IB Language A1, Parts 1 & 4/AP English Literature and Composition

Summer Assignment

Pensacola High School

Ms. Powers

(best way to reach me)

Students wishing to be a part of IB Language A1, Parts 1 & 4/AP English Literature and Composition next year are required to read two texts this summer. This course, as well as all of your IB courses, requires considerable commitments of time and effort. If you are not willing to put in the time and effort during the summer, you will have a bad start in the program. The summer assignment is designed to prepare you for the required work throughout the year, as well as in your senior year in Language A1, Part2 and 3 (yes, this course is spread out over two years).

DO NOTE THROW AWAY THIS PACKET! YOU WILL NEED TO BRING THIS PACKET WITH YOU THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. IT IS FULL OF VALUABLE INFORMATION WHICH YOU WILL NEED TO REFERENCE ALL YEAR.

Be ready to test on How to Read Literature Like a Professorafter we review it during the first two or threeweeks of school. Additionally, you will have to read The Poisonwood Bible, our first unit of Part 4 for IB Language A1. You MUST annotate the novel! The annotated novel is due at the end of the first week of school! If it is not in your class period tray by the end of that Friday it is a ZERO! No late work will be accepted! Have your annotation rubric inside your book. Have your name on the rubric AND your novel! No name means no grade. “If did the work, you should have put a name on it,” as Beyoncé once said—or something along those lines.

Table of Contents

Assignment List and Grading Point System

Assignment Description

Annotation Guide

“How to Mark a Book” Article

Text Annotation Scoring Rubric

Sample Critical Literary Analysis Paper

Critical Literary Analysis Scoring Rubric (this is based off of the AP writing response rubric)

Assignment List and Grading Percentages

Read and study How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster. You will need to purchase the text. Yes, this can be time consuming, but only if you make it so. Do not procrastinate. Get a planner and schedule your time. Once you’re done, you will be more than prepared to “attack” literature as well as the novel you select for summer reading—once you have studied Foster’s book. You can—and SHOULD—use what you learned in this novel throughout The Poisonwood Bible as well your next two years in this course (symbolism, Christ-figure, the quest, etc). Do not attempt to begin reading the novel until you have readHow to Read Literature Like a Professor. If you only read the novel, you will struggle with your in-class writing response.

Text annotations for novel: Project grade—100 points

How to Read Literature Like a Professor Test: Test grade (points can range from 60 to 80 points. The points for this test are not finalized because edits are being made, but expect it to be within this range).

In-class writing response (use annotated novel to respond to a prompt based on Foster’s elements): Writing grade—100 points

Presentation (a creative analysis on the novel and it is based on the IB Individual Oral Presentation. This will be discussed further in detail in class. The rubric for this as well as an example video from IB can be found on our class page): Presentation grade (100 points).

Here is roughly how many points assignments are worth in my course:

Homework- 5-20 points

Classwork/Participation- 20-40 points

Quizzes- 40-60 points

Tests- 60-80 points

Writing- 100points

Presentation- 100 points

Assignment Description ~ Text Annotations

Purchase your books and write directly in each one. Truly, this is the most successful and efficient way to study a text. That’s why college students purchase books (and even keep them!).

If you opt not to purchase your texts and use library editions or copies borrowed from a friend, you may use post-it notes. Leave all post-its in the texts. Do not remove them. It is your responsibility to renew library books should they be due while still in my possession.I will not accept post-it notes without a text. All annotations must remain in each book.

Remember to read the essay on the proper way to mark (or annotate) a book and review the scoring rubric to understand what “kinds” of annotations I’ll be looking for. This rubric is based off of an IB writing rubric.

The Poisonwood Bible

Annotation Guide

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolveris a bestselling novel, but it’s not popular just for the sake of being popular. Its content is rich with lyrical descriptions, foreshadowing, themes of arrogance and ignorance, the search for identity, guilt, allusions, and both cultural and historical context. This compelling novel can be a complex challenge, but only if you make it is. By annotating this work, you can dive into the many connected layers, and make this an enjoyable read. Note: As stated in your summer reading packet for this class, annotating doesn’t mean simply highlights, circling, and/or underlining. These show engagements with the text, but it doesn’t show your depth of independent thinking. Question why something is being used, then write down an explanation after you’ve discovered the answer!

