Middle School Summer Reading List

Middle School Summer Reading List

*For students entering the seventh grade, choose and read at least one of the following seventeen titles

(separated by genre / interest):

 

Classics: (1) Hatchet by Gary Paulsen (2) Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor

Nonfiction: (3) We Will Not Be Silent by Russell Freedman (4) Rocket Boys: A Memoir by Homer Kickam

(5) Turning 15 on the Road of Freedom by Lynda Blackman Lowery

Historical Fiction: (6) Al Capone Does my Shirts by Gennifer K. Choldenko (7) Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

Fantasy / Sci-Fi: (8) Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill (9) Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

(10) The Giver by Lois Lowry

Graphic Novels: (11) Artemis Fowl: The Graphic Novel by Eoin Colfer (12) Mighty Jack by Ben Hatke

Modern Fiction: (13) Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa (14) Wonder by R.J. Palacio (15) Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Sports: (16) Crossover by Kwame Alexander (17) Soar by Joan Bauer

 

 

*For students entering the eighth grade, choose and read at least one of the following twenty-one titles

(separated by genre / interest):

 

Classics: (1) Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle (2) Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

(3) The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

Nonfiction: (4) Playbook by Kwame Alexander (5) How to Build a Museum by Tonya Bolden

(6) Courage Has No Color by Tanya Stone (7) Written in Stone by Sally Walker

Historical Fiction: (8) Esperanza Rising by Pam Monoz Ryan (9) Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk

Fantasy / Sci-Fi: (10) Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu (11) Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

(12) Echo – Pam Munoz-Ryan

Graphic Novels: (13) Amulet – Book One, The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi (14) Smile by Raina Telgemeier

(15) Wonder Woman: The True Amazon by Jill Thompson

Modern Fiction: (16) The Thing About Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin (17) Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein

(18) Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick

Sports: (19) Girl Who Threw Butterflies by Mick Cochrane (20) Pop by Gordon Korman (21) Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Book Report Projects

Choose the projects that you will do your best with. The points shown are the maximum number of points per project. You may have to do 2-4 projects to score 100.

For Fiction:

Prove It in Four Minutes. Each student gives a 120 second (2 minutes) oral presentation in which he or she shares information about the book’s plot and characters. The student closes the presentation by offering an opinion and recommendation about the book. Then students in the audience have 120 seconds to question the presenter bout the book. If the presenter is able to prove in four minutes that he or she read the book, the student is excused from filing a written report about the book. If not, the student must write a 2 page report. .- 50 points

Characters Come to Life. Each student creates a poster-size “portrait” of one of the characters from the book. The portrait should include a written piece that tells about the character (1 page). The piece might also include information about events, traits, or conflicts in the book that involve that character. 25 points

Create a childhood for a character. If your main character is an adult, try to figure out what he or she would have been like as a child. Write the story of his childhood in such a way that shows why he or she is the way he or she is in the novel. (1 page minimum) 1 page 25 points

Character Alphabet Choose a character you liked from the book and then create sentences based on the alphabet scheme that demonstrate your knowledge of the character. If after reading Spite Fences, you decided to write Zeke’s alphabet, it could start like this:

A is for the ABUSE Zeke took at the hands of a racist mob.

B is for his BENDING OVER BACKWARDS to make sure the visiting civil rights activist could work in obscurity.

C is for the CAMERA that he gave Maggie so she could begin to look at the world in new ways.

You must represent A-T for your book. 50 points

Playlist. Design a playlist for a character you know well, being sure that the collection includes music that expresses as many aspects of the character as you are aware of. You must include at least 10 songs and write why you chose that song and how it connects to the book.. 25 points

New Acquaintances. Select two characters from the book. Then think about two people, living or dead, that you would like your characters to meet. Write about how you selected these new acquaintances and what you’d like the character to learn from the people you introduced him or her to. For instance, after reading The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, you might want Charlotte to meet Sojourner Truth so she can see other women who do important work. You

might also want her to meet Madame Curie who worked in a field not many women ever entered, and so on. You must write at least one paragraph for each acquaintance for a total of 4 paragraphs. 50 points

Photo Album. Think about the events that happened in your novel. Decide which scenes or pictures from the novel a character would want to remember. Then draw seven of these “photos” for an album page and write a caption for each “photo”. For instance, in Freak, the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick (1993, Scholastic), Max would want a picture of himself opening the Christmas present Kevin made for him, a picture of Kevin on his shoulders, and a picture of Kevin bursting in to save him from his brutal father. 25 points

Create a character’s room. We learn a lot about people by what they keep in their closets, what they have on their walls, what they select to put in a room. Select a character you know well from the novel and create a living room, bedroom, kitchen, or some other room that would mean a lot to the character. Draw it or write about it, making sure to include an explanation of why you designed the room as you did. 25 points.

Make up a word test for the novel. Think of fifteen words that are essential to the understanding of the book. Explain why you picked the words you did and how you would define them in terms of the story. 25 points

Word Collage. Write the title of the book in the center of a sheet of paper. Then look through magazines for words, phrases, and sentences that illustrate or tell something about your book. As you look, think in terms of the theme, setting, plot line, as well as characters. Work to get thirty such words, phrases, or sentences so the whole sheet of paper will be covered. The visual impact of the collage should tell a potential reader a lot about the book. 25 points.

Interview a Character. Compose ten questions to ask a main character from your book. Then write the character’s responses. Each question should help to explain the major events in the story. At least 5 of the questions should be thought questions for the character such as, “Why did you ...” or “How did you feel about ...” 50 points

Book Trailer: Create a book trailer of our book. You must include: title, author, theme, main characters and explanation of who they are, short summary of the book and your opinion of the book. You may use Biteable, Prezzi, Google Slides or any other presentation. 50 points

 

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