summer reading 2016-2017

Meadowcreek High School Summer Reading 2016-2017

Greetings from the MHS Language Arts Department

To prepare for the 2016-2017 academic year, the Language

Arts department requires all MHS students to read at least

one book over the summer vacation.

Benefits of summer reading

Helps students to develop reading habits that allow

them read more deeply and widely;

Helps students approach school year in a better

state of academic readiness;

Keeps the mind active;

Expands a person’s vocabulary;

Develops strong literacy skills.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to pursue outside

reading with their children.

ALL STUDENTS MUST READ THE ASSIGNED

BOOK(S) ON THE LIST FOR THEIR CLASS.

Students will be assessed in the Fall on their required

reading.

The instructions and rubric for your written assignment

are on the back of this list by grade level. Please note that

AP literature students will have separate written

assignment requirements for their summer reading.

Students can access any of the summer reading books

from the Follett Brytewave APP for FREE! See page 12

for details.

ESOL LA II

1. Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

2. Maniac McGee by Jerry Spinelli

3. Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis

Sachar

4. The Color of My Words by Lynn Joseph

5. Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman

6. Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

Freshman Language Arts

1. Monster by Walter Dean Myers

2. Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez

3. Getting Away with Murder: The True Story of the

Emmett Till Case by Chris Crowe

4. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean

Covey

5. The Civil Rights Movement: The Trial of the

Scottsboro Boys by David Aretha

Sophomore World Literature

1. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

2. Lord of the Flies by William Golding

3. Julius Caesar: Ruler of the Roman world by

Zachary Kent

4. Sugar Changed The World: A Story of Magic,

Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science by Marc

Aronson and Marina Budhos

5. The War to End All Wars: World War I

By Russell Freedman

6. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Junior American Literature & Advanced Placement

English Language (Junior AP)

*Please note that students are REQUIRED to read both

books, Outliers and The Great Gatsby, during the

summer. These books will serve as an extension of

students’ course work in first semester.*

1. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm

Gladwell

2. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Senior Language Arts

1) Grendel by John Gardner

2) The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

3) Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden

Side of Everything by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D.

Levitt

4) Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by

Barbara Ehrenreich

Senior AP English Language (Malone – 5.217)

Mandatory: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell & The Great

Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

For EACH of your FIVE research topics:

Read two unbiased news articles

Read one graphic (cartoon, photo, illustration, table, etc.)

Read two opinion pieces, columns, or editorials

Senior AP English Literature (Gardner-4.212)

Mandatory: How to Read Literature Like a Professor by

Thomas C. Foster

This text is used as a springboard for deeper close

reading and literary analysis.

READERS RALLY is a county quiz bowl

competition. Students answer questions from this

predetermined list of high-interest, young-adult books

taken from the Georgia Peach Award Nominee list.

Those interested in being part of the MHS Readers

Rally Book Club and Team should begin reading

these books and contact Mrs. Lewis in the Media

Center or Ms. Spinks in Rm. 4.201.

The Book of Ivy by Amy Engel, Entangled: Teen

Con Academy by Joe Schreiber

Dime by E.R. Frank

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

How It Went Down by Kekla Magoon

I am Princess X by Cherie Priest

I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio

The Novice by Taran Matharu

Paperweight by Meg Haston

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes

The Secret Side of Empty by Maria Andreu

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by B. Albertalli

Sugar by Deirdre Riordan Hall

Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee

We Are All Made of Molecules by Susin Nielsen

When by Victoria Laurie

Written in the Stars by Aisha Saeed

X: A Novel by Ilyasah Shabazz & Kekla Magoon

9th Grade Language Arts Summer Reading Assignment

Summer Reading- Reading Log

As you read your book of choice, you will keep a reading log. After each chapter, you will

record what chapter you read, along with a paragraph long response. Below, you will find a list of

sample response prompts. Use these as sentence starters to begin your response. You do not need to

use all of the sentence starters, nor do you need to do them in order. Make sure to do a response for

each chapter. You will use this log to help create a presentation on your book within the first few

weeks of school. Please be aware that this is for a grade. Happy reading!

