Lovinggood Middle School

Required Summer Reading Assignment; 2011 – 2012

Dear Students, Parents/Guardians:

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. According to the state standard for Reading across the Curriculum, students must read a minimum of 25 grade-level appropriate books (approximately 1 million words per year). The required summer readings help to achieve this standard. As students grow and mature, they need to continually practice their reading skills. While early reading skills are basic, when students grow older, they need selections that stimulate their imaginations, improve their thinking skills, and enhance their vocabulary development. The lists are based on recommendations from classroom teachers, librarians, and students, and support the Georgia Performance Standards for English/Language Arts. 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. Please note that we offer a wide range of suggested choices to accommodate preferences. Additionally, be aware that some of these books may contain adult content. Also, please consider the Lexile level of selections as well. A student’s Lexile level can be found on the student’s CRCT report.

How much reading is required?

6th Grade: Students should read 2 BOOKS OR 200 – 350 PAGES over the summer. Students should read one fiction and one nonfiction book of their choice. Please check the school web site for specific information and novel/author lists.

7th Grade: Students should read 2 BOOKS OR 300 - 450 PAGES over the summer. Students should read one fiction and one nonfiction book of their choice. Please check the school web site for specific information and novel/author lists.

8th Grade: Students should read 2 BOOKS OR 350 – 550 PAGES over the summer. Students should read one fiction and one nonfiction book of their choice. ALP students should choose as one of their choices a classical piece from the list of classical authors posted on the 8th grade packet on the web site. As they read, students should annotate in books they have purchased, making notes in the margins, highlighting passages, etc. This annotation will help you remember the text you are reading. Please check the school web site for specific information and novel/author lists.

Will a project or book report be required for each book?

Yes, there will be specific required assignments for the summer reading. Please see grade level appropriate information on the school web site for specific information.

For questions or concerns, please contact Cheri Thornton, , Reading/Language Arts Department Chair for Lovinggood Middle School.

Lovinggood Middle School

Summer Reading Packet – 7th Grade

(Rising 6th Graders)

2011-2012 School Year

Dear Students, Parents/Guardians:

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. The primary goal of Summer Reading is to ensure that students are practicing this important skill in order to maintain reading levels. Summer Reading will also help students get an early start on meeting the 1,000,000 Word Georgia Performance Reading StandardELA7RC1 – The student reads a minimum of 25 grade-level appropriate books or book equivalents – approximately 1,000,000 words peryear from a variety of subject disciplines.

How much reading is required?

Students should read 2BOOKS OR 300-450 PAGES over the summer. Students should read one fiction and one nonfiction book of their choice.

Will a list of required books be provided?

A suggested list of titles and popular authors will be provided. However, it is important for adolescents to learn to self-select books based on interest and appropriate level. Tips on selecting books will be provided. Please be aware that these authors may also write adult titles which may not be appropriate for your child. Public media specialists and associates at book stores are also eager to guide students in their selections.

Will a project or book report be required for each book?

Because real readers love to talk about their reading, they will be giving a booktalk on their favorite book read over the summer. A booktalk is a 3-5 minute talk to their peers about a book that should motivate others to read the book. Students will be assessed using a rubric.

What if my child is reluctant to read over the summer?

Encourage your child to select a book that addresses a topic or subject of interest. Also, you can encourage your child to read by modeling that you are a reader too.

All assignments are due to your Language Arts teacher by September 6, 2011

Students may ask:

What should I read?

You may select your books for summer reading. It is important to pick carefully. Remember to select books that interest you and that are on your reading (Lexile) level.

Included in this packet are:

  1. Book Talk Form
  2. Book Talk Task Sheet
  3. List of Suggested Authors and Titles

How will I be graded?

You will choose your favorite book and prepare a booktalk for your classmates. Your packet includes a task sheet, checklist and rubric to help you with this assignment. Hearing other book talks will give you an opportunity to get ideas for books to read throughout the year.

Why should I read this summer?

Just like with any skill, practice is important. If you do not continue reading during the summer months, you might begin 8th grade at a lower reading level than your 7th grade level was at the end of this school year.

Where do I get the books?

You can go to the public library or local book stores.

Enjoy your summer reading!

