Sharon High School

2011 2012 Summer Reading Selections

Summ er Reading Selections for 2011-2012: Sharon High School

Grade Ni ne: Incoming freshmen wil l read Paulo C oelh os T he Alchemi st. Coelh os novel details Santi ago the Sh epherds travels from Sp ai n t o Northern Africa, a j ourney th at forces th e young hero to search m any frontiers -- i ncl uding his own soul -- for a famous t reasure. T his nov el ex cell ently comp lem ents a central th eme of the ni nth grade curricul um: the study of arch et ypes. Stud ents will als o vi ew Tim Burtons fil m, Bi g Fi sh.

Grade T en: All soph om ores wi ll read Kh aled Hossei nis The Kite Runner. This i nt ernati onal best seller t races the friendship betw een t wo boys growi ng up in Afghanistan. The book hi ghlights the themati c focus of the sophom ore curri culum : th e st ud y of w orld lit erature. This novel, whil e cri tically accl aimed for many important reasons, d oes contai n emotionally chall enging cont ent . Parents and stud ents wh o hav e questions or concerns about thi s selecti on should contact Mr. David Hell er, th e E LA C urriculum Coordi nat or (Grad es 6-12) his contact informati on is detai led at th e end of this document . Soph om ores wil l also view the film, T he Namesa ke.

Grade El even: Standard Cl asses: Juni ors i n st and ard classes will read Michael Patri ck MacD onalds memoi r of growing up i n B ost on, All Soul s. Honors Classes: Juni ors i n h onors cl asses will read E.L. Doct orows nov el, Ra gtime, and Jeanett e W alls m emoir, The Gla ss Castle. Ameri can Studi es: Juni ors enrolled i n Am eri can St udies will read Jeanett e Walls m em oir, T he Glass Ca stle, as w ell as Sir Ken Robi nsons work, The Element. All juni ors will vi ew the fil m, Good Will Hunting.

Grade Tw elve: Standard Cl asses: Seniors i n st and ard cl asses w ill read J on Krakauers nonfi cti on account, Into the Wil d. Honors Classes: Seniors i n h onors cl asses wi ll read Ernest J. Gaines A Lesson Before Dying and Jon K rakauers nonficti on account , In to the W ild.

Humaniti es: Seniors i n Humaniti es classes will read J on Krakauers nonfi cti on account, Into the Wil d. AP: Seniors enroll ed in AP Li terat ure wi ll read J on Krakauers Into the Wild and G eorge Orwells 1984. AP st udents w ill also need t o bring with them in Sept ember four op- ed pi eces that hi ghlight a them ati c connect ion t o the assigned sum mer readi ng books. T wo op-ed pi eces for each w ork are required. An op- ed comp ositi on is a si gned edit orial or p ers uasive arti cle com monly found in th e opinion secti on of a newspap er or magazine ( op-ed stands for opposit e th e edit ori al page). AP St ud ents should choose an approp riate journalism source for thes e art icl es: T he New York Tim es, The Boston Glo be, T he Washin gton Post, and The Los Angel es Times are app ropri ate venues for newspap ers ; The New Yorker, Harpers, and The Atlantic are appropriat e magazi ne sources. Stud ents sh ould m ake s ure th eir oped s electi ons them ati cally connect with an aspect of 1984 or In to the Wild. These s el ecti ons should be ti mely that is, they should be culled from recent editi ons of a newspaper or magazi ne. A rti cles drawn from out dat ed s ources wi ll not m eet th e p aramet ers of this summer reading assignm ent. All seniors w ill vi ew the film , V is for Ven detta.

Please N ote: Students or parents may locate summer reading materials from s everal local s ourc es. 1) The Sharon P ublic Library (located on 11 N . Main Street) will or der c opies of the summer reading books for s tudents to check out for two-week intervals; film s elec tions will be order ed for students to c hec k out for single week intervals. Thes e materials will be av ailable on a first c ome, first serve bas is. During the last week of Augus t, the town libr ary is also gracious ly hosting free v iewings of thes e films. The sc hedule for these events is listed below:

* Grade 9 Film: M onday, August 22 rd 10:30-12:45 & 3:45-6:00 * Grade 10 Film: Tuesday, A ugust 23 th 10:30-12:45 & 3:45-6:00 * Grade 11 Film: W ednes day, August 24 th 10:30-12:45 & 3:45- 6:00 * Grade 12 Film: Friday, A ugust 25 th 10:30-12:45 & 3:45- 6:oo This sc hedule c an be accessed via the librarys ev ent keeper link at
http://www.eventkeeper.com/code/events.cfm?curOrg=SHARON

Please note: The junior film s election, Good Will Hunting, is a rated R m ovie. The film is an Osc ar Award winning film, and one that does not c ontain any graphic violence or sex ual content. It does, howev er, contain instances of strong language. Due to this fac t, the town library will be presenting an edited, PG v ersion of the film. A copy of this edited version can also be m ade temporarily av ailable for thos e par ents or students who request it by c ontacting Mr. David Heller, the ELA Curric ulum C oor dinator. 2) Summer reading materials may be purchased at the B arnes & N oble loc ation at the Walpole Mall (82 Providence Highway/508-688-1303). B ooks and DVDs will be or dered in bulk to meet the needs of Sharon students. If parents or students plan to buy thes e materials, on June 2 the s tore will host a book fair in which a percentage of the pr oceeds from the sale of summer reading selections will benefit the Sharon Englis h/Language Arts Department. More details about this book fair will be sent hom e with students in advance of the June 2 nd date. If ther e are any concer ns or questions about the summer reading program, please contact Mr. Dav id Heller, the middle and high sc hool ELA C urriculum Coor dinator (dheller@s haron. k12.m a.us 781-7841554 x8028)