Ho-Ho-Kus Public School. Required Summer Reading For Sixth Grade 2018 Mrs. Frassetto

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1 Ho-Ho-Kus Public School Required Summer Reading For Sixth Grade 2018 Mrs. Frassetto

2 Welcome to the Sixth-Grade Summer Reading Page 2018 So it is with children who learn to read fluently and well: They begin to take flight into whole new worlds as effortlessly as young birds take to the sky. ---William James Summer offers a perfect opportunity to rediscover the pleasure of reading at a leisurely and enjoyable pace. Connecting to stories that are exciting and engaging is key to developing lifelong reading habits, and students are encouraged to read widely and sample a variety of genres. Reading, writing, and success in school are closely interrelated. Even more importantly, reading engages the imagination like no other medium, transporting readers into the hearts and minds of others. Instructions: All students in middle school must read Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass and Pay It Forward : Young Readers Edition by Catherine Ryan Hyde. Also, sixth graders must complete one of the assignment choices for Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life and the required assignment for Pay It Forward : Young Readers Edition. Assignments should be completed before the beginning of school. Work will be collected on Tuesday, September 11, and will count as a homework grade. If you have questions during the summer, please Mrs. Frassetto at kfrassetto@hohokus.org. 1. Required : Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass 2. Required: Pay It Forward : Young Readers Edition by Ca therine Ryan Hyde 3. Optional: Reading Enrichment Opportunity---Choose any novel of your choice to enjoy over the summer (no graphic novels). Please keep a list of titles and authors. See form below. **To earn extra credit, students must bring their Optional Summer Reading Form(s) to school on Tuesday, September 11.

3 About the Book Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass In one month Jeremy Fink will turn thirteen. But does he have what it takes to be a teenager? He collects mutant candy, he won't venture more than four blocks from his apartment if he can help it, and he definitely doesn't like surprises. On the other hand, his best friend, Lizzy, isn't afraid of anything, even if that might get her into trouble now and then. Jeremy's summer takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious wooden box arrives in the mail. According to the writing on the box, it holds the meaning of life! Jeremy is supposed to open it on his thirteenth birthday. The problem is, the keys are missing, and the box is made so that only the keys will open it without destroying what's inside. Jeremy and Lizzy set off to find the keys, but when one of their efforts goes very wrong, Jeremy starts to lose hope that he'll ever be able to open the box, but he soon discovers that when you're meeting people named Oswald Oswald and using a private limo to deliver unusual objects to strangers all over the city, there might be other ways of finding out the meaning of life.

4 Choose one of the following assignments: Complete the Story Elements graphic organizer. See below. Jeremy owned a store that sold comic books. Using that medium, create a comic book sketch of your favorite scene in the novel. Go to Pixton at Jeremy spends the entire summer trying to discover what is in his Meaning of Life Box. When he finally gets it opened, his father informs him...that s all life is, really, a string of moments that you knot together and carry with you..the trick is to recognize an important one when it happens (272). Think about your own life to date and create your own Meaning of Life box. You can use a shoebox and fill it with items that are meaningful to you. Also, you must write a three-paragraph letter to your parents about what you ve learned about life. First paragraph and concluding paragraph must be five sentences, minimum. Write a book review paragraph Introduce the book (include the title and author) and summarize the novel s plot in a short paragraph, but try not to give away the ending. Discuss what you liked best and least (or disliked) about the book. Provide an examples to support your statement. Sum up your opinion and say whether you would recommend the book or not. Why? Why not?

