2021 Online Summer Programs!

Great Books Online, Writer's Workshop Online, & Specialty Courses
Join Us from Anywhere!
Weekly Sessions in Multiple Time Zones
For Students in Rising Grades 6 – 8 & Grades 9 – 12
For 20 years, GBSP has gathered exceptional middle and high school students from across the world to read, discuss, and debate selections from the greatest works of literature.

Lots of Fun, Live Programs are online for summer 2021! Choose Great Books Online, Writer's Workshops, or online Specialty Courses available too.
Staffed by the same distinguished faculty and scholars as our on-campus summer camps, Great Books Online brings the program to you. Experience college-style seminars, engage in lively discussion, and enjoy summer camp fun with other literary-minded students.
This is nothing like "online school." The media may be digital but that's where the similarities end. This is world-class enrichment - interactive and full of fun!

Discussion, Debate, Close Reading, Thinking, and Friendship

Great Books Online
Great Books Online is back for a second summer! Led by the same esteemed faculty and scholars as our on-campus programs, GBO models university seminars and discussions. And adds the fun and comraderie of summer camp!
Led by university professors and distinguished scholars, students explore timeless literature together in morning seminar. Using the materials as the catalyst for growing critical thinking, close reading, and civil discourse skills, small discussion groups of 8-12 campers meet each day in late morning. Afternoons include academic mentoring in groups of 5-8. These pods are led by our Program Assistants, a select group of outstanding college and graduate students chosen through our nationwide search. Pods also participate in games and other fun activities together each afternoon.
Great Books Online programs run from 9:00am-2:00pm daily Monday through Friday with optional special events in the evenings twice weekly. Students are also invited to orientation each Sunday.
See All Online Program Dates by Time Zone
Choose the program that best matches your time zone. Or, simply select the program that matches your schedule best! In New York but want to sleep in? Attend our West Coast programs! In Europe? Join us in the afternoon in our East Coast programs. In China and looking for classes in early July? Join the East Coast classes and take classes in the evening your time. The choice is yours!
- East Coast = Eastern Time (New York)
- West Coast = Pacific Time (Los Angeles)
- Asia = China Standard Time (Beijing)

Writer's Workshop Online
A stand-alone program or add to a week of Great Books Online.
Full-Week Intensive Writing Program
We offer one-week sessions of Writer's Workshop Online in addition to our traditional literary exploration programs. Gain valuable skills for personal essays and build your writing tool kit.
In these programs, aspiring young authors explore techniques, genres, and styles with a distinguished faculty of university instructors and accomplished writers. For students in Grades 6 - 8 and Grades 9 - 12.
Learn more

Meet our summer camp Academic Directors. The same distinguished faculty and scholars as our hallmark on-campus programs. They include:
- Dr. Ilan Stavans, Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities, Latin American and Latino Cultures at Amherst College.
- Dr. Amanda Lagji, assistant professor of English and World Literature at Pitzer College, one of the Claremont Schools.
- Max Suechting, a doctoral candidate in Stanford University’s Program in Modern Thought & Literature.
See more of our esteemed Great Books Online faculty.
Inspire Creativity, Spark Imagination, Ignite Literary Appetites, and that's Just the Beginning!
Our Online Summer Specialty Courses were a huge success last summer, and we are bringing them back again for Summer 2021.
See our 2020 specialty course catalog for a sampler of courses previously offered. Stay tuned for announcements of 2021 courses this spring!
Choice, Flexibility, & Excitement
Specialty Courses will include a budget-friendly menu of à la carte course choices. You can add these optional Specialty Courses to your Great Books Online or Writer’s Workshop Online sessions or purchase them separately for extra fun and excitement each week.
This summer is all about options to fit your schedule and interests! Register Now.
2020's Award-Winning Special Guest Speakers

See last summer's award-winning and passionate intellectual leaders who visit Great Books virtually to talk with students and share their invaluable stories and insights. Our amazing guest speakers included Pulitzer Prize winners and other thought leaders from the worlds of literature, publishing, journalism, film, and the arts.

More Weeks, More Learning
Great writers are great readers. Grow your reading and critical thinking skills by adding a week or more of Great Books Online literary exploration programs to your Writer’s Workshop sessions.
Tuition & Fees
Tuition rates for Online are $795 per week. Tuition includes a non-refundable deposit of $95. You can attend up to 6 weeks of online programs. Save $50 for every additional session when you join us for more than one week.
Get More Info!
You can reach us anytime via phone, text, email, or jumping on our website for a live chat. We're here to help!