Required Summer
Reading Assignments
Sophomores
All English
Courses:
Read To
Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Take the twenty-five question, multiple
choice test on To Kill a Mockingbird in
September and be prepared to discuss the text in class. Teachers expect that you will have read the
book and, therefore, will not need extra time to read it during the semester.
IMPORTANT: YOUR FALL SUMMER READING MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST SCORE
WILL BE 10% OF YOUR GRADE FOR MARKING PERIOD #1 SO TAKE THIS TEST SERIOUSLY.
Honors English 10:
In addition to
the above, read Of Mice And Men by John
Steinbeck and Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton and be prepared to
discuss both books in class. Also, complete the notetaking and essay
requirement below.
Notetaking:
Using quotes
from all 3 novels (Of Mice And Men, Ethan Frome and
To Kill a Mockingbird) use the 2-column notetaking format shown below to
focus on examples of each of the following:
·
characterization
of each character
·
symbolism
·
conflict
·
theme
·
imagery
·
setting
Take 3 pages of handwritten,
self-generated notes on each book (9 pages total – both sides). Make sure
that your notes span the entire text. Do not take all of your notes on one
section of the book.
Examples of
2-column notes:
|
From the
short story “The Sniper” “ |
This is an
important quote showing how the setting tells the reader that there is a
civil war – meaning that families are fighting one another – this sets up the irony of the ending where the reader
discovers that the narrator has killed his own brother. |
|
From the short story “The Most Dangerous Game” “He was a
tall man past middle age; there was an original, almost bizarre quality about
the general’s face. His thick eyebrows and pointed, military moustache
were as black as the night from which Rainsford had come. He had the
face of a man used to giving orders, the face of an aristocrat.” |
This quote
uses imagery and simile to focus on the characterization of General Zaroff
whom the reader realizes is a man of great wealth. Because he is a
military man and an aristocrat, he is used to giving orders and getting what
he wants. This becomes significant because the manhunt that Zaroff
participates in is a direct result of Zaroff’s getting what he wants:
excitement and a challenge. The reader learns of the general’s cruelty
and lack of value for human life. |
Essay:
Using all three novels, write a 2-3 page, double-spaced, size 12
typed essay on the following:
Poverty and isolation can weaken the human
spirit.
Important: The theme stated above must
be incorporated into the conclusion; use specific examples from the texts to
support your answer.
IMPORTANT:
1. YOUR FALL SUMMER
READING MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST SCORE ALONE WILL BE 10% OF YOUR GRADE FOR MARKING
PERIOD #1. THE 2-COLUMN NOTES AND THE ESSAY WILL BE GIVEN INDIVIDUAL
GRADES SEPARATE FROM THE 10% GRADE OF THE MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST.