be afraid to mix up your essays with some other projects or high-level tasks. 

For struggling students, creative projects offer different ways to demonstrate understanding. Instead of a traditional essay, students might create visual summaries, storyboards, or video presentations analyzing themes, figurative language, or historical context. 

My satire unit using “A Modest Proposal” is a great way to introduce literary devices while engaging students creatively. You might also have students design a world history course that complements their study of literature, helping them explore the connections between historical context and literary works.

​Work backward–picking the skills you want students to master first–and get creative when it comes to your assessments and final projects!

Teaching Essential Skills Through World Literature

A World Literature class isn’t just about reading—it’s about building essential academic skills. Think about how you can weave in literary terms, writing practice, and skill-building throughout your units. 

Assuming your World Literature class spans an entire school year, students will have a great opportunity to develop analytical writing skills. I scaffold and sequence these throughout my World Literature Curriculum.

In my Persepolis unit, students learn about writing claims, evidence, and reasoning. Later, in my Born a Crime unit, students put these skills to use by writing an essay. In the next unit (Maus), students learn to research. Finally, in the last unit on The Alchemist students put all of these skills together in a research essay. 

(You can see my entire pacing guide for free here.)

You could easily build up students speaking skills using discussions, debates, and speeches. 

And don’t forget your literary skills! In each of my World Lit units, I try to focus on at least one literary term for my students.

Satire in my “A Modest Proposal” unit is the most fun. Born a Crime spend a lot of time on theme. I also teach allegory and allusion. Some World Literature syllabi have entire units on The Hero’s Journey, which I cover when teaching The Alchemist. 

You could also do a deep dive into figurative language or rhetorical devices. Students practice their analytical skills when analyzing allegory in Maus and The Alchemist in my curriculum.

If you’re not following a mandated curriculum, make a list of everything you want your students to learn in your course. Where can you fit in these lessons? Which lessons tie in seamlessly to one of your projects, assessments, or texts?

The Value of a World Literature Class

In today’s interconnected world, understanding global cultures through literature is more important than ever. Top universities recognize the value of comparative literature, and online courses such as the HarvardX course on World Literature emphasize its significance.

It’s so important for our students to experience the world beyond America; a World Literature class can help them start thinking more globally. It can open their minds to different ways of thinking, living, and being. 

Teaching a high school World Literature class is about more than just reading—it’s about opening students’ eyes to the broader world, its historical background, and the distant regions that have shaped today’s global cultural landscape.

For struggling readers, World Literature provides an opportunity to develop academic skills, improve literacy, and experience literature in different ways. With the right approach and resources, you can make this course an unforgettable journey for your students.

If you’re struggling to put together a World Literature class that will work for all of your students, even the ones whose skills are behind grade level, check out my complete World Literature Curriculum here.