Kenner Discovery Health Sciences Academy Summer Reading List
Kenner Discovery Health Sciences Academy Summer Reading List Incoming 8th Graders Summer Reading is NOT optional. Your teacher WILL expect students to have read their books and completed their assignments by the first day of school. Please read this entire document to make sure the entire assignment is completed. We feel that it is important that the students are motivated to read in the summer. Sometimes the fact that something is for a grade is just not enough, especially in the summer. I have chosen books that are in the true reading range of our rising 8th graders, so they are less likely to become frustrated. They are also all contemporary fiction that is either relevant to their lives, or simply from a popular genre at this time. Students find it hard to connect with many of the stories they read in class today, and the only way that they will ever enjoy reading will be to find a way to connect with what they are reading. Besides, today’s classics were contemporary fiction once too. 1) Book of Choice (Read during the Month of June - all Assignments are due by July 7th) Pick 1 to read Chapter Summaries : will be done on a Google Doc and turned in through GC Literary Elements (Map Plot, Conflict, Characters, Theme, Figurative Language): all done in Google Slides and turned in through GC Each individual part (Chapter Summaries and Literary Elements) will have an example and a rubric and be a formative grade. Worth 1 Summative Grade ( the average of the two formative grades) Matched By Ally Condle (Lexile 690) "The hottest YA title to hit bookstores since The Hunger Games."--Entertainment Weekly This New York Times bestseller is perfect for fans of 1984, Brave New World, Black Mirror, and The Handmaid’s Tale. Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.
Maze Runner By James Dashner ( Lexile 770) Book one in the blockbuster Maze Runner series that spawned a movie franchise and ushered in a worldwide phenomenon! And don’t miss The Fever Code, the highlyanticipated series conclusion that finally reveals the story of how the maze was built! When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone. Outside the towering stone walls that surround them is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying: Remember. Survive. Run.
The Future of Us By Jay Asher (690) What if you could see how your life would unfold--just by clicking a button? It's 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet. Emma just got her first computer and an America Online CD-ROM. Josh is her best friend. They power up and log on--and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future. Everybody wonders what their destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out. The real value of The Future of Us may lie less in its plot than in the rich crop of questions it will raise in teenage readers…Reading the book should get contemporary teenagers wondering: Where will I live 15 years from now? Whom will I marry? What kind of life can I dream of? And what, exactly, is a "CD-ROM"? Prepare yourselves, parents, for the disbelief that will follow explanations of such historic artifacts as dial-up Internet, the Discman and busy signals. ( NY Times) Curveball By Jordan Sonnenblick (700) There’s nothing All Star pitcher Peter Friedman loves more than baseball. He breathes it, dreams it, and works his tail off to be great. Most kids are nervous about starting high school, but when you’re the star athlete, girls, popularity, and all-around stud status are sure to follow. Then a pitching accident over the summer ruins Pete’s arm. If he can’t play baseball in high school, what is he supposed to do? If he isn’t the star pitcher, then who is he? To make matters more complicated, there’s something going on with Pete’s grampa -- he’s acting weird and keeps forgetting important things. The only person Pete can confide in is Angelika, the amazingly cute girl in his photography class who might like Pete as much as he likes her . . . Only, Angie doesn’t know if she can date someone who can’t be honest with himself, or with the people he’s closest to.
2) REQUIRED BOOK - EVERYONE Reads This book will be the first book that we look at in class. Students will read it on their own during the month of July. The only work that will be done outside of class would be chapter summaries (turned into GC by the end of the first week in school - August 11). This book will be used to review previously learned literary skills (plot, character, and theme development the use of point of view and figurative language), for in class discussions, a test, and an essay during the first few weeks of school. Wednesday Wars (Lexile 990) In this Newbery Honor-winning novel, Gary D. Schmidt offers an unforgettable antihero. The Wednesday Wars is a wonderfully witty and compelling story about a teenage boy’s mishaps and adventures over the course of the 1967–68 school year in Long Island, New York. Meet Holling Hoodhood, a seventh-grader at Camillo Junior High, who must spend Wednesday afternoons with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, while the rest of the class has religious instruction. Mrs. Baker doesn’t like Holling—he’s sure of it. Why else would she make him read the plays of William Shakespeare outside class? But everyone has bigger things to worry about, like Vietnam. His father wants Holling and his sister to be on their best behavior: the success of his business depends on it. But how can Holling stay out of trouble when he has so much to contend with? A bully demanding cream puffs; angry rats; and a baseball hero signing autographs the very same night Holling has to appear in a play in yellow tights! As fate sneaks up on him again and again, Holling finds Motivation—the Big M—in the most unexpected places and musters up the courage to embrace his destiny, in spite of himself.
