Entering 6 th Grade English Summer Work

Transcription

1 Entering 6 th Grade English Summer Work DIRECTIONS: You are to choose at least ONE of the books below and read it cover to cover For the book(s) you read, you will need a pronged folder, enough notebook paper or computer paper for each question and answer to have its own separate page, and computer paper to create a cover page and back cover. *Your cover page must have the title and author written on it. It also needs to have an illustration that depicts the THEME of your novel. *Each question needs to have a page devoted SOLELY to it. You are to write out the discussion question. Also, this is an assignment that should show DEEP THOUGHT and ANALYSIS. In other words, each answer needs to be at least one well-written paragraph. However, you may find that it takes more than one paragraph to answer a question. It is the expectation that you do your absolute best on this assignment. *Your back cover needs to be a well-written review of the novel you have read. Please include your thoughts, opinions and reactions to at least 2 events in the story. Explain why you would or would not recommend this novel to others in your age group. Remember, this is to be wellwritten. *****You either need to type your responses or write them neatly in pen. This is to be a representation of your best work and effort!!!!***** The directions above will be used to grade your summer homework AND will be your first impression. :) Choose your book(s) wisely ########EXTRA CREDIT######## You can read more than one novel and submit more than one assignment for extra credit. The more you do, the more extra credit you receive. However, it ALL needs to be QUALITY!! Good luck and enjoy your summer. We look forward to seeing these and getting to know you next year.

2 Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix 1. What would Among the Hidden be like if it focused on Jen's perspective instead of Luke's? 2. Luke's parents are quite the contrast when it comes to how they interact with him. What are the pros and cons of Mr. and Mrs. Garner's parenting styles? 3. When Luke says that he's not a brave as Jen, she points out that he is always the one sneaking over to her house and never the other way around. Why do you think that is? 4. What are the consequences of pretending someone doesn't exist or taking on a false identity? Would you be able to do it? 5. Mrs. Garner originally wanted four kids (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). If Luke had a younger brother, do you think he would be as lonely and in need of freedom? 6. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are the four books of the Christian gospel. Is there religious symbolism to these names? If so, what might they symbolize? 7. Is there any ways that Haddix could have written Among the Hidden with a different ending? Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman 1. Are there parts of Catherine's medieval world that you find shocking or surprising? 2. Why do you think the author chose to include this information? Does Catherine always tell the truth in her journal? How can you tell? 3. What kinds of assumptions does Catherine make about people? Her suitors? Her family? The Jews? Perkin? Aelis and George? 4. Does she ever discover that her early assumptions about people were wrong? 5. How does Catherine feel about her father? Why? In what ways is she similar to him? 6. Why does Catherine finally decide that it is useless to run away? Whose advice helps her to realize this? 7. Why, at the end of the story, is Catherine satisfied with her arranged marriage? Is this a realistic conclusion for a story about a young woman of the Middle Ages? 8. Compare Catherine's early diary entries with her later ones. How does she change? Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson 1. Much of the first part of the story takes place in the Cook Coffeehouse. Describe the activities that go on there before, during, and after the guests arrive. 2. At the time, no one really knew the true cause of the yellow fever epidemic. What are some of the possible causes suggested by various townspeople and doctors? 3. Toward the beginning of the story, Matilda wants to go to the market place in town. Why does she want to go there? 4. Why does Mrs. Cook want Matilda to join her for tea at the Ogilvies'? Why does Matilda agree to join her that afternoon?

