The Summer Reading Experience

Transcription

1 The Summer Reading Experience Reading is one of the most enjoyable pastimes. It is a wonderful, private experience where the imagination takes the forefront of our learning. It is a boundless frontier. As we turn the pages, there can be something new and exciting around every corner. What we read gives us a lot to think about and this can lead us in many different directions. Literature opens doors to many new ways of looking at and experiencing the world. We, as the readers, are the explorers of that new world. The summer-reading books may open your mind to novel pathways of learning which may actually motivate you to read some books on related topics as well as some activities like going to a museum or to a play or musical. Whatever experience these books lead you to, whether it is reading or some other action or adventure, please describe it in your If you wish to confer with us about your reading expedition this summer with these exciting books and the long journey they take you on, feel free to us for academic collaboration at summerreading@bayridgeprep.org

2 Summer 2018 Grade 9 Mainstream Reading Assignments The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) The little prince is a marvelous tale that engenders philosophical discussion of life and personal beliefs by a classic French author. Letters To A Young Scientist by E. O. Wilson (Liveright Publishing Corporation) This is an autobiographical work that is a reflection on the author s career from the perspective of understanding science to ensure our survival as a species. From the collapse of stars to the exploration of rain forests and the oceans depths, Wilson inspires a love of the innate creativity of science and a respect for the human being s modest place in the planet s ecosystem. Mythology by Edith Hamilton (Little, Brown and Company) In this book you are only required to read the following selections: Part I in its entirety and Part IV chapters 1 and 2. You will find that this is an enlightening journey into the creative minds of the early thinkers. Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach (Scribner) A fascinating, allegorical, philosophical and inspiring tale of leadership and courage about how to follow your passion and not go along with the crowd. Written assignment: Write an essay discussing your reactions to the assigned readings. Describe 1 2 characters from each book that caught your attention. Your analysis should include personal identification with some of the aspects of these characters. You are welcome to write separate essays or one integrated Please share your completed assignment as a Google Doc with Mr. Anthony Tempera at atempera@bayridgeprep.org.

3 Summer 2018 Grade 10 Mainstream Reading Assignments Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Any Translation) This is one of the most famous medieval stories of the court of King Arthur. A fascinating read. The Physician by Noah Gordon (Open Road Integrated Media LLC) It s a European best-selling classic about a young man s journey across 11th century Europe into Persia. I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb (dailybooks) This is the story of Malala Yousafzai, a young girl in Pakistan who was seeking an education to better her life. She survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban, who believe that females are forbidden from going to school. This is the story, told in her own words, of her journey from humble beginnings to eventually become a Nobel Prize recipient. Choose one of the following books: Silent Spring by Rachel Carson (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), written in 1962 to alert the public to the dangers of pesticides, marked the beginning of environmentalism in America. Your reading of this book should be a casual one, taking time now and then to focus on topics of personal interest. Your Inner Fish by Neil Shubin (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group), traces the evolutionary development of the human body found in the fossil record. The author seeks to discover why we look the way we do. In his journeys to different fossil sites, he learns how to find fossils that provided answers as to when, and perhaps how, some changes, such as hands that came from fish flippers, occurred. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown (Penguin Publishing Group), is an unbelievable tale about beating the odds. It is the true story about what 9 working class boys from America did in the 1936 Olympics to challenge the greatest rowing crews in the world. For the books you have read, complete an essay discussing your reactions. Describe several characters from the books that have caught your attention. Your analysis should include personal identification with some of the aspects of these characters. You are welcome to write separate essays or one integrated Please share your assignment as a Google Doc with Ms. Mary Rizk at mrizk@bayridgeprep.org.

4 Summer 2018 Grade 11 Mainstream Reading Assignments On Secret Service by John Jakes (Penguin Publishing Group) Black Hawk Down by Mark Bowden (Grove/Atlantic, Inc) and/or The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan (Random House Publishing Group) Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult (Pocket Books) Dibs in Search of Self by Virginia Axline (Random House Publishing Group) These works have been chosen because they have unique elements to prepare the reader for the curriculum of eleventh grade. They cover such topics as the fascinating story of the beginning of the secret service by a modern master of historical fiction (On Secret Service), the engagement of the U.S. military in Mogadishu, Africa on a mission to deliver food to the poor which soon became a struggle with Osama Bin Laden in his first major terrorist action (Black Hawk Down), a modern American novel of murder and investigation in Amish country (Plain Truth), and a psychological journey into the mind of a troubled child in client centered therapy (Dibs in Search of Self). The Botany of Desire is an ingenious narrative of the relationship between people and plants. Michael Pollan used gardening to create a metaphorical view of life and its beginnings. Write an essay discussing your reactions to the assigned readings. Describe several characters from the books that have caught your attention. Your analysis should include personal identification with some of the aspects of these characters. You are welcome to write separate essays or one integrated Please share your completed assignment as a Google Doc with Ms. Anita Mercado at amercado@bayridgeprep.org.

5 Summer 2018 Grade 12 Mainstream Reading Assignments Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution by Thomas Friedman (Picador) The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown and Company) Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman (Random House Publishing Group) And Still I Rise by Maya Angelou (Random House Publishing Group) Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom (Crown/Archetype) and/or First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung (HarperCollins) The following books are required for students enrolled in specific courses listed below: AP Physics: The Five Equations That Changed The World by Michael Guillon (Hachette Books) OR E = MC2 by David Bodanis (Bloomsbury USA) AB Calculus / BC Calculus: Journey Through Genius by William Dunham (Penguin Publishing Company) OR In Code A Mathematical Journey by Sarah Flannery (Profile Books Limited) Write an essay discussing your reactions to the assigned readings. Describe several characters from the books that have caught your attention. Your analysis should include personal identification with some of the aspects of these characters. You are welcome to write separate essays or one integrated Please share your completed assignment as a Google Doc with Mr. Daniel Greene at dgreene@bayridgeprep.org.