Lake Havasu High School Summer Reading & Technology Requirements for Honors 3-4
Dear Parents/Guardians/Students,
Lake Havasu Unified School District #1 fosters an interest in the literacy of its students. In line with that
philosophy, the Lake Havasu High School English Department is mandating a summer reading
requirement for each of its Honors/ Dual Enrollment English classes for the upcoming 2015-2016 school
year.
Research states:
 Being able to read complex text independently and proficiently is essential for high achievement
in college and the workplace and important in numerous life tasks.
 Current trends suggest that if students cannot read challenging texts with understanding—if they
have not developed the skill, concentration, and stamina to read such texts—they will read less in
general.
 To grow, our students must read a lot, and more specifically, they must read a lot of “complex”
texts—texts that offer them new language, new knowledge, and new modes of thought.
The English Department hopes to encourage students to become lifelong readers and hopes to encourage
students to improve their critical thinking skills through reading, writing, and the application of
technology resources. For these reasons, incoming Honors and Dual Enrollment students will be required
to complete the summer project in order for teachers to assess students’ current skills and for teachers to
develop strategies to advance them throughout the school year.
At the sophomore level, each student will be required to choose one of the five novels listed to read over
summer break. Because sophomore year will be a year of transition and growth; students will be expected
to develop time management skills and an admirable work ethic during the months of summer preceding
the school year in order to ensure they are college and career ready.
Summer break can be a time for students to become enlightened by the issues that exist at a global level,
and how authors draw on these issues to bridge the gap between Modern Western Society and the world.
Therefore, students are encouraged to approach the sophomore level summer assignment with an open
mind in order to develop new perspectives on familiar topics such as mortality, identity, and family. In
addition to the reading component of this assignment, students will also be required to create either a
Prezi presentation or Power Point presentation of the topic determined by the student while he or she
relates it to the novel selected.
Please enjoy a restful summer while preparing for a successful school year. I look forward to the insight
developed and presented.
Happy reading,
Mrs. Rachel Bishop
Lake Havasu High School Summer Reading & Technology Requirements for Honors 3-4
Please visit amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com to determine the book most suited to your interest. Read
the overviews as well as the editorial reviews to help you choose your novel.
Novel choices:
1. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
2. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
3. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
4. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
5. A Separate Peace by John Knowles
*Disclaimer to Parents/Guardians/Students:
The books suggested are intended to present realistic, global issues in a literary light. The topics
addressed in the above novels can be mature; however, all of them are currently on the recommended AP
literature reading list.
Summer Assignments Components and Expectations:
1. The Reading Component- Students will be expected to read one of the five books listed above.
While reading, students should pay attention to the overall themes presented which include, but
are not limited to mortality, identity, women and feminism, and family. Each book will express
themes in a different fashion; students should focus on the obstacles characters face internally and
externally and choose a topic to discuss based on the student’s own interest and concerns.
Students who read the same novel will most certainly obtain different themes they wish to
elaborate on. Reading should not be saved until the last minute. This reading component requires
a thorough analysis of the novel’s themes and lack of preparation or insight will be evident with
the presentation requirement of component two.
2. The Presentation Component- Students will be required to demonstrate their analysis of the novel
selected in a Prezi presentation or Power Point presentation which will bring to fruition the theme
selected and the student’s analysis of its effect both in literature and in the physical world.
Students should follow the steps below to prepare for a detailed presentation:
a. Read the novel and determine an environmental, political, or social theme presented.
b. Narrow the focus. Answer the question: If I selected the theme: racism is detrimental,
what is the lesson my reader will learn based on the events and characters presented in
my novel? (i.e. Succumbing to racism will lead a person to misunderstand the social and
cultural differences of humanity; one must instead learn to discern racial barriers.)