Sample chapter response prompts: I really like/dislike this idea because...

I really don’t understand the part where…

This character reminds me of somebody I know because…

This character reminds me of myself because…

I think this setting is important/interesting because…

This scene reminds me of a similar scene in ___________because…

I like this/dislike this writing because

This scene is very realistic/unrealistic because…

I think the relationship between_____and________in interesting because…

This section makes me think about…

I like/dislike (character name) because…

This situation reminds me of a similar situation in my own life. What happened was…

If I were (name of character) at this point, I would…

I began to think of…

I love the way…

I can’t believe…

I wonder why…

I noticed…

I think…

I’m not sure…

My favorite character is…

I like the way the author…

I felt sad/happy/angry when…

I wish that…

I was surprised when…

It seems like…

9th

Grade Summer Reading Assignment

Suggested Template:

The suggestion is that you do this on notebook paper. This is how each chapter should look:

Chapter: ______

Page numbers: _______

Response:

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________

Then, skip a line and start the next chapter’s response.

Rubric:

This reading log will be turned in alongside the presentation assignment that you will receive upon starting school.

This rubric is just for the reading log. The presentation rubric will go along with that assignment once your receive it.

4 3 2 1

Content

Responses are

thoughtful and

demonstrate a

connection with the

text.

Responses are

generally thoughtful

and contain some

connection with the

text.

Responses contain a

lot of plot summary

with little connection

to the text.

Responses consist of

nothing but plot

summary.

Length

All responses meet the

minimum length of 1

paragraph.

Most responses meet

the minimum length of

1 paragraph.

Few responses meet

the minimum length of

1 paragraph.

No responses meet the

minimum length of 1

paragraph.

Organization

Reading Log contains

all required elements

(chapter number,

pages read, and

response).

Reading Log is

missing only one of

the required elements

(chapter number,

pages read, and

response).

Reading Log is

missing only two of

the required elements

(chapter number,

pages read, and

response).

Reading Log is

missing more than two

of the required

elements (chapter

number, pages read,

and response).

Grammar

Entries contain few

grammatical or

spelling errors.

Student demonstrates

great effort at writing

well.

Entries contain some

grammatical or

spelling errors.


good effort at writing

well.

Entries contain many

grammatical or

spelling errors.


little effort at writing

well.

Entries contain

extensive grammatical

or spelling errors.


no effort at writing

well.

ESOL II, 10th

, & 12th

Grade Language Arts Summer Reading Assignment

Name: __________________________ Book Title:________________________

DIRECTIONS

Directions: Select ONE assignment to complete based on your chosen book. Write your

selection along with your name at the top of your rubric.

1. Write a letter to the author explaining why you liked or didn’t like the book. Make sure you use specific examples from the novel.

2. Pretend you are a character in the book and create a diary. You must have at least 10 entries, describing events that have occurred in the story and your reaction to them.

3. Draw a picture of any character in your book and write 10 facts that the reader learns about him or her. Write in the form of a timeline.

4. Create a pictorial timeline highlighting 10 important events in the book. Include descriptions with the picture. Be detailed and creative!

5. Make flip book describing setting, plot, theme, characters, favorite part, critique and an illustration of an important scene. One element on each flip page.

RUBRIC

Name: ___________________________ Selection: ______________________

Use the grading rubric to make sure you are on the right path! Write your selections in at the top of the page.

1. Whether you like or dislike the book clearly

stated. 3 or more reasons given to support position.

Reasons supported by facts and correct spelling and

punctuation. Each reason should be a paragraph (5

sentence minimum) in length

2. 10 entries present. Entries written in the voice of

the character. Entries address real events in the

novel. Each entry is worth 10 points.

