Schools

Yorktown High School: Summer Reading List

The summer reading list for Yorktown High School is listed on the district website.

As the season draws to a close, high school students continue their summer reading. 

We've got the summer reading lists for Yorktown High School students as posted on the district's website

All students are required to read all books from their grade level. They will be tested on reading assignments in September, and are encouraged to take notes on the readings in order to prepare for the September exams. The first day of school is September 13.

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GRADE 9:

             All students entering English Nine Regents in September must read both titles:

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie

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The Giver, by Lois Lowry

GRADE 9 HONORS:

             The following titles are required reading for Mrs. Williams' ninth grade Honors English classes. After reading each of the works complete the five tasks described below.

An Enemy of the People, by Henrik Ibsen (Any Ibsen version is fine, even one in a collection of Ibsen plays. However, DO NOT GET THE VERSION ADAPTED BY ARTHUR MILLER.)

             TASK #1:  Write a well-developed paragraph discussing theme in the play.  Choose one theme that you feel is relevant and discuss how the play addresses that theme.  Use specific examples and at least one quotation from the play which illustrates this theme.

In the Time of the Butterflies, by Julia Alvarez (Any version is fine.)

             TASK #2:  Write a well-developed paragraph discussing characterization in the novel.  Choose at least two characters and discuss how their individual personality traits helped them to cope with the conflict in the novel. Support each example with a quotation from the novel.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie  (Any version is fine.)

             TASK #3:  In a well-developed paragraph, discuss the narrative point of view of the novel. How does point of view affect your understanding of the novel and the telling of Arnold's story?  Use specific examples and at least one quotation to support your answer.

The Giver, by Lois Lowry (Any version is fine.)

             TASK #4:  In a well-developed paragraph, discuss the setting of the novel.  How does setting affect the main conflict of the novel?  Use specific examples and at least two quotations to support your assertions about the setting.     

             TASK #5:  In a well-developed paragraph, discuss which of the above works you enjoyed reading the most.  Why did you enjoy it?  Would you recommend it to a friend?  Be sure to discuss your opinion using SPECIFIC EXAMPLES.

*All quotations must be cited parenthetically (page number in parentheses following quote).

**All written assignments MUST BE TYPED.

***The written assignments must be handed in together by Tuesday, September 14.

GRADE 10:

             Students must read both titles:

Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson

Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card

GRADE 10 HONORS:

             Students must read the following three titles:

A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams

Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck

Lord of the Flies, by William Golding                

             And one of the following choices:

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou

A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry

Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen

Ishmael, by Daniel Quinn

Angels and Demons, by Dan Brown

             While reading the texts, please take some notes regarding character, themes, plot, and questions you may have.  These notes will not be checked; however, we will have extensive discussions about the texts where these notes will be helpful.  Please take the notes right in the text. 

             You do not need to do this for the choice book. 

             After reading each work, write a journal where you reflect about the text.  Each reflection should be one page in length (double spaced) and in it, you should discuss characters, themes, meanings, and provide a personal reaction. Try to avoid only providing a personal response. In total, you will have one journal for A Streetcar Named Desire, one for Lord of the Flies, and one for your choice book.  These journals will be entered into www.turnitin.com when you return to school.  Please remember to save the documents.  Consider emailing them to yourself or bringing them in on a USB drive.

             P.S.  It would be best to buy the books and please do not read Sparknotes!

GRADE 11:

Students must read:

A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Kahled Hosseini

              And one of the following:

Ghosts of War, by Ryan Smithson

Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Mortenson

The Last Lecture, by Randy Rausch

Once Upon a Quinceanera, by Julia Alvarez

GRADE 11 HONORS:

Students must read both titles:

The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger

The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath

         And one of the following:

Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Mortenson

A Long Way Gone:  Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, by Ishmael Beah

First They Killed My Father:  A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers, by Loung Ung

The Complete Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi

Written Assignment:

Take notes on the characters, conflict, symbols, themes, and any other details worthy of note. Assessment will take the form of a multiple choice test, essay, class discussion and/or book project.  Be prepared!

GRADE 12:

             Students must read both titles:

Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich

Bringing Down the House, by Ben Mezrich

GRADE 12 W.I.S.E:

             Be prepared to be assessed on both books, which may take the form of an essay, class presentation, and/or book project.

             Fiction:  Choose ONE work of fiction.  This can be from the New York Times Best Sellers List, past or present, or a classic novel you have always wanted to read.  The only two requirements are that the book be fiction and of interest to you!

             Nonfiction:  Choose ONE work of nonfiction.  Make your choice based on a topic that is of interest to you, such as politics, art, education, history, a notable person, etc.  Browse the public library or local bookstore to help you decide.  Again, the only two requirements are that the work be nonfiction and of interest to you!

AP ENGLISH:

             We will use The Bedford Introduction to Literature, eighth edition, as our textbook. You do not have to purchase the book since the English department will provide you with the text. The Bedford book is a wonderful, inclusive textbook which will provide us with many choices of poems, short stories and plays to experience in class.

             Summer Reading:

             You MUST READ A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving (Ballantine Books).  I expect you to read with a pen by your side.  Note passages of particular interest/confusion/delight. Highlight lines that resonate with you. 

             You MUST ALSO READ How to Read Literature Like a Professor, by Thomas C. Foster (Quill).

             Written Assignment:

             Thomas Foster states that the three items which separate professors of literature from students are memory, symbol and pattern.  Pattern recognition allows students of literature to " ...learn to take in the foreground detail while seeing the patterns that the detail reveals. Like the symbolic imagination, this is a function of being able to distance oneself from the story, to look beyond the purely affective level of plot, drama, and characters.  Experience has proved to them that life and books fall into similar patterns."  (xvi)

             Choose a pattern from How to Read Literature Like a Professor which best applies to A Prayer For Owen Meany. Note the name of the chapter.  1)  Explain how the chapter relates to the novel, and 2) Explain in detail how knowledge of the chapter aids in a deeper and more sophisticated understanding of the novel.  Please write one page (250 words) for each of the prompts (see 1 and 2 above).  Your responses will be collected the first day of class. 

             Additional Novels:

             Please purchase the following novels:

Moby Dick, by Herman Melville (Barnes and Noble Classics)

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte (Barnes and Noble Classics)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Ken Kesey (Penguin Books)

Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton (Scribner)

5 Steps to a 5: AP English Literature 2010-2011, by Rankin and Murphy (This is the review book we will use)

 

To view the Mildred E. Strang Middle School summer reading list, click here.

For the Crompond Intermediate School summer reading list, click here.  

For the Mohansic School summer reading list, click here


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