SUMMER READING LIST
Students Entering Grade 7
Dear Parents, Guardians, and Students,
At St. Bartholomew Academy, we support the tradition of summer reading for all of our
students as a way to maintain and enhance critical literacy skills. Reading deepens background
knowledge, broadens vocabulary, and builds fluency which all lead to greater comprehension.
Summer reading is designed to stimulate the imagination and serve as a basis for classroom
discussion and activities throughout the year. In an effort to continue proficiency in reading, the
students entering Grade 7 will be required to read ONE book over the summer and complete the
requested information.
The required selection for all students is Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. Attached please find
the book report form by which the students will report their knowledge of this book. The report
should be answered in complete sentences with careful attention to detail. Please follow the
format for each paragraph as indicated on the outline. After reading the book, students should
complete the information requested making sure the report is NEATLY written or typed and
grammatically correct. The book report is due on the first day of school and should be handed in
to me during Language Arts class. Have a safe and happy summer! God bless you!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Mary Schoendorf
Middle School Book Report Format
Paragraph Order:
1. Introduction
2. Setting
3. Characters
4. Plot
5. Plot Resolution
6. Conclusion
Paragraph Description:
I.
The introduction contains the thesis idea.
II.
The setting describes the time period and location.
III.
The section on characters mentions minor groups of characters but names and describes the major
ones.
IV.
The plot explains what the major character attempts to do:
to discover
to overcome
to adapt
to become
to mature
to solve
to learn
to conquer
to find
V.
The plot resolution – How are the final problems solved? How does everything work out? What is
the final attitude of the main character(s)?
VI.
The conclusion – an evaluation of the book as a literary work. What was the author’s purpose?
Does the book teach a lesson or a moral? Are the characters role models? Why is it recommended?
Introduction:
Sentence Order
Example
1. Arouse the reader’s interest with an
attention grabbing question.
How would you feel if a tornado suddenly
lifted you away to a new land?
2. Name the character(s) in such a
situation. Name the book title and
author.
Such an adventure happened to Dorothy in the
book, The Wizard of Oz, by Frank Baum.
3. Present the thesis sentence: why the
book is unique: Although there have
been similar books, this book is unique
because who? does what? And where?
Although there have been other children’s
adventure stories, this one is unique because
Dorothy helps the Tin Man, Scarecrow, and
Lion find the qualities they seek while traveling
with her in the land of Oz.
Topic Sentence Suggestions:
Setting
One reason this book is appealing is setting.
Characters
Another reason this book is different is its characters OR is that its
characters are all…(brief description).
Plot
In addition to the setting and characters, the plot adds (or the problems
add) to the distinctiveness of the book.
Plot Resolution
The way in which the problem(s) is solved is totally unexpected.
Conclusion
For these reasons, this book is appealing OR therefore, for these reasons,
this book is recommended.
Interested in Reading More Books?
(FOR INFORMATION ONLY – NOT REQUIRED)
2011 Scholastic Challenge Book List2011
Young Adult
(By Title, Author and Illustrator)
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Accomplice, Eireann Corrigan
After Ever After, Jordan Sonnenblick
Al Capone Does My Shirts, Gennifer Choldenko
Bang!, Sharon G. Flake
The Bar Code Rebellion, Suzanne Weyn
The Big Crunch, Pete Hautman
The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, John Boyne
The Boy Who Dared, Susan Campbell Bartoletti
The Brooklyn Nine, Alan Gratz
Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins
The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, Heather Brewer
Clarity, Kim Harrington
The Clone Codes, The McKissacks
Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters, Natalie Standiford
Confetti Girl, Diana Lopez
Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy, Ally Carter
Cut, Patricia, McCormick
Dangerous Neighbors, Beth Kephart
Dark Life, Kat Falls
Distant Waves: A Novel of the Titanic, Suzanne Weyn
Dream of Night, Heather Henson
The Dreamer, Pam Muñoz Ryan & Peter Sis
Empty, Suzanne Weyn
Fallen, Lauren Kate
Fire World, Chris d’Lacey
Flipped, Wendelin Van Draanen
Geek Fantasy Novel, E. Archer
Ghostopolis, Doug Tennapel
Girls Unplugged #1: How To Deal, Cheryl Crouch
The Giver, Lois Lowry
Half Brother, Ken Oppel
Heart of a Samurai, Margi Preus
Here Lies Arthur, Philip Reeve
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House of the Scorpion, Nancy Farmer
The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
I Now Pronounce You Someone Else, Erin McCahan
Icemark Chronicles, Stuart Hill
Immortal, Lauren Burd
Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O’Dell
The Last Summer of the Death Warriors, Francisco X. Stork
Life, After, Sarah Darer Littman
Life As We Knew It, Susan Beth Pfeffer
Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins
Monster, Walter Dean Myers
Nothing but the Truth, Avi
Once Upon a Prom, Jeanine Le Ny
The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton
Phantoms in the Snow, Kathleen Benner Duble
Picture the Dead, Adele Griffin & Lisa Brown
Plain Kate, Erin Bow
Poetry Speaks: Who I Am, Elise Paschen
Prom, Laurie Halse Anderson
Prom & Prejudice, Elizabeth Eulberg
The Road to Paris, Nikki Grimes
The Roar, Emma Clayton
Rose Sees Red, Cecil Castellucci
Ruined: A Novel, Paula Morris
Secrets, Lies, And Algebra, Wendy Lichtman
Sellout, Ebony Wilkins
Sequins, Secrets, And Silver Linings, Sophia Bennett
Shiver, Maggie Stiefvater
Small Steps, Louis Sachar
Smile, Raina Telgemeier
StarCrossed, Elizabeth C. Bunce
Stargirl, Jerry Spinelli
Strings Attached, Judy Blundell
The Suburb Beyond the Stars, M. T. Anderson
Sunrise Over Fallujah, Walter Dean Myers
Tangerine, Edward Bloor
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Tomorrow Girls, Eva Gray
Top 8, Katie Finn
Trapped, Michael Northrop
Uglies, Scott Westerfeld
The Watsons Go To Birmingham 1963,
Christopher Paul Curtis
We Could Be Brothers, Derrick Barnes
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We Hear the Dead, Dianne Salerni
What I Saw And How I Lied, Judy Blundell
Will Work for Prom Dress, Aimee Ferris
Wolves, Boys and Other Things That Might Kill Me,
Kristen Chandler
The Writing on the Wall, Wendy Lichtman
You Are Not Here, Samantha Schutz