Lake Mead Christian Academy’s Summer Reading Program for all incoming 10th Grade College Prep students Purpose Statement: : “…In the 1982 “Beginning School Study,” researchers Karl Alexander and Doris Entwisle of the Johns Hopkins Center for Summer Learning (now the National Center for Summer Learning) found that by the end of fifth grade, students who didn’t read during the summer lagged two years behind their book-­‐
reading peers” (Fiore, 2010). Numerous studies have shown the loss of learning over the summer months can be detrimental to students’ education. Providing students with the opportunity to read over the summer allows a fun way for students of all ages to combat this learning slide. Lake Mead Christian Academy, in its desire to create disciples as well as educate students, has implemented a Summer Reading Program. This program offers many benefits to students, not the least of which is helping them to discover the joy of reading. Literacy skills include reading, writing, speaking and thinking. Each of these skills requires practice. To aid students in improving their literacy skills, the Summer Reading Program engages students in a variety of activities that will build these skills. The Summer Reading Program is an excellent opportunity for students to experience ongoing enrichment that will challenge students throughout the summer months and continuing the educational experience beyond the classroom walls. Requirements: All incoming 10th grade college prep students will read three (3) books over the summer. One book will be of the student’s own choosing, one book students will choose from the approved Summer Reading List (provided) and the final is the teacher chosen Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac. For each book completed, students must complete a Reading Journal. Students will also write a 2-­‐3 page paper from one of the books read using the options provided. This will constitute a total of three (3) Reading Journals and three (1) paper. These assignments will be due to their English teacher on the first day of the 2014-­‐2015 school year. Students should be prepared to discuss and complete activities for the teacher chosen book on the first day of class. 10th Grade Reading List Title and Author Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac (required) The Color Purple by Alice Walker Emma by Jane Austen The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Description After being taught in a boarding school run by whites that Navajo is a useless language, Ned Begay and other Navajo men are recruited by the Marines to become Code Talkers, sending messages during World War II in their native tongue. Celie is a poor black woman whose letters tell the story of 20 years of her life, beginning at age 14 when she is being abused and raped by her father and attempting to protect her sister from the same fate, and continuing over the course of her marriage to “Mister,” a brutal man who terrorizes her. Celie eventually learns that her abusive husband has been keeping her sister’s letters from her and the rage she feels, combined with an example of love and independence provided by her close friend Shug, pushes her finally toward an awakening of her creative and loving self Beautiful, clever, rich -­‐ and single -­‐ Emma Woodhouse is perfectly content with her life and sees no need for either love or marriage. Nothing, however, delights her more than interfering in the romantic lives of others. But when she ignores the warnings of her good friend Mr Knightley and attempts to arrange a suitable match for her protegee Harriet Smith, her carefully laid plans soon unravel and have consequences that she never expected. With its imperfect but charming heroine and its witty and subtle exploration of relationships, Emma is often seen as Jane Austen's most flawless work. Leaving behind a world on the brink of destruction, man came to the Red planet and found the Martians waiting, dreamlike. Seeking the promise of a new beginning, man brought with him his oldest fears and his deepest desires. Man conquered Mars—
and in that instant, Mars conquered him. The strange new world with its ancient, dying race and vast, red-­‐gold deserts cast a spell on him, settled into his dreams, and changed him forever. Here are the captivating chronicles of man and Mars—
the modern classic by the peerless Ray Bradbury The novel focuses on the Joads, a poor family of sharecroppers driven from their Oklahoma home by drought, economic hardship, and changes in financial and agricultural industries. Due to their nearly hopeless situation, and in part because they were trapped in the Dust Bowl, the Joads set out for California. Along with thousands of other "Okies", they sought jobs, land, dignity and a future. Set in the harsh Puritan community of seventeenth-­‐century Boston, this tale of an adulterous entanglement that results in Hawthorne 1984 by George Orwell an illegitimate birth reveals Nathaniel Hawthorne's concerns with the tension between the public and the private selves. Publicly disgraced and ostracized, Hester Prynne draws on her inner strength and certainty of spirit to emerge as the first true heroine of American fiction. Arthur Dimmesdale, trapped by the rules of society, stands as a classic study of a self divided. Written in 1948, 1984 was George Orwell's chilling prophecy about the future. And while the year 1984 has come and gone, Orwell's narrative is timelier than ever. 1984 presents a startling and haunting vision of the world, so powerful that it is completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of multiple generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions. A legacy that seems only to grow with the passage of time.
