Summer Reading
By Michelle Schullo
English 12: Summer Reading for The Last Lecture,Randy Pausch
Summer reading assignments are due the first week of school.
Summer Reading Response Essays
All students will respond to both essay prompts. The response essays will be typed, double-spaced in a 12 pt. font. It is essential that you do your own work. Each essay will be a minimum of one page in length.
Essay 1: The Last Lectureis subtitled "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." What are some of your childhood dreams that you hope to carry into adulthood?
Essay 2: The Last Lecturebalances general advice such as "dream big" with specific tips - for example, how to work well in small groups:
"Instead of saying, "I think we should do A, instead of B," try "What if we did A, instead
of B?" (190)
Which of the tips struck you as most helpful? Addressing one of those tips, write an essay explaining your favorite scene or explaining why you would/wouldn't recommend this book to another student.
English 10: Summer Reading for Hiroshima,John Hersey
Summer reading assignments are due the first week of school.
This is not a work of fiction, but rather a journalistic account of the events following the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Hersey reports the stories of six individuals. Create a character sketch for one character who most interests you. Your character sketch will be typed and double-spaced in 12 pt. font. The directions follow:
Part 1
Character Sketch: Write one paragraph of response for items 1-6. Each paragraph will include description/explanation and one or two quotes from the text to support your thinking. Therefore, your character sketch will be at least six paragraphs in length with 6-12 quotes (use MLA to format quotes).
CHARACTER SKETCH FOR: (name)
1) Describe the character's traits and appearances
2) Describe the character's strengths and weaknesses
3) Describe the character's motivations
4) Describe the character's reliability
5) Is the character round or flat?
6) Is the character dynamic or static?
Part 2
Summer Reading Response Essay
The response essay should be typed, double-spaced in a 12 pt. font. It is essential that you do your own work. The essay should be a minimum of one page in length and should include two-three related quotes from the book (use MLA to format quotes).
Choose a topic for your paper from the following:
- compare a character from the book to someone you know, another character
in a film or book, etc.
- Who are your favorite or least favorite characters? Why?
- What is your favorite scene(s)? Why?
- How would you resolve one of the character's conflicts?
- Why would/wouldn't you recommend this book to another student?
* Notes are optional and are not an official part of the summer reading journal, but if you hand in your notes with your reading log, it will help your teacher know that you read your book carefully. Place these notes at the end of your journal and label them NOTES.
Helpful websites:
Glossary of literary terms: http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/litgloss/
MLA citation format: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/
Have a great summer!
Mrs. Schullo
