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CUMBERLAND REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL HONORS SUMMER READING PROGRAM

1.       Over the summer, CRHS Language Arts Honors students are required to read the following books:

·        Grade 9:  1984 by George Orwell and Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton

·        Grade 10:  The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

·        Grade 11:  Lord of the Flies by William Golding and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

·        Grade 12:  The Odyssey by Homer and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe.

2.       You may purchase these books at any bookstore.  Copies of each title may also be signed out from the CRHS media center.

3.       While reading the books, you will keep a reading log (see specific requirements below).

·        The reading log must be completed in a marble composition book available at most drug stores, discount stores, office supplies stores, etc.

·        The reading log must be handed in on the first day of school whether students have Language Arts the first or second semesters.  Receptacles will be available in the main office for students to hand in their reading logs.

4.        The summer reading log is intended to be completed individually by each student, not in collaboration with other students.  Please do not work together with other students to complete this reading log.

CRHS HONORS SUMMER READING PROGRAM  

READING LOG INSTRUCTIONS

As you read your two (2) assigned books, you will be keeping a log of various assignments related to this reading.  All logs are due in to the main office by the end of the first day of the school year whether you have Language Arts in the first or second semester.

Your reading log should be a marble composition book, not a binder or spiral notebook.

1.       Vocabulary (20 points):  From each book, identify a minimum of two (2) unfamiliar words per chapter (in the case of Pride and Prejudice, one (1) word per chapter). 

·        Write out the sentence in which each word appears.

·        Use a dictionary to define each word.

·        Use each word in an original sentence which demonstrates its meaning.

Example:  From Act 2 of the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare:

·        “What a piece of work is a man!  The beauty of the world!  The paragon of animals.”

·        “paragon”-- A model of excellence or perfection of a kind; a peerless example: a paragon of virtue.

·        Tiger Woods is considered a paragon of the world of golf.

2.        Important Sentences (40 points)—For both books:

·        Choose one meaningful passage (1-3 sentences) from each chapter which you feel is the most important passage in that chapter. (In the case of Pride and Prejudice, choose one passage for every two chapters.)

·        Copy out the passage and write a minimum of one complete sentence explaining why that is the chapter’s most important passage.

·        Be sure to head each entry in this section with the book title and the chapter number (in the case of the Odyssey, identify the book number).

Example:   From Act 1 of the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare.

·        “O cursed spite that ever I was born to set it right!”

·        In this line, Hamlet is exclaiming how upset he is that he has been asked to get revenge for his father’s murder.  He may feel he’s not capable of avenging his father’s death and is worried he may be seen as a coward as a result.

3         Comparison Contrast (40 points)

·        Choose one of the following literary elements from the two books you read (characters, plot, conflict, theme, setting, symbols, etc.).

·        Write an essay (minimum of five paragraphs) comparing (showing similarities) and contrasting (showing differences) how the literary element you choose is used in each book.

·        See these websites for help in writing a comparison/contrast essay:  http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/compcontrast/   and http://gotoscience.com/Graphic_Organizers/comparediagram.pdf