Friday, June 15, 2018

Summer Work 2018 for Middle School Students

Summer Work

Summer Work Checklist:
Rising Grade 6
  • 10-15 minutes each day of math practice, including the Quantile Summer Math Challenge and independent math work
  • 10-15 minutes each day of Language Acquisition (Spanish) practice 
  • Read 500+ pages, including two of the novels from the list provided.
Rising Grade 7
  • 10-15 minutes each day of math practice, including the Quantile Summer Math Challenge and independent math work
  • 10-15 minutes each day of Language Acquisition (Chinese or Spanish) practice 
  • Write (your choice!)
  • Read 500+ pages, including one of the following: Listen Slowly; The Dreamer; Return to Sender; Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow; Okay for Now; Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy; Shug

Rising Grade 8
  • 10-15 minutes each day of math practice, including the Quantile Summer Math Challenge and independent math work
  • 10-15 minutes each day of Language Acquisition (Chinese or Spanish) practice 
  • Read 500+ pages, including one classic novel and one memoir from the lists provided.
SUMMER WORK
In recent years, much research has been conducted on the effects of gaps in learning. A very useful resource in exploring the “summer slide,” the effect of stagnated or regressed learning that comes with the summer break, is the Rand Corporation’s Summer Learning page. The summer work assigned for Middle School students intends to minimize these gaps and to keep active those connections made during the school year. Students are responsible for completing summer requirements (detailed below) in advance of the first day of classes, and we encourage parents and family members to read alongside their students and to engage students in conversation about what they’re continuing to learn through the summer break.
In addition to the information provided below, more resources for enrichment can be found at www.aw.org/Page/Summer/Summer-Learning-Resources.
MATH
Over the summer, all rising Grade 6, 7 & 8 Middle School Students are required to keep up their Math skills through the Quantile Summer Math Challenge (QSMC) and independent practice. The QSMC is tied to the Quantile Framework that we use for our Math Inventory testing. All returning and new students should set up a free account for the QSMC before June 18. Information for setting up accounts can be found here: goo.gl/7AJsov.
Every day beginning June 18 through July 27, students will receive an email with math activities and resources and will be expected to engage with those materials for 10-15 minutes. The activities will be targeted to students based on their Quantile scores. For the month of August, the expectation is that students are spending 10-15 minutes each day engaging in meaningful math activities which can include online math/logic games, math-fact practice, math tutorials, or problem solving puzzles and activities. While not exhaustive, here are some resources:

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE
GRADE 6
To prepare for Grade 6, there are two things you should do this summer. The first is to spend time reading. At a minimum, you should read two of the following novels of your choice from the list below. Please read at least 500 pages this summer. If you read more than that, fantastic! Several of our activities both inside and outside of class during the first couple weeks will be centered around the characters and events in the novels you chose to read from the above list, so you may want to read at least one of those novels closer to the end of summer. That way, when you enter our classroom in September, you’ll have them fresh in your mind.
  • See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng - 11-year-old Alex Petroski loves space and rockets, his mom, his brother, and his dog Carl Sagan—named for his hero, the real-life astronomer. All he wants is to launch his golden iPod into space the way Carl Sagan (the man, not the dog) launched his Golden Record on the Voyager spacecraft in 1977. From Colorado to New Mexico, Las Vegas to L.A., Alex records a journey on his iPod to show other lifeforms what life on earth, his earth, is like. But his destination keeps changing. And the funny, lost, remarkable people he meets along the way can only partially prepare him for the secrets he’ll uncover—from the truth about his long-dead dad to the fact that, for a kid with a troubled mom and a mostly not-around brother, he has way more family than he ever knew.
  • Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt -  “Everybody is smart in different ways. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its life believing it is stupid.” The author of the beloved One for the Murphys gives readers an emotionally-charged, uplifting novel that will speak to anyone who’s ever thought there was something wrong with them because they didn’t fit in. Ally has been smart enough to fool a lot of smart people. Every time she lands in a new school, she is able to hide her inability to read by creating clever yet disruptive distractions.  She is afraid to ask for help; after all, how can you cure dumb? However, her newest teacher Mr. Daniels sees the bright, creative kid underneath the trouble maker. With his help, Ally learns not to be so hard on herself and that dyslexia is nothing to be ashamed of. As her confidence grows, Ally feels free to be herself and the world starts opening up with possibilities. She discovers that there’s a lot more to her—and to everyone—than a label, and that great minds don’t always think alike.
  • The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall - Arthur T. Owens grabbed a brick and hurled it at the trash picker. Arthur had his reasons, and the brick hit the Junk Man in the arm, not the head. But none of that matters to the judge—he is ready to send Arthur to juvie forever. Amazingly, it’s the Junk Man himself who offers an alternative: 120 hours of community service . . . working for him. Arthur is given a rickety shopping cart and a list of the Seven Most Important Things: glass bottles, foil, cardboard, pieces of wood, lightbulbs, coffee cans, and mirrors. He can’t believe it—is he really supposed to rummage through people’s trash? But it isn’t long before Arthur realizes there’s more to the Junk Man than meets the eye, and the “trash” he’s collecting is being transformed into something more precious than anyone could imagine. . . . Inspired by the work of folk artist James Hampton, Shelley Pearsall has crafted an affecting and redemptive novel about discovering what shines within us all, even when life seems full of darkness.
  • Lost in the Sun by Lisa Graff  - Everyone says that middle school is awful, but Trent knows nothing could be worse than the year he had in fifth grade, when a freak accident on Cedar Lake left one kid dead, and Trent with a brain full of terrible thoughts he can't get rid of. Trent’s pretty positive the entire disaster was his fault, so for him middle school feels like a fresh start, a chance to prove to everyone that he's not the horrible screw-up they seem to think he is.  If only Trent could make that fresh start happen.  It isn’t until Trent gets caught up in the whirlwind that is Fallon Little—the girl with the mysterious scar across her face—that things begin to change. Because fresh starts aren’t always easy. Even in baseball, when a fly ball gets lost in the sun, you have to remember to shift your position to find it.
  • Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan - Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now. Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.
  • Pax by Sara Pennypacker - Set in an intentionally undefined time and place that could very well be a near-future America, the novel opens with a heartbreaking scene of a tame red fox, Pax, being abandoned at the side of the road by his beloved boy, Peter. Perspectives alternate between the boy and the fox, and readers learn that a terrible war rages in this land. Peter's father is about to leave for the frontlines, and while he's away, Peter must live with his grandfather out in the country—and his father makes it clear that there is no place for Pax in Peter's temporary home. Almost as soon as he arrives at his grandfather's, Peter is overcome with guilt, and he sets off under the cover of darkness to trek the 300 miles back to his home, where he prays he'll find Pax. The loyal fox, meanwhile, must figure out how to survive in the wild—though never losing hope that his boy will return for him. 
  • The Crossover by Kwame Alexander  - Twelve-year-old narrator Josh Bell uses the rhythms of a poetry jam to emulate the "moving & grooving/popping and rocking" of life on the basketball court with his twin brother, J.B. This powerful novel in verse paints an authentic portrait of a closely-knit family on the brink of crisis. Swish! This book is nothing but net!
  • Paperboy by Vince Vawter - Little Man throws the meanest fastball in town. But talking is a whole different ball game. He can barely say a word without stuttering—not even his own name. So when he takes over his best friend’s paper route for the month of July, he’s not exactly looking forward to interacting with the customers. But it’s the neighborhood junkman, a bully and thief, who stirs up real trouble in Little Man’s life.
  • Peak by Roland Smith - After fourteen-year-old Peak Marcello is arrested for scaling a New York City skyscraper, he's left with two choices: wither away in Juvenile Detention or go live with his long-lost father, who runs a climbing company in Thailand. But Peak quickly learns that his father's renewed interest in him has strings attached. Big strings. As owner of Peak Expeditions, he wants his son to be the youngest person to reach the Everest summit--and his motives are selfish at best. Even so, for a climbing addict like Peak, tackling Everest is the challenge of a lifetime. But it's also one that could cost him his life.
The second “to-do” on your summer list is to write, so that you keep on practicing those great writing skills you learned in Grade 5. Doing so will keep you on track for the kinds of writing we’ll do in Grade 6. Here’s what I would like you to do: Completely on your own, without support from adults or older students in your life, write a review to bring to school - of one of the books from the above list, of a great movie you saw, of a wonderful restaurant you tried, or a place you visited. Aim for your best writing, a piece that showcases all you have learned thus far. Then, bring it in to share with me on the first day of school - and feel free to hand-write it or type. Thanks so much!- Mrs. Strate
GRADE 7
Hello Incoming Grade 7 Students!
To prepare for Grade 7 Language & Literature, there are two things you should do this summer. The first is write. Maybe you're just doing some journaling, or maybe you're trying to write a story or a poem, or maybe you have a pen pal, or maybe you're even practicing some paragraphs that analyze the reading you're doing. Whatever the case, it's important that you do some writing, that you try to keep in touch with the writing skills you worked to build in 6th Grade. Your writing will not be collected and graded in the fall, but if you do some writing, you'll put yourself in a better position to be successful in 7th Grade.
And two, you should read. You should shoot for at least 500 pages this summer. One of the books needs to be from the list below. The first essay in the fall will be about the book from the list that you read, so you might even consider writing a note or two about the story, especially if you read the book in June and won't be writing about it until September. For the rest of your summer reading, you can pick more of the books from the list, or you can read whatever you like. Just read. And try to read enough that it becomes a daily habit, especially if it isn't a habit for you already. Hopefully it's a habit you'll enjoy.