3. Character is recognizable. 10 Traits clearly

describe the character. Include at least two

sentences per description. Timeline format is

correct.

4. Timeline has 10 events. Information about

events is detailed (at least two sentences

description per event). Timeline is neat and

attractive.

5. Flipbook has at least 6 pages. One element/ is

present on each page. Detailed descriptions are

included (at least .

ESOL II, 10th, & 12th Grade Language Arts Summer Reading Assignment

Summer Reading Project Rubric:

Your Score Domain A

4 Points

B

3 Points

C

2 Points

D

1 point

_______/4

Content

Accuracy and

Relevance

Understanding

of text is very

evident and

the purpose of

the project is

clear and

relevant.

Understanding

of text is

partially clear

and the

purpose of the

project is

somewhat

clear and

relevant.

Understanding

of text is

unclear and

the purpose of

the project

isn’t clear and

relevant.

Understanding

of text is

unclear and

the purpose of

the project is

incorrect.

_______/4

Graphics:

phots,

pictures,

and/or

wording

Graphics are

creatively

displayed.

Wording is

creative,

intricate, and

detailed.

Graphics are

somewhat

creatively

displayed.

Wording is

general and

ordinary.

Graphics are

ordinary.

Wording is

minimal and

unstylistic.

Lacks creative

graphics and

wording.

_______/4

Attractiveness Looks really

thought out in

design, layout,

and neatness.

Looks

somewhat

thought out in

design, layout,

and neatness.

Is acceptably

attractive

though it may

be a bit

messy.

Is messy or

poorly

designed;

seems time

was not taken

to complete.

11

th Grade Language Arts Summer Reading Assignment

Junior American Literature and Honors Junior American Literature students can pick one of these 2 options for their

Summer Reading, BUT AP LANGUAGE students have to do BOTH assignments.

Option1: The 1st option is to read the nonfiction book, Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers: The Story of Success. You

can buy or check out the book from your local library. Read and take notes (handwritten or typed) on all 10 chapters

included in the book. Each chapter is a different essay, covering a different topic that relates to success. Use the format

below as an example of what your work should look like when you turn it in. You need one entry per chapter.

Here’s an example of how to organize your notes. REMEMBER: You will have 10 of these by the end.

Chapter Title, and PAGE numbers: “Marita’s Bargain” 250-269.

Claim: (MAIN IDEA ABOUT SUCCESS MADE IN THE CHAPTER0: The author introduces

and supports the idea that ……………………………………………………………………

Evidence (What does the author use in this chapter to support his claim on success?):

historical data on how public schools were set up in the USA, quotes from historians and early

educators, ….………………….

Analysis (Here provide a quote from the

chapter that is on an interesting idea, fact, or

point that the author makes in the text. Be

sure to provide a PAGE NUMBER)

Your Response/ Comment (Explain what you

think about this, or why you liked this point)

p. 253: The pioneer of public education in

Massachusetts, Horace Mann, believed that

working students too hard would create a

“most pernicious influence upon character and

habits…..Not infrequently is health itself

destroyed by over-stimulating the mind.” In the

education journals of the day, there were

constant worries about overtaxing students or

blunting their natural abilities through too

much schoolwork.

I was surprised that Horace Mann should

express such a concern. After all, he was the

one who said that education was the great

equalizer and passionately defended the need

for widespread literacy. Also, he expressed this

opinion in the 1800s – the time of intellectual

giants in both Europe and America. How were

Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and

John Adams “destroyed” by “over-stimulating

the mind”?

Option 2: The Great Gatsby

You will need to read the fictional text: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and complete the following tasks.

While you Read:

Annotate! Keep track of important quotes as you are reading. I suggest using sticky notes, or

writing down page numbers as you come across them. You may also want to jot down a quick

note about what the quote is referring to or discussing, so that when you sit down to complete

the assignment you will know where to look for support. You will need to cite evidence from

the text to support your analysis of the characters, and it will be a much less daunting task if you

keep track as you go.

