Herron Summer Reading 2017
9th Grade:
Edith Hamilton’s Mythology
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All 10th Grade:
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and
Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style
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English 11:
August Wilson’s Fences
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AP Language & Composition:
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
Martin Luther King Jr.’s Why We Can’t Wait
Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter
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English 12 and W131/L202: Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life and
American Short Story Masterpieces Ed. by Clarence C. Strowbridge
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AP Literature & Composition:
Otsuka’s When the Emperor was Divine
Choose from this list two or more of the following:
Toni Morrison's Beloved
Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake
Lisa See's Snowflower and the Secret Fan
Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle
Anthony Doerr’s All the Light We Cannot See
Moja Kahf's The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf
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Specific Assignments:
9th Grade:
Please read the following selections from Edith Hamilton's Mythology; annotate as you read.
 Part I, Chapter 1: “The Gods”
 Part I, Chapter 2: “The Two Great Gods of Earth”
 Part I, Chapter 3: “How the World and Mankind Were Created”
 Part II, Stories of Love and Adventure: Chapter 6: “Eight Brief Tales of Lovers:” “Pyramus and
Thisbe,” “Orpheus and Eurydice,” “Baucis and Philemon,” “Daphne”
 Part II, Chapter 8: “Four Great Adventures:” “Phaethon,” “Pegasus and Bellerophon,” “Daedalus”
 Part VI: “The story of Midas—and others.”
*Note: there are several different versions of this text with different pagination. Please make sure you are
reading the correct passages. All students are expected to have a copy of the text with them during class from
the first day of school. Please either purchase a copy, borrow a copy from the library, or have a copy on an
electronic device. Students will come to class prepared with notes from these reading selections. Students may
wish to create a chart. Notes will be collected for a grade. A complete set of notes will do the following:
1. Include all major gods and “characters” with their ancestry, story, destiny or fate, and the significance of
the character to all of humankind.
2. Include direct quotations from the text with page numbers in parenthesis.
3. Create a neat document, organized and reader-friendly. You may choose to include images you create.
English 10 and PreAP 10:
Mr. Austin Flynn (English 10): [email protected]; 157 Fesler
Mrs. Susan Scroggins (Pre-AP English 10): [email protected]; 257 Fesler
Required Reading:
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (Vintage Classics edition)
Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style (Fourth Edition)
Assignments:
English 10
1. Read and annotate the assigned works; be
prepared for a reading assessment on the first
day of school.
2. Complete a journal that contains twelve
significant quotes from Frankenstein. Explain
how each quote relates to one of the following
universal ideas: loyalty, knowledge, isolation,
and development of identity.
3. Chapter one of Strunk and White's The
Elements of Style features 22 basic
grammatical rules. For each of the 22 rules,
write a brief description of the rule in your
own words. Then, write a sentence which
contains an example of the rule being
broken. Below, rewrite the sentence
correctly given the expectations of the
rule.
Ex:
Rule 1: When making a singular noun
possessive, add 's no matter the final letter
of the word.
Pre-AP English 10
1. Read and annotate the assigned works; be
prepared for a reading assessment on the first
day of school.
2. Complete a journal that contains twelve
significant quotes from Frankenstein. For each
quote, explain the literal (“This literally
means…”, figurative (“This symbolizes or
represents…”), and thematic (“This relates to
the theme of…”) meaning. Cite all quotes in
MLA format.
3. Chapter one of Strunk and White's The
Elements of Style features 22 basic
grammatical rules. For each of the 22 rules,
write a brief description of the rule in your
own words. Then, write a sentence which
contains an example of the rule being
broken. Below, rewrite the sentence
correctly given the expectations of the
rule.
Ex:
Rule 1: When making a singular noun
Incorrect: Jonas' dog escaped from the
fence.
Correct: Jonas's dog escaped from the
fence.
possessive, add 's no matter the final letter
of the word.
Incorrect: Jonas' dog escaped from the
fence.
Correct: Jonas's dog escaped from the
fence.
English 11:
1. Read, analyze, and annotate the play, Fences, by August Wilson. Please ensure you have a physical copy you
can write in and bring to class.
***Assignment: On a sheet of paper, develop five separate thematic statements from the following universal
ideas: Illusion, Duty, Citizenry, Race, and Death. For each thematic statement, you should quote and cite
EIGHT pieces of textual evidence from the play that directly support the thematic statement. You should have
forty pieces of textual evidence in all.