Choose at least one book from this list as part of your 500+ pages this summer. Although these books might seem quite different and also stretch across a number of cultures and circumstances, the common theme running through them is the idea of belonging, or of not belonging, and the empathy that might be required to build the sense of belonging. I'm just providing a couple basics about the stories; feel free to check out reviews online before you make a choice.
  • Listen Slowly by Thanhha Lai. A Vietnamese teen living in California has to reluctantly spend part of her summer in Vietnam meeting her extended family and helping her Grandmother find some peace. The people and the country and the experience are different than the girl expects.
  • The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan and Peter Sis. Pablo Neruda, the famous Chilean poet, grew up in a difficult household. This story of boyhood, told partly in pictures and word poems, provides a fictionalized but biographical picture of what he faced.
  • Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez. Illegal immigrants come to Vermont to help a family keep their farm. The teenage boy doesn't know what to think about the immigrants, and the teenage daughter of the immigrants doesn't know if she belongs in Mexico or America. It's a thoughtful story told through the perspective of both kids.
  • Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow by Faiza Guene. This is the only edgy story on the list. There's rough language and drug references; it's definitely not a sugar-coated picture of life in a Parisian suburban slum. But the teenage heroine has a great, sarcastic voice, and the author, a young Moroccan immigrant to Paris herself, offers a great perspective on a number of issues. This book might be best with a little parental conversation.
  • Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt. A teenage boy in the late 1960s, living in a difficult household, moves to a small Northeastern town where his family doesn't seem to fit in. But then he meets a girl. And he finds out he likes to draw birds. And maybe he can find his way in the town after all.
  • Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary Schmidt. A teenage boy in the early 1900s moves with his mother and minister father to a small coastal town in Maine, only to find it's a hard place to fit in, especially since he seems to find more joy with the outcast, threatened community living on an offshore island.
  • Shug by Jenny Han. A girl in the south tries to navigate the pitfalls of family, peer pressure, relationships and school. It's an unexpected year.
GRADE 8  
Over the summer, incoming Eighth Graders should read at least one classic (or modern classic) and at least one memoir. We want students to be exposed to these genres, and the memoirs in particular showcase the power of voice, which is a focus of the 8th grade curriculum. Students can pick from the following lists or make their own selections. Please note, although the books on the list have at least been reviewed, not every title has been read by every teacher contributing to the 8th grade Language & Literature program.