After you Read: On a poster board, you are going to create 4 fake Facebook profiles pages for four

characters in the novel. The profiles must include the following:

About The Character information (with picture) – must show insight about the

characters for full credit. Favorites: Imagine what Quotes, Movies, Songs, Books, TV Shows, Activities, &

Interests each character would have on their page. This is MADE UP information. You can use songs/movies/books etc from any time period, including the present.

Friends: A minimum of three friends with pictures.

Analysis: Explain the reasoning behind each of the favorites as well as the friends chosen for each character. Reasoning should show insight into each character. Cite page numbers for your evidence! This information can either be typed and handed in with your poster board, or you can find a creative way to include it on the poster board.

Please see the attached sample.

You must attach the rubric to your project!

Upon returning to school there will be a test on the book.

11th Grade SUMMER READING RUBRIC

Outliers Chapter and Total Points for Section

Requirements: 3 - 4 Satisfactory 1 – 2 Unsatisfactory 0 Off-Topic/Absent

Chapter 1 Score: 10 8 6 4 2 0

Claim Support Analysis











Chapter7 Score: 10 8 6 4 2 0








Outliers Total: ____________/ 100

Total Grade: _______________/100

Comments:

11th

Grade-The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Name: Period: Date: _

(Affix this cover sheet to your project)

Your score= A = 18 to 20 B= 16-17 C = 14-15 D= 12-13 F = Below 13 or did not submit

Additional Instructor Comments:

Criteria 4 Excellent

3 Proficient

2 Skilled

1 Less than skilled

Profile Pages Required Elements (see directions

for required

elements)

No required elements are missing.

4 profile pages were submitted.

One or two required elements are missing.

4 profile pages were submitted.

Three required elements are missing.

Only 3 profile pages were submitted.

More than three required elements are

missing.

Less than 3 profile

pages were submitted.

Profile Pages

About Me

Sections

The About Me sections

show a thorough

understanding of the

characters as well as

additional insight

about the characters.

The About Me sections show a

thorough understanding of the

characters.


show some understanding

of the characters.


show minimal

understanding of the

characters.

Analysis Reasoning

Shows insight that connects the favorites

and friends chosen to

the characters in an

original way.

Shows insight that connects the favorites and friends chosen to the characters.

Shows some insight that connects the favorites and

friends chosen to the

characters.

Shows little to no insight that connects the

favorites and friends

chosen to the characters.

Analysis Citations

Page numbers are cited in MLA format for

each piece of evidence

given.

Page numbers are cited for each piece of evidence given.

MLA format may be lacking.

Page numbers are cited for most of the evidence given.

Page numbers are not cited for each piece of

evidence given.

Analysis Evidence

Evidence is

paraphrased and/or

directly quoted from

the book. An

explanation of the

quote is given when

direct quotations are

used.

Evidence is given for

every favorite and

friend.

Evidence is paraphrased

and/or directly quoted from

the book. An explanation of

the quote is given when direct

quotations are used.

Evidence may be missing

from one or two favorites or

friends.

Evidence is paraphrased

and/or directly quoted from

the book. Explanations of

direct quotes may be

missing.

Evidence may be missing

from three favorites or

friends.

Evidence is not properly

paraphrased and/or

directly quoted from the

book.

Evidence is missing

from more than three

favorites or friends.

Gardner / AP English Literature – Summer Reading Assignment

How to Read Literature Like a Professor, by Thomas C. Foster

Welcome to Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition!

I’m very excited about working with such a talented group of students; it’s going to be an amazing

year. Because it’s going to be so much fun, we’re going to get started early.

1st: Obtain a copy of Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor and read it in its entirety.

I will expect you to be an expert with the contents of this book. I MEAN IT.

