English IV Enriched Summer projects for 2014/2015
Hopefully, you have had a successful and rewarding English III Enriched experience. I know that you are
looking forward to finishing up your years at Captain Shreve High School and to all the “perks” you will
be having as a CSHS senior.
The following list is the list of summer reading novels that you will need to have completed before
school resumes in the fall for English IV Enriched. Each novel has its own set of instructions for
assessment. There will also be a test on each novel within the first few days of school. Do not depend
on Spark Notes to pass the test. I make my own tests, and remove any questions that may be similar to
those found on spark notes.
Unbroken – Laura Hillenbrand (Read and be ready to discuss the elements of history detailed in class)
Summary: On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific
Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood.
Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s
bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of
the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.
The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini. In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and
incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the
rails. As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious
talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile.
But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that
led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.
Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft,
thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits
of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope,
resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion. His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be
suspended on the fraying wire of his will.
Your first research project will be based on this book and the information in which it
revolves.
Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
Summary: First published in 1847 only one year before the death of Emily Brontë at the
age of thirty, Wuthering Heights is a English novel about love and death, hope and despair,
romance and horror, revolving around the eponymous farmhouse on the Yorkshire moors,
and celebrating the enduring love between Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff. It is
accounted as one of the finest examples of the Gothic novel, and has inspired countless
adaptations and transpositions.
Attached is the list of projects that you may choose to complete this portion of your summer
reading. As a part of your ‘enriched’ level, you must be able to take initiative in showing
your understanding of things that we may be reading and discussing before entering the
class. Several assignments will be given to you throughout your senior year to explore and
create on your own with the final conclusion coming together.
Due Date for this project will be the week of August 11-15. Do NOT wait til the week school begins to
try and create your project. You will “hit the ground running” with our first reading assignments for the
actual school year. Late projects are accepted with 50% deduction before I begin grading - NO
EXCEPTIONS.
Projects for Wuthering Heights
Choose one of the following to complete. (Quality should always be exceptional!) We will begin
presentations of your ideas within one week of returning to school. Be prepared to answer any
questions that I or your classmates may have pertaining to your project.
200 pts.
People Magazine’s Love Triangle of the Year
Produce a magazine article in which you try to piece together the story of this love triangle from the various
characters’ points of view. Your article should include comments by Catherine, Edgar, Heathcliff and
Isabella. The main goal here is to understand the effect their actions had on each of the others. Be sure to
bring out the major events of the story in some way. Your finished product should look like a magazine
article and include various pictures or whatever your creative little minds can come up with! Look at some
People Magazine articles for ideas.
An Alphabet Book
For this project, you will create an alphabet book using one letter of the alphabet per page. It may be
rhyming or non-rhyming. Give your book a cover and illustrate it. I am particularly interested in seeing that
you have an understanding of the major events and themes of the novel as well as relationships between
the characters. (EXAMPLE: A is for the Animosity Heathcliff bears Hindley for treating him so badly as a
child.) Make sure that you can explain why you chose the description you do when presenting to the class.
The Prequel
Write a prequel to the story in which you take the part of Catherine’s best friend. Begin your story at the point
where you must watch Catherine decide whom to marry. Relate the details of your friendship using a flashback
technique. Reveal your internal conflict as you watch the proceedings. Then, take the story in any direction you
wish.
1. How did you and Catherine meet?
2. How did she and Heathcliff get involved?
3. What types of forces drew them together?
4. What has she revealed to you about their relationship?
Be as creative as you like as long as you are true to the story. Use details about other characters that
you learned about in the book. You may add an illustration, poster, or book jacket if you like.
Wuthering Heights Greeting Cards
Design FOUR greeting cards that you think Catherine, Edgar, Heathcliff and Isabella. would have sent to
each other for a holiday. You choose the holiday/occasion and design the 4 cards, one from each of these
characters. Include a picture and a quote or poem that they would have written in each card. They can be
funny or serious. Be creative and make the cards look nice! I am particularly interested in seeing that you
have an understanding of the major ideas and the relationships between the characters. Include an
explanation with each card.