2. AFTER READING THE PLAY, watch the film, Fences, starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis.
***Assignment: Complete the viewing guide assignment attached.
3. Read, annotate, and analyze the following three poems in relation to Fences:
 “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke
 “We Alone” by Alice Walker
 “Talk” by Kwame Dawes
***Assignment: Annotate each poem for literary devices, themes, audience, tone, purpose, and connections to
Fences. Write an analytical paragraph for each poem connecting it in a significant way to Fences. Be prepared
for your annotations to be collected with your writing.
Upon your return to school, you should expect:
--A mastery comprehension test of your summer assignments on Day 1.
--A collection of your theme analysis, viewing guide, and poetry analyses for practice points.
Questions to ponder before entering English 11:
How do fences protect? How do fences prevent or prohibit?
How do fences empower through ownership?
How do fences oppress through prohibition?
What cultural/political/social messages do fences convey?
Can fences be invisible?
How do we put up/build and act out our own fences?
How does the past/history provide fences in our lives?
How are cultural/language groups affected differently by fences? Do different groups have different fences?
Can someone have access to “both sides of the fence”? How?
What are your fences?
“Fences” Movie Assignment
ON A SEPARATE SHEET OF PAPER ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS IN COMPLETE
SENTENCES!
Questions 1, 2, and 11 are not in order of the movie/play; you will need to answer them while/after viewing the
movie.
1. In the book, the play takes place ONLY in the backyard. The movie changes locations frequently. Describe
the different scene locations for each of the following scenes, who is in it, what they are doing, and why you
think the director of the movie chose these places:
a. The opening scene (describe the different locations until we reach the yard).
b. Lyon’s first visit to Troy.
c. The opening of Act One Scene Two when Rose is hanging laundry and singing.
d. Act One Scene Two ends with Troy leaving to go watch the ball game at Taylors’.
e. At the end of Act Two Scene Two, Troy finds out that Alberta died while having the baby.
f. Act Two Scene Four; Bono visits Troy, they haven’t seen each other since before Raynell was born.
g. Any other scenes you noticed that took place outside of the backyard.
2. In the book, the scene directions tell us Rose’s back story. How do we learn about Rose in the movie? What
things do we see that tell us more about the type of person Rose is (hint: look at the way she dresses, the way
the house is decorated and what is sitting around)?
3. In the book, Troy gives Rose his pay. He declares it to be seventy-six dollars and forty-two cents. How much
does he give Rose in the movie?
4. While Rose is hanging laundry they are talking about playing the lotto. Troy says “If I had all the money
niggers, these Negroes, throw away on numbers for one week…” Describe Rose’s reaction to his use of the “n”
word.
5. Troy keeps looking up at a broken window in the neighboring house. Why do you think he does this?
6. When Cory confronts Troy about talking to his coach, Troy makes Cory put his football helmet on and strap
it up. What do you think this symbolizes (think of the extended sports metaphor used throughout the play).
7. How do we find out Cory is going to join the military?
8. What does the back of Cory’s coat say? Why do you think the movie director did this?
9. Describe the final altercation between Troy and Cory; it is different from the play (page 86-89).
10. The edges around the screen blur at the end of the scene after Cory leaves, what do you think this
symbolizes?
11. Describe one character, scene, etc. that strikes a chord within you and write 1/2 page about how s/he/it
connects to your life or a deeper understanding of the play.
AP Lang Scholars
1. Do an in-depth, analytical, and active reading of the following texts:
● The Autobiography of Malcolm X ● Why We Can’t Wait ● The Scarlet Letter Malcolm X
Martin Luther King, Jr. Nathaniel Hawthorne
**Be prepared to engage in analytical discourse about each text on the first day
of classes.
2. Create an 8.5x11 collage of 10-20 images that reveal your culture.
Anthropologically, “culture” is defined as any learned behavior.
● Flat cardstock (white is fine) ● Full color images/words ● You may use two dimensional artifacts (movie or concert tickets,
receipts, photos, magazines etc.) ● Professional-quality images only; no clip-art ● Images must cover the entirety of the 8.5x11 sheet of paper; all
edges must be covered and no original backing paper should be visible. ● It must meet all of the above requirements, and it should look
professional; here are two examples: Choose three meaningful quotations
from each text. Each quotation should embody the essential idea in the text,
and they should all thematically connect. ● Be prepared to recite each quotation from memory during the first
week of school. ● The recitation must be filled with emotion--become one with text. ● This should be done in a professional manner according to best
practices in platform presentation skills--(no giggling, hair twirling, swaying,
fidgeting, etc.)