Balch Springs Middle School Summer
Reading Project-Summer 2015
Grade/Book: Incoming 6th graders-Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Incoming 7th Graders-Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
Incoming 8th Graders-The Contender by Robert Lipsyte
Choose two of the assignments below to show your understanding of the book for
your Summer Reading Novel. You should choose an assignment that matches your
interests, talents, and abilities. Be sure to read the directions for the assignment carefully
as each has specific requirements. The activity will be due to your ELAR teacher during
the first week of school. This assignment will count as a two-100 point project grades
during the 1st six weeks of school. There will also be a test over the novel during the first
week of school as well. Again, the requirements for the project are listed below. Your
teacher will review these requirements during the 1st week of school, and you will have a
chance to finalize your activity prior to submitting it for a grade.
Choose TWO Assignments:
 Epilogue - Write either a prologue or an epilogue to the book. Describe events that
could have taken place before or after the plot of the book. Include at least four
events that are connected to the existing plot of the book. The connection should
be explained if it is not clear. Use descriptive language.
 Newsletter - Create a newsletter for your book. Summarize the plot in one article.
Write a feature story on one of the more interesting characters in a second article.
Include an editorial and a collection of ads that would be pertinent to the story. Be
sure to include pictures. You may use a computer program or cut and paste the
newspaper by hand.
 Photo Album - Take pictures that depict the experiences of the book and/or
characters in the book. Create a photo album with captions. Photos must be taken
by the student. Album can be digital or traditional. Captions should connect photos
to specific information from the book.
 Book Cover – Pretend you are the artist for the cover of the book you just read.
Design a new cover. You may draw the cover or create it on the computer. Include
at least six symbols/images to represent he plot, setting, characters, conflict,
theme, and most important invent in the book. Include one significant quotation
from the story. Be sure to use quotation marks and the page number where the
quotation appears. Include a well-written letter to the publisher that explains the
choices you made.
 TV/Radio Report - Be a TV or radio reporter and give a report of a scene from the
book as if it is happening "live." Video tape your report or record your report in a
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Podcast. Report must be 3-5 minutes in length. Details must reveal in-depth
understanding of the book.
Character Journal - Use a journal to document the characters in the book. Identify
every character-- major and minor--by name and record the page number on which
that character first appears. Describe each character in detail and explain his/her
relationship to the other characters in the novel. Record each character's most
important quotation and include the page number on which the quotation appears.
Keep your journal either in a composition notebook or in a Microsoft Word file.
Word Journal - Use a journal to document the seven most important words in the
novel. Choose seven words from the novel that you feel are the most significant.
Document one word per page of your journal. Include the sentence in which the
word is found. Document the page number on which the sentence is found. Write
one paragraph explaining the significance of the word to the book as a whole.
In an essay or a letter to your teacher, explain how the theme in the novel is used
throughout the book. Give specific examples from the text to support how the text
relates to the theme using specific quotations and passages. Your essay/letter
should be 3-5 paragraphs long, neatly written or typed.
Create a series of six drawings (neat and detailed) in six squares that shows a
significant event in the book. Under each picture you must use a quote from the
book to support your illustration. Make sure you choose an event that relates to the
theme. On the back of your paper, write a brief explanation (one paragraph) of
how your pictures illustrate the theme.
Write three poems in response to the book. All three poems should relate to a
theme in the book. You can use characters, different events, specific situations, or
quotes to connect the theme to the book in each poem. Your poems should be
neatly written or typed.
Think about all the kinds of mementos you would put into a scrapbook if you had
one. Choose a character from the book and create a scrapbook page showing how
the character’s experiences relate to the theme of the book. Use pictures, words,
and/or your own drawings and put them together on one piece of paper. You must
also include at least two quotations from the book that relate to the theme. On the
back, write a brief explanation (one paragraph) of how some of the mementos on
your scrapbook relate to the theme.