James Irwin Charter High School - Committed to Character Development and Academic Excellence
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James Irwin Charter High School
Committed to Character Development and Academic Excellence
May 6, 2021
Dear Parents, Guardians, and Students,
Here is the summer reading assignment for 2021. Included you will find instructions as well as sample entries.
You will also find that we have included a list of books and plays NOT to read. These books and plays are all
texts that are taught in the high school, so they will NOT be accepted as a summer reading choice.
Additionally, it is our desire that students choose a book for the enjoyment of reading; the book should be
something they are interested in reading. For this reason, we would prefer that students do NOT choose an
“academic” or “classic” book unless that book is truly something they wish to read. If your student is having
difficulty choosing a book, consult a librarian or the internet. Here are a few links for your convenience:
Pikes Peak Library has an amazing young adult library. Here is a link to their website:
https://ppld.org/teens/find-good-book
Additionally, the internet has great lists of teen books. Here is a link you may find helpful:
https://www.goodreads.com/list/tag/young-adult
Keep in mind, that these lists are provided to give you ideas. It is possible that some of the books on the
list may be inappropriate for your student for a variety of reasons (length, grade appropriateness,
content, etc). It is up to the student and parent to base their choice on the parameters given.
Books students choose must not be on the DO NOT READ LIST; they must be grade level appropriate,
and may not be a comic book, graphic novel, or manga. Additionally, it cannot be a book that they have
already read—including for school.
If you have questions, you may email the following teachers, but keep in mind teachers are on summer break
too, so their response may be delayed.
Shannon Jordan-English 9: shannon.jordan@jamesirwin.org
Joy Bears-English 10: joy.bears@jamesirwin.org
Dotti Frisinger-English 11 & AP Lang: dotti.frisinger@jamesirwin.org
Grace Brueggemann-English 12 & AP Lit: grace.brueggemann@jamesirwin.org
Sincerely,
James Irwin Charter High School English DepartmentDO NOT READ ANY OF THESE BOOKS OR PLAYS 1984 by George Orwell A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Hamlet by William Shakespeare It’s Trevor Noah: Born a Crime (YOUTH EDITION) by Trevor Noah Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare Lord of the Flies by William Golding Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Night by Elie Wiesel Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain The Crucible by Arthur Miller The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper The Odyssey by Homer The Pearl by John Steinbeck The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
SUMMER READING 2021- Freshman/ Sophomore
This summer you are assigned to choose your own book. Here are some guidelines:
A novel or non-fiction work of YOUR CHOICE;
Not a comic book or graphic novel
Follow your interests; pick something you’ll enjoy reading.
James Irwin Appropriate (We realize you may not know this when you choose a book, but read a
review, look up age appropriateness, or ask a librarian first)
Not a book you’ve already read – even for school
Age Appropriate (not Goosebumps; must be grade 9+)
At least 150 pages long
ASSIGNMENT: While you read, you will complete the following assignment, which will be
turned in the first day of English classes:
FRESHMAN/SOPHOMORE
(see below for more detail)
Vocabulary – look up 10 unknown words
Choose 2 Literary Options
Choose 3 Creative Options
**Attach the enclosed rubric to the front of your assignment**
VOCABULARY: Number your words in the margin
LEFT SIDE: Word, Page #, Part of Speech RIGHT SIDE: Definition or synonym
An original, meaningful sentence using the word
A meaningful sentence contains enough detail to
define the word by context.
(underline or HIGHLIGHT the word in the sentence;
do not use the sentence in the book; write your
own)
EXAMPLE:
1. Breach NOUN Page 25 Definition: A gap or break in an area
Sentence: The breach in the fence allowed the
dog to escape the yard.
2. Feign VERB Page 51 Definition: to fake
Sentence: Even though I felt fine, I feigned illness
so I could stay home from school.LITERARY OPTIONS: (Choose 2)
* Connections to other books you’ve read, real life, *Setting, & Point of View
celebrities, pop culture, movies, or TV *Mood & Tone
* Explanation of what a quote means to you *Characterization & Plot
* Answer to a question you’ve posed *Themes or Motifs
* Why you think a quote is significant *Symbols/Symbolism
(maybe it is foreshadowing or a hint to a mystery) *Foreshadowing & Suspense
* Observations *Irony, Figures of Speech, or other devices
*Discuss a passage or an event *Predict what will happen & why you think this.
