Rising Seventh Grade Summer Reading List

2017-2018

All seventh grade students are required to read: The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton plus each seventh grader is required to read one of the book selections from the list below.

All students will complete a book report (instructions below) on The Outsiders.

All students will complete the Body Biography (instructions below) on one of the books from the list below.

1. The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt Genre: Coming of Age Pages: 272 Newbery Honor

In this Newbery Honor-winning novel, Gary D. Schmidt offers an unforgettable antihero. The Wednesday Wars is a wonderfully witty and compelling story about a teenageboy’s mishaps and adventures over the course of the 1967–68 school year in Long Island, New York. Meet Holling Hoodhood, a seventh-grader at Camillo Junior High, who must spend Wednesday afternoons with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, while the rest of the class has religious instruction. Mrs. Baker doesn’t like Holling—he’s sure of it. Why else would she make him read the plays of William Shakespeare outside class? But everyone has bigger things to worry about, like Vietnam. His father wants Holling and his sister to be on their best behavior: the success of his business depends on it. But how can Holling stay out of trouble when he has so much to contend with? A bully demanding cream puffs; angry rats; and a baseball hero signing autographs the very same night Holling has to appear in a play inyellow tights! As fate sneaks up on him again and again, Holling finds Motivation—the Big M—in the most unexpected places and musters up the courage to embrace his destiny, in spite of himself.

2. Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper Genre: Coming of Age Pages: 304

Melody is not like most people. She cannot walk or talk, but she has a photographic memory; she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. She is smarter thanmost of the adults who try to diagnose her and smarter than her classmates in her integrated classroom—the very same classmates who dismiss her as mentally challenged, because she cannot tell them otherwise. But Melody refuses to be defined by cerebral palsy. And she’s determined to let everyone know it…somehow.

3. Scumble by Ingrid Law Genre: Fantasy Pages: 432

It's nine years after Savvy, and Mibs' cousin Ledge is on the verge of turning thirteen. More than anything, he wants the power to run like the wind. But when his birthday comes, he discovers that his savvy is actually making things fall apart. It starts out with small

things, but then it gets worse. To top it all off, someone outside the family has witnessed his destruction. Now, in addition to trying to figure out how to control - or scumble - his savvy, he's got to worry about how to protect the family secrets. Over the course of one amazing summer, Ledge learns a lot about himself and his family, makes a new - and very unlikely - friend, and learns to appreciate his newfound skills.

4. The Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis Genre: Fantasy Pages: 256

On a desperate journey, two runaways meet and join forces. Though they are only looking to escape their harsh and narrow lives, they soon find themselves at the center of a terrible battle. It is a battle that will decide their fate and the fate of Narnia itself.

5. Tesla’s Attic by Neal Shusterman Genre: Science Fiction Pages: 272

After their home burns down, fourteen-year-old Nick, his younger brother, and their fathermove into a ramshackle Victorian house they've inherited. When Nick opens the door to his attic room, he's hit in the head by a toaster. That's just the beginning of his weird experiences with the old junk stored up there. After getting rid of the odd antiques in a garage sale, Nick befriends some local kids-Mitch, Caitlin, and Vincent-and they discover that all of the objects have extraordinary properties. What's more, Nick figures out that the attic is a strange magnetic vortex, which attracts all sorts of trouble. It's as if the attic itself has an intelligence . . . and a purpose.

6. The Only Game by Mike Lupica Genre: Fiction/Sports Pages: 336

Jack Callahan is the star of his baseball team and seventh grade is supposed to be his year. Undefeated season. Records shattered. Little League World Series. The works. That is, until he up and quits.Jack’s best friend Gus can’t understand how Jack could leave a game that means more to them than anything else. But Jack is done. It’s a year of change. Jack’s brother has passed away, and though his family and friends and the whole town of Walton thinks baseball is justthe thing he needs to move on, Jack feels it’s anything but.In comes Cassie Bennett, star softball player, and the only person who seems to think Jack shouldn’t play if he doesn’t want to. As Jack and Cassie’s friendship deepens, their circle expands to include Teddy, a guy who’s been bullied because of his weight.

7. Scat by Carl Hiaasen Genre: Mystery Pages: 400

Bunny Starch, the most feared biology teacher ever, is missing. She disappeared after a school field trip to Black Vine Swamp. And, to be honest, the kids in her class are relieved.But when the principal tries to tell the students that Mrs. Starch has been called away on a "family emergency," Nick and Marta just don't buy it. No, they figure the class delinquent, Smoke, has something to do with her disappearance.And he does! But not in the way they think. There's a lot more going on in Black Vine Swamp than any one player in this twisted tale can see. It’s all about to hit the fan, and when it does, the bad guys better scat.

8. The Boys Who Challenged Hitler: Knud Pedersen and the Churchill Club by Phillip Hoose Genre: Non-fiction Pages: 208

At the outset of World War II, Denmark did not resist German occupation. Deeply ashamed of his nation's leaders, fifteen-year-old Knud Pedersen resolved with his brother and a handful of schoolmates to take action against the Nazis if the adults would not. Naming their secret club after the fiery British leader, the young patriots in the Churchill Club committed countless acts of sabotage, infuriating the Germans, who eventually had the boys tracked down and arrested. But their efforts were not in vain: the boys' exploits and eventual imprisonment helped spark a full-blown Danish resistance. Interweaving his own narrative with the recollections of Knud himself, here is Phillip Hoose's inspiring story of these young war heroes.