Lake Havasu High School Summer Reading & Technology Requirements for Honors 3-4
c. Create a Prezi Presentation (using www.prezi.com) or Power Point presentation in which
students utilize multiple mediums including, images, news reports, current events, music,
etc. to present the relevance of the novel’s theme in world cultures and societies.
d. Create, edit, and revise a Prezi Presentation or Power Point Presentation. Share final
Prezi or Power Point with me via email at the last stage of composition at
rbishop@havasu.k12.az.us.
e. Prepare presentation. Students will be required to create a two to three minute
presentation which will be presented the first week of school. Students will be required
to create a verbal presentation detailing their analysis after reading their selected novel.
All students must present. Students should fill the two to three minute presentation by
following the criteria below:
i. Introduce novel, author, and theme
ii. Explain why the theme was chosen by the student
iii. Explain how the theme is presented. This portion will present the student’s
literary analysis (point to evidence from the novel)
iv. Explain the overall lesson the reader can apply to his or her own life based on the
analysis provided.
v. *Note cards will be allowed and expected for this portion. The presentation
should be well rehearsed and well organized.
3. Timeline: Students should choose one of the novels wisely at the beginning of summer. Students
will be expected to have their own copy of the novel for the first week of school.
a. Begin reading by the beginning of June.
b. Choose theme after the first few chapters (*a theme cannot be one word)
i. i.e. Love = Love is blind.
ii. Say, “The theme, love is blind, is revealed when the character says/ does
.”
iii. Say, “The theme, love is blind, teaches the reader to still allow for independence
in a relationship so a person does not act blindly and a person can avoid
unwanted consequences.”
c. Finish the book by the end of June.
d. Get acclimated with Prezi or Power Point at the beginning of July.
e. Create presentation by mid-July. Check that it works the way you intend.
f. Prepare and practice presentation in front of audience by the end of July.
g. The presentation will be due on the first day of school, August 10, 2015. Share link with
Mrs. Bishop via email as directed above.
h. Presentations will begin the first week of school, Wednesday August 12, 2015, and will
be selected at random.
i. The rubric attached will be used to grade students. This will be worth a quiz grade which
the equivalent of 200 points.
Lake Havasu High School Summer Reading & Technology Requirements for Honors 3-4
Score
5
Part 1: Prezi or PPT
Analysis of theme is the main focus.
Graphics and content are
appropriate to novel and theme, content
enhances presentation. No typos. Creative
and engaging analysis.
Score
5
Part 2: Presentation
Presents information with ease
and knows all of material well.
Makes eye-contact with whole audience.
Articulates well; speaks clearly and fluently.
Projects voice.
4
Analysis of theme is the main focus.
Graphics and content
are mostly appropriate
to novel and theme, content enhances
presentation. 1-2 typos. Creative analysis.
4
Presents information with ease
and knows most of material well.
Makes eye-contact with most of audience.
Articulates well; speaks clearly and fluently.
Projects voice.
3
Theme is evident. Graphics and content are
somewhat appropriate to theme and novel,
content is repetitive or distracting. 3-4 typos.
Analysis is not supported.
3
Knows the main points of material, but relies on
note cards. Makes eye-contact with only a few of
audience. Takes too many or long pauses; using
“um” and “uh.” Medium projection of volume in
voice.
2
Analysis not clear or is underdeveloped.
Graphics and content are not related to
theme and do not enhance video. More than
4 typos. Not in final copy format.
2
Relies on note cards. Makes eye-contact with
only one or no audience member(s). Takes too
many long pauses; using “um” and “uh.” Cannot
hear voice—no projection.
1
Analysis is not obvious or presented well.
Information and graphics do not apply to
theme. Relies on plot summary. Rushed or
not edited.
Student is not prepared on the first day of
school, August 10, 2015.
1
Presentation does fill the three-five minutes
length requirement. Presentation
is rushed and lack of practice is evident.
Unfamiliar with theme and novel.
Student is prepared with presentation, but no
Prezi or PPT and shows no analysis of novel.
0
0