Grade 8 Summer Reading

Transcription

1 Grade 8 Summer Reading Requirement: Incoming 8th graders must read ONE of the books below and can expect to complete assignments on their selection in both ELA and Social Studies classes during the first week of school. Summer Reading Challenge: As always, students are encouraged to read additional books of their choice. Please review the attached forms for an overview of the OPTIONAL summer reading challenge. Required Selections (Choose ONE) Sword of the Rightful King by Jane Yolen. In this novel, Yolen takes the traditional legend of King Arthur and the sword in the stone and creates a new story which portrays a young King Arthur as hesitant and uneasy. This novel has adventure, mystery and intrigue. The Midwife s Apprentice by Karen Cushman On a frosty morning sometime early in the fourteenth century, in a village somewhere in England, a girl known only as Brat was sleeping in a dung heap. This begins the novel in which brat is visited by an important looking woman named Jane. Brat soon discovers that Jane is a Midwife, and in need of a helper. Thus begins the funny, wise, compassionate story of the homeless waif who became the midwife s apprentice a person with a name and a place in the world. Alchemy and Meggy Swann by Karen Cushman Fans of Karen Cushman's witty, satisfying novels will welcome Meggy Swann, newly come to London with her only friend, a goose named Louise. Meggy's mother was glad to be rid of her; her father, who sent for her, doesn't want her after all. Meggy is appalled by London, dirty and noisy, full of rogues and thieves, and difficult to get around in not that getting around is ever easy for someone who walks with the help of two sticks. Just as her alchemist father pursues his Great Work of transforming base metal into gold, Meggy finds herself pursuing her own transformation. Earthy and colorful, Elizabethan London has its dark side, but it also has gifts in store for Meggy Swann. Pagan s Crusade by Catherine Jinks Sixteen year old Pagan Kidrouk arrives in Jerusalem in 1187 and finds, a city of holy places on the one hand and a city of beggars, thieves, corruption and poverty on the other. Pagan tells the tale of the harsh times of the crusades using his humor, sarcasm and disdain for others to shed light on this time in history. Through Pagan s tale it is discovered that, infidels and Christians were very much alike.

2 7th and 8th Grade Summer Reading Challenge: Read as many books as you would like from a variety of genres ( nonfiction, sci-fi, realistic fiction, mystery, poetry, personal nonfiction etc.) Log titles, genres, dates started/completed on the log provided. Remember, to also get a parent signature. Keep a reader s response journal and write 6 entries per book. Response options are provided with examples on the back of the log ** EVERYONE who submits a log, and reader s response journal will receive extra credit in ELA and will be invited to an ice cream social held after school in September**

3 Summer Reading Challenge Log Title/Author Genre Date started Date completed Parent Signature

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5 Reader s Response Journal Options (6 entries per book) Option Vocabulary Passage Analysis Letter to a character Feeling Response Narrator Analysis Summary writing for nonfiction 5Ws for nonfiction Explanation Identify FIVE unknown vocab words and look up their definitions. Identify a passage (sentence, group of sentences or paragraph), and explain its significance to the story. Write a letter to one of the characters. Ask them questions, tell them things about yourself they might want to know, give them some advice. Write a paragraph describing your emotions as you read. Why do you think you felt this way Write a paragraph describing the person telling the story. How would the story be different if the narrator was someone else in the story? Write a summary of what you read. Remember summaries should be BRIEF! Explain the basic information that is being presented in terms of Who, What, Where, When, and Why.