Dear Soon-to-be Freshman,
Welcome to CCHS and the Honors program in English!
World Lit I Honors is an accelerated course, so you will need to prepare for the course
during the summer by reading Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. The following study
materials are provided to aid your understanding of the text and prepare you for class
discussions, essays, and a test when we begin our class in the fall.
Tips for Summer Success in Reading:
 Avoid the crutch of Sparknotes and all his online friends, as they prevent you from
developing the skills you need to be successful in the course, on tests, and in the rest of your
high school studies. This is a very serious warning. I expect honors students to be willing to
think for themselves and exhibit discipline and character. Resorting to an outside source
(including movies!) to tell you what to think, or, even worse, using that source to avoid the
learning experience of reading, are shortcuts that, in the long run, are really dead ends.
 Create a reading schedule for yourself and stick to it. Don’t let the reading pile up. Set goals
and a reasonable pace.
Please note that if you come to class in August without having completed
the summer reading, you will immediately have your schedule changed to a
regular World Lit I class.
To help you delve into Card’s novel and its complexities, I have provided you with the following
background information:
Background: Ender’s Game is a science fiction novel set in Earth's future. Humankind has survived two
conflicts with an insectoid alien species called “Buggers,” but everyone on Earth is worried about
another impending attack. Because of this worry, the people on Earth have created an international
school to find and train young children to be future commanders against the Buggers. The most
talented children are chosen, including our protagonist, Ender Wiggin, and are taken to the training
center called the Battle School. They play games and learn the art of war in order to prepare them for
this final attack, and Ender is put through many trials to help hone his genius.
Point of View: The story switches from Ender’s point of view (the story from his eyes) to the point of
view of his sister, Valentine, and his brother, Peter. At the beginning of many chapters, when the font is
in a different style, commanders of the Battle School are talking about Ender and what they are doing to
Ender to make him “stronger” and a better leader. Don’t get confused! Keep reading on and it will all
make sense!
Symbol: You will be attempting to look for symbols in this story. A symbol is an object or thing that
represents something else, usually an abstract subject. In other words, it may be an object that
represents an idea. For instance, the American flag is a tangible object that represents the idea of
freedom and equality. You will be trying your best to look for and explain symbols, or objects, in each
section of Ender’s Game. A great way to try and find symbols is to look for objects that are continuously
repeated or described at length.
Assignment for Ender’s Game
You will complete the following assignment for EACH SECTION of the book, aka you will do this
assignment four times. Please either type this assignment or write legibly.
Section 1: Chapters 1-7
Section 2: Chapters 8-10
Section 3: Chapter 11-13
Section 4: Chapters 14-end
Your assignment for each section of chapters is the following:
1. Write a quick summary of the section (no more than a paragraph—if absolutely needed, do two)
2. Choose two quotes—be sure to label the page number and who is speaking
a. For each quote, write a paragraph (6-8 sentences) giving the context (who is speaking,
what is going on, etc), what it says about the character/events, its importance to the
characters/events, and attempt to analyze why certain words are being used.
i. For example the quote should look like this:
1. “School is hard” by Ms. Mikkelson pg. 9
a. Then you would write a paragraph about this quote
3. Find a possible symbol
a. What do you think the symbol means? (4-6 sentences)
4. In 6-8 sentences, react to the book so far. What confuses you? What do you like? What do you
think the point is of this book? Which characters do you like? What do you think will happen?
You can respond to your quote in this portion as well. Any question similar to that works!
5. Characters.
a. Keep track of the characters:
i. What are their personalities like?
ii. Any physical qualities, e.g. age, height, looks, etc.
iii. How do they change?
AT THE END OF THE BOOK, ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
1. In a well-developed paragraph, explain the title. Why is this book called Ender’s Game?