SUMMER 2010
DUBLIN CITY SCHOOLS SUMMER READING
FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS IN
GRADE 6
SUMMER READING PURPOSE STATEMENT:
Literacy involves reading, writing, speaking, listening and thinking. As
we prepare our students for the skills needed to be successful in the
21st Century, it is important that we provide opportunities for our
students to engage in the activities that will help to build this
literacy skill set. It is also our goal to establish a summer reading
program that encourages our students to discover the joy of reading,
increasing the likelihood that they will become life-long readers.
MIDDLE SCHOOL
SUMMER READING REQUIREMENTS
Each student will be required to read 1 book from the attached list
over the summer from the appropriate grade level selection. By asking
students to engage in reading a text of their choice from the attached
list, we believe that we can help to develop a habit of reading for our
students. Each selection is conducive to making connections with the
curriculum and provides depth and understanding for a variety of class
discussions throughout the year.
We understand that many students join our district over the summer so all organized
response to the summer reading will take place after the second week of school. This
time frame is important in order to recognize all students for their efforts over the
summer.
s
6 Book
e
d
a
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G
Flush by Carl Haissen - page 2.
Jeremy Fink by Wendy Mass
- page 2.
So B. It by Sarah Weeks page 3
Travel Team by Mike Lupica page 3
See Alternative English
Language Learner (ELL) Titles
attached.
ASSIGNMENT SPECIFICS:
1.
Review the book summaries for each title.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Select at least one title from your 2010-11 grade level list.
Consider the guiding questions while reading.
Jot down notes in relation to the questions.
Be prepared to write and discuss your book in the fall.
ASSESSMENT: Assessment guidelines will be shared the first week of school.
Formal assessment will not be administered before the second week of school.
Assessment will be no more than 10% of student’s first quarter grade
Please consider donating back the following 2009 Summer
Reading titles to your child’s school:
Flush
Jeremy Fink
Schooled
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town
Your teacher may provide
additional information
regarding book sales
prior to leaving for
summer break. Look for
this information regarding
these opportunities.
Summer Reading Grade 6
2
Flush by Carl Hiassen
Summary (excerpts from carlhiaasen.com)
You know it's going to be a rough summer when you spend Father's Day visiting your dad in the local
lockup. Noah's dad is sure that the owner of the Coral Queen casino boat is flushing raw sewage into the
harbor-which has made taking a dip at the local beach like swimming in a toilet. He can't prove it though,
and so he decides that sinking the boat will make an effective statement. Right. The boat is pumped out
and back in business within days and Noah's dad is stuck in the clink.
Now Noah is determined to succeed where his dad failed. He will prove that the Coral Queen is dumping
illegally . . . somehow. His allies may not add up to much-his sister Abbey, an unreformed childhood biter;
Lice Peeking, a greedy sot with poor hygiene; Shelly, a bartender and a woman scorned; and a mysterious
pirate-but Noah's got a plan to flush this crook out into the open. A plan that should sink the crooked
little casino, once and for all.
Guiding Questions
1. What do you think of the plan Noah and Abbey used to find out about the illegal dumping? How might their method be
better than their father’s approach? Into what potential dangers did they put themselves?
2. Noah’s dad believed that it was okay to sink the gambling boat because he thought it was polluting the water. Does Noah’s
dad’s belief make what he did okay?
3. In your opinion, how do we negatively influence our environment? Do you think this is a serious problem? If enough smart
humans do their part, can their choices make a difference in preserving the world? Why or why not?
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
Summary (From wendymass.com)
A box arrives for Jeremy Fink one month prior to his 13th birthday. It is from his father who
was killed five years earlier in a car accident. The locked box, to which there are no keys, is
supposed to hold the meaning of life. Jeremy, along with his best friend Lizzy, become obsessed
with getting this mysterious box opened. Their quest takes them on a whirlwind adventure that
includes community service—delivering items for an antique dealer. All is not as it appears,
however, and Jeremy and Lizzy learn larger life-lessons before ever opening the actual box.
Guiding Questions:
1. What three items did Jeremy and Lizzy need to delivery for Mr. Oswald? Discuss the
importance of each item in relation to the respective owner and in relation to Jeremy. What
“life lesson” did Jeremy take away from each encounter?
2.
What life lesson did Jeremy learn? How has this experience changed him?
3.
“I have named the hour between eleven and midnight the Hour of Jeremy (H.O.J for short).” (p. 27) During the H.O J.,
Jeremy reads, does research on the internet, etc. If you had a specific time set aside just for yourself, what hour would
you choose? What would you do during that time?
