Dear Parents and Guardians, During the relaxing weeks of summer break, the “summer slide” can take root causing your child to actually lose some of the progress they worked so hard to achieve in reading this school year. We would like to suggest that you eliminate the threat of “summer slide” by encouraging your child to read over summer. You can do this in several ways. 1. Be sure that your child spends some time at the library checking out books. Perhaps encourage him or her to buddy up with a friend or two to read the same book and create their own summer book club. 2. Spend an evening at the bookstore. While your child shops, you can enjoy a refreshing latte and preview the latest books released. We have two bookstores in the area – Half-Price Books in Algonquin Commons or Barnes and Noble in Springhill Mall. 3. Enjoy an evening lounging on your deck or patio, you and your child, books in hand with a tall glass of lemonade. After some time, engage your child in a conversation about what both of you are reading. You might be pleasantly surprised by where these conversations can lead. At every grade level, there is an expectation that students will read as part of their ELA classwork/homework. Students will have more success meeting this expectation if they read throughout the summer. No assignments attached; just have them read and maybe discuss a bit. For your convenience, we have included a list of recommended books for each grade level. These are simply suggestions. There are many books out there to meet the needs and preferences of all children. Book recommendations for 6th graders Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper 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 than most 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. Wonder by R. J. Palacio August Pullman was born with a facial difference that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face. Booked by Kwame Alexander In this follow-up to the Newbery-winning novel THE CROSSOVER, soccer, family, love, and friendship, take center stage as twelve-year-old Nick learns the power of words as he wrestles with problems at home, stands up to a bully, and tries to impress the girl of his dreams. Helping him along are his best friend and sometimes teammate Coby, and The Mac, a rapping librarian who gives Nick inspiring books to read. Awkward by Svetlana Chmakova Cardinal rule #1 for surviving school: Don't get noticed by the mean kids. Cardinal rule #2 for surviving school: Seek out groups with similar interests and join them. On her first day at her new school, Penelope--Peppi--Torres reminds herself of these basics. But when she trips into a quiet boy in the hall, Jaime Thompson, she's already broken the first rule, and the mean kids start calling her the "nerdier girlfriend." How does she handle this crisis? By shoving poor Jaime and running away! Falling back on rule two and surrounding herself with new friends in the art club, Peppi still can't help feeling ashamed about the way she treated Jaime. Things are already awkward enough between the two, but to make matters worse, he's a member of her own club's archrivals--the science club! And when the two clubs go to war, Peppi realizes that sometimes you have to break the rules to survive middle school! Bone: The Complete Edition by Jeff Smith Three modern cartoon cousins get lost in a pre-technological valley, spending a year there making new friends and out-running dangerous enemies. After being run out of Boneville, the three Bone cousins, Fone Bone, Phoney Bone and Smiley Bone are separated and lost in a vast uncharted desert. One by one they find their way into a deep forested valley filled with wonderful and terrifying creatures. It will be the longest -- but funniest -- year of their lives. House Arrest by K. A. Holt Timothy is a good kid who did a bad thing. Now he's under house arrest for a whole year. He has to check in weekly with a probation officer and a therapist, keep a journal, and stay out of trouble. But when he must take drastic measures to help his struggling family, staying out of trouble proves more difficult than Timothy ever thought it would be. Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team by Steve Sheinkin Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team is an astonishing underdog sports story―and more. It’s an unflinching look at the U.S. government’s violent persecution of Native Americans and the school that was designed to erase Indian cultures. Expertly told by three-time National Book Award finalist Steve Sheinkin, it’s the story of a group of young men who came together at that school, the overwhelming obstacles they faced both on and off the field, and their absolute refusal to accept defeat. Paper Things by Jennifer Richard Jacobson When Ari’s mother died four years ago, she had two final wishes: that Ari and her older brother, Gage, would stay together always, and that Ari would go to Carter, the middle school for gifted students. So when nineteen-year-old Gage decides he can no longer live with their bossy guardian, Janna, Ari knows she has to go with him. But it’s been two months, and Gage still hasn’t found them an apartment. He and Ari have been “couch surfing,” staying with Gage’s friend in a tiny apartment, crashing with Gage’s girlfriend and two roommates, and if necessary, sneaking into a juvenile shelter to escape the cold Maine nights. But all of this jumping around makes it hard for Ari to keep up with her schoolwork, never mind her friendships, and getting into Carter starts to seem impossible. All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor Eleven-year-old Perry was born and raised by his mom at the Blue River Co-ed Correctional Facility in tiny Surprise, Nebraska. His mom is a resident on Cell Block C, and so far Warden Daugherty has made it possible for them to be together. That is, until a new district attorney discovers the truth—and Perry is removed from the facility and forced into a foster home. When Perry moves to the “outside” world, he feels trapped. Desperate to be reunited with his mom, Perry goes on a quest for answers about her past crime. As he gets closer to the truth, he will discover that love makes people resilient no matter where they come from . but can he find a way to tell everyone what home truly means? Book recommendations for 7th graders Ghost by Jason Reynolds Ghost wants to be the fastest sprinter on his elite middle school track team, but his past is slowing him down in this first electrifying novel of a brand-new series from Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award–winning author Jason Reynolds. Ghost. Lu. Patina. Sunny. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team—a team that could qualify them for the Junior Olympics if they can get their acts together. They all have a lot to lose, but they also have a lot to prove, not only to each other, but to themselves. Fangirl: A Novel by Rainbow Rowell In Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl, Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life - and she's really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it's what got them through their mother leaving. Warriors into the Wild (Series) by Erin Hunter For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by their ancestors. But the warrior code is threatened, and the Thunder Clan cats are in grave danger. The sinister Shadow Clan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying—and some deaths are more mysterious than others. In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty…who may turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all. A Dog’s Purpose: A Novel for Humans by W. Bruce Cameron A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron is about a dog who lives a variety of lives, being reincarnated after each one. During the journey, the dog tries to determine exactly what his purpose in the universe could be. The dog lives four lives. Wait Till Helen Comes: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn Twelve-year-old Molly and her ten-year-old brother, Michael, have never liked their seven-year-old stepsister, Heather. Ever since their parents got married, she’s made Molly and Michael’s life miserable.