AP & Honors English

East Brunswick Magnet School

ELA Honors and AP Summer Reading

Summer Reading Expectations

Congratulations on your Honors or AP placement!

To best prepare you for the rigor and expectations of an honors or advanced placement course, you will be expected to read and complete an accompanying Theme Tracker (reading chart) over the summer. Upon returning, all students will be expected to complete an essay, which will count as a test grade under the writing category, and all students will engage in a Socratic seminar, which will count as a test grade in the speaking and listening category.

All resources you need to be successful will be located on this document including books, theme trackers, and rubrics.

Incoming Freshmen

Reading: 

House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Assessments:

• ELA 9 Honors Theme Tracker (To be completed during the summer)
• Literary Analysis and Socratic Seminar (To be completed in-class)

Rising Sophomores

Reading: 

The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream by Drs. Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt

Assessments: 

• ELA 10 Honors Theme Tracker (To be completed during the summer)
• Literary Analysis and Socratic Seminar (To be completed in-class)

Rising Juniors

(Honors/Dual Credit)

Reading: Choice of one: 

1984 by George Orwell

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Assessments: 

• ELA 11 Honors Theme Tracker (To be completed during the summer)
• Literary Analysis and Socratic Seminar (To be completed in-class)

Rising Juniors (AP Language & Composition)

(Continued on next page)

Reading: 

Part 1: Vocabulary Study Guide - 17 Terms (See Summer Packet Below)

Part 2: Choice Read (Choose 1)

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Educated by Tara Westover

Part 3: Listening to 5 episodes of One Podcast Choice:

Podcast Episode Listening Links

• Narrative Journalism - This American Life
• Investigative - Serial (season 1)
• Social Commentary - Code Switch
• Argument / Current Events - The Daily
• Science / Ideas - RadioLab

Assessments:

• AP Language Summer Packet - (To be completed during the summer)
• Rhetorical Analysis Essay (To be completed in-class)
  Socratic Seminar (To be completed in-class)
• Quiz on Vocabulary Terms (To be completed in-class)

Rising Seniors (Honors)

Reading: Either story one or story two:

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

OR

Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll

Assessments: 

• ELA 12 Honors Theme Tracker (To be completed during the summer)
• Literary Analysis and Socratic Seminar (To be completed in-class)

Rising Seniors (AP Literature & Composition)

Reading:  See link for choices. 

Assessments:

• AP Lit Elements of Fiction Data Sheet (To be filled in during the summer)
• Literary Analysis and Socratic Seminar (To be completed in-class)

Additional Resources:

A Simplified Guide: Literary Analysis

Literary Analysis Rubric 

Rhetorical Analysis Rubric 

Socratic Seminar

Socratic Seminar Rubric