3) Chapter Summaries: Chapter Summary Directions ● ● ● ● ● ●
You will write a summary for EVERY chapter you read. Each summary will be a different length, but each should include the same type of information - see description above. The title of your book is the name of the document Make sure to include the title and the author of the book you have chosen on the top of the first page of the document. Label each chapter section with the chapter number, and name if they have one. (Ex: Chapter 1: The Sound of the Shell) Remember that you are summarizing NOT paraphrasing.
What is a Summary? A summary is condensed version of a larger reading. A summary is not a rewrite of the original piece and does not have to be long nor should it be long. To write a summary, use your own words to express briefly the main idea and relevant details of the piece you have read. Your purpose in writing the summary is to give the basic ideas of the original reading. What was it about and what did the author want to communicate? While reading the original work, take note of what or who is the focus and ask the usual questions that reporters use: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? Using these questions to examine what you are reading can help you to write the summary.
Book of Choice: Summaries and Literary elements are due no later than July 7, 2017 Wednesday Wars: Summaries are due by August 11, 2017 4) Google Slide Presentation: In addition to the Chapter Summaries, you will need to create a Google Slide Presentation that illustrates the Literary Elements of the novel that you chose to read. Below are listed all the elements that must be included, they have been defined for you as well. General guidelines for the slides: ● Choose a design theme that somehow relates to your novel, but don’t choose backgrounds that are so complicated it is hard to read the words. ● Make sure that each literary element has its own slide. ● Title slide should include the name of the novel, the author’s name, and your name 1. Mapping the Plot (Each element gets its own slide. Rising Action will be more than one slide) a. Exposition - Introduce the characters, setting, and conflict before jumping into the action b. Inciting Incident - The moment in the story that the protagonist is forced into action. ( Without this there wouldn’t even be a story) c. Rising Action - The longest part of the story. This is where the characters are developed and the events leading to the climax are laid out. d. Climax - The “gasp” moment. The highest moment of action either physical or emotional. e. Falling Action - Fast paced and action packed . The conflict is resolved, we find out if the protagonist was successful, if the antagonist was defeated. f. Resolution - How everything works out in the end. Wraps up the story and answers any questions that might still be unanswered. 2. Conflict - some stories have more than one conflict, be sure to make a slide for each conflict present in your novel a. External - between the protagonist and someone or something else i. Man v. Man ii. Man v. Nature
iii. Man v. Society/Technology b. Internal - in the character’s mind - a struggle of conscience i. Man v. Self 3. Characters - each type of character gets it’s own slide. Use both direct and indirect characterization examples. a. Protagonist - the central character in the story, the one the author wants the readers to identify with b. Antagonist - the person opposing the protagonist. c. Indirect Characterization - when the author drops hints about character traits, but does not state them directly. The author uses; what the character says, how the character looks, what the character does, What the character thinks, and what others think about the character, to clue the reader in on that character’s personality. d. Direct Characterization - when the author states a character trait in the text 4. Theme - some stories have multiple themes, pick one and provide good evidence for support a. Definition of Theme: The story’s main message ( or a moral) 5. Figurative Language - one example of each, one per slide. a. Metaphor - comparison of two unlike things b. Simile - a comparison of two unlike things, using either “like” or “as” c. Alliteration -when two or more words in a line begin with the same sound d. Allusion - a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance, ( in other word: a reference to another , well known, person, place, thing, or idea) e. Idiom - an expression that does actually mean what it says. Ex: it’s raining cats and dogs f. Hyperbole - an extreme exaggeration used for emphasis or effect Ex: I almost died of boredom g. Personification - when a non-human object is given human qualities 5) Active Reading Strategies: For all three books, students need to show evidence of ACTIVE READING. This includes writing in the books themselves, highlighting important passages and vocabulary words, and using sticky notes to summarize chapters. Upon returning to school in August, books will be checked for evidence of Active Reading and other activities and assessments will be given in class. Books are to be read and evidence of active reading is due the first day you return to school in August.
