Summer Reading Assignments 20162017
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
by Barack Obama
In this lyrical, unsentimental, and compelling memoir, the son of a black African father and a white American mother searches for a workable meaning to his life as a black American. It begins in New York, where Barack Obama learns that his father—a figure he knows more as a myth than as a man—has been killed in a car accident. This sudden death inspires an emotional odyssey—first to a small town in Kansas, from which he retraces the migration of his mother’s family to Hawaii, and then to Kenya, where he meets the African side of his family, confronts the bitter truth of his father’s life, and at last reconciles his divided inheritance.
Pictured in lefthand photograph on cover: Habiba Akumu Hussein and Barack Obama, Sr. (President Obama's paternal grandmother and his father as a young boy). Pictured in righthand photograph on cover: Stanley Dunham and Ann Dunham (President Obama's maternal grandfather and his mother as a young girl). Dear USA Students,
The upcoming 20162017 school year will prove to be an exciting one at Urban Science Academy. Your teachers and staff are planning engaging curriculum that will open up endless possibilities for you as lifelong learners. The beginning of this journey, for all of us, is the communitywide reading of the memoir Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by President Barack Obama. You also have an alternative novel to select from entitled Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario. This summer you will read about the early life of our 44th President of the United States, as he grapples with issues of race and identity in America while exploring the history and culture of the people who shaped him, his mother and father. Enrique’s Journey is the story of a young boy torn apart from his mother as he desperately seeks to reunite with her.
In addition to reading this memoir, you will be expected to complete one of the assignments listed below that is due upon your return to school in September. These books will be available at the Boston Public Library or can be purchased at Barnes and Nobles or other local bookstores. You can also purchase the book (or Kindle book) online at Amazon.com, penguinrandomhouse.com, or using the listening App Audible.com for your smartphone. Dreams From My Father and Enrique’s Journey are also available at Frugal Bookstore in the Washington Square Mall in Roxbury.
Incoming Grade 9 students will be asked to complete ONE of the following assignments based on the book:
#1 A BOOK REVIEW – 1 page typed, 12 pt font
● A summary of the plot of the book
● Whether or not you would recommend this book to a friend
List and explain 3 reasons why or why not
#2 A POSTER ADVERTISING YOUR BOOK
● A 1paragraph summary of the book
● 1 “review” of the book
● 1 picture (drawn or printed) that accurately describes the book
This should be on poster board.
#3 A LETTER FROM 1 CHARACTER TO ANOTHER – 1 page typed, 12 pt font
● Explain how your character feels about a situation in the book
Rising Grade 10 students will be asked to complete ONE of the following assignments based on the book:
1. Guiding Questions: Students answer textbased questions to show a deep understanding of the ideas, story, and writing choices used by the author. Go to http://www.laguardia.edu/dreams/study.htm and answer one discussion question for each chapter including the prologue and epilogue.
2. Timeline: Make a detailed timeline of the main characters, conflicts and/or settings that Obama finds himself in. Be creative, but also thorough by making at least 19 entries (one for each chapter). Set this up any way that makes his journey clear.
3. Connections: Do you have a story that is very similar or dissimilar to a moment in Obama’s life? Let’s hear it! Choose ONE or TWO experiences that Obama has and trace your journey and Obama’s side by side. Use your personal experience and text based evidence to show how unique or familiar our stories are.
4. Essay: How does Obama “discover” his identity? Use multiple quotes from the text to back up your claim. a. Identity who you are including your beliefs, values, and place in American society
Length requirements: 1) 3 sentences per question and write the question. 2)17 complete entries. 3) 35 pages typed or handwritten. 4) 57 paragraphs/ 35 pages typed or handwritten
Rising Grade 11 students will be asked to complete the following assignments based on the book:
1. Choose THREE of the following journal entry prompts. For each, write a one page, typed response. All entries MUST CONTAIN EVIDENCE FROM THE BOOK (I.E. QUOTES with PAGE NUMBERS.) All entries must be double spaced and written in Times New Roman, 12 point font).