I have provided a recommended pacing guide to help simplify matters so that you don’t feel overwhelmed. The reading calendar can be found on our class page on the PHS IB website:

Please note that everyone reads at different paces, hence why I say recommended. You may choose to read very quickly and finish your tasks early, or you may go at a slower pace because you’re so immersed in this beautifully crafted work. I tried to set it so that it’s roughly thirty minutes of reading (in compliance with our IB homework policy). I highly recommend you begin this sooner rather than later. Procrastination is not a good habit to get into, especially in the IB program. You must be responsible and manage your time wisely.

Note: Annotations are due Friday, August 22nd! I do NOT accept late work. If you do not turn it in on that day, it is a zero.

Search for and note the following throughout the novel:

  • Elements from Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor. Look for: elements of a quest, communion, vampirism, fall from grace (aka loss of innocence), allusions, use of water (as snow, rain, rivers, etc.), violence, symbols, politics, Christ figure, flight, baptism, geography, seasons, markings for greatness, blindness (this doesn’t always mean being literally blind), heart, heart disease, illness, and ironies. Remember, don’t use highlight them; question them and explain them!
  • Unfamiliar words: Don’t recognize a word? Look it up and write the definition next to the word. This will help you the next time you read. Unfamiliar words aren’t just limited to what you may call vocabulary words; this applies to people, places, and things. Anything you’re unfamiliar with, look it up, and write it out! You can even draw a picture to help you visual things (such as a map of the village), or even print some pictures and put them in the book (such as an image of the Belgian Congo—well, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo).
  • Analyze the title, the description on the back cover, the images of the cover—we’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but it does happen!
  • Read and annotate the author’s note! See where you see notice Kingsolver’s notes cropping up in the work.
  • Be sure to check information in the back on the author and book.
  • Research the author. Get to know her and see if you notice Kingsolver’s life being reflected in the novel.
  • Historical context: many real life events are intertwined heavily with the factious characters in this novel. Look up at these people, places, and events that are mentioned. They will open your eyes to a whole new world.
  • Timeline: I recommend creating a timeline of the events that are mentioned throughout this novel. The country has many name changes as different hands take control. Take note of this.
  • Cultural context: research the cultures of the Belgian Congo. Look up videos so you can hear the Kikongo language. Look at different images of how they dress. Look up hot topic issues that are mentioned in the novel, such as blood diamonds, rubber plantations, Rwanda genocide, and more (such as when little Ruth May mentions “circus mission”) .
  • Allusions: biblical, mythological, references to literary works and writers, political figures and events, etc. Essentially, if the name of a person, place, or thing gets dropped—look it up!
  • Biblical allusions: these are most prevalent throughout the novel (the title and plot explains why). Each book in this novel (Kingsolver formats the work to have books, like the Bible) is a significant allusion and comes with a supporting verse. See what these books and verses could be foreshadowing, or how they connect to the main focus of that book in the novel.
  • Formatting: Kingsolver uses an interesting formatting, besides the one mentioned above. At the beginning of each novel, the mother, Orleanna, begins the book. She is followed by her daughters. Note their particular order. Before the first daughter speaks, Kingsolver has a title that follows after Orleanna speaks. Note the significance of these titles. They may be allusions (hint: the first one), foreshadowing future events, or supporting the focus of that book.
  • Voice: Each of our five narrators has a unique voice. These voices are created by their various styles of narrating. Pay attention to how their styles differ. Some may use figurative language more than others, some may use malapropisms, some use palindromes, some may use allusions, and so on. See how these various devices reflect the character.
  • Point of view: Pay attention to shift of point of view in the very beginning of the novel when Orleanna first speaks to use.
  • Tense: Pay attention to the speakers. Note who is speaking in the present (1989) and is looking back, and who is speaking from 1959 onwards. Why would Kingsolver do this?
  • Symbols: There are many symbols throughout this novel.
  • Motif: A motif is a symbol or strand of imagery that is used so often that its repetition creates a pattern. When you see something three times or more, it is more than likely a motif. You will notice an animal motif and a plant motif (especially the jungle). What is the significance of these motifs? How do they support a theme?
  • Themes: Search for analyze the various themes that addressed throughout this work. Here is a list to get you started, but the themes are not limited to just the following: guilt, Western arrogance, Western ignorance, identity, family, global justice, pantheism, the effects of colonialism, and more.
  • Note the genres this work falls into. This will help you better grasp the overall picture.
  • Narrators: Do the following for all of the narrators. I will also provide some specific things you need to look for when each character narrates. Look for: the perspectives they offer us (subjective, objective, what do they tend to focus on, what sort of insights do they provide), their relationships with other characters, what they notice about the relationships between others, and what they symbolize.
  • Orleanna: The following notes on the characters will help you look for particular things. Note how Orleanna says she is our guide to this world. Continue to see how she reveals information when, especially foreshadowing.
  • Leah: Pay attention to her relationship with her father, the allusions she uses, her ideals.
  • Ruth May: Look for Western arrogance and/or ignorance. Notice her malapropisms. Compare her malapropisms to her older sister, Rachel. Note her innocence and what sort of lens we see through when she speaks.
  • Rachel: Look for Western arrogance and/or ignorance, as well as consumerism/materialism. Notice her expressions and how they enhance her character. Compare her malapropisms to her younger sister, Ruth May. Why would Kingsolver apply this to both characters? How do malapropisms support these characters?
  • Adah: Note what she suffers from and tie that to how she narrates. She uses palindromes and rhymes. She tells us that she reads and writes forwards and backwards. Notice the allusions to other literary works and authors she mentions.
  • Natahn: Note that this significant character never narrates. Why is this? What is the significance of his lack of voice? What does he symbolize? What theme(s) does he support?
  • Names: Look up the names of family members, including their last name. Always look up names and their meanings! Ms. Powers is big on this, as well as the symbolic meaning of colors, numbers, weather, seasons, and time.