5 Go to the following website to learn more about Wendy Mass and her journey to become an author: Wendy Mass is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-four novels for young people (which have been translated into 22 languages and nominated for 77 state book awards), including A Mango-Shaped Space (which was awarded the Schneider Family Book Award by the American Library Association), Leap Day, the Twice Upon a Time fairy tale series, Every Soul a Star, 11 Birthdays, Heaven Looks a Lot Like the Mall, Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life, and Finally, The Candymakers, and 13 Gifts. Her latest books are The Last Present, Pi in the Sky, and a new early reader series called Space Taxi. Wendy wrote the storyline for an episode of the television show Monk, entitled Mr. Monk Goes to the Theatre, which aired during the show s second season. She tells people her hobbies are hiking and photography, but really they re collecting candy bar wrappers and searching for buried treasure with her metal detector. She lives with her family in New Jersey. Go to the following URL to read an interview with the author: ped-space

6 Pay It Forward : Young Readers Edition by Catherine Ryan Hyde (Two Versions Available: Choose Young Readers Edition.) ISBN About the Book Pay It Forward is a moving, uplifting novel about Trevor McKinney, a twelve-year-old boy in a small California town who accepts his teacher s challenge to earn extra credit by coming up with a plan to change the world. Trevor s idea is simple: do a good deed for three people, and instead of asking them to return the favor, ask them to pay it forward to three others who need help. He envisions a vast movement of kindness and goodwill spreading across the world, and in this quiet, steady masterpiece with an incandescent ending (Kirkus Reviews), Trevor s actions change his community forever. The middle school edition of Pay It Forward is extensively revised, making it an appropriate pick for summer reading.

7 Required Assignment Sixth graders must answer one question from the following list for Pay It Forward : Young Readers Edition. Work must be typed, MLA format, Times New Roman, 12 point, double spaced. Students responses should be at least one paragraph (minimum eleven sentences), and the question should be answered using evidence from the text. When you quote directly from the book, create an in-text parenthetical citation by including the page number where you found the quote. See in-text parenthetical example in sentences 7, 8, and 9 below. Copy each question, then answer the question by numbering each sentence in each paragraph. Example: Question #1: What is the main character like? Choose an adjective that describes the main character. Then cite evidence from the text that supports the adjective that you chose. Answer: 1. The novel's protagonist, Tom Sawyer, is a mischievous boy with an active imagination who spends most of the novel getting himself, and often his friends, into and out of trouble. 2. Despite his mischief, Tom has a good heart and a strong moral conscience. 3. As the novel progresses, he begins to take more seriously the responsibilities of his role as a leader among his schoolfellows. 4. There are many words that describe Tom, so my list will have to be selective. 5. First, Tom is crafty and mischievous. 6. Secondly, Tom is heroic. 7. Tom was a glittering hero once more---the pet of the old, the envy of the young. 8. His name even went into immortal print, for the village paper magnified him. 9. There were some who believed he would be president, yet, if he escaped hanging (Twain 111). 10. Tom s unflagging energy and thirst for adventure propels the novel from episode to episode. 11. Disobedient though he may be, Tom ends up as St. Petersburg s hero.

8 Works Cited Page In addition, you will need a Works Cited page, the last page attached to your response. You may use the following for your Works Cited page Hyde, Catherine Ryan. Pay It Forward: Young Readers Edition. New York: Simon & Schuster Print. Questions 1. Describe Trevor McKinney s Pay It Forward project. How does he get the idea? Why do others around him think it will fail? Do you believe this kind of project would work? Why or why not? 2. What was your favorite part of Pay It Forward? Describe. 3. If you were a student in Reuben St. Clair s class, how would you have responded to him in light of his physical appearance? How did you feel about Trevor s response to him? What do you think Trevor saw? Why do you think children often can see what s really true about a person? What do you think happens throughout our lives that often changes our ability to see? 4. What human desire does Trevor s project connect with in each person who hears about it throughout the story, regardless of their place in society? Do you think all human beings share this desire? Why or why not? 5. How are Reuben St. Clair and Arlene McKinney similar in their approach to life? How are they different? What do you think they are drawn to in each other? 6. At the beginning of the story, Trevor writes about a story he heard on the news about a little kid over in England who has this, like... condition. Nothing hurts him.... Sometimes I think my mom has that condition, too. Only on the inside.... Except, I know she hurts. But she still has her hand on that hot stove. Describe what you think Trevor is saying in this diary entry. Give examples from Arlene s life that support Trevor s hypothesis. How do other characters in the

