Summer Reading

Theme: Growing Up

Select one book from the following options

• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
• When I Was Puerto Rican by Esmeralda Santiago
• The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
• Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Essential Questions

• What does the main character learn about his/her world?
• What does the main character learn about himself/herself?
• What significant experiences help shape the main character?
• Who influences (hurts or helps) the character?

Assignment

Take notes on the questions regarding the main character’s journey throughout the novel, and be prepared to discuss and write about the idea of growing up with support from the novel. 

Theme: Sources and Abuses of Power

Select one book from the following options

• Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
• Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
• A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena

Essential Questions

• What types of power are presented in the novel?
• What human rights are violated by the abuse of power?
• How does the narrator respond to the abuses of power?

Assignment

Choose one of the novels on the list. Identify the passages that support your answers to the above questions. Be prepared to discuss and write about these topics, supporting your answers with examples from the novel.

Theme: American Identity

read the following

• The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson

Essential Questions

• According to the novel, what does it mean to be an American?
• What picture of America does the author paint? What are some positive and negative aspects of American society?
• How does the author use her characters to explore the need/desire to fit into a group, community, or a family?

Assignment

Identify and annotate at least one passage in the text that:

• relates to being a dreamer or a rebel.
• relates to being an outsider or characters’ desire to belong.
• relates to the American experience for a character or characters. What is his, her, or their America?
• addresses the idea of storytelling. What stories are told and how are these stories important?

You will be asked to discuss and write in response to the text when school resumes.

Theme: American Identity

read the following

• The Distance Between Us: A Memoir by Reyna Grande

Essential Questions

• According to the novel, what does it mean to be an American?
• What picture of America does the author paint? What are some positive and negative aspects of American society?
• How does the author use his/her characters to explore the need/desire to fit into a group, community, or a family?

Consider the essential questions before you read and think about them as you read. Annotate by highlighting, underlining or otherwise notating specific passages.

Assignment

Identify 3 passages ½ page to 1 page in length that best address one or more of the essential questions. Annotate these passages by highlighting/underlining, and write reactions and connections you notice in the margins.  

You will be asked to write about and discuss the book when school resumes.

Have the following two assignments completed for the first day of class. Be prepared to participate in discussion and writing assignments upon return.

Theme 1: Foundations of Argument

Watch the following

• The Social Dilemma (2020, Netflix original documentary)

Essential Questions

A significant part of our class will be looking closely at arguments and how they are made, as well as the intended and unintended effects of those arguments on its audience. View the Netflix documentary, The Social Dilemma. As you watch, think of the documentary as an argument being made to convince you (the audience) of certain ideas about social media.

• What is the author’s central argument, and how does the author support his position
• How does this work reflect the values of American culture?
   

Assignment 1 of 2

When finished, respond to the following questions on a new doc or sheet of paper, using examples from the documentary.  

• What overall message is being conveyed to the audience? 
• What elements of the film are most persuasive to you and why?
• What is 1 example of the film appealing to the emotions of the audience (pathos)? 
• What is 1 example of how the filmmaker establishes credibility for his position (ethos)?
• What is 1 example of the film’s effective use of statistics, data, charts, graphs and facts (not opinion or emotion) that support the filmmaker’s position (logos)?

Theme 2: American Identity

Read the following

• Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Essential Questions

This summer, we are requiring all AP Lang and Comp students to read and annotate Malcom Gladwell’s Outliers.  As you read, you will notice that Gladwell’s chapters are all “mini-arguments” that present his theories about high-achievers.  Pay attention to his claims and how he supports those ideas through creative title choices, data, research, interviews, etc.

• What is the author’s central argument, and how does the author support his position?
• How does this work reflect the values of American culture?
   

Assignment 2 of 2

As you read, consider what is the main argument of Gladwell’s book? How does Gladwell create an argument in this chapter/section? How does he support his claims?  

Then, choose 3 passages from different chapters. Respond to the following questions for each of the passages on a new doc or sheet of paper (this can be in paragraph form, 5-6 well-developed sentences, max):  

• What is the claim made in the passage? About whom and what, specifically?
• How is this claim related to and in support of his overall argument in the book?
• What specific appeals, techniques and evidence does he use to support his claim.
• How is this support effective?

Theme: Appearance vs. Reality

select one book from the following options

• The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
• Thirteen Blue Little Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

Essential Questions

• How does environment impact our value system?
• What is it about environment that makes us behave in ways that can often be destructive?
• How is personal identity impacted by the environment around us?
• Is morality personal or environmental?
• How does the past influence our decisions, desires and expectations?
• How do we manage personal freedom when it is in conflict with our responsibility to our community?

These questions will be explored in depth through discussion and writing.

Theme: Good Vs. Evil

read the following

• Grendel by John Gardner

Essential Questions

• What is a monster/hero?
• How does a society define its norms and values?
• How does the past influence our decisions, desires and expectations?
• How do we manage personal freedom when it is in conflict with our responsibility to our community?

Assignment

Answer the following questions as you are reading to help you comprehend the story.

Background
The first major work you will read in English IV will be the epic poem Beowulf. John Garner’s Grendel is a modern retelling of the first part of the epic told from the monster’s point of view. As it is a retelling, Gardner assumes the reader has some familiarity with the story of Beowulf. Read the summary below to help you understand Grendel. 

The Danish king Hrothgar has built a magnificent mead hall, Herot, for himself and his subjects. However, Herot has drawn the attention of a monster, Grendel. Each night the noise from the merrymaking at the hall draws Grendel to it, and he wreaks havoc and death upon those in the hall. For years, Herot sits empty due to the terror that is Grendel. Beowulf hears of Hrothgar’s distress and travels to rid the town of the monster. The two eventually meet in battle. 

Questions
You will have a short assessment on the book in the first week of school. The questions below will help you prepare for that assessment.  

• Chapter 1
  • How long has Grendel been involved in this “idiotic war”?
  • What three metaphors does Grendel use to describe himself?
  • How does he describe his mother?
• Chapter 2
  • How did Grendel feel when his mother looked at him?
  • Who or what tries to hurt him?
• Chapter 3
  • What has Grendel “settled his soul” on doing?
• Chapter 4
  • At the opening of the chapter, how long has the shaper been at the hall? 
  • What is the song he is singing about?
• Chapter 5
  • Describe the dragon’s home.
  • According to the dragon, low creatures can only see the past and present. What can he see?
• Chapter 6
  • What does Grendel discover about the dragon?
• Chapter 7
  • What is Grendel’s law?
• Chapter 8
  • According to Hrothgar, who is a danger to his sons?
• Chapter 9
  • What image clings to Grendel’s mind and why?
• Chapter 10
  • Why does Grendel awaken in terror?
• Chapter 11
  • Why is Grendel filled with joy?
• Chapter 12
  • What does Grendel do to the men in the mead hall?
  • What are Grendel’s last words?

Theme: The impact of environment on our value system

Select one book from the following options

• Blindness by Jose Saramago
• The Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Essential Questions

• How does environment impact morality?
• Are there actions that are ever considered unforgivable? Does environment impact this?
• What does it mean to be a “responsible” family member?