There are 2 parts to this assignment which will need to be
completed for September.
Part A)
 Read at least 3 novels/ plays of your choosing. There is a
suggested reading list that you can use to help you.
 Be prepared to complete an activity on at least one of your
books in September.
 One text MUST be pre-20th Century.
Part B)
Write a description of ONE event, day or image from your
summer. Focus on describing the event, what your saw, heard,
smelt etc, not the storyline. Between 400-600 words. Annotate
your piece of writing to show why you have used similes,
metaphors etc….
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Read at least 3 novels or plays
Ensure that at least one of them was
written before 1900.
Keep brief notes on the texts you read
as you will be asked to complete an
assignment on at least one of the texts
in September
Read a range of ‘easy’ and more
challenging books.
Use the suggested GCSE reading list to
help you.
Due in September.
GCSE Reading Suggestions
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Achebe, Chinua – Things fall Apart or A Man of the People
Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi- Purple Hibiscus
Albom Mitch – Five People you Meet in Heaven
Ali, Monica- Brick Lane
Austen Jane – Sense and Sensibility; Emma *
Barnes, Julian --The History of the World in 10 ½ chapters
Bradbury, Ray--Fahrenheit 451
Brookes, Max – World Ward Two Series
Bronte, Charlotte--Jane Eyre*
Bronte, Emily--Wuthering Heights*
Byrson, Bill – Notes from a Small Isalnd
Chevalier, Tracey --Girl with a Pearl Earring
Chopin, Kate--The Awakening*
Coelho Paulo – The Alchemist
Conan Doyle, Arthur--Sherlock Holmes stories
Crichton, Michael -- Jurassic Park; Sphere
Cruen, Sara – Water for Elephants
Desai, Anita – Village by the Sea
Dickens, Charles--Great Expectations;* A Tale of Two Cities*
Doherty, Berlie –Dear Nobody
Donnelly, Jennifer-- A Northern Light
Doyle, Roddy--Paddy Clark Ha Ha
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Eco Umberto --The Name of the Rose Gaiman, Neil – Nancy Boys
Gardner, John – Grendal
Gibran, Khalil – The Profit
Greenberg, Joanne--I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
Guvevara, Ernesto ‘Che’ - The Motorcycle Diaries (non fiction)
Horby Nick – Fever Pitch (non fiction about football)
James, Henry – The Turn of the Screw
Kidd, Sue Monk – The Secret Life of Bees
King, Stephen – The Sinning; Insomnia; Skelton Crew; The Talisamn
Kinsley, Mary – Travels in West Africa (non fiction)
Koike, Kazuo – Lone Wolf and Cub X
Irving, John – The Cider House Rules
Louise de Bernieres – Captain Corelli’s Mandolin
Lessing, Doris – The Grass is singing
McCourt, Frank – Angela’s Ashes
Martel, Yann – The Life of Pi
McCarthy, Cormac – The Road
McGuinness, Charlie – Nomad (non fiction)
Melville, Herman – Moby Dick*
Meyer Stephenie – Twilight
Miller, Arthur – The Crucible
Mosley, Walter – Devil in the Blue Dress
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Narayan R. K. – The English Teacher
Peake, Tamora – Alanna Series
Pratchett Terry- Discworld Series
Rai, Bali – Crew
Ryan, Chris – Desert Pursuit
Salinger, J. D. – The Catcher in the Rye
Sebold, Alice – The Lovely Bones
Shakespeare, William – Othello; Twelfth Night *
Shelley, Mary – Frankenstein *
Smith Sadie – White Teeth
Stoker, Bram – Dracula*
Taylor, Sam – Republic of Trees
Walker, Alice – The Colour Purple
Wilder, Thorton – Own Town
Please note this is not a comprehensive list in anyway but can be used as a
starting point 
(pre 20th Century novel / plays are marked with * )
Entering S10: Summer Work
Descriptive Writing Assignment
Due September 2015
Descriptive Writing
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many vivid sensory details that paint a picture and appeals to all of the
reader's senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste when appropriate.
Descriptive writing may also paint pictures of the feelings the person, place or
thing invokes in the writer.
use of figurative language such as personification, similes, onomatopoeia and
metaphors to help paint the picture in the reader's mind.
precise language. General adjectives, nouns, and passive verbs do not have a
place in good descriptive writing. Use specific adjectives and nouns and
strong action verbs to give life to the picture you are painting in the reader's
mind.
organization: some ways to organize descriptive writing include:
chronological (time), spatial (location), and order of importance. When
describing a person, you might begin with a physical description, followed by
how that person thinks, feels and acts.
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Imagery is the use of descriptive language to
paint a picture, using words, in the reader’s
mind. Often Imagery appeals to a reader’s
sense of sight, sound, taste, touch or smell.
