“We read to know we are not alone.” ~ C. S. Lewis

Why Summer Reading?

Encouraging reading over the summer can help avoid what experts call the “summer slide.” This refers to the loss of learning that occurs over the course of a summer, and it is more dramatic than you might think.  Studies show that choosing to read in the summer may be the difference between the college-bound student and the non-college bound student.  Reading just one book over the course of the summer can minimize the “summer slide,” and keep you on track to reach your potential.

Check out the Abraham Lincoln Award Illinois High School Readers’ Choice Awards, or even the New York Times Best-Sellers List.  The New York Times even has a Young Adult Best Sellers List.  The important thing is to find a book that appeals to you, and spend some time this summer reading.  As Oscar Wilde observed, “It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.”

Feel free to browse our new digital library at OverDrive, to check out these titles and read them on the go. Learn more about our digital library and how to access it here.

Links:

Abraham Lincoln Teen Reader’ Choice Award

NYT Combined Print & E Book Fiction

NYT Combined Print and E Book Nonfiction

NYT Young Adult Hardcover

NYT Young Adult Paperback

Pick a book and enjoy your summer!

We are excited to offer you the opportunity to choose your summer reading book!

From Mr. Curtin, Ms. Darby, Mr. Leonard, Mrs. Means, Mrs. Peterson, Ms. Postelli.

At Schaumburg High School, we encourage reading and critical thinking. To continue your educational growth, find a summer reading book that you would be interested in exploring! Any genre-your choice!

 

Summer Reading Requirements:

Choose a book: You can access your local library. This not only gives you access to a wide selection but also supports your community library.

Parental Approval: Before you check out your book, please make sure that your parents or guardians have reviewed and approved your selection.

Fiction and Page Count: The book must be a work of fiction and contain at least 200 pages. This helps ensure that you have a substantial text to explore during the summer.

Discussion Questions: On the second day of school, we will have a class discussion about the novels you read over the summer. To prepare, you may review your book and take notes to help you participate.

 

IMPORTANT DATES:

August 11 | First Day of School

August 12 | Book Discussion

• E108 Summer Reading Discussion Questions

  1. What is the main idea or central theme of the book? How does this theme apply to our current society?
      

  2. How did the main character change from beginning to end? What can be learned from that character and their growth?
      

  3. Where and when does the book take place, and how does that affect the story?
      

  4. How does the structure of the book (chapters, timelines, points of view) shape your experience as a reader?
      

  5. What writing style or techniques did the author use effectively (e.g., dialogue, description, humor, suspense)? Can you give any examples? What choices did the author make that you admired or questioned?
      

  6. What do you think the title means, and how does it connect to the story?
      

  7. What inequalities or injustices are present in the book? How do they affect the characters or individuals involved? How do the characters respond to injustice and/or oppression? Were their responses effective or meaningful?
      

  8. Does the book explore topics like race, gender, class, ability, or identity? How are these issues portrayed?
      

  9. Who holds power in the book, and how is that power used or abused? Are there any characters or groups whose voices are silenced or overlooked? Why do you think that is?
      

  10. Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

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Learn More Here

Throughout the year, we will be examining motivation and decision-making. 

We will ask the question:

To what extent does fear motivate humanity?

As a sophomore entering an E208 class in the fall, you will be responsible for completing TWO summer reading assignments.

Please read through the information on this handout. If you have any questions over the summer, please contact:

 

Here is the QR Code to the E208 Website and a schoology group code where you can find additional materials and resources.

Group Code: PDD6-4JMF-DGQ2K

 

Assignment #1: Poetry:

Here is a sample chart done by a student: TPCASTT Sample

These TPCASTT charts will be collected on the first day of class and graded; they should be hand-written. No credit will be given to typed charts so we can best ensure it is your own work.   

Need help with literary analysis or elements? (Use this list of terms to help you)

 

Assignment #2: Novel: Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

 

Questions to ponder while reading:

 

You can also read this document in Google Docs by clicking here.

• Mrs. Serafini- tserafini@d211.org

• Mr. Cavalieri at scavalieri@d211.org 

• Mrs. Micheletto at jmicheletto@d211.org

• Mrs. Selleck at kselleck@d211.org

• Mrs. Strauch at jstrauch@d211.org 

• Ms. Donatucci - bdonatucci@d211.org

1. Choose TWO of the FIVE attached poems 

2. Read and analyze each of your chosen poems by completing a TPCASTT chart on each (template can be located on Schoology, too). 

