REQUIRED Summer Reading Program 2019

Watson B. Duncan Middle School Summer Reading Program

Summer is a great time for your child to engage in reading for enjoyment. According

to research, students who read over the summer experience less learning loss and return to

school better prepared to continue their learning. In addition, wide-reading is a very

effective way to enrich vocabulary and expand cognitive skills.

Please see the attached documents explaining Watson B. Duncan’s reading requirements by

grade level including required components as well as extra credit. We hope that you will

encourage your child to complete our summer reading program by making reading a priority.

Students will read one of the assigned novel options based on the grade they are moving up to (6th, 7th or 8th). This is

Watson B. Duncan’s suggested novel list, however students may also choose an age appropriate novel of their choice to

complete the project.

Students will choose one of the projects to complete. This required reading and project will be turned into their ELA

teacher by Friday, August 16, 2019. This assignment will be part of the student’s grade for the first nine-week grading

period.

In addition to the required reading, students will have an opportunity to earn extra credit by working in Reading Plus

and/or Newsela over the summer. The Reading Plus and Newsela components attached are available until July 31 for

our upcoming 7th and 8th grade students who are currently in our system. Directions for Reading Plus and Newsela are

included in the attachment. Students may also earn extra credit by reading and completing more than one book and

project.

For reading enrichment, instructions are attached on how to log in to MackinVia to access our school’s e-Books. The

MackinVia option is available if you would like to choose a novel that is not on the suggested list. All of this information

will also be on our school website https://wbdm.palmbeachschools.org.

Thank you in advance for your participation and encouragement of your student.

Yours in education,

Martha Griffith, Theresa Leach, Casey Runner, and Mary Raiford

Language Arts, Reading Department, Media Specialist, Assistant Principal

Mr. Phillip D’Amico

Principal

Assistant Principals:

Mary Raiford

Milranda Vereen

Kate Wynn

Sean Bohne

Watson B. Duncan Middle School

REQUIRED Summer Reading Program 2019

Welcome to the Watson B. Duncan Middle School Summer Reading Program. All students are required to participate (incoming 6th

graders, new and returning students). After choosing a novel from the list, all students will choose one of the following projects

below to complete. The project must have the title and author of the book clearly marked, as well as student name. Upon returning

to school, students will turn in their projects by Friday, August 16, 2019 to their English Language Arts teacher. This assignment will

be part of the student’s first nine weeks grade in English Language Arts.

COLLAGE PROJECT: Specifically comment on characterization, plot, and theme.

Step 1: On a 11x17 paper or larger, design a collage by finding pictures, whole words or phrases (5 words or less) in magazines and

newspapers. Each word, phrase, or picture should relate to the characters, setting, plot, and/or theme of your book. Neatly arrange

these in a purposeful way to create the collage.

Step 2: On an 8 ½ x 11 piece of paper, type/handwrite an explanation of each image, word, or phrase AND parenthetically identify its

connection to the elements above. Attach this page to the back of the collage and make sure your name is on it.

WRITING PROJECT: Please print out a hard copy (preferably typed) to turn in the first week of school.

Step 1: Write an alternate ending or prologue to the novel you read. It must be a minimum of 300 words, preferably typed. Please

use correct spelling, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation. You must include elements from the plot in your writing so that your

alternate ending/prologue has a connection to the overall story.

Step 2: Write one to two paragraphs explaining whether or not you liked the novel and why. Use specific details from the story to

support your answer. This can be added to the bottom of Step 1 or stapled to it.

POSTER PROJECT:

Create a poster displaying the following information from the novel using text and images:

-Book title and author name

-Characters: Include physical description, character traits and an important quote they said in the story.

-Setting: Use complete sentences to describe where and when the story takes place.

-Conflict: Using complete sentences write at least one paragraph explaining the major conflict of the story.

-Theme: Using complete sentences write at least one paragraph explaining one of the major themes (life lessons) of the story. Cite

textual evidence from the novel to support your explanation.

-On the back of poster: Print your name and write at least a paragraph explaining whether or not you liked the book and why. Would

you recommend it to a friend?

EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY:

In addition to the required reading project, students may earn extra credit for completing SeeReaders in Reading Plus and/or

Newsela articles/quizzes. They must complete a total of at least 8 using either or a combination of both and fill in the attached

reading log. The reading log will be turned in to English Language Arts teachers the first week of school

Please choose one novel from the following list:

6th Grade Novel List Rules by Cynthia Lord

2007 Newbery Honor Book is a humorous and heartwarming debut about feeling different and finding acceptance. Twelve-year-old Catherine just wants a normal life, which is near impossible when you have a brother with autism and a family that revolves around his disability. The summer Catherine meets Jason, a paraplegic boy, and Kristi, the next-door friend she’s always wished for, it’s her own shocking behavior that turns everything upside down and forces her to ask: What is normal? Lexile: 670

Upside Down in the Middle of Nowhere by Julie T. Lamana

Armani can think about only one thing: her tenth birthday. All her friends are coming to her party, her mama is making a big cake, and she has a good feeling about a certain wrapped box. Turning ten is a big deal to Armani It means she’s older, wiser, more responsible. But when Hurricane Katrina hits the Lower Nines of New Orleans, Armani realizes that being ten means being brave, watching loved ones die, and mustering all her strength to help her family weather the storm. Lexile: 750

