Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School

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1 Dear Whittier Freshman: Grade 9 Summer Reading Requirement Summer 2012 Welcome to your new school from your English teachers! To prepare you for your high school writing program and the MCAS you will take during your sophomore year, you are required to complete a summer reading program. Directions: Attached you will find: 1) The Summer Reading List 2) A description of the journal entries 3) A description of the book poster assignment 4) A list of key literary terms 5) Rubric for self-grading Please read the book Peak, by Roland Smith. This is the required reading book for all incoming freshmen. In addition, please answer all of the questions on the Journal Writing Guide for this book. The journal entry will be due the first day of school. Once completed, please choose a second book from the list to read. In conjunction with this book you will be completing a book poster during the first week of school. Both books must be read by the first day of school! The books are available at local libraries, bookstores and on-line including Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com. Sincerely, Have a great summer. We look forward to seeing you in the fall. Your English Teachers

2 Grade 9 Summer Reading List Peak, by Roland Smith (Required reading for all incoming 9 th graders) Fourteen-year-old Peak Marcello has a passion for climbing that is clearly in his genes. So much so, that he has to resort to climbing skyscrapers to get a thrill while living in the city. But when he gets the opportunity to become the youngest person ever to stand above 29,000 feet, he has no idea what awaits him. His long-lost father, new best friend, and the mountain itself become both a blessing and a curse in Peak s ascent to climbing history. In this book, Peak shares his own story of the gut-wrenching and exhilarating world of Mount Everest. The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd Fourteen-year-old Lily Owen is neglected by her father and isolated on their South Carolina peach farm. She spends hours imagining a blissful infancy when she was loved and nurtured by her mother, Deborah, whom she barely remembers. All Lily has left of Deborah is a strange image of a Black Madonna, with the words "Tiburon, South Carolina" scrawled on the back. When Lily's beloved nanny, Rosaleen, has to skip town, Lily takes the opportunity to go with her, fleeing to the only place she can think of--tiburon, South Carolina-- determined to find out more about her dead mother. What she finds there are the answers and the family that she has been looking for her whole life. Ender s Game, by Orson Scott Card Intense is the word for Ender's Game. Aliens have attacked Earth twice and almost destroyed the human species. To make sure humans win the next encounter, the world government has taken to breeding military geniuses and then training them in the arts of war. The early training, not surprisingly, takes the form of 'games'. Ender Wiggin is a genius among geniuses; he wins all the games. He is smart enough to know that time is running out, but is he smart enough to save the planet? To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee Scout Finch, the story s narrator, her brother Jem and their widowed dad, Atticus, are the main characters in this novel set in the racially charged south in the summer of Atticus, a lawyer undertakes a controversial legal case involving a serious accusation against an innocent black man, and because of this the family s life is changed forever. This is a gripping, heart wrenching, and wholly remarkable tale of the coming-of-age South that is poisoned by prejudice. Through this tale, Scout Finch views the world with great beauty and savage inequalities, as her father risks everything to defend a man unjustly accused of a terrible crime. A Mango Shaped Space, by Wendy Mass Thirteen-year-old Mia Winchell appears to be the most normal kid in her family. Her younger brother Zack keeps a chart of all the McDonald's hamburgers he's eaten in his lifetime. Her older sister Beth dyes her hair a different color every week and might be a witch. But Mia knows she is far from ordinary. She is keeping something from everyone who knows her: the fact that sounds, numbers, and letters have color for her. When trouble in school finally convinces Mia to reveal her secret, she feels like a freak. Her family and friends have trouble relating to her as she embarks on an intense journey of self-discovery. By the time she realizes she has isolated herself from all the people who care about her, it is almost too late.

3 Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins (Book 2 of The Hunger Games trilogy) The story of Katniss Everdeen, the heroine from The Hunger Games, returns to District 12 and prepares to travel with Peeta, her Hunger Games partner, on the Capitol s cruel Victory Tour. Nothing is the same when she returns; Gale is aloof and Peeta wants nothing to do with her. Rumors are spreading that she and Peeta may have started an uprising against the Capitol that cannot be stopped. Travelling with Peeta to all districts to promote the games may also lead to problems. What if she and Peeta cannot convincingly demonstrate their supposed undying love for each other? What will happen to Katniss, her family and others? Read the second story of this blockbuster trilogy to find out.