3. Read the novel with an analytical eye; you can annotate it, but it is not necessary. Below are questions to guide your reading.

4. Be prepared to complete an in-class assignment/essay AND a multiple-choice test during the first week of class that will prove you read the book.

5. The author writes the first part of the book switching between the sisters’ points of view in each chapter. In the last section of the book, however, their perspectives are combined, and we often have to figure out who is speaking by context clues. Why do you think the author chose to structure the book in this way? How does your understanding of the sisters change when you start seeing them through each other’s perspective?

6. Camino and Yahaira both have complicated feelings about suddenly having a sibling. What are some examples of their conflicting feelings in the text? How do these feelings change over time?

7. Both Camino and Yahaira have close, trusting relationships with other female friends, family, and/or girlfriends. What are some moments in the book where women show up, protect, and care for one another? How do Camino and Yahaira define sisterhood? How do these views change throughout the book? 

8. What are some of the ways that Camino and Yahaira describe the way they feel after losing their father? What are the similarities and differences in how the sisters grieve for their father while trying to understand him? How does their grief change over time and throughout the book? The plane crash in this book does not impact only Camino and Yahaira. How does the island react when Camino’s papi passes? How is Yahaira’s neighborhood affected by the crash? How are Dominican people everywhere affected?

9. “My father was the one who always threw the get-togethers, & even in death, he brings us all home” (Acevedo 134). How does their father’s death bring everyone “home”? How can death bring people together, both literally and figuratively? How can death and grieving change relationships between the people who are left behind? How is this shown in the book?

10. What does Yahaira mean when she says “in the real world I am not treated as a lady or a queen, as a defender or opponent but as a girl so many want to strike off the board” (Acevedo 94)? How are Yahaira and Camino treated by the men in this novel? How does the way you see yourself differ from who the world believes you to be? What do you do when those two things don’t match up?

11. How does grief complicate Yahaira and Camino's love for their father? What does the reader learn about Papi through his relationships with the women in his life? Why do these women  and daughters love him and hold him in high esteem despite his flaws?

12. What silences both sisters when they want to talk with the adults in their lives about what’s happening to them?

13. How do the motifs of chess and water contribute to the meaning of the text?

14. In the author’s note at the end of the book, Acevedo shares the details behind the tragic November 2001 plane crash that inspired her novel. She talks about “who matters and deserves attention in the media.” Were you aware of this history before reading the novel? If not, did reading about it at the end change your thoughts about the book? 

You can also read this document in Google Docs by clicking here.

Teachers:

Mr. Cedeno       acedeno@d211.org 

Mr. Herron-Cologna kherroncologna@d211.org

Ms. Ksiazek  kksiazek@d211.org  

Mr. Klinger         nklinger@d211.org  

Mr. Peterson mpeterson@d211.org 

Ms. Ryan rryan@d211.org 

Greetings, Scholars!  As Honors-level students, many of you are already familiar with the general idea of summer reading.  Over this particular summer, we expect that you read and annotate The Devil’s Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea.  You will also complete a triple-entry journal (LINKED HERE and in the Schoology Group) to be handed in upon the start of the school year.

Your reading must reflect your own original writing.  No external resources, websites, or AI are to be used to complete this assignment.

We have created a Schoology GROUP (not course) where we will be posting information about the readings and resources.  That said, the best way to get immediate answers to questions on the summer reading assignment is to email your teachers (email addresses posted above).  

The access code for our AP Lang Summer Reading 2025 Schoology Group is: 4P5G-2X6T-DRK7F.

“In May 2001, a group of men attempted to cross the Mexican border into the desert of southern Arizona, through the deadliest region of the continent, the ‘Devil's Highway.’ Three years later, Luis Alberto Urrea wrote about what happened to them. The result was a national bestseller, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, a ‘book of the year’ in multiple newspapers, and a work proclaimed as a modern American classic”  (Courtesy of Amazon).

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While reading The Devil’s Highway, focus your annotation on the rhetorical triangle: what can you tell about the speaker of the text, who do you think his intended audience is, and what is his purpose throughout the book? To help you figure out these major areas of analysis, consider the following specific questions as you read in order to track the rhetoric:

• What does the author try to make you think, feel, or do?

