SSR Quarterly Book Report Project

Written Project

The report must be typed in a standard font (such as Times New Roman) size 12 and double spaced.
The report should be approximately 1 full typed page.
The report will be broken down into four separate paragraphs, each with its own focus.
Paragraph 1: Name the title and author of the book and specifically why you chose to read that book (it had an interesting cover because it had ______on it, or your friend recommended it, or you like the author’s other books, and so on.).
Paragraph 2: A brief plot summary that must include the following: 1) the protagonist and antagonist, 2) the setting, and 3) a brief discussion of what the story is about/what happens—don’t get too carried away. This paragraph shouldn’t be more than about 1/4 to 1/3 of a page long.
Paragraph 3: Name what you believe to be a plausible theme of the book and use details of the book, such as characters, setting, and plot events to show how the author developed that theme. Do so by discussing specific events, etc. in the book that show that the theme was being developed, and explain why those events show that theme.
Paragraph 4: This will include three things: 1) State your overall opinion on the book (you loved it, liked it, it was okay, hated it, etc.). 2) Say what specifically you liked about it (this should be about the book and not just about the plot. For example, it kept you wanting to read to find out what happened, you thought the characters were cool or realistic, it was written in a way that was easy to read and follow, and so on). 3) Say what you wish had been different about the book (this should also be about the book, not about the plot. For example, the ending was too open-ended, or a certain character wasn’t very believable, or that the language in the book was unnecessarily complex, and so on.)
The report should not use first person (I, me, my, etc) with exception of the first and fourth paragraphs, which are entirely your opinions.
A“reading journal”can be submitted for extra credit. The journal must include a chapter summary for each chapter in the book, as well as any comments, questions, or other points of interest that you might come up with during the course of reading that chapter (for example, that you don’t understand what something means, that you like or dislike a certain character, that you hope that something happens, etc.)

Oral Report

The report must be three to five minutes in length.
The report cannot be read, though you may have/use notecards to help guide you in your presentation.
The report is essentially a short overview of your written project. Itmust address the following aspects of your book:
State why you chose to read the book
Identify the protagonist and antagonist
Briefly summarize the plot
State the theme of the book and briefly explain how that theme is shown/developed in the book
State one positive thing about the book and one negative thing about the book

Visual Aide

It must be large enough to be seen and read in the back of the room.
It must include both the title and the author.
It must include both pictures and text (aside from the title and author and/or words that naturally would appear in the pictures).
It must clearly relate to one or more elements of your oral report (it should not be just the book’s cover)
It must be neat (should be neatly drawn and written or include printed and/or typed images and should be in color), and it should show some complexity and/or creativity in thought on the final product, meaning that it should address several different aspects of the novel or convey the topics in a thoughtful, meaningful way).

Quote Poster

Pull an interesting quote or two from your SSR book.
Create a mini-poster that includes the quote(s) and pictures that illustrate the quote.
On the back, explain why you chose that quote, or what made it stand out to you.