9 book also illustrate this condition of building walls to protect themselves from pain? How effective are their walls? 7. What did you feel when Jerry relapsed? Do you think someone like Jerry can truly change? Why or why not? 8. How does Sidney G. s story illustrate a major theme of the book? 9. Why do you think Arlene took Ricky back when he reappeared after his unexplained absence? What beliefs about herself and about others kept her in a cycle of addiction and unhealthy relationships with men? Do you think her character experienced growth and transformation throughout the story? Explain. 10. How was Trevor s motivation for the project different from the other students who participated? What do you think contributed to his unique motivation? 11. Was Reuben St. Clair a great teacher? Was Trevor McKinney an exceptional student? Explain. 12. One of the major themes of the book is the contrast between external image or appearance and internal character and motivation. Pick one character in the book and describe the contrast between their external image and their true character. What does this exercise reveal about the process of forming relationships? 13. Who was your favorite character in the book? Explain what you were drawn to about them and how they contributed to the overall theme of the book. 14. Who was your least favorite character in the book? Why? 15. Do you think it s possible for one person to change the world? Explain. 16. How do you feel about the way the story ended?

10 Extra Credit OPTIONAL Complete one of the following activities. 1. Write a letter to Trevor and explain one of the following: a) why you think he is a hero or b) why you think he is not. You might choose instead to write the letter to Arlene, his mother, or to his teacher Reuben. First paragraph and concluding paragraph must be five sentences, minimum. Body paragraphs must be eleven sentences minimum. 2. Write an editorial (450 words maximum) about a topic that bothers you most about the world and explain what people could do to make the situation better. Support your essay with information you gather from the Internet. Remember to cite any sources appropriately. After school starts, you can send your editorial to a newspaper to be published. 3. Research charities and other organizations in your community for which you can volunteer. Make a list of these organizations and the volunteer work students can do for each organization. You must write a five-sentence paragraph describing each organization. Include name of organization, address, and contact information. Create a colorful brochure presenting what you found. 4. Pick three people and pay it forward and invite them to do the same. Interview the three people after they have paid it forward and write a news article detailing what happened. Use a newspaper generator to create your newspaper article: or Use the following outline to organize your thoughts.

11 The Basic Newspaper Story Outline The best way to structure a newspaper article is to first write an outline. Review your research and notes. Then jot down ideas for the following six sections. Remember, this is just a foundation upon which to build your story. I. Lead sentence Grab and hook your reader right away. II. Introduction Which facts and figures will ground your story? You have to tell your readers where and when this story is happening. III. Opening quotation What will give the reader a sense of the people involved and what they are thinking? IV. Main body What is at the heart of your story? V. Closing quotation Find something that sums the article up in a few words. VI. Conclusion (optional the closing quote may do the job) What is a memorable way to end your story? The end quote is a good way to sum things up. That doesn t always work. If you are quoting more than one person with different points of view in your story, you cannot end with a quote from just one of them. Giving one of your interviewees the last word can tilt the story in their favor. In this age of the Internet, you can also end your story with a link to more information or even your own behind-the-scenes blog post. 5. Trevor had several different ideas of how to Pay It Forward; some were good, but others put him in danger. Write about what you would do if you decided to Pay It Forward. How would you avoid some of Trevor s mistakes and be sure that your plans were safe? Five paragraphs. MLA format. First paragraph and concluding paragraph must be five sentences, minimum. Body paragraphs must be eleven sentences minimum.

12 Go to the following website to learn more about Catherine Ryan Hyde and her journey to become an author: Go to the following URL to read an interview with the author: To learn more about Catherine Ryan Hyde, go to:

13 Optional Summer Reading Enrichment Student s Name: Date Finished Reading Reading Enrichment Opportunity---Choose any novel of your choice to enjoy over the summer (no graphic novels). Please keep a list of titles and authors. Title of Book (Underline title of each book.) Author s Name

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15 To earn more extra credit, complete the following form for each choice book you read during the summer and bring the form(s) to school no later than Tuesday, September 11, to earn credit. Please use the following words in your responses: protagonist, antagonist, symbol, and character traits. Name Date Story Map Write notes in each section. Setting: Time: Place: Characters:

16 Problem: Plot/Events: Resolution:

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