Dear Prospective Colt Freshman,

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Dear Prospective Colt Freshman, Welcome to Pre-AP English I and Arlington High s summer reading program. AP students do numerous independent reading assignments including a specific novel each summer.

Students are expected to obtain the novel, read it over the summer, be knowledgeable about the enclosed questions, and be ready to take a test over the novel the first week of classes.

1 Dear Prospective Colt Freshman, Welcome to Pre-AP English I and Arlington High s summer reading program. AP students do numerous independent reading assignments including a specific novel each summer. The freshman novel is A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah. Students are expected to obtain the novel, read it over the summer, be knowledgeable about the enclosed questions, and be ready to take a test over the novel the first week of classes. Actually writing out the answers is not required, but it is recommended and could earn extra credit on the test depending on the quality and completion of answers. Hopefully, you are an aggressive reader. During the school year, you will be required to read a book independently each six weeks while we are reading and studying in class as well. Some of the texts you will read include Night by Elie Wiesel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, novels from a teacher generated list, and novels of choice. Certainly reading is a significant part of Pre AP/IB English I, but a challenging grammar and writing and program is also a major part of our curriculum. As a result, studying the included grammar page is very important. This reviews the very basics of grammar that we expect students to know coming into this advanced course. We also do two writing assignments each six weeks. We think our program is excellent, and we want students who are ready for the challenge and are not discouraged by the work load. So come ready and eager to work hard and take part in all of the wonderful opportunities available at Arlington High School. Enjoy your summer reading and plan to have a great freshman year in Colt Country. Sincerely, Mandy Martin and Samia Rahman mmartin10@aisd.net srahman@aisd.net Ninth Grade Pre-AP/IB English Teachers

2 A Long Way Gone Summer Assignment STUDY QUESTIONS: Use complete sentences to answer each of the following questions. Be as specific as possible and include several details to support your answer. Do this on your own paper. 1. How did Ishmael Beah s grandmother explain the local adage that we must strive to be like the moon (p. 16)? And why has Ishmael remembered this saying ever since childhood? What does it mean to him? 2. That night for the first time in my life, writes Ishmael in Chapter 3, I realized that it is the physical presence of people and their spirits that gives a town life (p. 22). What prompts him to observe this? How old is he at the time? Also, who are the five boys with whom Ishmael flees at the end of this chapter? 3. Commenting on how a rebel soldier had interrogated an old man, Ishmael writes: Before the war a young man wouldn t have dared to talk to anyone older in such a rude manner. We grew up in a culture that demanded good behavior from everyone, and especially from the young (p. 33). Where else in A Long Way Gone did you encounter the brutal, thuggish, or even sadistic behavior of young rebels or of other young people? 4. What does Ishmael tells us was the most difficult part of being in the forest (p.52)? And who are the six boys Ishmael encounters after wandering and surviving in the forest on his own for more than a month? Where does he know some of these boys from? 5. Who is the anonymous man with the fishing hut near the ocean, and how does he help to soothe and heal the severely scalded feet of Ishmael and the others? And later, how are the lives of all seven boys saved by rap music specifically the music of LL Cool J? 6. Describe the name-giving ceremony (p. 75) that Ishmael recollects his grandmother telling him about. Who attended this ceremony, and what did it entail in the way of preparation, purpose, ritual, and food? Also, what do we learn in Chapter 10 of the various backgrounds of Ishmael s companions? And how does Saidu die? 7. Who is Gasemu? Why does Ishmael befriend him and then later try to strangle him? 8. At the village of Yele, a pivotal shift in this memoir begins when Ishmael goes from being an observer and victim of savage, war-triggered violence to being both of these things as well as a perpetrator of such violence. How does this shift happen? Do Ishmael and his companions have any choice in making it? 9. In Chapter 13, the boy soldiers are given white tablets by their army superiors. What are these? Why they being handed out? 10. What do Ishmael and the other boy soldiers do when they re not out on a mission? What movies do they like to watch, and why? What else to they do with their spare time? At one point, the lieutenant tells them, We are not like the rebels, those riffraffs who kill people for no reason (p. 123). Is this true? Also, why is Ishmael promoted to junior lieutenant? How did he achieve this new rank? 11. Benin Home, where Ishmael undergoes psychological, emotional, and social counseling, as well as physical and medical attention, is where he keeps hearing the this isn t your fault remark from various staffers and professionals. Does he ever really accept this mantra? Explain.

