Incoming Eighth Grade Summer Reading & Activity
This summer, reading can be worthwhile and fun. In order to maintain your reading level, prepare you for the school year, and to keep your skills sharp, we will provide you with specific reading and writing assignments to complete over summer vacation. For some grades this is optional; however, all eighth graders will be required to complete a reading and writing assignment in preparation for our first trimester. You will submit this writing assignment on the first day back to school. This will be your first grade as an eighth grader, it will allow us to assess your individual needs, and it will prepare each of you to participate in a class discussion on the novel(s). While reading, you are also encouraged to annotate and "Talk to the Text," just as you learned in seventh grade.
SELECT AT LEAST ONE OF THE TITLES BELOW AS YOUR SUMMER READING (Required):
The Wadjet Eye by Jill Rubalcaba (ancient Spain)
Pharaoh’s Daughter by Julius Lester (ancient Egypt)
The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (ancient Egypt)
Mara: Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (ancient Egypt)
God King: A Story in the Days of King Hezekia by Joanne Williamson and Daria Sockey (ancient Egypt)
Tales of Ancient Egypt by Roger Lancelyn Green (ancient Egypt)
The Iliad by Nick McCarty (ancient Greece)
The Ancient Ocean Blues by Jack Mitchell (ancient Rome and Greece)
Mythology by Edith Hamilton (ancient Rome and Greece)
Cleopatra’s Moon by Vicky Alvear Schecter (ancient Rome)
Detectives in Togas by Henry Winterfield (ancient Rome)
Mystery of the Roman Ransom by Henry Winterfield (ancient Rome)
The Ides of April by Mary Ray Age 11 and up (ancient Rome)
Beyond the Desert Gate by Mary Ray Age 11 and up (ancient Rome)
The Forgotten Daughter by Caroline Dale Snedeker (ancient Rome)
The Silver Branch by Rosemary Sutcliff (ancient Rome)
The Lantern Bearers by Rosemary Sutcliff (ancient Rome)
The Mark of the Horse Lord by Rosemary Sutcliff (ancient Rome)
Each of the novels listed above combine elements of history while enhancing the story with fictional elements as well. Throughout the school year, we will focus on the essential question How and Why Has Reading and Writing Changed Over Time? The text that you choose will help you begin to think about ancient civilizations. Through exploring these ancient civilizations, your summer reading selection will unite your passion for both English and Social Studies.
AFTER READING, SELECT AT LEAST ONE OF THE ACTIVITIES BELOW TO COMPLETE AND ENHANCE YOUR SUMMER READING EXPERIENCE (Required):
All the first ancient civilizations that were discovered had several specific features in common. They built communities, created their own forms of writing, learned to make pottery and use metals, domesticated animals to assist with survival, and created fairly complex social structures with class systems. Select one or more of the following options as it applies to your novel. If the information is not specifically provided in your novel, use the text to help you make inferences and predictions about what that civilization must have been like.
· Build a model of the ancient civilization that was presented in your novel. This may be digital or 3-dimentional. Include transportation, housing, hobbies, necessary survival skills, etc. Please come prepared with a one-page piece of writing that will assist you in sharing your model with the class.
· Create a form of writing that you think this ancient civilization may have used to communicate. Using this writing, retell your favorite part of this story, provide a summary, or describe your favorite character and why you selected that character. Please also translate this part of the story in English.
· Create a PowerPoint or Prezi that highlights the social structures and class systems in your ancient society. Be sure to include pictures and detailed descriptions to help your audience understand the social structure. Also, share with us which characters fall into each division. This should be done in complete sentences.
· Select a minor character in the novel that you have read and write a memoir, poem, or short story from that characters point of view. No matter which writing you choose, it should show great insight into that characters perspective, interests, relationships, and the community in which they lived.
***NOTE: If you would like to consider a book that is not on this list, or a project that is not on this list, please feel free to email your questions to [email protected] or [email protected] .
| eighth_grade_summer_reading.pdf |
| microsoft_word_-_summer_reading_rubric.pdf |
