Dear Parents:
Summer can be a season full of good times and fun memories, but
did you know that kids might experience learning losses when it.
It’s called “the summer slide” (and that isn’t the one at the park).
So what can you do as a parent to prevent the summer slide?
Here’s one solution….
Sixth Grade Due 8.17.2015
Fablehaven by Brandon Mull: When Kendra and Seth go to stay at their
grandparents' estate, they discover that it is a sanctuary for magical
creatures and a battle between good and evil is looming. Book #1
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls: Billy Coleman works and
saves to buy two red-bone hunting hounds while his grandfather provides him
with support and lessons in growing up.
***Book to start the new school year. Please bring the first day of
school with your name written in the book.
The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder: is a Newbery Honor award
winning novel by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. The story, set in California, follows
the creation of a sustained imaginative game by a group of children.
Seventh Grade Due 8.17.2015
The Twistrose Key by Almhjel Tone: When Lin stumbles across a strange
key that leads her to a portal in her cellar, she opens up a gate to the
magical world of Sylver, a land of eternal winter inhabited by every dead
animal ever loved by a child. Lin is reunited with Rufus, the much-loved vole
who used to be her best friend. Together, Lin and Rufus must find the
missing Winter Prince and work together to save this enchanted world.
Old Yeller by Fred Gipson: Young Travis Coates is left to take care of the
family ranch with his mother and younger brother while his father goes off
on a cattle drive in the 1860's. When a yellow mongrel comes for an
uninvited stay with the family, Travis reluctantly adopts the dog.
***Book to start the new school year. Please bring the first day of
school with your name written in the book.
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin: Sixteen game players, heirs to Sam
Westing's fabulous fortune, are all suspected of his murder. This book is
part mystery story, part play-along game, and part do-it-yourself puzzle.
Eighth Grade Due 8.17.2015
Classic Novel: Choose one classic novel to read from the list below:
**Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
A good-humored, hard-working Gloucester fisherman rescues a spoiled rich
boy, Harvey Cheynen, when he falls off a passing steamship. Unconvinced by
Harvey's story that his father is a millionaire, Captain Disko Troop and the
crew of the We're Here teach the boy the value of a job well done. When
the ship returns to port several months later, Harvey is reunited with his
exultant parents and there are happy surprises for everyone.
**20,000 Leagues under the Sea by Jules Verne
A huge sea monster has attacked and wrecked several ships from beneath
the sea. Professor Arronax bravely joins a mission to hunt down the
beast.He goes aboard the Nautilus, a secret submarine helmed by the
mysterious Captain Nemo. At first, the mission is exciting, as Nemo takes
Arronax on a voyage around the underwater world. But when things start to
go wrong, Arronax finds there's no escape from the Nautilus. He is now
Captain Nemo's captive--20,000 leagues under the sea.
**The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Arthur Conan Doyle
Could the sudden death of Sir Charles Baskerville have been caused by the
gigantic ghostly hound which is said to have haunted his family for
generations? Arch-rationalist Sherlock Holmes characteristically dismisses
the theory as nonsense. Claiming to be immersed in another case, he sends
Watson to Devon to protect the Baskerville heir and to observe the suspects
at close hand.
**Anne of Green Gables, by L.M.Montgomery
Everyone's favorite redhead, the spunky Anne Shirley, begins her
adventures at Green Gables, a farm outside Avonlea, Prince Edward Island.
When the freckled girl realizes that the elderly Cuthberts wanted to adopt
a boy instead, she begins to try to win them and, consequently, the reader,
over.
**Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Orphaned into the household of her Aunt Reed at Gateshead, subject to the
cruel regime at Lowood charity school, Jane Eyre nonetheless emerges
unbroken in spirit and integrity. She takes up the post of governess at
Thornfield, falls in love with Mr. Rochester, and discovers the impediment to
their lawful marriage in a story that transcends melodrama to portray a
woman's passionate search for a wider and richer life than Victorian society
traditionally allowed.With a heroine full of yearning, the dangerous secrets
she encounters, and the choices she finally makes, Charlotte Bronte's
innovative and enduring romantic novel continues to engage and provoke
readers.
Second novel to read for the summer (You choose one of the following)
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Orphaned by the Border Wars, Alina becomes the protégée of the
mysterious Darkling, who trains her to believe that she is the Sun
Summoner, who can destroy the monsters of the Fold. The plot contains
profanity and violence. Book #1
OR
Entwined by Heather Dixon
Confined to their dreary castle while mourning their mother's death,
Princess Azalea and her eleven sisters join the Keeper, who is trapped in a
magic passageway, in a nightly dance that soon becomes nightmarish.
***Book to start the new school year. Please bring the first day of
school with your name written in the book.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the
story of Liesel, a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling
talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding.
Summer Reading Project
6th Grade
Select one of the assignments below for Fablehaven and complete. Your
second assignment will be a book report in the form of an introductory letter
to me (see attachment).
7th and 8th Grade
Select one of the assignments below. You will complete one assignment for
your classic novel and one assignment for your other book choice. You must
supply textual evidence with each project.
MLA textual evidence: “evidence or quote” (Author’s name pg #). (Brown, 6).
