SUMMER ASSIGNMENTS FOR SENIOR HONORS
Welcome to senior year! This year will be the busiest of your high school years. In order to
prepare for this year in English IV Honors, you will complete the following reading and writing
assignments during the summer:
I. COLLEGE APPLICATION ESSAY and RESUME:
To help you prepare for the college application process, we are REQUIRING you this
summer to write the following:
ONE COLLEGE APPLICATION ESSAY (300-500 words) AND A PRINTABLE RESUME on
Family Connection. Take this assignment seriously. DUE FRIDAY, AUGUST 28. Even if the
colleges to which you are applying do not require an essay, you still must submit ONE COLLEGE
APPLICATION ESSAY to your English teacher. Most students will be writing more than one essay
for the colleges to which they are applying.
Select your topic from the choices of prompts listed here, or use one on an application you
obtain during the summer when you visit colleges. This assignment should be practical. Therefore,
if you know a specific topic on an application for a college to which you are applying, feel free to
use that topic. AT THE TOP OF THE ESSAY, TYPE THE PROMPT YOU CHOOSE FROM
OUR LIST OR FROM AN APPLICATION. These essay prompts listed here have appeared on
the common application and on applications for individual colleges. The essay you write over the
summer may be adjusted and revised to fit other similar topics.
Essay choices:
1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe
their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
2. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time
when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you
make the same decision again?
4. Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual
challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter
the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a
solution.
5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from
childhood to adulthood, within your culture, community, or family.
The essay will demonstrate to the admissions staff your ability to organize your thoughts and
express yourself. It presents you in a different way from courses, grades, test scores, and other
objective data. You must proofread carefully and revise the essay. A well-written essay may make a
major difference in your being accepted and possibly receiving scholarships. Careless errors will
make a poor impression, may cost you admission, and may eliminate your chance for a scholarship.
A weak essay will jeopardize your grade in English for the first semester. Be sure that your name
is typed in the upper right corner of each page and that the topic/prompt is typed as the
heading. The reader needs to know which prompt you are addressing to evaluate whether or
not you have adequately responded to it.
Be neat and clear. Concentrate on the specific subject you are discussing and provide
sufficient details. Avoid a general summary of activities.
II. READING ASSIGNMENTS
This course is designed for students with high ability in literary analysis and composition in
preparation for college. In order to begin the year with some literature in common and to move at a
rate appropriate for an honors class, it is imperative to complete the summer reading requirements.
It is expected that you will obtain your own copies of the readings to allow for highlighting and
annotating of the selections.
1. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
The narrator, Christopher, has Asperger's syndrome, though this is never specified. Mark
Haddon's study of the condition is superbly realized, but this is not simply a novel about disability.
Haddon, rather like Daniel Keyes in his 1959 classic Flowers for Algernon, uses his narrator's
innocence as a means of commenting on the emotional and moral confusion in the lives of the
adults around him. Christopher sees everything, remembers everything, but cannot prioritize cannot sift out what most of us regard as important. novel that is funny, poignant and fascinating in
its portrayal of a person whose curse and blessing are a mind that perceives the world entirely
literally.
AND
2. Independent Reading Novel of Choice
The central goal of independent reading is to establish a reading habit in the busy lives of seniors
in high school. The best books challenge our beliefs by helping us see through different eyes —to live
a different life. Reading allows us to confront our worst fears and live through them. Reading has
tremendous benefits. It relieves stress, builds stamina for studying, improves vocabulary, and
develops academic confidence.
Book Requirements:
 Choose a novel that interests you.
 Your book must be at least 200 pages and written for adults. Avoid “young adult
literature.”
 NO graphic novels.
 NO recent "movie books" such as Harry Potter, Divergent books, Hunger Games books,
Gone Girl, American Sniper, 50 Shades etc.
 NO required reading books such as Lord of the Flies, Outsiders, Animal Farm, Scarlet
Letter, etc.
 You are NOT required to annotate this book.
 It must be a work of fiction.
There are reading list links on Mrs. Dudek’s website if you need suggestions for your independent
reading novel. Be prepared to share information about your novel with the class. Have a wonderful
summer!!
Mrs. Dudek and Ms. Moen
English IV Honors