3 12. As he is leaving Benin Home, Ishmael says farewell to his friend Alhaji, who salutes him while whispering, Goodbye, squad leader. I couldn t salute him in return, Ishmael writes (p. 180). Why? 13. How does Ishmael s experience of New York City differ from what he had pictured beforehand? What does he like most about New York? What doesn t he like? And why is he visiting New York in the first place? Identify some of the meaningful personal and professional contacts that our narrator makes there. 14. This memoir ends with a striking image, as Ishmael sees a mother telling her two children a story that he had also heard as a child. It s a memorable fable that touches on several of the key themes of this book, including violence, family, storytelling, childhood, and African village life. But it also carries a message of sacrifice. Explain how this last message also reverberates throughout A Long Way Gone. 15. Look back to the short New York City, 1998 prologue that begins this memoir. What is it, exactly, that Ishmael s friends find so cool about his past? Do you think his friends, after reading this book, would still feel that way? Why or why not? 16. Review the tale of the wild pigs (p. 53) that Ishmael learned about from his grandmother, and the Bra Spider story (p. 75) that Musa tells Ishmael at the other boys. What other myths or legends did you come across in this book? After naming a few, explain the particular narrative and cultural purposes of each. 17. Shakespeare s Julius Caesar is an important reference point in A Long Way Gone. Which individual, other than Ishmael, is familiar with it, and why do you think that person is always reading it? Read a brief summary of this play on your own, and it s not a bad idea to study/review its key speeches and monologues (namely, those mentioned throughout this book), and then explain how the themes and events of Shakespeare s play might echo Ishmael s memoir. (You read the whole thing in sophomore English, if you like reading things in advance. ) 18. How was Sierra Leone described before the war? How does war change the country and citizens? What are war s effects on Ishmael Beah? 19. Consider the story of the Bra Spider. What is its significance? How is it symbolic within the story as a whole? VOCABULARY: Define the following terms as used in the book. 1. crapes (p. 7) 6. imam (p. 44) 11. gari (p. 91) 2. kamor (p. 8) 7. Mende (p. 55) 12. repatriate (p. 171) 3. cassava (p. 17) 8. carseloi (p. 71) 13. kule (p. 177) 4. RUF (p. 21) 9. lappei (p. 76) 14. ablution (p. 182) 5. sleepers (p. 27) 10. leweh (p. 76) 15. podas podas (p. 185) 16. Sobels (p. 203)

4 The Eight Parts of Speech Quick Reference Noun a person, place, thing, idea, or concept Example: Carmen and I found the dog. Pronoun replaces a noun Example: She (Carmen) saw it (the dog) on the other side of the creek. Adjective describes (modifies) a noun; tells which, what kind, or how many about the noun it describes (modifies) Example: We waded into the deep water to rescue the soggy mess. Verb tells the action or state of being of the subject Example: The water rushed and spluttered over the rocks. Example: I was nervous about going in too far. Adverb describes (modifies) a verb, adverb, or adjective; tells you how, where, when, or to what extent about the word it describes (modifies) Example: We jumped through very quickly, but still became quite wet. Example: We did not enjoy it. Interjection used to show emotion (often intensity or excitement) Example: Wow! There are five puppies behind the bush! Example: Well, maybe we can take them home. Conjunction words which connect words or groups of words Example: Carmen and I tried to get the mamma dog to let us get a closer look, but she was too nervous. Preposition shows a relationship between nominative (words used as nouns) elements Example: Sadly, we waded back through the creek, over the hill, and up the lane to the house.

5 Parts of Speech Review #1 Directions: The following passage contains twenty-five underlined words. In the corresponding numbered space, write the part of speech for the underlined word in the passage. In 1928, a farmer was planting (1) horseradishes in a field (2) in Petersburg, (3) West Virginia. He noticed a greasy, (4) shiny stone. He picked it (5) up and brought (6) it home as a curiosity (7) piece. (8) Ten years later (9) he made a startling (10) discovery. The stone (11) was a (12) 32-carat diamond. (13) Wow! (14) Imagine how (15) he felt. Diamonds, however, are (16) not necessarily (17) rare in the United States. The Eagle diamond (18) weighs 16 carats and was found in Wisconsin a (19) few years ago. (20) Other large stones have (21) also been discovered in Ohio, Illinois, (22) and Indiana. The (23) largest diamond found in the United States weighs 40 (24) carats. It was mined (25) near Murfreesboro, Arkansas Directions: Write two sentences for each instruction. Underline the required word. 1. Use light as a verb and as a noun. Verb: Noun: 2. Use below as a preposition and an adverb. Prep: Adv: 3. Use secret as an adjective and a noun. Adj: Noun:

AP World History Summer Work 2018: A Long Way Gone Part I. Print out following article very chapter

AP World History Summer Work 2018: A Long Way Gone Everyone in the world should read this book... We should read it to learn about the world and about what it means to be human. Carolyn See, The Washington