English

Entering Grade 7

College Level

Everyone must read two books.

1.) The Man Who Was Poe by Avi

During the first week of school we will review the book together, analyzing it in terms of the elements of fiction (characters, setting, plot, and theme). Within the first two weeks of school the students will take a test on this book, with multiple choice questions and an open response question (similar to the English Language Arts Reading Comprehension Assessment MCAS).

2.) Everyone must, in addition, read one book from the list below. Within the first two weeks of school, students will complete an assessment involving the elements of fiction for their “choice” book.

Avi The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle

Creech, Sharon Walk Two Moons

Creech, Sharon The Wanderer

Hess, Karen Out of the Dust

Hess, Karen Witness

Lowry, Lois The Giver

Montgomery, L. M. Anne of Green Gables

Naylor, Phyllis R. Fear Place

Peck, Richard A Long Way from Chicago

Pullman , Phillip The Golden Compass

Ryan, Pam Munoz Esperanza Rising **

Speare, Elizabeth G. The Sign of the Beaver

Taylor , Mildred Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Taylor, Theodore The Cay

 

English

Grade 7 Honors

Everyone must read two books .

 

1.) The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)

During the first week of school we will review the book together, analyzing it in terms of the elements of fiction (characters, setting, plot, and theme). Within the first two weeks of school the students will take a test on this book, with multiple choice questions and an open response question (similar to the English Language Arts Reading Comprehension Assessment MCAS).

 

Avi Ereth's Birthday

Avi Nothing But the Truth

Avi The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle

Creech, Sharon Walk Two Moons

Creech, Sharon The Wanderer

Hess, Karen Out of the Dust

Hess, Karen Witness

Lowry, Lois The Giver

Montgomery, L. M. Anne of Green Gables

Naylor, Phyllis R. Fear Place

Peck, Richard A Long Way from Chicago

Pullman , Phillip The Golden Compass

Sachar, Louis Holes

Speare, Elizabeth G. The Sign of the Beaver 1

Taylor , Mildred Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Taylor, Theodore The Cay

English

Grade 8

Grade 8 College and Grade 8 Honors :

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

by John Boyne: A 9-year-old German boy, moved by his family from Berlin to a place he calls “Out-With,” slowly discovers the reality of the Holocaust when he meets a boy his age dressed in striped clothing living on the other side of a fence.

Note: Contains some mature themes

Grade 8 College level students, though not required, are strongly encouraged to read one additional book from the following titles.

Grade 8 Honors: must also read one additional book from the following approved titles

Approved Summer Reading Titles:

Parents should review their child's book selection to ensure it is appropriate for his/her reading level. Some books may contain language and/or themes not appropriate for all readers.

 

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon: A 15-year-old autistic boy attempts to solve the mystery of his neighbor's murdered dog.

Note: Contains mature language and themes that may not be suitable for all readers.

Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie: The murder of a wealthy woman on a Nile River steamship cruise leaves everyone a suspect; only the famous detective Hercule Poirot can solve the case.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie: A group of strangers, each with something to hide, is summoned to an island by an eccentric millionaire. The mystery unfolds as one by one they begin to die mysteriously.

The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier: A student refuses to sell chocolates in an annual fundraiser at a private boys' school, challenging the authority of both school faculty and a secret student society known as The Vigils.

After the First Death by Robert Cormier: A terrorist attack targets a bus full of school children and a general's son.

Outcasts United by Warren St. John: A female coach starts a soccer team for refugees in a small southern town. [Nonfiction]

Note: This book is only available in hardcover as of June 2009

Into the Wild by John Krakauer: Twenty-four-year-old Chris McCandless donates his savings and most of his possessions to charity and ventures into the Alaskan wilderness. Krakauer attempts to retrace McCandless' steps to discover why just months later he is discovered dead. [Nonfiction]

Note: Contains mature themes that may not be suitable for all readers.

 

Students will be tested on Summer Reading at the beginning of the school year.