Prompts for Journals: 1. Where does this story take place? Explain how the setting affects the story. How would the story be different if the story took place in a different setting? 2. The most exciting thing that has happened in my book is... 3. The saddest thing that happened in my book is... 4. What word(s) best describe your main character’s personality? EXPLAIN WHY or HOW those words describe your character's personality. 5. What internal conflicts does your main character experience? If you were in the same situation, what would you do? 6. Find the “heart” of your story. This can be a word, line, passage, image or event. Quote it in your journal entry and include the page number(s). Then tell why it is so significant. 7. Write a letter from one character in your book to another. Then write a response. 8. Imagine a meeting between you and one of the book’s characters. Where would you meet? What would you discuss? Create a dialogue that includes references to the story’s action, other characters, and bits about your own life. 9. “Suffering builds character” is another old saying. Choose one of the main characters in your book. Is this character a better person for what s/he has been through? Why or why not? 10. Draft a mock interview with one of your characters. Pretend you are the host of a talk show. Create a list of at least ten questions (and the character’s responses) that you could ask your “guest.” The questions should pertain to the events in the story, but may also search to reveal unknown secrets about the person (which should keep in line with the integrity of the character).
Rising Grade 12 students will be asked to complete ONE of the following assignments based on the book:
All assignments must be typed, Times New Roman, 12 pt font and doublespaced.
*Write an additional chapter (34 pages) for the book. The chapter should include characterization, symbols, and themes that show an understanding and continuation of the writer’s work.
*Write a series of three 12 page poems or rap songs reflecting the themes of the story and understanding of the characters’ experiences.
*Create three works of art (2D or 3D) that reflect the themes of the story and understanding of the characters’ experiences. Then, write a 12 page (doublespaced) reflection paper on how your artwork reflects the themes and characters in the story.
Summer Reading Assignments for ESL Students 20162017
In this astonishing true story, awardwinning journalist Sonia Nazario recounts the unforgettable odyssey of a Honduran boy who braves unimaginable hardship and peril to reach his mother in the United States.
When Enrique is five years old, his mother, Lourdes, too poor to feed her children, leaves Honduras to work in the United States. The move allows her to send money back home to Enrique so he can eat better and go to school past the third grade.
Lourdes promises Enrique she will return quickly. But she struggles in America. Years pass. He begs for his mother to come back. Without her, he becomes lonely and troubled.
With gritty determination and a deep longing to be by his mother's side, Enrique travels through hostile, unknown worlds. Each step of the way through Mexico, he and other migrants, many of them children, are hunted like animals. Gangsters control the tops of the trains. Bandits rob and kill migrants up and down the tracks. Corrupt cops all along the route are out to fleece and deport them. To evade Mexican police and immigration authorities, they must jump onto and off the moving boxcars they call El Tren de la Muerte the Train of Death.
Enrique pushes forward using his wit, courage, and hope and the kindness of strangers. It is an epic journey, one thousands of immigrant children make each year to find their mothers in the United States.
Based on the Los Angeles Times newspaper series that won two Pulitzer Prizes, one for feature writing and another for feature photography, Enrique's Journey is the timeless story of families torn apart, the yearning to be together again, and a boy who will risk his life to find the mother he loves. Dear USA Students,
The upcoming 20162017 school year will prove to be an exciting one at Urban Science Academy. Your teachers and staff are planning engaging curriculum that will open up endless possibilities for you as lifelong learners. The beginning of this journey, for all of us, is the communitywide reading of the memoir Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by President Barack Obama. This summer you will read about the early life of our 44th President of the United States, as he grapples with issues of race and identity in America while exploring the history and culture of the people who shaped him, his mother and father.
In addition to reading this memoir, you will be expected to complete one of the assignments listed below that is due upon your return to school in September. These books will be available at the Boston Public Library or can be purchased at Barnes and Nobles or other local bookstores. You can also purchase the book (or Kindle book) online at Amazon.com, penguinrandomhouse.com, or using the listening App Audible.com for your smartphone. Dreams From My Father is also available at Frugal Bookstore in the Washington Square Mall in Roxbury.