The 7th Grade Language Arts Teachers

Book Talk Task

Task / Congratulations! Your teacher has just chosen you to create a booktalk for your classmates. Your goal is to get your peers hooked or interested in reading the book you recommend in your book talk. You have an awesome responsibility. Ready to motivate others to read?
Book Talk / A booktalk is a 3-5 minute talk about a book you have read. It is similar to a movie trailer but for books. The purpose of a booktalk is to "sell" the book. You want to give enough information about the text to interest your listeners, but you are not giving a summary of the book. You don't want to give away the important parts of the book. You certainly never want to give away the ending. You want to highlight the interesting points only. You may want to read certain passages to your listeners. The main purpose of a booktalk is to grab the audience's interest and make them want to read the book. It's always a good idea to end the booktalk with a cliffhanger. The booktalker presents the booktalk orally and usually has the book as a visual prop.
Essential Question / How can I get people in my class hooked a good book?
Product / Your mission is to create an exciting booktalk.
To begin, you must:
  • First, think about what gets you excited about reading. Is it the characters? Or is it the setting, an exciting plot, interesting themes, or a personal connection you have with the story? Do you like to read about our world through nonfiction?
  • Second, find a great book to share. (Use the list of titles and authors if you need some suggestions)
  • Third, complete the attached booktalk form to help you prepare for the talk. As you read your book, you might want to make notes of plot points or character’s actions that you might want to use.
  • Fourth, prepare an exciting script for your booktalk by:
  1. Including an interesting hook.
  2. Thoroughly and vividly describing the text by using interesting words.
  3. Explain how the text can be connected to the listeners in the class.
  4. Retelling an exciting part of the story without giving away too much information to ruin it.
  5. Using props where appropriate to build interest.
  6. Restating the title and author at the end of your booktalk.
  7. Leaving your listeners with a compelling reason for checking out the book you recommend.
  • Fifth, deliver your booktalk to your audience. Remember to:
  1. Speak loudly and clearly.
  2. Make frequent eye contact with your audience.
  3. Speak with enthusiasm. Remember it’s your job to hook your reader!

Assessment / You will be graded using the BookTalk Rubric.

Suggested Books and Authors

Students should read 2 books, totaling 300-450 pages. The following list of titles is just a suggestion of possible books you might choose to read. Please feel free to choose your own book. When choosing a book, please adhere to your Lexile level (found on your CRCT results) and choose a book which you have not previously read. Parents, please ensure that the book your child selects contains appropriate content for your child.

The following is a list of suggested titles with Lexile levels:

( For more information about Lexile levels and to determine your Lexile level, go to .

You will be able to search for books in a specific range or to determine the Lexile of a specific book.)

TITLE / LEXILE / TITLE / LEXILE
The Entertainer and the Dybbuk (Fleischman) / 610 / Ranger’s Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan (Book 1) (Flanagan) / 920
Homecoming (Voigt) / 630 / The Big Field (Lupica) / 970
Thief Lord (Funke) / 640 / Guts (Paulsen) / 980
Miracle’s Boys (Woodson) / 660 / Anne of Green Gables (Montgomery) / 990
Stormbreaker (Horowitz) / 670 / Marley & Me (Grogan) / 1050
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment (Book 1) (Patterson) / 700 / Parallel Journeys (Ayer) / 1050
Wanted (Cooney) / 780 / Once and Future King (White) / 1080
Among the Hidden (Haddix) / 800 / Amos Fortune, Free Man (Yates) / 1090
Good-bye, Vietnam (Whelan) / 810 / Treasure Island (Stevenson) / 1100
The Red Necklace (Gardner) / 820 / Caught By the Sea (Paulsen) / 1210
Dewey:The Small Town Library Cat Who Touched the World. (Myron) / 820 / Left for Dead (Nelson) / 1260
The Cay (Taylor) / 860 / We Are the Ship: The Story of the Negro League (Nelson) / (ALL)
The Mysterious Benedict Society (Stewart) / 890
On the Way Home (Wilder) / 900

If you do not see anything from the above list that interests you, you might try reading something by the following is a list of suggested authors:

Avi

Balliett, Blue

Bauer, Joan

Billingsley, ReShonda

Bloor, Edward

Blume, Judy

Brashares, Ann

Bruchac, Joseph

Bunting, Eve

Carter, Ally

Choldenko, Gennifer

Cisneros, Sandra

Clements, Andrew

Colfer, Eoin

Collins, Suzanne

Cooney, Caroline B.

Creech, Sharon

Curtis, Christopher Paul

Dashner, James

Deaver, Julie

Deuker, Carl

DiCamillo, Kate

D’Lacey, Chris

Draper, Sharon

duPrau, Jeanne

Farmer, Nancy

Flake, Sharon

Fleischman, Paul

Funke, Cornelia

Green, Tim

Grimes, Nikki

Haddix, Margaret Peterson

Hesse, Karen

Hiaasen, Carl

Hobbs, Will

Horowitz, Anthony

Kinney, Jeff

Korman, Gordon

Lasky, Kathryn

Lowry, Lois

Lupica, Mike

McDonald, Janet

McNair, Wendy Raven*

*(series available from Amazon)

Myers. Walter Dean

Naylor, Phyllis R.

Nixon, Joan Lowery

Patterson, James

Paulsen, Gary

Peacock, Shane

Peck, Richard

Philbrick, Rodman

Prose, Francine

Reiss, Kathryn

Riordan, Rick

Ryan, Pam Munoz

Sacher, Louis

Shan, Darren

Sonneblick, Jordan

Smith, Roland

Soto, Gary

Spinelli, Jerry

Stroud, Jonathan

Woodson, Jacqueline

Yee, Lisa

Yolen, Jane

Title of Book ______

Author ______Genre ______