Grade 6 Continued
3
So B. It by Sarah Weeks
One day in her apartment in Reno, Bernadette heard a pitiful sound in the hallway. She opened
the door a crack and saw a young woman standing there in her raincoat, her bare legs spattered
with dried mud, holding a crying baby wrapped in a blanket. The baby was Heidi, and they had
come from the almost-empty apartment next door for help. Heidi's Mama can't tend her week-old
child because she has, as Heidi later says, "a bum brain," so Bernadette steps in and cares for
them both tenderly. Mama says her name is "So Be It," but with her twenty-three-word
vocabulary, this is all the information she can give Bernadette.
Twelve years later this strange but loving household is still together. Heidi does the shopping
because Bernadette has "angora phobia," and pays for it with money she wins at the laundromat;
Bernadette teaches her at the kitchen table while Mama is happily occupied with her coloring
books, and the rent and utilities are always mysteriously paid. But Heidi wonders who she is,
where she and Mama came from, why they were alone, and most of all, she wants to know the
meaning of Mama's word "soof." When she finds some old photos in a cupboard, she knows where
to go to find out, and as she sets out on a long cross-country bus journey, the pieces of the puzzle begin to fall into
surprising places in this intriguing and heartwarming mystery.
Guiding Questions:
1. When Heidi makes a list of what she knows about her mama, why does she only put one thing on it-the name So B. It
(p.140)? What else could she add to that list?
2. Bernadette selflessly and patiently takes care of Heidi and her mother, who both need a caretaker. Why do
you think she is willing to spend her time and money on people she does not know? What benefits, if any,
does Bernie receive?
3. Imagine you are in Heidi's place. What would it be like to grow up with Mama and Bernadette? Would you
have more or less independence than you have now? What do you think would be challenging and what would
be enjoyable?
4. In Liberty, Heidi says she finally understands "there are some things in a person's life you just can't
know" (p. 221). Explain how she has come to feel this way, as compared to earlier when she says to
Bernadette, "A person has a right to know from the beginning" about her life (p. 39).
Travel Team by Mike Lupicia
Summary (Adapted From From School Library Journal, Joel Schoemaker, Southeast Jr. High
School) ) Twelve-year-old Danny Walker may be the smallest kid on the basketball court—but don’t
tell him that. Because no one plays with more heart or court sense. But none of that matters
when he is cut from his local travel team, the very same team his father led to national
prominence as a boy. Danny’s father, still smarting from his own troubles, knows Danny isn’t the
only kid who was cut for the wrong reason, and together, this washed-up former player and a
bunch of never-say-die kids prove that the heart simply cannot be measured.
Guiding Questions:
1. The Tri-Valley League is a boys' travel league, altough The Warriors could never have won
without help from some girls. Describe the contributions made by females to the Warriors'
team both on and off the court.
2. Richie Walker was involved in two car crashes in his lifetime. Describe how the first crash
destroyed his life. How does the second crash help put his life back together?
3. Richie Walker tells Danny, "You never know which day is going to be the best day of your whole life." Looking
back at the book as a whole, what was Danny's best day? Why? Was that same day the best day for Richie?
Ali? Ty? If not, what were their best days? Explain.
4. Before the Vikings/Warriors game Will says to Danny, "You're the biggest kid here." Describe how the smallest
kid on the team manages to live up to being the biggest. Find specific examples in the book.
SUMMER 2010
DUBLIN CITY SCHOOLS SUMMER READING
FOR
ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS
MIDDLE SCHOOL
SUMMER READING PURPOSE
STATEMENT:
Literacy involves reading, writing, speaking, listening
and thinking. As we prepare our students for the
skills needed to be successful in the 21st Century, it
is important that we provide opportunities for our
students to engage in the activities that will help to
build this literacy skill set. It is also our goal to
establish a summer reading program that encourages our students to
discover the joy of reading, increasingly the likelihood that they will
become life-long readers.
!
Grade
y
b
s
k
L Boo
EL
Grade 6
The Day of Ahmed’s Secret by F. Parry Heide
and J. Heidi Gilliland
Thank you Mr. Falker by P. Polacco
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life
by W. Mass
Grade 7
ELL MIDDLE SCHOOL
SUMMER READING REQUIREMENTS
Hour of Olympics by M. Pope Osborne
The Keeping Quilt by P. Polacco
Each student will be required to read one book from the attached list
Pink and Say by P. Polacco
from the appropriate grade level selection. By asking students to engage
in reading a text of their choice from the attached list, we believe that When Zachary Beaver Came to Town by
Kimberly Willis Holt.
we can help to develop a habit of reading for our students. Each
selection is conducive to making connections with the curriculum and
Grade 8
provides depth and understanding for a variety of class discussions
throughout the year.
A Taste of Blackberries by D. Buchanan
Smith
Mrs. Katz and Tush by P. Polacco
ASSIGNMENT SPECIFICS:
• Select one title from your 2010-11 grade level list.
• Read the guiding questions and be ready to talk about this questions in
the fall.
