Dear Honors 9 Student,
Welcome to Freshman Honors English. This English class requires that you read a non-fiction
book and complete the assigned work before the first day of school. YOU ARE TO
CHOOSE ONLY ONE OF THE THREE BOOKS. Be prepared to discuss the book in small
groups, present a project to the class, and take a test over the novel the first few days of the
2016 Fall Semester. You will take the test regardless of having completed the assignment or not.
Any assignments that have not been completed upon the first day of school will
receive no credit and scores will be entered as zeroes. This is not the recommended
way to begin your High School career in English. However, I have great expectations that all
will finish the assigned work and will arrive ready to further explore the book.
The assigned books for you to choose from for the Freshman Honors class are:
1. I Never Had It Made: An Autobiography of Jackie Robinson (Lexile: 1130)
Author: Jackie Robinson, Alfred Duckett
Before Barry Bonds, before Reggie Jackson, before Hank Aaron, baseball's stars had one
undeniable trait in common: they were all white. In 1947, Jackie Robinson broke that barrier,
striking a crucial blow for racial equality and changing the world of sports forever. I Never Had It
Made is Robinson's own candid, hard-hitting account of what it took to become the first black man
in history to play in the majors.
This book follows his baseball career for the first half of the book very well, but once he retires
from baseball the book covers life after baseball. Jackie Robinson was very active politically in his
retirement from baseball, and some students found this difficult to understand at times.
2. In My Hands: Memories of a Holocaust Rescuer (Lexile: 890)
Author: Gut Opdyke, Jennifer Armstrong
An utterly amazing, true, first-person account written about of one girl's experience during wartime.
Irene Irene Gut Opdyke was a Catholic Polish nursing student when WWII broke out. She soon
became mired in the horrors of central Europe as, at various times, a partisan, a refugee, a
housekeeper to the Nazis and, over all, as a heroine. She singlehandedly saved the lives of at
least 16 Jewish people from the Holocaust.
3.
I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up For Education And Was Shot By The
Taliban (Lexile 1000)
Author Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb. A memoir by the youngest recipient of the
Nobel peace prize
"I come from a country that was created at midnight. When I almost died it was just after midday."
When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai
refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012,
when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank
range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive. Instead, Malala's
miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern
Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she became a global symbol of
peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize.
I AM MALALA is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls'
education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to
write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society
that prizes sons.
The students from last year found the Pakistan names confusing and keeping track of the
characters difficult. If you write down the characters names and who and what they did, this may
help you understand the book better.
These books can be found at book stores or online book stores (such as Amazon). If you have an
iPad or kindle, etc., you may be able to download your book. Be aware when we go over the
books that pages numbers do not match well, but as long as you know the book that should not
be a big problem. You will have a book discussion with references to pages.
Summer Assignment:
You are to divide your book into 4 fairly equal sections. For each section you are to complete
three exercises. Each section’s exercises will be typed. When beginning a new section, begin a new
document. Upon your return to school in August, you will have 4 typed sections to turn into me,
one assignment for each section of the book.
Format of the page will be:
 Font New Times Roman (or any simple block lettering)
 Size 12
 Margins of 1” on all four sides
 MLA on the left side
o First last name
o Mrs. Bates
o Honors English
o day month year (no commas)
 Heading for each section
 Double space entire page
Exercise #1: You are to write in exactly 25 words a summary of that section. This is also called the
gist of the chapters. This is to practice clear, concise wording and still impart what that section is
about.
Exercise #2: Pick 5 vocabulary words you do not know.
 Write the part of speech;
 write the entire definition (or copy and paste)
 Then write a sentence using the word. Do not use the linking verbs am, is, are, was, were,
be, being, been.
Exercise #3: Write an analysis paragraph over this section. Include thoughtful examination of the
section. I do not want a summary of what happened. I want to know what you think of the
section; explore the relationships of the characters, the themes that you find, or your assessment of
what has happened.
Literary Analysis
Definition: Analysis is the practice of looking closely at small parts to see how they affect the whole.
Literary analysis focuses on how plot/structure, character, setting, and many other techniques are used by
the author to create meaning. Always be sure to discuss the significance of your observations to the main
idea about life
Also feel free to look up the word analysis to understand what I am looking for in this section.
LOOK ON THE BACK TO FIND A TEMPLATE OF THIS ASSIGNMENT.
CLASSROOM SUPPLIES
Supplies you will need to purchase for Honors English 10









3-Ring Binder for English only
Loose leaf paper – for each section of your 3 Ring Binder (No torn out notebook
paper is allowed!)
Dividers (5 tabs at least; 8 is better)
Several PENS, pencils, and hi-liters
I also suggest (but not required) a zipper pocket to be placed inside your
notebook (to hold supplies.)
A flash drive for essays and projects – this should be carried with you at all
times!
A book for independent reading
Small sticky notes to mark important reading notes inside your literature book.
3 x 5 cards for vocabulary
I look forward to meeting each of you in August. If you have any questions you may email
me at the address below. I check my email in the summer every few days. (Starting in July
and August)
Sincerely,
Leslie Bates
lbates@goddardusd.com
English teacher/Head Track Coach