2nd

: Complete the writing assignments on the attached paragraph prompts.#

3rd

: Prepare to be assessed on your reading at the beginning of the school year through your paragraph responses

and through an objective test on Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor. #Note to students: These short writing paragraph assignments will let you practice engaging in literary analysis and

they will help me get to know you, your literary tastes, and your analytical skills. Whenever I ask for an example

from literature, you may use short stories, epics, poems, novels, plays, or films (yes, film is a literary genre). Refer

to works you studied in previous language arts classes or a book you are currently reading. If your literary

repertoire is thin and undeveloped, use Foster’s “Appendix” to jog your memory or to select additional works to

explore and/ or watch some of the "Movies to Read" that are listed on pages 293-294.

Please note that you are required to complete FIFTEEN PARAGRAPH RESPONSES out of the twenty seven

chapters in the book. One of your fifteen responses MUST BE “Chapter 27 -- Test Case”.

Turn in your paragraph responses (typed or handwritten) on the first day of class. You may use the same literary

work more than once in completing the other prompts. Do not use a film to answer more than five prompts. You

will need to read each chapter first in order to understand what the prompts are asking.

Writing Assignments for Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor Introduction: How'd He Do That? -- How do memory,

symbol, and pattern affect the reading of literature? How

does recognition of patterns make complicated literature

accessible? Discuss how your appreciation was

enhanced by understanding symbol or pattern.

Chapter 1 -- Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It's

Not) List the 5 aspects of the QUEST and then apply

them to something you have read in the form used on

pages 3-5.

Chapter 2 -- Nice to Eat with You: Acts of

Communion

Choose a meal from a literary work and apply the ideas

of Chapter 2 to this literary depiction.

Chapter 3 -- Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires

What are the essentials of the Vampire story? Apply this

to a literary work you have read or viewed. [Look at

works that have a vampire-like character.

Chapter 4 -- Now, Where Have I Seen Her Before?

Define intertextuality. Discuss three examples that have

helped you in reading specific works.

Chapter 5 -- When in Doubt, It's from Shakespeare...

Discuss a work that you are familiar with that alludes to

or reflects Shakespeare (perhaps the movie: She’s The

Man or Warm Bodies). Show how the author uses this

connection thematically. Read pages 39-41 carefully:

Foster shows how Fugard reflects Shakespeare through

both plot and theme: focus on theme. I urge you to watch

some Shakespearean plays–live theatre or movie

versions.

Chapter 6 -- ...Or the Bible

Select a work and discuss biblical allusions that Foster

does not mention. Be imaginative in these connections.

Chapter 7 -- Hanseldee and Greteldum

Think of a work of literature that reflects a fairy tale.

Discuss the parallels. Does it create irony or deepen your

appreciation?

Chapter 8 -- It’s Greek to Me

Think of a work of literature that reflects the patterns of

a classic myth or epic (Greek/ Roman). Discuss the

parallels. What meaning does the parallel convey? Does

it create irony or deepen appreciation?

Chapter 9 -- It's More Than Just Rain or Snow Discuss the importance of weather in a specific literary

work, not in terms of plot.

Chapter 10 -- Never Stand Next to the Hero

Discuss the death of a minor character that was pivotal

to a story’s action and the hero’s development. Does this

story prove Foster’s point?

Interlude: Does He Mean That?

Chapter 11 -- …More Than It’s Gonna Hurt You:

Concerning Violence

Choose an act of violence from a literary work and apply

the ideas of Chapter 11 to this literary depiction.

Chapter 12 -- Is That a Symbol?

Use the criteria described in this chapter and investigate

the use of symbolism (object, image, event or action) in

a literary work.

Chapter 13 -- It's All Political

Assume that Foster is right: “it is all political”. Use his

criteria to show a literary work you’ve read is political.

Chapter 14 -- Yes, She's a Christ Figure, Too

Apply the criteria on page 126 to a major character in a

significant literary work. Try to choose a character that

will have many matches. This is a particularly apt tool

for analyzing film -- for example, Star Wars, Matrix

Trilogy, Green Mile, Chronicles of Narnia, etc.