10th Grade Reading Journal Requirements: Students will complete a Reading Journal for each of the three (3) books he/she reads over the summer. A minimum of ten (10) entries is required for each book for a total of at least thirty (30) entries. • Each entry should have its own page in a notebook or composition book. • Each page should be clearly labeled at the top with the title and author of the book and the date. • Pages should then be divided in half creating a double entry journal with both a left and a right side. • On the left side students should copy down a quote that they found interesting, that captures the main idea or displays characterization. • Beneath the quote on the left hand side should be listed the page number as well as the speaker. • On the right side students should give a brief context for the quote (what is happening, why is it important, who is involved, etc.) as well as explain why they chose this quote. Grading: Students will be graded on the quality of the quote chosen. Be sure to select quotes that are important to the overall story or have significance to you as the reader. Quotes selected randomly are difficult to respond to in an appropriate way. Students will also be graded on the thoughtfulness of their opinion and how well they connected the quote to either their own life or the rest of the novel. Do not simply give a summary. 10th Grade College Prep Writing Prompts Directions: Write a clearly organized 2-­‐3 page paper responding to the writing prompt for the book you have chosen. Your three papers are due on the first day of the 2013-­‐2014 school year. Please bring them with you to English class. Code Talker (required) Writing Prompt: Given the tragic and hurtful past between the United States Government and the various nations of Native Americans, do you think the Navajo acted honorably in allowing their language to be used to fight a war against another group of people? Why? Remember to use quotes from the novel to support your arguments. The Color Purple Writing Prompt: Compare and contrast the relationship between Mr._____ and his father with that of Harpo and Mr._______. Emma Writing Prompt: Emma experiences several major revelations in the novel that fundamentally change her understanding of herself and those around her. Which revelation do you think is most important to Emma’s development, and why? Remember to use quotes from the novel to support your answer. The Martian Chronicles Writing Prompt: Ray Bradbury wrote this novel as a protest against certain aspects he found disturbing in society. What social issues do you think he was protesting and what was he saying about them? Remember to use quotes from the novel to support your argument. The Grapes of Wrath Writing Prompt: Tom Joad learns how to write in prison. But “ever’ time Pa seen writin’,” he tells Muley, “somebody took somepin away from ’im” (p. 54). What role does writing and education play in Steinbeck’s novel? Is it ever used on behalf of the Joads? How is it used against them? What would the Joads have thought of The Grapes of Wrath? Remember to use quotes to support your argument. The Scarlet Letter Writing Prompt: What should Reverend Dimmesdale’s future actions consist of relating to Hester and Pearl? Why, even though he is a Christian, did he not immediately claim responsibility for his actions and ask forgiveness? Remember to use quotes from the novel to support your argument. 1984 Writing Prompt: Some feel that 1984 had much relevance at the time that it was written, but now has very little relevance. Write an essay in which you agree or disagree with the idea that the novel is no longer significant to our society. Although this prompt requires you to comment and bring in examples for the modern world, the bulk of the essay should focus on the novel itself. Bibliography Fiore, C. (2010, November 1). Summer Reading Programs Boost Student Achievement, Study Says. Retrieved April 22, 2013, from schoollibraryjournal.com: www.schoollibraryjournal.com/slj/home/887306-­‐
312/proof_positive_a_new_study.html.csp