9. Prisoner B-3087 by Ruth and Jack Gruener Genre: Historical Fiction Pages: 272

10 concentration camps.10 different places where you are starved, tortured, and worked mercilessly.It's something no one could imagine surviving.But it is what Yanek Gruener has to face.As a Jewish boy in 1930s Poland, Yanek is at the mercy of the Nazis who have taken over. Everything he has, and everyone he loves, have been snatched brutally from him. And then Yanek himself is taken prisoner -- his arm tattooed with the words PRISONER B-3087.He is forced from one nightmarish concentration camp to another, as World War II rages all around him. He encounters evil he could have never imagined, but also sees surprising glimpses of hope amid the horror. He just barely escapes death, only to confront it again seconds later.Can Yanek make it through the terror without losing his hope, his will -- and, most of all, his sense of who he really is inside?Based on an astonishing true story.

10. The President Has Been Shot!!: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy by James L. Swanson Genre: Non-fiction Pages: 336

In his new young-adult book on the Kennedy assassination, James Swanson will transport readers back to one of the most shocking, sad, and terrifying events in American history. Ashe did in his bestselling Scholastic YA book, CHASING LINCOLN'S KILLER, Swanson will deploy his signature "you are there" style -- a riveting, ticking-clock pace, with an unprecedented eye for dramatic details and impeccable historical accuracy -- to tell the story of the JFK assassination as it has never been told before.

Book Report

Book report must have a cover page which will include the following:

Title of book, author, your name, and the date.

Remember, �tles of books are always italicized. Book reports will be wri en in a 5 paragraph format. Please write in complete sentences, and

use the following outline to organize your thoughts:

I. Introduc�on (5-7 sentences)

a. Introduce novel – �tle and author

b. Describe the �me and se&ng (Does it take place in present �me? Is it set in the future? The past? What images does the se&ng create?)

c. Thesis – what will the other paragraphs be about? (DO NOT write, “In this book report, I will be talking about…)

II. Body Paragraph (11 sentences)

a. Iden�fy and explain the point of view from which the story is wri en

b. Describe the protagonist of the novel - What is the main character like? How would you describe the main character?

c. Iden�fy the antagonist – how does this character oppose the protagonist? How would you describe the antagonist?

III. Body Paragraph (11 sentences)

a. What is the con2ict of the novel? Iden�fy and explain the external con2ict (outside force) AND internal con2ict (character vs. self).

b. Explain the climax of the story – Why does this part have the most excitement or tension? Explain in detail.

c. How is this con2ict resolved?

IV. Body Paragraph (11 sentences)

a. Iden�fy and explain examples of Symbolism (an object that represents a larger idea)

b. Iden�fy and explain examples of Irony (a character says one thing, but does the opposite, or you think a scene will end one way but the

complete opposite happens)

c. How do these symbols and examples of irony a7ect the novel? Do they make it more interes�ng? More exci�ng? More confusing?

V. Conclusion (3-5 sentences)

a. Sum up main points

b. Did you enjoy reading this book? Would you recommend it to a friend or classmate?

c. Final thought/re2ec�on

Book reports will be graded using a rubric/check sheet that will rate each individual element. Report presenta�on, analysis of novel, use of

high level vocabulary, grammar, spelling and mechanics will also be graded accordingly.

Body Biography Summer Assignment

Students will create a body biography based on a character of their choosing. They should choose a

character from the book that they read from the summer reading list. This is a visual and wri�en portrait

illustra�ng several aspects of the character’s life within the story. Students should use a 14x22 poster to

create their body biography. There are speci"c guidelines that need to be followed, but feel free to add

anything else you think needs to be on there so others can understand your character be�er.

Body Biography Requirements

1.) Placement: Carefully choose the placement of your text and artwork. This includes objects,

words, phrases, and pictures. For example, symbols for the heart should be placed where your

character’s heard would be.

2.) Name: The character’s name should be on the body.

3.) Quota�ons: Near the character’s head, write two or three direct quota�ons from the story that

sum up the character and add to an understanding of the character.

4.) Symbolic representa�on of:

A. The Heart: This should represent what this character loves most.

B. The Backbone: This should represent what mo�vates the character most.

C. The Hands: This character should be holding something in his/her hands which

represents what he seeks to control.

D. The Feet: This character should be standing on something which represents the character’s

most fundamental beliefs about life.

E. The Legs: This should represent the virtues and vices (best and worst quali�es) of the

character.

F. The Eyes: This should represent how the character appears to others on the outside.

G. The Stomach: This should represent the character’s inner self.

H. The Head: This should represent something that the character learns throughout the story.

Body biographies will be graded using a rubric/check sheet that will rate each individual element. You

will also be graded on the level of crea$vity and neatness.