Summer Reading
The Charlotte Catholic Faculty firmly believes summer reading compliments the curriculum and benefits our students by providing interesting literature that stimulates the intellect and imagination. Like athletes training in the off-season, students continue reading to exercise the skills required for doing their best.
Further, these selections provide common bases for diagnostic assessments of student performance, from basic reading comprehension to the identification and application of literary terms to the more formal analysis of imagery, themes, and genres. Summer reading sets the academic tone and expectations for the upcoming school year.
Suggested Summer Assignments: 2024-2025
We believe that nothing fosters academic success so much as reading comprehension. This can only be achieved by continual practice and proficiency in reading. Moreover, a student’s ability to sustain concerted focus and concentration, also essential to academic success, will be significantly aided through reading. To promote critical reading, writing, and thinking over the summer months and to prepare students for their upcoming year of English, we suggest the following titles and course-related assignments. While formal assessments will not be required of students, completion of suggested readings and assignments will assist in setting students up for success in the coming school year.
We affirm student initiative and choice when determining the titles they read. Whether fiction, non-fiction, drama, or poetry, we encourage students to become voracious readers over the summer months, indeed, over the course of their lives. As the primary educators of children, we encourage parents to help select a genre or type of literature in which their students are interested. Determining the delivery method that works best for each child’s unique learning style should also be a collaborative effort between parent and student. Whether students are reading printed, online, or audio texts, the important point is their engagement with the words and ideas expressed through the characters they encounter.
What is most important about summer reading is student engagement and enjoyment! The titles, genres, and delivery methods selected are far less important. Reading about something that piques an interest in a child—regardless of topic or delivery format—can lead to a lifelong love of learning. In short, reading becomes a “get to,” not a “have to.”
We hope you find our suggested grammar and literature titles helpful, but most importantly, we hope your child explores the local library over the summer months. Public libraries hold some of our nation’s greatest treasures, and modern delivery methods make learning far more accessible than in years past.
Suggested Grammar and Writing Text:
We enthusiastically recommend Marsha Sramek’s The Great Grammar Book: Mastering Grammar Usage and the Essentials of Composition ISBN: 978-0-9841157-2-3 for all grade and ability levels in English 9 through 12. This supplemental text includes succinct reviews of grammar rules with accompanying practice exercises in addition to essay writing resources and guidelines. There are two versions of the text: with and without the answer key. We recommend the version with the answer key, so students, parents, and tutors may check answers for accuracy.
Suggested Summer Reading Texts:
9th Grade: English 9 and 9 Advanced
Bird by Crystal Chan, ISBN 978-1442450912
10th Grade: English 10, 10 Advanced, and 10 Honors
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, ISBN 978-0375842207
11th Grade: English 11 and 11 Honors
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, ISBN: 978-0-385-48680-4
12th Grade: English 12 and 12 Honors
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, ISBN 978-0345339683
We encourage you to discuss your discoveries and your wonderings as you break open new titles together, and please enjoy your summer with your children. Additionally, please consider the following suggested articles at your leisure:
http://mathenrich.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/52803938/powerofindependent.pdf
Blessings,
The Members of Your Charlotte Catholic English Department