LITERARY OPTION FORMAT:
Your responses should show deep thought. These are YOUR thoughts, not those of a website.
Copying from a website is plagiarism and will earn 0 points.
LEFT SIDE: A quote/question you have & page # RIGHT SIDE: Commentary or explanation of
the quote, OR answer to your question.
5-8 sentences.
EXAMPLES:
“Time heals all wounds.” Page 25 Jim’s uncle constantly utters sayings like this
and it irritates Jim. It’s always at a bad time.
This is important because it establishes the
relationship between the two characters and
also, time seems like it is going to be a motif
that recurs. It might also foreshadow that,
even though Jim feels bad about losing his job,
things will get better later in the novel.
SETTING: 1930s New York City At first I just didn’t think anything about these 2
1st person POV (am up to page 60) things, but now I realize that it had to be in NY
because it is becoming obvious that Mary will
pursue dance, while Jim will dedicate himself
to academics. This is the source of conflict.
Using 1st person allows me to know Jim’s
thoughts and wonder about Mary’s which
creates suspense and moves the plot.
“I wondered then if I’d have the courage to stand This reminded me of To Kill A Mockingbird be-
up to them. We’d always agreed about this, but cause Atticus has to stand up to his friends and
now I knew what they were doing was wrong. How neighbors. He said something about courage
can they think it’s okay to bully people just because being when you know you will probably fail, but
they are different? I doubted if I would convince them, you begin anyway. Jim has reached a point
but I had to try or find new friends.” P. 103 where he has to follow his convictions, even if
it means he’ll lose friends.CREATIVE OPTIONS: (Choose 3)
Most options will use separate paper or you may create them digitally and print them.
POST IT: Fill a whole (separate) page with different post-it notes about your book. Questions, facts, summaries, comments,
and predictions are just a few ideas that you could use! Give page #s and full sentences.
NEW ADDITION: Create a new character or event for the novel that would alter the book’s resolution OR write a new
ending. Describe how this person, event, or alternative ending has the power to change the outcome. Write 7 to 10 sentences
describing the character/event and how it would change the outcome.
DRAW!: Draw a picture of a symbol that relates to the theme of the book. Write a theme statement and explain how the
picture & symbol relate to the theme that you are depicting. OR draw a few (5-10) frames for a Graphic novel that depicts an
important scene. A theme statement is a central message of the work. It is NOT man vs. _____; those are conflict types.
IN THE NEWS: FIND A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE THAT RELATES TO YOUR BOOK. CUT OUT THE NEWSPAPER
ARTICLE and ATTACH IT TO YOUR WORK. Annotate the article. Annotating means not just underlining words. You
should be asking questions and making comments.
MOVIE SOUNDTRACK: Create a soundtrack for your book. List five songs AND the artist that best capture the mood of
your novel. {Next to your favorite, put a * & explain (2 to 4 sentences) why you chose it}.
COVER TO COVER: Design an ORIGINAL book cover or an appropriate album cover for an album created by your
character. Your album cover cannot be the book cover! Whichever you choose, use images, symbols, phrases, or quotes that
relate to the novel.
TRIP ADVISOR: Choose a significant location from your novel. Either create or find local attractions, photographs, bucket
list items, restaurants, and/or cultural events - think scrapbook page – or Trip Advisor web page. If your novel takes place in a
different world, use your imagination to create these places.
GRAFFITTI ARTIST: Fill a paper with a collage of graffiti that your character might paint on the side of a building.
[include colorful images, words, phrases, quotes, and more…] Fill in the entire page. Below the rectangle, explain at least two
elements inside your collage in a total of 2 sentences.