• ASSESSMENT: Assessment guidelines will be shared the first week of
school. Formal assessment will not be administered before the second
week of school. Assessment will be no more than 10% of student’s first
quarter grade.
Schooled by G. Korman
Your teacher may provide
additional information
regarding book sales prior to
leaving for summer break.
Look for the information
regarding these
opportunities.
Grade 6 ELL Reading Choices
The Day of Ahmed’s Secret by F. Parry Heide and J. Heide Gilliland
Summary (Adapted from School Library Journal)
Ahmed has monumental news to share with his family, but first he must complete his chores around the city of
Cairo. At home at last, surrounded by his loving family, Ahmed shares his secret. Ahmed's story is a joyful
celebration of that spirit. (Beginning Language Learner)
Guiding Questions
1. What was Ahmed’s secret?
2. What was the first English word you could write?
3. How did you learn to write your name in your native language?
4. W
Thank you Mr. Falker by P. Polacco
Summary (From School Library Journal)
Young Tricia wants desperately to read but when she starts school she finds that the words "wiggle"
on the page. Teased by her classmates, she retreats into dreams and drawings. It's
not until the family moves to California and Tricia has managed to reach the fifth
grade that a new teacher finally recognizes her pain and distress. What's more,
he does something about it. Thank you, indeed, Mr. Felker (the real name of the
teacher involved) for making it all possible.
(Beginning/Intermediate Language Learner)
Guiding Questions
1.
Why do you think Tricia has a hard time learning to read?
2. Have you ever had a hard time learning something new? How does it feel?
Grade 6 ELL Reading Choices continued
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
Summary (From wendymass.com)
A box arrives for Jeremy Fink one month prior to his 13th birthday. It is
from his father who was killed five years earlier in a car accident. The locked
box, to which there are no keys, is supposed to hold the meaning of life.
Jeremy, along with his best friend Lizzy, becomes obsessed with getting this
mysterious box opened. Their quest takes them on a whirlwind adventure
that includes community service—delivering items for an antique dealer. All is
not as it appears, however, and Jeremy and Lizzy learn larger life-lessons
before even opening the actual box. (Advanced Language Learner)
1.
What three items did Jeremy and Lizzy need to delivery for Mr. Oswald?
Discuss the importance of each item in relation to the respective owner
and in relation to Jeremy. What “life lesson” did Jeremy take away from
each encounter?
2. What life lesson did Jeremy learn? How has this experience changed him?
3. “I have named the hour between eleven and midnight the Hour of Jeremy (H.O.J for short).” (p. 27) During
the H.O J., Jeremy reads, does research on the internet, etc. If you had a specific time set aside just for
yourself, what hour would you choose? What would you do during that time?
Grade 7 ELL Reading Choices
Hour of the Olympics by Mary Pope Osborne
!
!
!
Jack and Annie are off on another adventure! This time they are sent to
ancient Greece, where a very important event is taking place. Join them as they
race against time and witness the very first Olympic games!
(Beginning/Intermediate Language Learner)
Guiding Questions
1. What do you know about the Olympics?
2. If you could go somewhere in a magic tree house, where would you go?
The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco
Summary (From School Library Journal)
Polacco's first-person voice moves her narrative forward gracefully from the
time when her Great-Gramma Anna came to America during the last century
to the present. Richly detailed charcoal drawings fill the pages of this
beautifully conceived book. Particularly striking are the faces of the Russian
Jewish immigrant families who people the pages. The only color used is in the
babushka and dress of Great-Gramma Anna, which become part of a brightly
hued quilt. Following that quilt through four generations is the basis of this account. Customs and fashions
change, but family is constant, visually linked by the ``keeping quilt.'' Children will be fascinated by the
various uses to which the quilt is put, although some of those uses make one wonder how its ``like-new''
shape was maintained. That stretch of the imagination is gentle, however, and does not mar the story.
Readers who notice that the author and the narrator share the same name may realize that this lovely
story is true; that should make it even more appealing. (Beginning/Intermediate Language Learner)
Guiding Questions
1.
What makes the quilt special?
2. Does your family have something special that has been shared from one generation to another?
3. What is one story that your family likes to tell?
Grade 7 ELL Reading Choices continued
Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
Summary (From School Library Journal)
Sheldon Curtis, 15, a white boy, lies badly wounded in a field in Georgia when Pinkus
Aylee, an African American Union soldier about Sheldon's age, finds him and carries him
home to his mother, Moe Moe Bay. Sheldon, known as Say, is nursed back to health. The
boys return to their units. They are then are captured and taken to Andersonville, where
Pink is hanged within hours of their capture. This is a central image in the story, and is
what ties the boys together for a final time, as Pink cries, "'Let me touch the hand that
touched Mr. Lincoln, Say, just one last time.'" History comes to life in this remarkable
book. (Beginning/Intermediate Language Learner)
Guiding Questions
1.