Imagery can be created through using
descriptive and specific words like adjectives,
verbs which appeal to the sense and by using
comparisons.
A comparison between two or more things
using the words like or as.
Example:
I move fast like a cheetah on the Serengeti.
Comparison between two or more things that
doesn't use the words like or as.
Example
She is an angry bear if you wake her up too
early in the morning.
Giving an animal or object human-like
characteristics.
Example
The branches scratched the window plane
Is the description of inanimate natural objects (the
weather, or landscape) in a manner that endows
them with or mirrors human feelings, thoughts and
sensations.
Example:
Nature must be gladsome when I was so
happy"—Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë
A phrase with a string of words all beginning
with the same consonant sound.
Example:
“Five freaky females finding sales at retail."
Is the repetition of vowel sounds in a phrase or
line.
Example:
"Wayne cradled his burlap sack of tools in his
lap as we drove,"
Is a figure of speech in which exaggeration is
used for emphasis.
Example:
I am so hungry I could eat a horse.
The formation or use of words that imitate the
sounds associated with the objects or actions
they refer to.
Example:
Hiss, murmur
Describing places:
 Students are reminded to use spatial order to explain
where things are located when they describe a place.
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The easiest way to do this is to choose a starting point
and then describe where things are located in relation
to the starting point.
You have to decide on a logical method to follow. For
example, when describing a room, you can choose a
starting point and move clockwise around the room.
Other methods are left to right, top to bottom, and back
to front.
A Nice Place
My dormitory room, on the second floor of the twentieth building, is
so tidy that it makes me feel relaxed and happy. When I walk into my
room, I see the clean, white ceiling above my head and the computer
cables neatly arranged against both sides of the spotless, white walls.
The four small beds on both sides of the room contain neatly placed
pillows and quilts. On both sides of the beds are four small, white
desks with small metal chairs that fit nicely with the desks. Above the
desks are four large, wooden bookcases with an orderly arrangement
of books and files. Underneath the desks are neatly stacked blankets
and other objects. The room’s tidiness not only makes it seem inviting,
it also makes it seem larger than it really is. Every time I enter my
room, I feel contented in this clean, well-organized space.
Source: Cathy Dibello, Wen Ting-shu. Composing Our World
Notes
Building
Ceiling
Computer cables
•On the second floor of the 20th building
•Clean, white
•Neatly arranged against both sides of spotless, white walls
Four beds
On both sides of the room, contain neatly placed pillows and quilts
Computer cables
Neatly arranged against both sides of spotless, white walls
Describe a significant place, image or moment from your
summer. Your description should be between 400-600
words. Once you have written your description you must
annotate your piece of writing to show where you have
used similes, metaphors etc. and explain why you have
chosen the words, images, devices and grammatical
structures to create particular effects in your writing.
This can be typed or hand written however for annotation
purposes it may be easier to type and ‘track changes’.
This is due during your SECOND English lesson in
September.
FIRST:
Think back to an event from your summer, which really sticks
out in your memory. Make a list of the first 5 things that come
to mind when you remember it. These could be people, places,
colours, objects, smells, sounds, emotions etc.
THEN:
Quickly write down :
 3 colours you remember about that event
 3 sounds you remember about that event smells you
remember about that event
 3 feelings you remember about the scene – angry, sad,
happy, lonely, etc.
 Try and include similes, metaphors, personification
Next:
Try and remember a person who was involved – it
might be a friend, or someone from your family.
Write down as many things as you can that you
remember about them – these might be colours they
were wearing, how they talked, what they looked like
etc.
NOW:
Write about the event from your memory. Use the
notes you’ve made to describe things in detail. Try to
create a sense of atmosphere.
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Grammar and Punctuation and Sentence Structure:
http://www.grammarbook.com/
http://www.bristol.ac.uk/arts/exercises/grammar/grammar_tutorial/page_01.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/topic-group/sentence-grammar
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/exercises/2/22/49 (tense consistency)
http://www.funenglishgames.com/grammargames.html
http://www.kidinfo.com/language_arts/grammar_helper.html
http://www.timeforkids.com/homework-helper/grammar-wizard/punctuation-practice
http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/ - review of grammar terminology
http://www.neok12.com/Grammar.htm - with video clips of explanation
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Spelling and Vocabulary
http://www.spellingcity.com/students-overview.html
http://www.howtospell.co.uk/spellingquiz.php
http://www.spelling.hemscott.net/
http://stunt.samlaget.no/Chapters/Chapter-5/Textras/Spelling%20Rules/Spelling%20Tips.aspx
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/topic-group/spelling
http://www.really-learn-english.com/english-spelling-rules.html
http://www.lauracandler.com/strategies/spellingvocab.php
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Interactive Sites
http://www.brainpop.com/english/studyskills/testpreparation/preview.weml
username: saltus
Password: brainpop