4 Grade 9 Summer Reading Response Journal Writing Guide Incoming ninth grade English students are expected to write their reflections and reactions in journal form while reading their required summer selection: Peak, by Roland Smith. This journal entry may be neatly handwritten in a bound journal, a notebook, or typed. The journal assignment will be counted as a grade and will be due on the first day of school. Your English teachers will be looking for neatly written (blue or black ink) or typed work that is a thorough, thoughtful, and reflective response to the following journal prompts. In order to earn the highest grade, students should complete all of the following requirements in the order listed: 1. Identify the book's title, author's name, and copyright date. Underline or italicize the title. 2. In 200 words maximum, write a brief summary of the plot, including the beginning, the middle, and the end. 3. Explain the significance of the title. Authors rarely choose a title randomly. Dig for symbolic meaning. The title may be a metaphor or it may represent some specific incident in the book. In any case, consider carefully the significance of the title and explain your thinking. 4. Make a list of the main characters and list five adjectives to describe each one. 5. Describe your first impressions of the protagonist. Describe your first impressions of the antagonist. 6. Describe how the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) change or remain the same throughout the story. Tell what happens to make the character change or explain why and how he/she remains the same. For example, does the character have to make a choice, is there a conflict or problem that needs resolution, does the character have to be courageous, etc, or does something specific in his/her life change? 7. Cite (that is, quote word for word using quotation marks) and note the page number of a special passage from the book that you think is important or worth rereading. (Maybe it explains something about the character, or perhaps it describes a very special event, or perhaps it holds a certain resonance or connection with you, the reader.) You must explain why you chose this passage. Dig deep for a connection here. 8. To highlight the significance of this book, write 5-8 sentences responding to each of the following: a. What life lessons have you learned (or have been reinforced) from reading this book? b. What did you like and dislike the most about this book? Explain using details and examples from the selection.

5 Grade 9 Summer Reading Response Book Poster Guide One of the best parts of reading a good book is sharing with others what you have read. The poster project is designed to jump-start conversations about literature and encourage one another to pick up books that members of our class have read and enjoyed. Assignment: For the second book that you read (NOT Peak by Roland Smith), create a visually appealing poster that brings your choice book to life for the rest of us. This poster will be made during the first week of school during class time. Task: 1. Your poster should include the following information (on the FRONT): a. Book title (underlined) b. Author s name, year born and year died (if applicable) c. Main characters d. Number of pages in the book e. What type of novel is it? (sports, love, science-fiction, historical, etc.) 2. Provide a three to five sentence summary of the plot. Spark our interest, but don t give away the ending. This summary should be typed or neatly handwritten and should be attached to the BACK of the poster. 3. Provide a two to three sentence explanation of whether or not you would recommend the book to your classmates and why. This should also be typed or neatly handwritten and attached to the BACK of the poster. 4. Create a picture or pictures that represent the novel as a whole or your favorite part of the novel (on the FRONT of the poster). Here are some ideas: a. A memorable character b. An important setting c. An important event 5. Include a quote from the book that would be considered important or memorable - it should be written on the bottom of poster - be sure to cite the page number! **Be mindful of spelling mistakes! Show creativity and pride in your work! The FRONT of the poster should be COLORFUL and NEATLY presented! **

6 Grade 9 Literary Terms The following are literary terms that you will need to understand in order to complete the assigned summer reading project. Protagonist: The central character of a literary work. In accomplishing his or her objective, the protagonist is hindered by some opposing force (the antagonist). For example, Harry Potter is the protagonist in all the Harry Potter books; in the novel, Holes, Stanley Yelnats is the protagonist. Antagonist: A person or force which opposes the protagonist in a literary work. In Holes, the warden and Mr. Sir both serve as antagonists. The cold, in Jack London's "To Build a Fire" is the antagonist that defeats the man on the trail. Plot: The action or sequence of events in a story. Plot is usually a series of related incidents that builds and grows as the story develops. There are five basic elements in a plot line: Exposition (provides information about the characters and setting of the story) Rising action (this is when the conflict begins) Climax (the crucial moment in a story or play that will determine the rest of the action) Falling action (The falling action is the series of events which take place after the climax) Resolution or conclusion Conflict: Conflict is a problem that needs to be resolved. There are two main categories of conflict: 1. Internal conflict - This type of conflict involves you and no one else. 2. External conflict - This involves you and some other force, such as another person, nature, laws, or technology. Symbol: A device in literature where an object represents an idea. For example, an 8-sided sign that is painted red represents a stop sign. A light bulb shown over a person s head in a cartoon represents a good idea. The $ sign is a symbol of money. When we see a heart we think of love. Simile: A comparison of two unlike objects using like or as. Examples: Her lips are like a red, red rose. He s as tall as a house. She s as skinny as a post. She s as pretty as an angel. The goalkeeper was as solid as a rock. Metaphor: A comparison of two unlike objects not using the words like or as. Examples: Life is a precious possession. Time is a thief. The goalkeeper was a rock. I am an island. America is a melting pot.