Chapter 15 -- Flights of Fancy Apply Foster’s argument that “flight is freedom,” or the

ironic inversion of freedom, by exploring the symbolic

use of flight within a work of literature—either literal

flight or metaphorical, symbolic flight (bird images,

etc.).

Chapter 16 -- It’s All About Sex…

Think about common female and male symbols that

Foster describes. List the presence of one or more of

them in a literary work, and show how its use fits one of

the reasons Foster gives regarding why authors use such

symbols to represent sex in conveying intensity beyond

the literal to “multiple levels” of meaning (Foster 141).

Chapter 17 -- …Except Sex.

When authors write directly about sex, they are writing

about something else. In a literary work (no films), note

the occurrence of such a scene and explain what the

author is trying to convey and how you know this.

Chapter 18 -- If She Comes Up, It's Baptism

Relate a "baptism scene" in a work of literature Discuss

how the character was different after the experience.

Chapter 19 -- Geography Matters…

Discuss at least four different aspects of a specific

literary work that Foster would classify under

"geography."

Chapter 20 -- …So Does Season

Think about what Foster say about what seasons and

holidays typically symbolize and examine their use in a

literary work. Is their usage ironically inverted in your

example? If so, for what purpose?

Interlude: One Story

Chapter 21 -- Marked for Greatness

Figure out Harry Potter's scar. If you aren't familiar with

Harry Potter, select another character with a physical

imperfection and analyze its implications for

characterization.

Chapter 22 -- He’s Blind for a Reason, You Know

Physical blindness often mirrors something else. Many

times blindness is metaphorical, a failure to see—reality,

love, truth, etc.; darkness=blindness; light= sight. How

does blindness literally and metaphorically function in a

work you’ve read? Also be on the lookout for the irony

of a character’s literal blindness.

Chapter 23 -- It’s Never Just Heart Disease...And

Rarely Just Illness

Recall two characters who died of a disease in a literary

work. Consider how these deaths reflect the "principles

governing the use of disease in literature" (222-224).

Discuss the effectiveness of the death as related to plot,

theme, or symbolism.

Chapter 24-- Don't Read with Your Eyes

After reading Chapter 24, choose a scene or episode

from a novel, play or epic written before the twentieth

century (the 1900s). Contrast how it could be viewed by

a reader from a previous century with how it might be

viewed by a contemporary reader. Focus on specific

assumptions that the author makes, assumptions that

they would not make in this century.

Chapter 26 –It’s My Symbol and I’ll Cry if I Want To

Think of a work you have read in which you encountered

difficulty decoding something you knew was symbolic.

How did your previous reading help you?

Chapter 26 -- Is He Serious? And Other Ironies

Select an ironic literary work and explain the multivocal

nature of the irony in the work.

*Chapter 27 -- Test Case: Read “The Garden Party” by

Katherine Mansfield included in the text. Follow

Foster’s instructions (bottom of page 265 to top of page

266). Write your response based on what you’ve learned

through the entire book. No peeking! Be prepared to

discuss this in class in the fall. Postlude: Who’s In Charge Here

Envoi/ Appendix/ Reading List

Questions? Contact me at: [email protected] or [email protected].

Have a great summer of fun and reading. I look forward to a wonderful school year with all of you!

EXAMPLE: In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby becomes a Christ-like figure as he dies for the sins of

others—Daisy’s killing of Myrtle Wilson and Tom framing him for the crime. This is highlighted by Gatsby’s

shouldering of the mattress float as he heads towards the pool where he will be killed by George Wilson. Gatsby’s

difficulty in carrying the float on his back requires for him to stop and shift. A servant attempts to help: Gatsby

declines his help. Gatsby’s act alludes to Christ carrying the cross on the way to his crucifixion. His dead body lies on

the mattress and mirrors Christ body affixed to the cross. Thus ‘JG’ represents the martyrdom of ‘JC’ in this novel.

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

summer reading 2016-2017

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