**It is not necessary for students to purchase copies of these books. Library copies, with sticky notes for active reading, are just fine.** Suggested annotations: Here are suggested annotations to use for ACTIVE READING. UNDERLINE - words or phrases that you do not understand CIRCLE or [BRACKET] - powerful words or phrases !! - something that surprises you or catches your attention ?? - something that raises a question ( write down that question in the margin) => - When you make a connection to the text. Write important thoughts on sticky notes or in the margins.
Maze Runner By James Dashner ( Lexile 770) Book one in the blockbuster Maze Runner series that spawned a movie franchise and ushered in a worldwide phenomenon! And don’t miss The Fever Code, the highlyanticipated series conclusion that finally reveals the story of how the maze was built! When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone. Outside the towering stone walls that surround them is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying: Remember. Survive. Run.
The Future of Us By Jay Asher (690) What if you could see how your life would unfold--just by clicking a button? It's 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet. Emma just got her first computer and an America Online CD-ROM. Josh is her best friend. They power up and log on--and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future. Everybody wonders what their destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out. The real value of The Future of Us may lie less in its plot than in the rich crop of questions it will raise in teenage readers…Reading the book should get contemporary teenagers wondering: Where will I live 15 years from now? Whom will I marry? What kind of life can I dream of? And what, exactly, is a "CD-ROM"? Prepare yourselves, parents, for the disbelief that will follow explanations of such historic artifacts as dial-up Internet, the Discman and busy signals. ( NY Times) Curveball By Jordan Sonnenblick (700) There’s nothing All Star pitcher Peter Friedman loves more than baseball. He breathes it, dreams it, and works his tail off to be great. Most kids are nervous about starting high school, but when you’re the star athlete, girls, popularity, and all-around stud status are sure to follow. Then a pitching accident over the summer ruins Pete’s arm. If he can’t play baseball in high school, what is he supposed to do? If he isn’t the star pitcher, then who is he? To make matters more complicated, there’s something going on with Pete’s grampa -- he’s acting weird and keeps forgetting important things. The only person Pete can confide in is Angelika, the amazingly cute girl in his photography class who might like Pete as much as he likes her . . . Only, Angie doesn’t know if she can date someone who can’t be honest with himself, or with the people he’s closest to.
2) REQUIRED BOOK - EVERYONE Reads This book will be the first book that we look at in class. Students will read it on their own during the month of July. The only work that will be done outside of class would be chapter summaries (turned into GC by the end of the first week in school - August 11). This book will be used to review previously learned literary skills (plot, character, and theme development the use of point of view and figurative language), for in class discussions, a test, and an essay during the first few weeks of school. Wednesday Wars (Lexile 990) In this Newbery Honor-winning novel, Gary D. Schmidt offers an unforgettable antihero. The Wednesday Wars is a wonderfully witty and compelling story about a teenage boy’s mishaps and adventures over the course of the 1967–68 school year in Long Island, New York. Meet Holling Hoodhood, a seventh-grader at Camillo Junior High, who must spend Wednesday afternoons with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, while the rest of the class has religious instruction. Mrs. Baker doesn’t like Holling—he’s sure of it. Why else would she make him read the plays of William Shakespeare outside class? But everyone has bigger things to worry about, like Vietnam. His father wants Holling and his sister to be on their best behavior: the success of his business depends on it. But how can Holling stay out of trouble when he has so much to contend with? A bully demanding cream puffs; angry rats; and a baseball hero signing autographs the very same night Holling has to appear in a play in yellow tights! As fate sneaks up on him again and again, Holling finds Motivation—the Big M—in the most unexpected places and musters up the courage to embrace his destiny, in spite of himself.
3) Chapter Summaries: Chapter Summary Directions ● ● ● ● ● ●
You will write a summary for EVERY chapter you read. Each summary will be a different length, but each should include the same type of information - see description above. The title of your book is the name of the document Make sure to include the title and the author of the book you have chosen on the top of the first page of the document. Label each chapter section with the chapter number, and name if they have one. (Ex: Chapter 1: The Sound of the Shell) Remember that you are summarizing NOT paraphrasing.
