Summer Reading Program - Cobb County School District

Lovinggood Middle School
Summer Reading Assignment; 2013 - 2014
Dear Students, Parents/Guardians:
While summer reading is not required, it is strongly recommended. Students will be discussing the selections in
the fall in both their ELA and social studies classes and students that did not read over the summer will have to
read these selections while doing other assignments when they return in August.
Why summer reading?
Reading is the most important lifelong skill that we can help our children to learn and to practice. Unfortunately
during the summer months, students often choose activities that do not include picking up a good book. One of
the primary goals of Summer Reading is to ensure that students are practicing this important skill in order to
maintain reading levels. Additionally the goal of parallel and summer readings for Cobb County are to improve
literacy and to promote lifelong reading. As students grow and mature, they need to continually practice their
reading skills. Middle school students have moved beyond the “learning to read” phase and into the “reading to
learn” phase of their reading development.
We encourage parents to be actively involved in their child’s reading selections. Our teachers have read or
researched the recommended books and believe they are appropriate for the indicated grade levels. However,
reading ability, personal interest, emotional maturity, and family values are all factors that will influence your
child’s book selection.
Will a project or book report be required for each book?
There is no specific assignment to complete over the summer for the reading. However it is recommended that
6 th & 7 th grade complete the graphic organizer for the article(s) that they read and that 8 th grade complete the
annotations for the book that they read. There will be assignments given upon return to school in both ELA &
Social Studies for 6 th & 7 th grade and in ELA for 8 th grade.
For questions or concerns, please contact Cheri Thornton, cheri.thornton@cobbk12.org, Reading/Language Arts
Department Chair for Lovinggood Middle School.

Rising 6th Grade Summer Reading Choices:
Read one from this list: This will align with your first unit of study in Social Studies in 6 th Grade.
Breaking Stalin’s Nose by Eugene Yelchin
The Unforgotten Coat by Frank Cottrell Boyce
When the Wall Came Down by Serge Schmemann
Truce by Jim Murphy
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis
The Shadow Children by Steven Schnur
Rose Blanche by Roberto Innocenti
Also find a news article that aligns with your summer reading selection for the social studies cross-curricular alignment.
Complete an organizer for each of the articles. Be prepared to discuss your cross-curricular summer reading with both
your Social Studies teacher and your Language Arts teacher at the beginning of the year.
Article citation- Use MLA formatting.
What is the issue or event about? Be
specific.
Who is the article about? Be specific.
When did this issue or event occur?
Where did this issue or event occur?
What happened?
How does this issue or event relate to
the fiction book you chose?

Rising 7 th Grade Summer Reading Choices
Read one from this list: This will align with your first unit of study in Social Studies in 7th Grade.
Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers
Words in the Dust by Trent Reedy **
** The novel Words in the Dust is in the process of going through re-publication and won’t be released in paperback until September, 2013. It is
available now for immediate download for Kindle (through Amazon) or Nook (through Barnes & Noble) or you may find it used through some on-line
book sellers. There are print copies for check-out through the Cobb County Public Library System as well.
Additionally, find two current news articles that align with your summer reading fiction selection from above. Complete an
organizer for each article and attach a copy of each article to the organizer. Be prepared to discuss your summer reading with both
your Social Studies teacher and your Language Arts teacher at the beginning of the year.
(You should print one copy of this organizer for each article)
Article citation- Use MLA
formatting.
What is the issue or event about?
Be specific.
Who is the article about? Be
specific.
When did this issue or event
occur?
Where did this issue or event
occur?
What happened?
How does this issue or event relate
to the fiction book you chose?