Wuthering Heights Soundtrack
Create a soundtrack for the novel, choosing or composing 5 songs (ONE can be an instrumental). The
songs must represent the main themes, moods, relationships, or events in the story in some way. Create a
CD insert with appropriate artwork, artist information, dedications, and a booklet that includes lyrics and a
paragraph for each song explaining how and why each relates to the book. You may burn the songs onto a
CD if you’d like but it is not required.
Wuthering Heights Interview
This is the ONLY group project, and each person MUST have an active role.
Produce a session of a talk show in which you try to piece together the story from the various characters’
points of view. One student can take the role of the talk show host and interview other students playing
Catherine, Edgar, Heathcliff and Isabella . You can interview them in any order you wish, alone or as a
group. The main goal here is to understand the effect their actions had on each of the others. Be sure to
bring out the major events of the story in some way. You should have a script to turn in, and one for each
character to refer to during the skit. You should dress for your parts and may use whatever props you need.
Wuthering Heights Diary
Create a journal/diary for one of the three main characters. In that character’s voice (first person), you will
create at least 10 dated entries based on what’s happening at the time. This will allow you to comment on
the major events of the plot. You MUST comment on the following:
 The first appearance of the character in the story
 Any meeting that your character has with another of the characters
 Any important event that occurs in the story
 Any physical/psychological changes in the character
 Where the character leaves the story
The story covers years in the character’s life so you will observe changes in the character’s acceptance in
the community, the physical and/or mental condition of your character, and his/her relationship with the other
characters. The main characters who will appear in your journal will be Catherine, Edgar, Heathcliff and
Isabella. You may choose any of these as your “journal writer”, but all of them will appear in your journal.
Here is a sample journal entry:
October 2, 1641
My heart knows not the words to beg of my Lord forgiveness for what I have done this day. I weep now, in
solitude, for I realize that this evening has brought upon my soul a weight that I may never ever be released
from. I have spent hours before my looking glass, weeping, praying, begging the Lord’s mercy, for on this
night I have condemned my soul to eternal damnation.....etc.
You may write in the above style or our modern style of writing. Revise and correct spelling, grammar, etc.,
so it looks nice. Be creative about what your diary looks like. Each entry should be at least one and a half
pages in length in order to cover and detail the thoughts of events completely. Issues to cover: personal
reflection, societal activity, emotions toward another character/characters, wishes of future happenings….etc
Wuthering Heights Times
Develop a front page from a Yorkshire newspaper during the time/setting of this story. Your front page will
be full of the story of Catherine and Company, the scandal, her sin and punishment, or the aftermath. The
goal is to show me that you have an understanding of the plot and characters in the story. Your front page
should include several of the following:
1. A banner headline
2. At least one picture with a caption
3. The lead story (at least 300 words)
4. Related side bar stories
5. Horoscope
6. Title of newspaper
7. At least one advertisement that is story-related
IMPORTANT:
8. Advice column
9. Gossip column
BE CREATIVE
10. Classifieds
11. Editorial
and
12. Weather
make it look nice!
ENGLISH IV ENRICHED
Mr. Simms
2014/2015 school year
The following novels are the required outside readings for English IV Enriched. You are not
required to buy the novels if you can find them in a local library or maybe be able to get them
from previous seniors - however, these ARE the required outside reading that we will cover
throughout the year. Tentative time slots are listed for the testing dates of each novel.
Grendel - John Gardner (Test end of September)
The Mayor of Casterbridge - Thomas Hardy (test end of October/first of November)
Atonement - Ian McEwan (test before midterms in December)
Ophelia - Lisa Klein (test February)
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley (test end of March)
Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro (test end of April)
You may also want to purchase your own copy of the dictionary that the vocabulary words are
taken. The following is the ISBN number. I will put your vocabulary words on line - and it will be
your responsibility to define them. The definitions I use are from this version:
Merriam Webster Dictionary New Edition copyright 2004 ISBN—13 978-0-877790930-6(voc
tests are generated from this version)
You need to have a composition notebook for journal entries when school begins. We will begin
journal entries on Day 1 of classes. This does NOT mean a spiral notebook or folder with
internal clasps!!! Points are deducted for not having the proper type of notebook for journal
entries.