Travel Brochure: Design a travel brochure for the destination of the book
setting. Clearly tie the destination to your book. Illustrate and advertise the
setting of your novel. You will use words and pictures to convince your
reader that this setting is an exciting (interesting, educational, relaxing,
scenic, historical, etc) place to visit. Your brochure must include facts about
the destination, reasons for visiting, possible attractions, events or sites to
see. It must include text and graphics. You must justify and provide
evidence from the text that relates to the information you put in your
brochure.
Characterization Vacation of a Major Character: Create visually appealing
poster (at least 81/2 x 14) that reflects your impression of a major
character. Draw, paint, cut out or copy and paste a large, vivid picture that
represents how you visualize a major character from the novel. In addition,
identify three items that your character would carry with them on vacation.
Justify your items using textual evidence.
Storyboard: Complete a series of 5 drawings that show 5 of the major
events in the plot of the book you read. Your story board must include
captions for each drawing so that the illustrations can be understood by
someone who did not read the book. On the back, justify in one paragraph (710 sentences) why you chose to create your storyboard the way you did.
Make sure to use text evidence and quotes from the text to help
support your events.
Paper Doll: Choose a character from your novel. Create an illustration of
your character according to their actions or their appearance. On your
illustration you will fill out the body parts by answering questions, providing
text evidence and an explanation. You will have a total of 12 body parts
with evidence and explanations. For example: Hands: page 152 “I won’t! I
won’t go home! You can’t make me!” Jonas just learned what the real meaning
of ‘release’ was and he is now struggling with what to do with the
information. Does he leave the community and Gabe and risk Gabe receiving
the same fate as the twin? Does he stay with the Giver and ignore the
emotions he feels deep down? Does he confront his father and the
community? (list of body parts and questions are at the bottom of this
document)
Body Parts for Paper Doll Project
Head – Intellectual side of the character. What are his/her dreams?
Visions? Philosophies s/he keeps inside?
Eyes – Seeing through the character’s eyes. What memorable insights
affect him/her? How?
Ears – Hearing through the character’s ears. What does s/he notice and
remember about others saying to him/her? How is s/he affected?
Nose – Smelling through the character’s nose. What smells affect him/her?
How?
Mouth – The character’s communication. What philosophy does the
character share/espouse? What arguments/debates? What song would
symbolized the character’s philosophy of life? What lyrics/images from the
song would symbolized his or her philosophy?
Arms – Working. What is the character’s relationship to work in general?
To specific work?
Hands – The practical side of the character. What conflicts does s/he deal
with? How?
Heart – The emotional side of the character. Where does s/he live? With
whom? How?
Torso – The instinctive side of the character. What doesn’t s/he like about
himself of herself? What does s/he hide? What brings the character pain?
What does s/he fear? (Describe his/her “dark” side.)
Legs – The playful side of the character. What does s/he do for fun? What
are his or her avocations (interests or hobbies?)
Feet – The character’s mobility. Where has s/he been
(literally/figuratively)? How has s/he been affected by travel or setting?
“Wings” – The character’s future. Where is s/he going?
Reading Project Rubric
Criteria
Exemplary
The project contains
all required
components.
Content
50 points
The information is
well organized and
flows in a logical
manner.
Proficient
The project is missing
a component of the
requirements.
Emerging
The project is missing
2 components of the
requirements.
45 points
40 points
The information is
somewhat organized.
The information flows
in logical manner.
The information is not
organized. The
disorganization causes
a lack of clarity in the
project.
15 points
10 points
Organization
Insufficient
The project is
missing 3+
components of
the requirements.
30 points
There is no
attempt
of organization.
The lack of
organization
causes difficulty
in understanding
the content.
20 points
There are no
grammatical errors.
There are 1-3
grammatical errors.
There are 4-7
grammatical errors.
15 points
8 points
6 points
Conventions
Neatness
The project is
presented in a neat
manner. The project
is either typed or
written neatly
utilizing materials
that will ensure that
it is legible and
appealing. The
project is colored
and/or written in ink.
The project is
presented in a
somewhat neat
manner. The project
may either be typed
or written neatly
utilizing materials
that will ensure it is
legible and appealing.
The project is
partially colored
and/or written in
pencil.
The project is
presented in a
somewhat neat
manner. The project
is written neatly
utilizing materials
that will ensure that
it is legible and
appealing. The project
is not colored and/or
is completely written
in pencil.
15 points
8 points
6 points
Grade: _____________________
5 points
There are 8 or
more grammatical
errors.
4 points
The project is not
presented in a
neat manner. The
project
is not written
neatly. The project is
not legible
and/or appealing.
4 points
Letter to Your Teacher
For the second part of your summer book report project, you will write a
letter to me describing a character using examples from the book you read.
Directions:
1. From your chosen book, pick a character that you will write a letter about.
Imagine this character is your new friend.
2. Begin your letter by telling me that you have a new friend. You need to
give me the character’s name and the title and author of the book where you
met this character.
3. Then describe the character to the person whom you are writing. You will
describe the character’s physical attributes, personality (how he or she
thinks and feels), how the character behaves, and what others think about
the character.
4. You will need to cite specific incidents from the book to describe the
character’s personality, behavior, thoughts, and feelings.
5. Your letter must use the correct format for a friendly letter. 6. You must
use correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization and grammar.
I look forward to reading your letter.
Mrs. Brown