3 5. Throughout the book, Matilda and her mother never say they love each other, yet we know they do. What evidence is there in the story that the two feel deeply for each other? 6. In good times, how are the farmers outside the city dependent on the city dwellers of Philadelphia? How are the city-dwellers dependent on the farmers? 7. Authors sometimes subject their characters to difficult tasks. What are two tasks Matilda accomplishes? 8. What evidence is there in the story that grandfather enjoyed his earlier years as a soldier? 9. Matilda changes a great deal from the beginning of the novel to the end. Give three specific examples of those changes. 10. During the story, the people of Philadelphia face many dangers, including the risks of disease, starvation, robbery, and assault. Describe a dramatic incident in which Matilda faces one of these dangers and point out the personal qualities that help her survive. 11. Based on what you know about Matilda's character and experiences throughout the story, what, to Matilda, would make a perfect day? 12. How would Matilda's life have changed if Mrs. Cook had stayed healthy and remained with her daughter at all times during her story? 13. Do you think it is fair of the town council of Pembroke to prevent fever victims from escaping the city of Philadelphia and entering their town? 14. What is your opinion of Matilda's decision to make Eliza a partner in the Cook Coffeehouse? The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau 1. Doon and Lina like very different things. Doon wants to work in the Pipeworks; Lina yearns to be a messenger. Doon likes to study how things work. Lina likes to run and explore. But their friendship grows because they are ultimately searching for the same thing. How do they complement one another and help one another develop through the novel? 2. Earth today has many environmental and social issues. What sort of problems could have led to the building of the City of Ember? 3. Clary tells Lina, Everyone has some darkness inside. (p. 168) Light and color both play very key roles in the novel. In what ways, other than the failing street lamps, are color and light important? 4. The possibility of never-ending darkness changes many of Lina s friends and many of the townspeople. She discovers that her friend Lizzie has begun to accept things from Looper, who is stealing things from the storerooms. Why does Lina turn down the gifts that Lizzie offers her? Do you think that she was right to do so? 5. The city of Ember was built when people were worried that the human race might not survive. Do you think this was a good plan? 6. The mayor is the most corrupt character in the novel. He squelches the thirst for knowledge and limits freedom, yet the majority of the townspeople just accept his behavior. Why do you think they act this way? What other actions might they have taken?

4 7. People react in various ways when they feel threatened. How do the people of Ember react to danger? Have you seen people reacting to danger in these ways? How are Poppy s actions important to the plot? 8. At the end of the novel, Lina, Doon, and Poppy have discovered a sunlit earth. What do you think will become of them in the sequel? Do you think that there are other people on the surface? The Giver by Lois Lowry 1. What is it about Jonas's community that seems appealing? At what point are we convinced that, actually, there's something wrong in with their way of life? 2. The Giver asks whether it's worth sacrificing freedom, choice, and individuality for peace, contentment, and ease. Well is it? 3. This question is a little more complicated than we just portrayed. Life isn't exactly a black and white choice between pain and freedom or happiness and subjugation. So where do we draw the line? How much freedom can we sacrifice in the name of safety? How much risk do we want to take for the sake of choice? 4. Why does the community portrayed in The Giver sacrifice individual identity? What do differences have to do with instability? CRISPIN: THE CROSS OF LEAD by AVI 1. What does Asta's son see and hear in the forest the night his mother dies? What happens when Aycliffe sees him? 2. What was the daily life of a serf like? What did they receive from Lord Furnival in return? 3. Father Quinel reveals three things in chapter 8. What are they? What does he promise to reveal later? 4. What advice does Cerdic give Crispin about which direction to go? What are Cerdic's real reasons for suggesting Crispin go west? 5. Crispin encounters two dead men shortly after fleeing the village. How does each affect him? 6. After Crispin gives his sacred oath to Bear, he regrets it, thinking it "far better to have died on the road." What causes him to think his fate is so bleak? Why does he believe he must keep his oath? What does that tell you about his character? 7. Why does Crispin believe that Bear is mad? List three things that Bear does or says that would lead Crispin to believe that Bear is crazy. Would you think the same thing if you were in Crispin's shoes? Why or why not? 8. Crispin is confused by Bear claiming it is best to "live by questions," not by answers. What do you think he means by that? Do you think Crispin is living by answers before this scene? Explain. 9. How does Bear challenge Crispin's ideas about God? Find two examples of how Bear shows Crispin to think differently or to reconsider his opinion about God's place in his life. Are there any passages when Bear is unable to influence Crispin's religious beliefs?

5 10. Why does Crispin disobey Bear and leave the Green Man Tavern? Would you have done the same? Why or why not? Was Bear's reaction when he sees Crispin what you expected? 11. If you could give Crispin one piece of advice, what would it be and when would you tell him? Why? How would it change the course of the novel? 12. Compare and contrast Crispin's attitude towards God, treason, village life, and royalty at the beginning and end of the book. How has his view of himself changed? Discuss how his sense of self is related to his changed perception of the world. 13. The book constantly explores the notion of what it means to be "free." Are there different kinds of freedom presented in the book? Find passages where characters discuss the concepts of freedom and how Crispin reacts to hearing them. How do you think he finally comes to define "freedom?" 14. Why do you think Avi chose to write about a nameless boy instead of a lord or prince? What aspects of medieval life would a peasant experience that a prince would not?