What do you know about the Civil War in the United States?
2.
What do you believe is special about the friendship between Pink and Say?
3.
Describe a special friend that you have. What makes that friendship important to you?
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town by Kimberly Willis Holt
Summary (From Amazon.com Review)
Summer in the tiny Texas town of Antler is traditionally a time for enjoying Wylie
Womack's Bahama Mama snow cones and racking up the pins at Kelly's Bowl-aRama, but this year it's not going well for Toby Wilson. His 13-year-old heart has
been broken twice: once by his mother, who left him and his father to become a
country singer in Nashville, and then again by his crush Scarlett Stalling, the town
beauty who barely acknowledges Toby's existence. But when Zachary Beaver, "The
World's Fattest Boy," comes to Antler as part of a traveling sideshow, Toby begins to
realize that there might just be people who have it worse than him. By reaching
out to Zachary in small ways--such as helping him realize his lifelong dream of being baptized--Toby
is better able to put his own problems into perspective. At the baptism, Toby finally feels at peace:
"Zachary smiles and I wonder if he's feeling different. Because standing here waist deep in
Gossimer's Lake... I'm feeling different--light and good and maybe even holy." By summer's end,
Toby's friendship with Zachary has provided him with the emotional stamina to begin dealing with
his mother's decision and to gracefully accept the fact that Scarlett will forever be just beyond his
reach. (Advanced Language Learner)
Guiding Questions:
1. How is Toby’s family different from Cal’s family? How are Toby’s parents different from each other?
2. Why does Toby think that standing up for Zachary Beaver is different from fighting for himself?
3. What has Toby learned from the summer he met Zachary Beaver?
4. What elements do you feel are important in a friend?
Grade 8 ELL Reading Choices
A Taste of Blackberries by D. Buchanan Smith
Summary (From Publishers Weekly)
In Smith's moving story, a prank ends in tragedy, and a boy must learn to live not only
with the loss of a friend, but with the feeling that he could have prevented it.
(Beginning Language Learner)
Guiding Questions
1.
What could the character have done differently in this story?
2.
Have you ever done anything you regret? Why?
Mrs. Katz and Tush by P. Polacco
Summary (From School Library Journal)
This story is the beginning of a long friendship between Mrs. Katz, widowed, childless, and lonely, and her
young African-American neighbor, Larnel, when he presents her with a scraggly kitten. On
his daily visit to the elderly woman and her pet, they talk about Mrs. Katz's husband,
her arrival in the United States from Poland, and the similar experiences of Jews and
African-Americans. Larnel accompanies her to say kaddish at her husband's grave, and
attends her Passover seder. When Tush has kittens, Mrs. Katz feels fulfilled, a bubee
(grandmother) at last. (Beginning/Intermediate Language Learner)
1.
Describe the friendship between Mrs. Katzs and Larnel?
2.
Why do you think Larnel likes to visit Mrs. Katz?
3.
What does Larnel learn from this friendship?
Grade 8 ELL Reading Choices continued
Schooled by Gordon Korman
Summary (From Booklist)
Homeschooled on an isolated "alternate farm commune" that has dwindled since the 1960s
to 2 members, 13-year-old Cap has always lived with his grandmother, Rain. When she is
hospitalized, Cap is taken in by a social worker and sent—like a lamb to slaughter—to middle
school. Smart and capable, innocent and inexperienced (he learned to drive on the farm, but
he has never watched television), long-haired Cap soon becomes the butt of pranks. He
reacts in unexpected ways and, in the end, elevates those around him to higher ground.
From chapter to chapter, the first-person narrative shifts among certain characters: Cap, a
social worker (who takes him into her home), her daughter (who resents his presence there),
an A-list bully, a Z-list victim, a popular girl, the school principal, and a football player (who
unintentionally decks Cap twice in one day). Korman capably manages the shifting points of view of characters
who begin by scorning or resenting Cap and end up on his side. From the eye-catching jacket art to the scene
in which Cap says good-bye to his 1,100 fellow students, individually and by name, this rewarding novel
features an engaging main character and some memorable moments of comedy, tenderness, and reflection. Pair
this with Jerry Spinelli's 2000 Stargirl (the sequel is reviewed in this issue) for a discussion of the stifling
effects of conformity within school culture or just read it for the fun of it. (Advanced Language Learner)
Guiding Questions:
1. Describe the relationship between Cap and Sophie. How does this relationship change from the beginning to the
end of the story?
2.
Choose a character with whom you identify. How do you identify with that character? Explain using two examples
from the text and two parallel examples from your life.
3.
Cap’s presence changed the lives of many of his fellow students. What was it about Cap that changed everyone?
What have your learned from Cap?