10th Hebron High School Grade Pre-AP English Summer Reading 2015-2016 Begin a reading adventure this summer! This year, your summer reading will be self-selected. In fact, your summer reading will not be limited to a single assigned text but will reflect your reading selections completed throughout the summer. As a department, we believe that students who read, succeed. Developing a love of reading with its many personal and academic benefits is vital to becoming life-long learners. In choosing your summer reading, try to select a variety of works-fiction and nonfiction, classic and modern--with differing levels of academic difficulty. While we have provided you with diverse lists of books (see the lists at http://tiny.cc/HHSeng2papsummerreading), you should not feel confined to that list alone. Feel free to journey off the path and discover new adventures with authors and titles. Aim at challenging your own reading boundaries. Attached to this letter you will find a list of questions to consider as you read. These questions will be the basis for our initial conversations about literature, so be prepared to discuss these various elements as they relate to one of the titles from your list. Take note also of effective use of imagery, diction, and figurative language. Please consider making external notes or annotating your texts by highlighting, underlining, bracketing, making margin notes, or using any other method that works for you. If you are reading a borrowed copy, use sticky notes or index cards for your annotations. If you’re reading an ebook, make sure it has an annotation feature or employ the same method as for a borrowed copy. Be prepared to discuss and write in response to your annotations the first week of the semester. Also attached you will find the Summer Reading Assignment sheet that explains the expectations in more depth. You will turn in this assignment sheet on the first day of class. An additional copy of the chart is available at this link: http://tiny.cc/HHSeng2papassignment . You are encouraged to read above and beyond in preparation for the academic challenges ahead. Keep in mind that colleges expect students to be able to read with ease 300 to 1,000 pages a week. We expect to discuss additional works you select as part of your summer reading experience, and we will continue the journey throughout the semester. Enjoy some great books, and have a wonderful summer! Donna Friend English Department Chair “We read to know we are not alone.” – C.S. Lewis “The books that help you most are those which make you think the most. The hardest way of learning is that of easy reading; but a great book that comes from a great thinker is a ship of thought, deep freighted with truth and beauty.” --Pablo Neruda “The answers you get from literature depend on the questions you pose.” – Margaret Atwood Questions for Summer Reading Characterization: How does the author develop the characters? What is the difference between flat and round characters? Which minor characters play important roles? How do the characters advance the plot and the conflict? Time and sequence: How does the author develop time and sequence? Is foreshadowing used? Flashbacks? How does the author craft these time shifts? How do these time shifts advance the telling of the story? Themes: Which themes emerge? How are these themes developed? Author’s Purpose: Why do you think the author wrote this book? What did he or she really want to say? What was the historical context in which this book was written, and how did this influence the author? Who is/was the author’s intended audience? Diction: How does the author’s choice of words advance the story? Is dialogue used effectively? Does the diction ring true? Does the author effectively use figurative language-metaphor, simile, and allegory? Symbolism: How does the author effectively use symbolism to advance the story? How do these symbols enrich the story? Voice: Who is telling the story? Which point of view has the author used? How are other literary elements revealed through the use of narration or dialogue? Setting: Where is the story set? How does this setting affect the story’s development? Conflict: What are the central conflicts in the work? Are the conflicts primarily internal or external? Tone: What is the author’s attitude in this work? How and where is it revealed? From Deeper Reading by Kelly Gallagher