“How to Mark a Book”by Mortimer J. Adler, Ph.D.

You know you have to read "between the lines" to get the most out of anything. I want to persuade you to do something equally important in the course of your reading. I want to persuade you to write between the lines. Unless you do, you are not likely to do the most efficient kind of reading.

I contend, quite bluntly, that marking up a book is not an act of mutilation but of love. You shouldn't mark up a book which isn't yours.

Librarians (or your friends) who lend you books expect you to keep them clean, and you should. If you decide that I am right about the usefulness of marking books, you will have to buy them. Most of the world's great books are available today, in reprint editions.

There are two ways in which one can own a book. The first is the property right you establish by paying for it, just as you pay for clothes and furniture. But this act of purchase is only the prelude to possession. Full ownership comes only when you have made it a part of yourself, and the best way to make yourself a part of it is by writing in it. An illustration may make the point clear. You buy a beefsteak and transfer it from the butcher's icebox to your own. But you do not own the beefsteak in the most important sense until you consume it and get it into your bloodstream. I am arguing that books, too, must be absorbed in your blood stream to do you any good.

Confusion about what it means to "own" a book leads people to a false reverence for paper, binding, and type -- a respect for the physical thing -- the craft of the printer rather than the genius of the author. They forget that it is possible for a man to acquire the idea, to possess the beauty, which a great book contains, without staking his claim by pasting his bookplate inside the cover. Having a fine library doesn't prove that its owner has a mind enriched by books; it proves nothing more than that he, his father, or his wife, was rich enough to buy them.

There are three kinds of book owners. The first has all the standard sets and best sellers -- unread, untouched. (This deluded individual owns woodpulp and ink, not books.) The second has a great many books -- a few of them read through, most of them dipped into, but all of them as clean and shiny as the day they were bought. (This person would probably like to make books his own, but is restrained by a false respect for their physical appearance.) The third has a few books or many -- every one of them dog-eared and dilapidated, shaken and loosened by continual use, marked and scribbled in from front to back. (This man owns books.)

Is it false respect, you may ask, to preserve intact and unblemished a beautifully printed book, an elegantly bound edition? Of course not. I'd no more scribble all over a first edition of 'Paradise Lost' than I'd give my baby a set of crayons and an original Rembrandt. I wouldn't mark up a painting or a statue. Its soul, so to speak, is inseparable from its body. And the beauty of a rare edition or of a richly manufactured volume is like that of a painting or a statue.

But the soul of a book "can" be separate from its body. A book is more like the score of a piece of music than it is like a painting. No great musician confuses a symphony with the printed sheets of music. Arturo Toscanini reveres Brahms, but Toscanini's score of the G minor Symphony is so thoroughly marked up that no one but the maestro himself can read it. The reason why a great conductor makes notations on his musical scores -- marks them up again and again each time he returns to study them--is the reason why you should mark your books. If your respect for magnificent binding or typography gets in the way, buy yourself a cheap edition and pay your respects to the author.

Why is marking up a book indispensable to reading? First, it keeps you awake. (And I don't mean merely conscious; I mean awake.) In the second place; reading, if it is active, is thinking, and thinking tends to express itself in words, spoken or written. The marked book is usually the thought-through book. Finally, writing helps you remember the thoughts you had, or the thoughts the author expressed. Let me develop these three points.