HAMMONDSCHOOL 2009 SUMMER READING Rising 6 Grade ...

HAMMONDSCHOOL
Dear Parents,
Rising 6 th Grade Summer Reading List
2009 SUMMER READING
Reading for children must compete with so many distractions in this digital age. Research shows the
increasing difficulty our young “digital natives” have with the printed word. However, research also shows
that the greatest predictor of success in college is the ability to read complex material fluently. Students in
the 5 th grade who score in the 50 th percentile read on average 880,000 words per year. Students in the 5 th
grade who score in the 80 th percentile read on average 2.8 million words per year. (State of the State in
Reading, Language Arts Framers Meeting, Nov. 12, 2008) For our students to attain fluency they must
develop the habit of reading. We hope the selections on the summer reading list will offer each student an
opportunity to engage with a challenging book and with books they love. Parents can stimulate this
engagement by reading along with their children. Asking questions about the stories your children choose
helps them think about what they are reading. In addition to the who, what, why, when, and where questions
you can ask one or two of the following:
Was there anything special that you liked or disliked about the book? Why?
How might you act differently if you were the main character?
How would the story change if it were set in a different time?
How would you change the story if you were the author? Why?
Our summer reading lists are posted below. Middle school students are required to read three books, but we
hope they will choose to read many more. Assessments not posted with the reading lists will be posted by
grade level at a later date under “Related Forms.” We will have copies of all our summer reading selections
at our annual Book Fair. You are by no means required to purchase books from the Book Fair, however,
15% of the proceeds are returned to the library for use in updating our collection.
We wish you a happy and entertaining summer full of good books.
Sincerely,
Katherine Hopkins
Middle School Librarian
Required for Country of Study: A guided assessment will be posted at a later date on the Summer Reading List web page
under “Related Forms.”
(Many annotations courtesy of Follett Library Resources)

HAMMONDSCHOOL
2009 SUMMER READING
Rising 6 th Grade Summer Reading List
Sutcliff, Rosemary, Alan Lee (Illustrator) Black Ships before Troy: the Story of the Iliad (hardback with illustrations)
A retelling of The Iliad, the epic story of the final year of the Trojan War, from the quarrel for the golden apple, and the
flight of Helen with Paris, to the destruction of Troy. The epic is based on legends and involves mortals, gods, and heroic
events. The Iliad is a foundational work of our literary history. The illustrations enhance the story.
Or
Sutcliff, Rosemary
Black Ships before Troy: the Story of the Iliad (paperback, no illustrations)
Required for Language Arts: See instruction for this required novel for Language Arts on page 2 of this list.
Philbrick, Rodman
Freak the Mighty
At the beginning of eighth grade, learning disabled Max and his new friend Freak, whose birth defect has affected his
body but not his brilliant mind, find that when they combine forces they make a powerful team.
Third Required book: Choose one from the list below: See instruction for the required choice novel on page 2 of this list
Allison, Jennifer
Gilda Joyce: Psychic Investigator
During the summer before ninth grade, intrepid Gilda Joyce invites herself to the San Francisco mansion of distant cousin
Lester Splinter and his thirteen-year-old daughter, where she uses her purported psychic abilities and detective skills to
solve the mystery of the mansion's boarded-up tower.
Coville, Bruce
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher
Small for his age but artistically talented, twelve-year-old Jeremy Thatcher unknowingly buys a dragon's egg.
Creech, Sharon
Bloomability
When her aunt and uncle take her from New Mexico to Lugano, Switzerland, to attend an international school, thirteenyear-old
Dinnie discovers her world expanding.
Curtis, Christopher Paul
The Watsons go to Birmingham
The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African-American family living in Flint, Michigan,
are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963.
DuPrau, Jeanne
City of Ember
In the city of Ember, twelve-year-old Lina trades jobs on Assignment Day to be a Messenger to run to new places in her
decaying but beloved city, perhaps even to glimpse Unknown Regions.
George, Jean Craighead
My Side of the Mountain
A young boy relates his adventures during the year he spends living alone in the Catskill Mountains including his struggle
for survival, his dependence on nature, his animal friends, and his ultimate realization that he needs human
companionship.
Henkes, Kevin
Olive’s Ocean
On a summer visit to her grandmother's cottage by the ocean, twelve-year-old Martha gains perspective on the death of a
classmate, on her relationship with her grandmother, on her feelings for an older boy, and on her plans to be a writer.
Hesse, Karen
Out of the Dust
In a series of poems, fifteen-year-old Billie Jo relates the hardships of living on her family's wheat farm in Oklahoma
during the dust bowl years of the Depression.
Jacques, Brian
Redwall (or any in the series you have not read)
When the peaceful life of ancient Redwall Abbey is shattered by the arrival of the evil rat Cluny and his villainous hordes,
Matthias, a young mouse, determines to find the legendary sword of Martin the Warrior which, he is convinced, will help
Redwall's inhabitants destroy the enemy.
Jiang, Ji-li
Red Scarf Girl
The author tells about the happy life she led in China up until she was twelve-years-old when her family became a target
of the Cultural Revolution, and discusses the choice she had to make between denouncing her father and breaking with
her family, or refusing to speak against him and losing her future in the Communist Party.
O’Brien, Robert C.
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH
With nowhere else to turn, a field mouse asks the clever escaped lab rats living under the rosebush to help save her son,
who lies in the path of the farmer's tractor, too ill to be moved.
(Many annotations courtesy of Follett Library Resources)

HAMMONDSCHOOL
Rising 6 th Grade Summer Reading List
2009 SUMMER READING
Instructions for the required novels for 6 th Grade Language Arts and the third required choice novel:
Students should write three paragraphs for the required book. Your teachers will collect this on the first day of school.
An outline model for setting up your paper is shown below.
Outline Model
Your Name
Homeroom Teacher
Title of Book
By: (author’s name)
Paragraph 1: introduction to novel
The first paragraph should include the title of the book, the author, and general information concerning the
book (genre, interesting fact, etc.).
Paragraph 2: summary of novel
The second paragraph should include a brief description of the plot, the setting, and the main characters. This
should be a summary of what was read.
Paragraph 3: conflict in novel
The third paragraph should be an explanation of the conflict in the book: the type of conflict, the characters
involved in the conflict, a brief description of how the conflict originated (began), and an explanation of how
the conflict is resolved at the conclusion of the book. Be sure to include examples and details from the book to
support your explanation.
(Many annotations courtesy of Follett Library Resources)