Rising 8 th Grade Summer Reading 2016 Welcome to Summer, dear readers! For your assigned Summer Reading: PLUS ALL incoming 8 th graders will read the same Core Novel, which will form the basis of the first unit of study for Trimester 1 in August. In addition to reading this Core Novel, all students must complete the Annotation Assignment (see pages 4 and 5) for the Core Novel. All students will read one book from the Choice List. All students will read one book from the Kwame Alexander List, as he will be our visiting author in September! **Note: each middle schooler will read a total of at least three (3) books this summer. Successfully reading (and ENJOYING) these books will translate into starting the year strong. Please return to school in August ready to discuss all aspects of the core novel, as well as your chosen book(s). Most books are available in several formats, including paperback, audio (Overdrive, CD, Audible.com, itunes) and ebook (Overdrive, Kindle, itunes). Our NBPS Overdrive Collection can be accessed at https://northbrowardfl.libraryreserve.com. Sign in with your student id to check out and download ebooks and audiobooks. No matter which versions you read or listen to, you must also own a print or digital copy of your core novel to bring to class in August. Core Novel Monster by Walter Dean Myers While on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script as he tries to come to terms with the course his life has taken. Lexile: 670
Kwame Alexander List The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, Newbery Winner 2015 Author Kwame Alexander will visit NBPS to speak with Middle School students in September! "With a bolt of lightning on my kicks...the court is SIZZLING. My sweat is DRIZZLING. Stop all that quivering. Cuz tonight I m delivering," announces 12-year-old Josh Bell. He and his twin brother Jordan are awesome on the court. But Josh has more than basketball in his blood, he's got mad rhythm, too, as he tells his family's story in verse. Josh and Jordan must come to grips with growing up on and off the court, as their story's heart-stopping climax proves a game-changer for the entire family. Lexile: 750 Booked by Kwame Alexander Author Kwame Alexander will visit NBPS to speak with Middle School students in September! Like lightning/you strike/fast and free/legs zoom/down field/eyes fixed/on the checkered ball/on the goal/ten yards to go/can t nobody stop you/can t nobody cop you Soccer, family, love, and friendship take center stage as twelve-year-old Nick learns the power of words while he wrestles with problems at home, stands up to a bully, and tries to impress the girl of his dreams. Helping him along are his best friend and sometimes teammate Coby, and The Mac, a rapping librarian who gives Nick inspiring books to read. Lexile: 660 Choice List Stormbreaker (Alex Rider series bk. 1) by Anthony Horowitz They told him his uncle died in an accident. He wasn't wearing his seatbelt, they said. But when fourteen-year-old Alex finds his uncle's windshield riddled with bullet holes, he knows it was no accident. What he doesn't know yet is that his uncle was killed while on a top-secret mission. Alex must outsmart the people who want him dead. The government has given him the technology, but only he can provide the courage. Lexile: 670
Million Dollar Throw by Mike Lupica Eighth-grade star quarterback Nate Brodie's family is feeling the stress of the troubled economy, and Nate is frantic because his best friend Abby is going blind, so when he gets a chance to win a million dollars if he can complete a pass during the halftime of a New England Patriots game, he is nearly overwhelmed by the pressure to succeed. Lexile: 960 Since You ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson Before Sloane, Emily didn t go to parties, she barely talked to guys, and she didn t do anything crazy. Enter Sloane, social tornado and the best kind of best friend someone who yanks you out of your shell. But right before what should have been an epic summer, Sloane just disappears. There s just a random to-do list with thirteen bizarre tasks that Emily would never try. But what if they can lead her to Sloane? Lexile: 970 Cinder (Lunar Chronicles series bk. 1) by Marissa Meyer Cinder, a gifted mechanic and a cyborg with a mysterious past, is blamed by her stepmother for her stepsister's illness, while a deadly plague decimates the population of New Beijing. But when Cinder's life gets intertwined with Prince Kai's, she finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle. Lexile: 790 Okay For Now by Gary D. Schmidt In this sequel to The Wednesday Wars, fourteen-year-old Doug Swieteck faces many challenges, including an abusive father, a brother traumatized by Vietnam, suspicious teachers and police officers. But when he meets a girl known as Lil Spicer, he develops a close relationship with her and finds a safe place at the local library. Lexile: 850 The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen When a school bus accident leaves sixteen-year-old Jessica an amputee, she returns to school with a prosthetic limb and her track team finds a wonderful way to help rekindle her dream of running again. Lexile: 650 Pretties (Uglies series bk. 2) by Scott Westerfeld Tally's perfect life as a Pretty is disrupted when she receives a letter from herself, written when she was an Ugly, reminding her of the promise she made to take a drug developed to cure the brain lesions that keep the Pretties shallow and happy. When she takes the pills, she becomes a target of those determined to keep Pretty society carefree. Lexile: 860
Middle School English Annotation Assignment: Core Novel for Summer Reading Due: the first day of class in August As part of your summer reading assignment, you will annotate your CORE (required) text as you read. Below are strategies and examples of annotations. Though encouraged, annotations are NOT required for your choice books. Annotating keeps the reader engaged with the text. While you are reading, use one or more of the strategies to mark your book and to include your thoughts, questions, and reactions. If you prefer, use post-it notes OR if you have an e-copy, use the highlight/ note function. Requirements for annotations of your core novel: 1. Write at least 2 annotations per chapter (for Monster, write 2 annotations for every 10 pages). 2. Circle or highlight at least 10 words from throughout the novel that are new/unfamiliar to you. Make a list of these words at the end of the novel, and then define them. Suggested strategies for annotation: star any passages that you find important for the plot/ story underline any sentence that made you think and then jot a note in the margin to describe your thinking Circle or highlight words that are new/unfamiliar to you. Add them to your list at the end of the book (see above). Put a question mark by passages that you were confused about. In the margin, note why it was confusing to you. Bracket any sentences that exemplify the author s style, word choice, or interesting graphic elements. Write your thoughts about the language. Suggested sentence starters for annotation: Why did.? This part about makes me wonder. What would happen if. This section about means.
The way the author says makes me think What does the author mean by? After reading this paragraph, I can now predict. After reading this paragraph, I can now understand why The author included this graphic element in order to This character reminds me of The setting reminds me of This confuses me because Now I understand. This character did because The conflict in this scene is.. The author develops this character by The author s use of description The author organizes this text by...