Rising 8 th Grade Summer Readig Choices:
Read a classic literature piece from the list of author’s below. You should annotate and take notes as you read.
You should focus on characterization, theme and symbolism more so than the basic plot. Assignment for this
novel selection will be discussed the first week of school. Parents should help students in the selection of the
novel, as some titles may contain themes unsuitable for your child.
Shakespeare, William
Wells, H. G.
Defoe, Daniel
Dickens, Charles (not Christmas Carol)
Marlowe, Christopher
Wilde, Oscar
Twain, Mark (AC students should not
choose Tom Sawyer or Huck Finn)
London, Jack
Bellamy, Edward
Orwell, George
Austen, Jane
Bronte, Charlotte
Bronte, Emily
Cooper, James Fennimore
Milton, John
Verne, Jules
Dumas, Alexandre
Hemingway, Ernest
Cather, Willa
Salinger, J. D.
Ellison, Ralph
Kipling, Rudyard
Shelley, Mary
Carroll, Lewis
Hawthorne, Nathaniel
Sinclair, Upton
Swift, Jonathan
Hugo, Victor
Faulkner, William
Cervantes, Migel de
Heller, Joseph
Baum, L. Frank
While you read your novel, you should annotate your selection. Directions for annotation are given below.
Stoker, Bram
Homer
Stowe, Harriet Beecher
Forbes, Esther
Crane, Steven
Alcott, Louisa Mae
Melville, Herman
Montgomery, Lucy Maud
McCullers, Carson
O’Connor, Flannery
Golding, William
Do you want to be able to recall a book that you read weeks or months later? The best way to do that is to be an active reader by
annotating (or making notes in) a text! Annotation is a key component of close reading. In eighth grade we will annotate texts all
year, so as you read this summer begin to work on a system that works for you (within the following guidelines). By annotating
effectively, you can review an entire text in 30 minutes and be prepared for any assessment! Follow the instructions below…
Materials Needed:
Yellow highlighter: This color is most preferred because it is the least distracting than other colors and emphasizes the parts
of the text that you want to remember. (You will only need the highlighter if you own your own copy of the text.) If you
don’t own the text, consider using yellow sticky notes in lieu of highlighting.
You may want other colors: when you re-read, use different colors to show additional detail or development of ideas as you
have time to reflect.
Pencil: You need this to write in the text (or on a sticky note if you don’t own the text). Using a pencil is a better choice since
even geniuses need to correct mistakes!
A Dictionary: It is a good idea to keep a dictionary nearby in order to look up words you may not know so that you can
better understand the text.
Your Text: If possible, it is best to have your own copy of the text so that you can highlight and write in it. However, if you
don’t, you need to get some sticky notes that you can use to put in the book and then take out when you return the book.
Before Reading: (A caution for you speed readers – close reading & annotation requires a more methodical approach. Slow down so
you can complete the annotation. You can always go back and read it straight through later).
1. Read the front and rear jackets of the book, including information about the author. This can give you a more rounded picture
of the book while reading.
2. Always read the title page, introductions, table of contents, prefaces and any notes from the author. These will help
familiarize yourself with the content of the book and its origins.
3. Check to see if there is a glossary or any other information at the back of the book that you can use while you are reading.
4. Find the right place to read your book. Some people need complete silence while others can read in any environment. Only
you know what your best reading environment is, so find it and use it!
Active Reading and Annotation Methods (Please use these for standardization of class instruction):

1. Highlight key information, including vocabulary you don’t understand, significant quotes, references to other literary works,
or any parts of the text relating to themes, significant characters, or events. Close reading means that you are thinking while
reading. Have a conversation with the text. Talk back to it.
2. While you read, use your pencil to make notes in the margins about key material. You can use punctuation marks such as
stars, arrows, question marks, check marks, and brackets to mark the text that you may want to come back to. You should
come up with your own unique system to mark what you think is important or questionable. You should comment on things
that you think are significant, powerful, meaningful – things you agree/disagree with in the text.
3. At the end of each chapter, summarize the main ideas/events in the chapter in one or two sentences. Make note of where plot
events occur (exposition to rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, conclusion).
4. Use the inside front cover of the book to keep a list of important information with page number references in the book. Some
examples of what you could list here are themes, text that connects to the book’s title, important names of characters &
character development, memorable quotes, or key questions you may have about the text. Consider literary elements such as
symbolism, mood, tone, setting, archetypes, and motifs. (If you don’t own the book, do this on a separate piece of paper or on
sticky notes.)
5. Use the inside back cover to make a list of key vocabulary words and definitions from the text. Choose words that are unique
to the author/story/culture or advanced vocabulary. (If you don’t own the book, do this on a separate piece of paper or on
sticky notes.)
6. Additional information you may want to include in margins or on post-it notes may include – any epiphanies that you have
while reading – mark your ah-ha moments; what about word choice (diction or syntax), repetition, figurative elements.
After Reading:
1. After you have read the book, you may want to re-read it, or skim it again, adding to your notes and highlighting.
2. Keep all of your notes with the book (if you didn’t write in it) so that you can go back and review it.
3. You may also want to make a list of characters and descriptions for the characters to better help you remember them.
4. If there is a confusing timeline in the book, you may want to create your own timeline on paper to help you understand the
sequence of events. Choose the top ten events from the book and put them in order.
5. When you are done with the book, don’t put it down for a while! Complete any assignments for it and review your notes
before any tests.
Don’t want to buy the book, most classic literature can be found on line in pdf format. Consider using the following web sites to look
for your selection.
http://www.online-literature.com/
http://www.read.gov/books/
http://www.gutenberg.org/
Using an e-reader like Kindle, Nook or i-Pad, check out their annotation software and become familiar with it before you start to read.
If your device has a memory card, consider saving your annotations there or to your cloud so they can be recovered if your device is
lost or damaged.
Information on how to annotate a novel is taken from http://www.collegeboard.com .