Although there is no specific writing assignment attached to the reading, it’s always helpful to do some writing over the summer, just to keep in touch with the skills we’ve worked to build. It also makes sense to do some writing about the chosen novel and memoir, ideally doing some analysis about the themes in each. There will be a writing/voice assignment during the 8th grade year that will be based on the summer reading.
Memoirs
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me: A Memoir by Sherman Alexie
Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand
Between the World and Me by Te-Nehisi Coates
The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore
Rocket Boys:  A Memoir by Homer H. Hickam
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
I Have Lived a Thousand Years: Growing Up in the Holocaust by Livia Bitton-Jackson
Bossypants by Tina Fey
Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? by Alyssa Mastromonaco
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The Downing Street Years by Margaret Thatcher
Classics
Of Mice and Men
Fahrenheit 451
Age of Innocence
Ethan Frome
Pride and Prejudice
Sense and Sensibility
Slaughterhouse Five
Frankenstein
The Great Gatsby
The Outsiders
A Tale of Two Cities
The War of the Worlds
The Scarlet Letter
Invisible Man
The Joy Luck Club
The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales
The Color Purple
The Crucible
Night
Things Fall Apart
The Handmaid’s Tale
Catch-22
A Raisin in the Sun
In Cold Blood
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
The Alchemist
The Catcher in the Rye
Gulliver’s Travels
Brave New World
20,000 Leagues Under the
Sea
Wuthering Heights
Alice in Wonderland
The Old Man and the Sea
The Scarlet Letter
The Three Musketeers
Little Women
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
The Thousand and One Nights  
(Arabian Nights)
Les Miserables
War of the Worlds
Shakespeare (any play)
Oliver Twist
Dracula
The House on Mango Street
All the Pretty Horses
Around the World in 80 Days
The Shining
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: Chinese & Spanish
In an effort to ensure that you do not forget all your hard earned Language Acquisition skills learned throughout this past year, a variety of websites and resources to use throughout the summer to review important grammatical concepts and common vocabulary is available on the Summer Learning Resources page.
This is not an exhaustive list; there are many other sites available on the Internet as well. You may even have a website not listed on this page that is your go-to language resource guide. If that is the case, fantastic! However, if you are going to venture out and try something new please make sure to preview any of the sites with your parents to make sure the level and content is appropriate for you to use before starting. We encourage you to spend about 10-15 minutes DAILY reviewing and practicing your Spanish or Chinese.


If you are new to Annie Wright and will enroll in Spanish, considering registering on DuoLingo to begin familiarizing yourself with Spanish language vocabulary!
Please note that if you are a student who has completed a Spanish Level I course, you will be responsible for knowing and understanding the grammatical topics covered in a Level I class as there will be hardly any time to do any reviewing or reteaching in the Level II Spanish class. The list of websites can be found at www.aw.org/Page/Summer/Summer-Learning-Resources.
SUPPLY LISTS
Students will be supported in establishing their own methods of organization for papers and assignments, which may require a variety of materials. A well-organized and effective system suited to the individual will allow students to be successful. Students are encouraged to seek out assistance as needed from their advisor once school begins. Here are some general supplies needed.
All Students:
  • Notebook paper
  • Pens
  • Pencils
  • 1 red ink pen
  • Ruler
  • 2 composition books
  • 1 pack of 3x5 index cards
  • Small box of colored pencils
  • Scientific calculator
  • Graph paper
  • Protractor
  • Laptop
Grade 6
  • Multi- pocket expandable accordion file folder (minimum of 10 pockets)
  • 3 1” 3-ring binders
  • 1 additional composition notebook
  • 9x12” Strathmore Sketch 400 series sketchbook (Visual Arts students only)
Grades 7 & 8

  • Personal organizational materials
  • Spiral notebook with pockets and index cards (Spanish)
  • 9x12” Strathmore Sketch 400 series sketchbook (for students new to AWS in 7 or 8)
  • 1 1.5” 3-ring binder for their Science Notebook
  • 1 1” 3-ring binder for 8th grade Lang and Lit portfolio (will stay in class)
  • 2 additional composition notebooks for 8th grade Lang and Lit/I&S journals (will stay in class)
  • Spiral notebooks, index cards (Chinese)
  • 9x12” Strathmore Sketch 400 series sketchbook (Visual Arts students only, may use one from previous year)
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