What is a Summary? A summary is condensed version of a larger reading. A summary is not a rewrite of the original piece and does not have to be long nor should it be long. To write a summary, use your own words to express briefly the main idea and relevant details of the piece you have read. Your purpose in writing the summary is to give the basic ideas of the original reading. What was it about and what did the author want to communicate? While reading the original work, take note of what or who is the focus and ask the usual questions that reporters use: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? Using these questions to examine what you are reading can help you to write the summary.
Book of Choice: Summaries and Literary elements are due no later than July 7, 2017 Wednesday Wars: Summaries are due by August 11, 2017 4) Google Slide Presentation: In addition to the Chapter Summaries, you will need to create a Google Slide Presentation that illustrates the Literary Elements of the novel that you chose to read. Below are listed all the elements that must be included, they have been defined for you as well. General guidelines for the slides: ● Choose a design theme that somehow relates to your novel, but don’t choose backgrounds that are so complicated it is hard to read the words. ● Make sure that each literary element has its own slide. ● Title slide should include the name of the novel, the author’s name, and your name 1. Mapping the Plot (Each element gets its own slide. Rising Action will be more than one slide) a. Exposition - Introduce the characters, setting, and conflict before jumping into the action b. Inciting Incident - The moment in the story that the protagonist is forced into action. ( Without this there wouldn’t even be a story) c. Rising Action - The longest part of the story. This is where the characters are developed and the events leading to the climax are laid out. d. Climax - The “gasp” moment. The highest moment of action either physical or emotional. e. Falling Action - Fast paced and action packed . The conflict is resolved, we find out if the protagonist was successful, if the antagonist was defeated. f. Resolution - How everything works out in the end. Wraps up the story and answers any questions that might still be unanswered. 2. Conflict - some stories have more than one conflict, be sure to make a slide for each conflict present in your novel a. External - between the protagonist and someone or something else i. Man v. Man ii. Man v. Nature
iii. Man v. Society/Technology b. Internal - in the character’s mind - a struggle of conscience i. Man v. Self 3. Characters - each type of character gets it’s own slide. Use both direct and indirect characterization examples. a. Protagonist - the central character in the story, the one the author wants the readers to identify with b. Antagonist - the person opposing the protagonist. c. Indirect Characterization - when the author drops hints about character traits, but does not state them directly. The author uses; what the character says, how the character looks, what the character does, What the character thinks, and what others think about the character, to clue the reader in on that character’s personality. d. Direct Characterization - when the author states a character trait in the text 4. Theme - some stories have multiple themes, pick one and provide good evidence for support a. Definition of Theme: The story’s main message ( or a moral) 5. Figurative Language - one example of each, one per slide. a. Metaphor - comparison of two unlike things b. Simile - a comparison of two unlike things, using either “like” or “as” c. Alliteration -when two or more words in a line begin with the same sound d. Allusion - a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance, ( in other word: a reference to another , well known, person, place, thing, or idea) e. Idiom - an expression that does actually mean what it says. Ex: it’s raining cats and dogs f. Hyperbole - an extreme exaggeration used for emphasis or effect Ex: I almost died of boredom g. Personification - when a non-human object is given human qualities 5) Active Reading Strategies: For all three books, students need to show evidence of ACTIVE READING. This includes writing in the books themselves, highlighting important passages and vocabulary words, and using sticky notes to summarize chapters. Upon returning to school in August, books will be checked for evidence of Active Reading and other activities and assessments will be given in class. Books are to be read and evidence of active reading is due the first day you return to school in August.
**It is not necessary for students to purchase copies of these books. Library copies, with sticky notes for active reading, are just fine.** Suggested annotations: Here are suggested annotations to use for ACTIVE READING. UNDERLINE - words or phrases that you do not understand CIRCLE or [BRACKET] - powerful words or phrases !! - something that surprises you or catches your attention ?? - something that raises a question ( write down that question in the margin) => - When you make a connection to the text. Write important thoughts on sticky notes or in the margins.
