English Classes Kick-off Grade Level Reading Projects
The English Department kicked off the school year by collaborating with the Religion and Social Studies departments to offer enriching experiences for students regarding Brother Martin’s new Grade-level Summer Reading project. In addition to summer reading novels for all students enrolled in Honors and AP English classes, all students at each grade level were assigned a summer reading book for discussion in various classes across the curriculum during the 2018-19 school year. To begin these efforts, English teachers conducted activities for each novel during the second week of classes.
8th-grade
Students worked together in small groups identifying internal and external conflicts within No Summit Out of Sight, a book by Jordan Romero about a young boy’s quest to climb the Seven Summits, the highest peak in every continent. Among other lessons in the book, students completed an image activity in which they analyzed a photograph, and each student wrote a letter to Jordan Romero.
9th-grade
Freshmen read John Knowles’ A Separate Peace. In addition to various reading assessments, teachers reviewed basic facts about WWII and the U.S. war effort. Related to the novel’s themes, in particular students explored the definition and implications of the notion of “manhood” as it pertains to characters in the novel and in the real world. Students wrote letters to the U.S. Army as to why they believe they should or should not be allowed to serve in war as teenagers.
10th-grade
To enrich sophomores’ understanding of Animal Farm by George Orwell, teachers began by reviewing Orwell’s biography and influences, followed by a brief contextual analysis of the Red Revolution and the rise of Communism during the early-to-mid twentieth century. In addition to considering various aspects such as character, plot, and theme, students explored ways in which the novel epitomizes the genre of allegory. The week’s activities incorporated the use of technology, research, online forums, small group work, and whole group discussion prior to an assessment.
11th-grade
Juniors read Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken, a true adventure story about the experiences of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who joined the Army to fight in the Pacific Theater of World War II and eventually became a POW in Japan. Teachers assigned students two chapters in order to conduct a close reading and journal writing in response to given prompts. Students then considered an assigned an image for analysis using the Library of Congress Analysis method (observe, reflect, & question). Finally, students composed a letter either to Laura Hillenbrand or Louis Zamperini.
12th-grade
Seniors read In Cold Blood, a true crime detective thriller written by Truman Capote. Teachers of all senior English courses led an exploration into the career of Truman Capote, including a brief look at his associations with To Kill A Mockingbird author Harper Lee, to whom he dedicated the book in the epigraph. While asking students to respond to several writing prompts, teachers addressed the book’s historical place as a genre-defining, first-of-its-kind true crime narrative with a focus on intensive research, characterization, and descriptive detail.
