Denton ISD Pre-AP English 1 Summer Reading 2013
Hello Future High Schooler,
Your choice to enroll in English I - Pre-Advanced Placement indicates your dedication to your education. English I Pre-AP asks more of your brain as well as your time, beginning this summer.
Here’s the lowdown on your summer reading:
· The following assignments are designed to keep you reading and interacting with literature in ways that will benefit you now and throughout the year.
· These assignments will show where you are in terms of your reading awareness.
· These assignments will be due on the second day of school, so don’t wait too late in the summer to begin.
· These assignments are to be hand written in a spiral notebook. Both assignments should be done in the same spiral notebook.
· I strongly advise that you buy a copy of each book (used copies are fine) so that you can make notes, comments, and ask questions on the page. Bring your copies of the books to school with you starting on the first day.
Reading Assignment One:
Heroes, Gods, and Monsters by Bernard Evslin (ISBN #978-0-553-25920-9)
In a spiral notebook:
1. Create a list of the eleven major gods and goddesses, as covered in “The Gods” section of the book. Write a three-word description of each. REMEMBER, you can only use three words, so choose words that are as descriptive as possible.
2. Do the same three-word description exercise for each of the Demigods.
3. Make sure to read the rest of the book.
Reading Assignment Two:
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
For this novel, keep a reader-response journal as you read in your spiral notebook (the same one that you used for Heroes, Gods, and Monsters):
1. Title your journal the name of your chosen novel.
2. READ THE FIRST 50 PAGES OF THE NOVEL BEFORE STARTING YOUR READER- RESPONSE JOURNAL.
3. Draw a line down the middle of the page.
4. Left side: put page number in margin and copy meaningful passages from the book – perhaps a bit of dialogue, a description, or a character's thought(s). REMEMBER: You will have no passages from the first 50 pages of the novel.
5. Right side: write your response to the quotation – Why did you choose it? Did it puzzle or confuse you? Remind you of something? What does it mean to you?
i. If you choose to comment on a personal experience, be sure to connect it to what is happening in the story at that point so I see your reaction to and understanding of the novel.
ii. REALIZE: these entries are NOT a summary or paraphrasing of your reading – it is your RESPONSE to the passage. Journals that only summarize the story will be unacceptable.
iii. A good, thoughtful, developed response is no less than 5 sentences. Seriously, I count sentences!
Example of a reader-response journal entry (this is not from Ender’s Game):
Passage Response
"Charles Halloway suppressed a sudden urge I feel kind of sad for Will’s dad. He
to run with them, make the pack. He knew wants to be a kid still, but he’s gotten
what the wind was doing to them, where it was too old. The “secret places” makes me
taking them, to all the secret places that were think of the shed at my grand parents’
never so secret again in life.” P.17 farm where my cousins and I used to
play, but don’t go any more because we’re too
big. Is that how Charles feels? I hope his character gets to be part of the adventure, or I’m going to be pretty upset.
· Your journal for the novel should have at least 10 responses from throughout the book, so pace yourself! Remember, I would rather have ten done well than more that did not follow these instructions, so make these QUALITY responses.
· Do not wait until you finish the novel to write your responses. The responses should reflect what you are thinking as you read the novel, not what you think when you are finished, so try to stop at the ends of chapters to go back and write. That’ll help you keep up with what’s happening but still allow you to share what you are thinking as you go.
Final Note: Plagiarism
You are required to read each assigned work carefully, thoughtfully, and entirely by the assigned due date.Plagiarism, whether from commercially prepared notes, the Internet, or another student's work, falls under the heading of cheating. Cheating will result in azero on the assignment and notification of parents. And yes, even if you change the wording of the material you obtain, it is still plagiarism. I will clearly state if an assignment requires outside research.Otherwise, the work assigned in this class should be your honest and diligent response to the text(s). “Cheat sites” such as sparknotes.com and gradesaver.com are never to be used for this class for any reason.
Please email your anticipated English 1 Pre-AP teacher if you have any questions regarding the assignments.
We look forward to a year of challenges, successes, surprises, and satisfying growth!
Your Friendly Pre-AP Teachers,
Darby Dyer – Denton High School
Shawn Zeigler – Ryan High School
Shanna Stovall – Guyer High School
Amanda Goss – Guyer High School