Junior English Summer
Congratulations on your decision to accept the challenge of Enriched English!
The English Department at CHS believes you should read a wide range of material in preparation for the world you will enter.
Summer is a great time to read.
For each of the three readings, keep a reader's journal that you will be ready to use in class and submit for evaluation in August. Use MLA manuscript form for your reaction paper. Bring a printed copy to class the first week of school a printed copy to class the first week of school.
Reading
Assignments:
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Crucible* by Arthur Miller
As you read, you may want to use post-it notes or some similar devise to mark important passages or ideas. Having discussion groups among friends is an excellent way to test and refine your thinking.
READER'S LOG: As you read, keep a reader's log for each reading. A reader's log is similar to a journal or diary, but its subject is sharply focused upon the reading. The study guides for each selection may help you find areas of concentration for this log if you cannot think what to write on your own.
The entries need not be long or formal, but they should reflect your thoughts as an active reader. Date your entries and note what pages or chapters or act your comments address. Make observations about ideas and writing style; of some details of plot, such as setting, character, or plot. You might also note questions that occur to you as you read. Each of these works reflects the time in which it was written or set. Each of these works presents themes, or insights about human life. Think.
REACTION PAPER: When you are finished with your reading, write a reaction paper on one of the selections. A reaction paper consists of three parts:
(1) a brief (3 - 5 sentences) paragraph where you identify and introduce the author and his historical or literary context;
(2) one or two paragraphs where you note the title and comment upon content. This may be an overview of the entire text or a focused explanation of some specific aspect of the reading that you found especially notable. This section should prepare us for the reaction section;
(3) three paragraphs (minimum) where you react to what you read. Select a focus for your reaction. Some suggestions for content follow.
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Did the author present an opinion about something? If so, what did he say? Why do you think he held this opinion? What do you think about the same matter?
Perhaps there is a current topic or sentiment that has some relationship to what is shown in the piece you read. Explain that relationship and what light the fiction piece sheds upon today's circumstances.
Each of these books has an historical context (the Dust Bowl of the Great Depression, a Puritan community in Massachusetts, the Salem Witchcraft Trials (the Red Scare of the 1950s). After checking some background facts in other sources, you might show how the fictional portrayal reflects the actual experience. [Be sure to cite your other source(s).]
Perhaps there is a quote or episode that provokes original thoughts or your own story. If so, use the reaction section ton present your own piece. Introduce it by explaining what provoked your ideas. Then tell your story or write your essay on a related topic.
Qualities of good writing should be evident in your piece. Attached to this page are some rubrics that might guide you in evaluation of drafts.