• What diction (word choice) and syntax (sentence structures) does he use to help impact the audience?

• What appeals does he rely on to help convince the audience (logos, ethos, pathos)?

• Where do we see the author utilizing imagery and anecdotes (illustrative stories) to help achieve his purpose?

• What tone(s) does the author use to write the book? 

  • Does it change in places throughout the text? 

  • If so, how?

    • What is the effect of the shift?

• Does the author seem to be balanced or biased in his narration?

• What is the author trying to argue by the end of the text?  How/where can you tell so?

• (How) does the author address any contrary or opposing perspectives? (Counterargument)

Upon our return to school, you should be prepared to:

1. Submit your completed Triple Entry Journal

2. Conduct informal analysis of self-selected quotes from The Devil’s Highway

3. Write an in-class rhetorical analysis essay responding to a passage from The Devil’s Highway

4. Write an in-class argumentative essay responding to a topic related to The Devil’s Highway

5. Participate in Socratic Seminar discussion regarding the text
    

FAQs

Q:  Must I annotate aggressively--similar to the annotation of a poem for close reading purposes?

A:  Not necessarily, no! You should annotate in a fashion and to an extent that is useful for you to produce organized analysis/writing.

 

Q:  Must I turn in my annotations for credit?

A:  That is not a requirement for our summer reading assignment, BUT you will be encouraged to use any notes that you take for any of our assignments or assessments.  (It’s also important to remember that we reserve the right to collect evidence of annotation for diagnostic purpose--so we can determine whether, or how, we need to re-teach annotation.)

 

Q:  What is a Socratic Seminar? 

A:  A Socratic Seminar is a formal, student-lead, graded discussion based on the text. Prior to the first day of class, students can prepare for the discussion by thoroughly responding to the discussion questions and providing textual evidence when necessary.  During a Socratic Seminar, students are expected to demonstrate their depth of understanding of the text while using their notes and their book to support their responses.  

 

When school begins and prior to the Socratic Seminar, students will learn about and practice effective discussion skills such as posing open-ended questions, responding to open-ended questions, drawing connections, expanding on other student comments, respectfully providing alternate or contradicting perspectives, and supporting thoughtful responses with textual evidence.  

The Socratic Seminar grade will be based on two parts: student's written responses and student's oral bparticipation in the discussion.

Q:  What if I need help?
A:  Please pose the question in our Schoology group and/or email your instructors identified at the top of  this document.

Summer Reading Instructions.

Ms. Bingham                rbingham@d211.org

Mr. Curtin                    bcurtin@d211.org

Mr. Micheletto              rmicheletto@d211.org   

           

If you would like to have digital access to this information, please join our AP Lit Summer Reading Schoology Group. Access Code: 77XD-4KSD-3HNN9

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini:

Note:  The Kite Runner contains adult situations. Some depictions are graphic.

Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/Kite-Runner-Khaled-Hosseini/dp/159463193X

Book Summary:

 Amir is the son of a wealthy Kabul merchant, a member of the ruling caste of Pashtuns. Hassan, his servant and constant companion, is a Hazara, a despised and impoverished caste. Their uncommon bond is torn by Amir's choice to abandon his friend amidst the increasing ethnic, religious, and political tensions of the dying years of the Afghan monarchy, wrenching them far apart. But so strong is the bond between the two boys that Amir journeys back to a distant world, to try to right past wrongs against the only true friend he ever had (“Book of the Month”).

Elements from The Kite Runner will inform many of the other works in the 419 curriculum. Be advised that you must have the novel completed before returning to school. When reading, think in terms of motifs, allusions, archetypes, symbols, and social issues, as well as the rhetorical strategies learned in English 319. In addition, consider the following points as you read and mark the text. We will be using the points below to drive our discussions and analysis:

• Trace the psychological progress of the main characters in the story. How are their private lives shaped by the larger forces of history or culture?
• Consider Hosseini’s narrative style in the novel and the importance of connecting past and present.
• Explore the political and religious themes in the novel.
• Analyze the novel as a Bildungsroman (coming-of-age) story.
• Consider the ideas of trauma, guilt, and redemption and how these topics contribute to your understanding of the meaning of the work as a whole.
• How does Hosseini use literary elements/devices, especially symbolism, to reflect important themes or ideas in the novel?