Crash by Jerry Spinelli

Cocky seventh-grader super-jock Crash Coogan got his nickname the day he used his first football helmet to knock his cousin Bridget flat on her backside. He has been running over people ever since, especially Penn Webb, the dweeby, vegetarian Quaker kid who lives down the block. Through the eyes of Crash, readers get a rare glimpse into the life of a bully in this unforgettable and beloved story about stereotypes and the surprises life can bring. Lexile: 560

Middle School The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson

Rafe Khatchadorian has enough problems at home without throwing his first year of middle school into the mix. Luckily, he’s got an ace plan for the best year ever: to break every rule in his school’s oppressive Code of Conduct. Chewing gum in class: 5,000 points! Running in the hallway: 10,000 points! Pulling the fire alarm: 50,000 points! But when Rafe’s game starts to catch up with him, he’ll have to decide if winning is all that matters, or if he’s finally ready to face the rules, bullies, and truths he’s been avoiding. Lexile: 700

**This is Watson B. Duncan’s suggested novel list, however students may also choose an age appropriate novel of their

choice to complete the project.

Please choose one novel from the following list:

7th Grade Novel List Esperanza Rising by Pam Ryan

Esperanza believed her life would be wonderful forever. She would always live on her family’s ranch in Mexico. She would always have fancy dresses and a beautiful home filled with servants. Papa and Abuelita would always be with her. A sudden tragedy shatters her world and forces Esperanza and Mama to flee to California, where they settle in a camp for Mexican farm workers. Esperanza isn’t ready for the hard labor, financial struggles brought on by the Great Depression, and lack of acceptance she now faces. When Mama gets sick, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her difficult circumstances—because Mama’s life and her own depend upon it. Lexile: 750

The Big Game by Tim Green

Danny Owens is dedicating his seventh-grade season to his Super Bowl champion father, who recently passed away. Danny promises everyone that, just like his dad, he’ll dominate the big game at the end of the season and earn a spot on the high school varsity team. Then his English teacher catches him cheating on a test. Even though Danny can retake it, he knows there’s no point. He can’t read. And if Danny can’t pass this class, he won’t be eligible to play in the championship game that could unlock his future. While his resentment rises against the only person willing to help him win off the field, the pressure to succeed begins to weigh heavily on Danny’s shoulders. Danny is being tested on every level now, and to pass, he may very well have to choose a different path from his father’s. Lexile: 670

Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper

Eleven-year-old Melody has a photographic memory. Her head is like a video camera that is always recording. Always. There’s no delete button. She’s the smartest kid in her whole school, but no one knows it. From multiple Coretta Scott King Award winner Sharon M. Draper comes a story full of heartache and hope. Get ready to meet a girl whose voice you will never, ever forget. Lexile 700

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

There is such a thing as a tesseract." A tesseract (in case the reader doesn't know) is a wrinkle in time. This 1963 Newbery Medal winner is the story of the adventures in space and time of Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin O'Keefe (athlete, student, and one of the most popular boys in high school). They are in search of Meg's father, a scientist who disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government on the tesseract problem. Lexile: 740

**This is Watson B. Duncan’s suggested novel list, however students may also choose an age appropriate novel of their

choice to complete the project.

Please choose one novel from the following list:

8th Grade Novel List

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found. But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down. Lexile: 730

Paperboy by Vince Vawter

Little Man is an amazing ball player, but he can barely say a word—not even his own name—without stuttering. So when he takes over his best friend’s paper route for the month of July, Little Man’s not exactly looking forward to interacting with the customers. This book changed the way I understood stuttering. The author is a stutterer and, because of that, we get the full experience of what it feels like to be unable to speak words as easily as others. Lexile 940

The Hobbit By J.R.R. Tolkien

Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both the magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum. Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, the modern classic has sold millions of copies worldwide. Lexile: 1000

Travel Team by Mike Lupica

Twelve-year-old Danny Walker may be the smallest kid on the basketball court--but don't tell him that. Because no one plays with more heart or court sense. But none of that matters when he is cut from his local travel team, the very same team his father led to national prominence as a boy. Danny's father, still smarting from his own troubles, knows Danny isn't the only kid who was cut for the wrong reason, and together, this washed-up former player and a bunch of never-say-die kids prove that the heart simply cannot be measured. Travel Team is an inspirational tale in the tradition of The Bad News Bears and Hoosiers. It will leave readers of all ages cheering. Lexile: 930

Breakout by Kate Messner

Nora Tucker is looking forward to summer vacation in Wolf Creek--two months of swimming, popsicles, and brushing up on her journalism skills for the school paper. But when two inmates break out of the town's maximum security prison, everything changes. Doors are locked, helicopters fly over the woods, and police patrol the school grounds. Worst of all, everyone is on edge, and fear brings out the worst in some people Nora has known her whole life. Even if the inmates are caught, she worries that home might never feel the same. Lexile: 840

**This is Watson B. Duncan’s suggested novel list, however students may also choose an age appropriate novel of their

choice to complete the project.