DEAR DIARY: Write a diary entry (200-300 words) from your character’s perspective. Provide context clues to show the
relationship to event(s)in the novel. Include your character’s feelings and thoughts about the event. DO NOT COPY
PASSAGES; use your own words, but try to BE the character.
APPEARANCE vs. REALITY: Sometimes characters show the world a different person than who they truly are. Draw a
line down the center of a page. On the left side, draw or include pictures, words, or phrases that represent or symbolize what
your character looks like on the inside. On the right side of the line, illustrate what your character is truly like by including
pictures, words, or phrases that present your character's true self.
I BEG TO DIFFER: Pick a scene in which you disagreed with how a character handled a situation. Rewrite the scene as it
should have happened, or write a letter to your character explaining how s/he should have handled the situation. Include
character's name and specific details about what situation was handled poorly.
FAKEBOOK: Create a Facebook style page for one of your characters with details, pictures, etc. You may use this or a
similar tool: https://classtools.net/FB/home-page
SHIPPING: Would you "ship"? Lots of people would choose different character relationships if they were to rewrite a novel.
How would you create a relationship or change a relationship between characters that are already in your book? Suggestions:
mentorship/romantic relationship/friendship/rivalry
BE A POET & SHOW IT: Write poetry related to a character, event, or theme from your novel.
BRAIN CHANGE: How has this book changed your thinking? Write a few sentences that explain how your opinion or
something else about you has changed after reading your book. Explain in a 5-9 sentence paragraph.
Creative options borrowed & adapted from: www.cardinalritter.orgSUMMER READING RUBRIC
**Attach this sheet to the front of the submitted assignment**
NAME: _____________________________________ Period: ______
BOOK: _____________________________________
CATEGORY/ Excellent Good/ Skillful Acceptable/ Limited Un-
CRITERION 10 points 8 points Sufficient 4 points acceptable
6 points 0-2 points
APPROPRIATE Meets all required Meets some of the Book not
BOOK CHOSEN criteria for book required criteria for appropriate
Age, Length, selection book selection
No graphic novel, JIA
POINTS EARNED:
VOCABULARY Has correctly Has correctly Has correctly Has correctly Has only listed the
Required Elements completed all 5 of completed all 5 numbered & listed completed word word
(word, page number, the required elements for 8-9 the word and and definition or
part of speech, elements words OR listed the definition, and more elements, but
definition, meaningful word, definition, either a sentence, in a simplistic or
sentence) sentence, and part of speech, or limited manner
either part of page number in a and/or did not
POINTS EARNED: speech or page sufficient manner number the list
number
LITERARY OPTIONS Has correctly Has correctly Has correctly Completed 1 the Incomplete entries,
(2 choices) completed the completed the completed 1 of the required number of OR has completed
required number of required number of required 5-8 entries, OR has the full amount but
POINTS EARNED: 5-8 sentence entries. Entries are sentence entries completed the full entries are
entries that show 3-4 sentences or 9- OR Entries are 3-4 amount but entries incomplete
deep thought. 10 sentences that sentences or 9-10 are less than 3 sentences or show
somewhat show sentences that sentences or show no thought
deep thought somewhat show superficial thought or STUDENT HAS
deeper thinking. COPY-PASTED/
PLAGIARIZED
CREATIVE OPTIONS Has correctly Has correctly Has completed 2 of Has completed 1 of Has not completed
(3 choices) completed required completed of the entries with the entries with the entries or
number of entries required number of some creativity and creativity and deep STUDENT HAS
POINTS EARNED: using creativity and entries with some somewhat deeper thought or entries COPY-PASTED/
deep thought. creativity and thinking lack creativity and PLAGIARIZED
somewhat deep show superficial
thought thought.
GRAMMAR/ ___Very few errors in __Some errors that __Some errors that __Several errors that __Filled with errors
MECHANICS CUPS do not inhibit reading slow down the reader slow the reader down that interfere with
___Capitalization or understanding of reading
POINTS EARNED: ___Usage the piece
___Punctuation-
___Spelling
TOTAL POINTS EARNED /50You can also read