                                   

ASSIGNMENT: THE READING JOURNAL (Take reflective notes on the topics presented above.)  Below is a list of requirements, a table that provides ideas for your notes and a brief model for note taking.

Please understand and remember that this is a critical reading journal. This journal is designed to help you develop critical thinking and reading skills so that you can both develop and articulate legitimate readings of a text.  By watching your own readings move from puzzlements through approximations and misreadings to more and more satisfying readings, you will gradually develop a more realistic sense of what valid and legitimate readings of texts are and in class discussions more readily share your readings and build on each other’s perceptions instead of worrying about who/what is right and who/what is wrong.

 

Requirements:

1. A minimum of 20 entries analyzing and reflecting on all sections of the novel. Your notes should not be focused solely on one section of the novel. Show us you read the entire book.
2. Each entry should be 2-3 sentences.
3. Notes MUST be developed in sentence form. The demands of the sentence will help you draw out your thoughts fully.  Be explicit about the nature of your change or surprise or puzzlement– what caused it in the text?  The journal will seem less of an intrusion in your reading if you follow the natural rhythms of reading.
4. Indicate page number ranges (ex. Pages 1-12).
5. You don’t need notes for every page of the novel. Pause at the end of a section, a chapter or a natural division.  Authors include these breaks for a reason.
6. Your notes should demonstrate understanding and analysis of the entire novel.

 

Some things to consider as you read: 

• Trace the psychological progress of the main characters in the story. How are their private lives shaped by the larger forces of history or culture?
• Consider Hosseini’s narrative style in the novel and the importance of connecting past and present.
• Explore the political and religious themes in the novel.
• Analyze the novel as a Bildungsroman (coming-of-age) story.
• Consider the ideas of trauma, guilt, and redemption.
• How does Hosseini use literary elements/devices, especially symbolism, to reflect important themes or ideas in the novel?

 

REMEMBER: THESE NOTES ARE YOUR RESPONSES TO WHAT YOU READ. THEY ARE NOT A LIST OF “THINGS” THAT HAPPEN OR A LIST OF LITERARY DEVICES YOU NOTICED IN THE NOVEL. 

Initial Reading/Analysis

Thematic: Ways in which the reading makes you speculate about life or a connection to another text or even another academic discipline.   Technique Rhetorical/Literary devices that you notice- how do they enhance meaning?  Other devices you’re having trouble pinpointing in the reading but you know must be there. The ways in which structure, punctuation, rhyme, etc. influenced your reading.   Times when your reading changes: You see something you didn’t see before. You recognize a pattern- the images start to overlap, gestures or phrases recur—some details seem associated with each other. The work suddenly seems to you to be about something different from what you thought. You discover that you were misreading OR you changed your opinion on a character, a topic, a use of literary technique. The writer introduces a new context or new perspective.   Times when you are surprised or puzzled: Something just doesn’t fit. Things don’t make sense- pose explicitly the questions or problems that occur to you. Details that seem important and that make you look again and reread.   Questions: What questions do I have regarding elements of the text, philosophy, theme, or the text itself?   Reflections: As you read, indicate how your perceptions have changed, how the writing style changes to reflect certain thematic issues or how the use of a literary device/technique evolved over the course of the novel and how its evolution contributes to your working understanding.

 

Sample Reading Log Entries:

Pages 1-2	Hosseini's prose is lyrical and evocative, with vivid descriptions that transport the reader to the streets of Kabul and the kite-flying tournaments of Amir's childhood. The use of first-person narration allows readers to empathize with Amir's inner turmoil and emotional journey.
Pages 1-2	From the very first lines, there's a sense of foreboding and mystery. Rahim Khan's cryptic words, "There is a way to be good again," hint at a past mistake or regret that Amir must confront. This foreshadows the central conflict of the novel and sets the tone for Amir's journey of redemption.

 

 

Fall 2025 Kite Runner Assignments: When we return to school, you will engage in the following assignments/assessments:

 

1. Multiple Choice Reading Comprehension Test
2. 2 AP Open Ended Essays
3. Socratic Class Discussions (using text markings for evidence)