The Boy in the Striped Pajamas haunts me now

I started The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne a few days ago and stayed up until 1 a.m. to finish it last night. Gasping and holding my breath as read the last couple pages, I promptly bawled my eyes out and woke Laurel up because I had to talk to someone right away.

It is quite possibly the saddest book I've read ever. I'm emotionally drained now.  This book needs, craves, has to be paired with Night when I teach it.  Any kid who has read Night and even remotely liked it will LOVE this book.

Boyne tells a fictional WWII story about a young boy named Bruno and his family who is forced to move to a remote part of Nazi Germany because of his dad's important work.  Bruno does not understand anything of the world around him, mainly because he's so naive and is just a good, old-fashioned kid.  It's there that a friendship blossoms in the desolate, awful, hateful world around them.

That's all I'm going to tell you.  Read it.  You won't regret this one.  I also hear the movie is well done.  Read it to your elementary children. Wow. Wow. Wow.  Next on my list is to watch it on Netflix.

If I Grow Up is a real page-turner

If I Grow Up by Todd Strasser.  Started this book Sunday morning and finished before I went to bed Sunday night!  What a wonderful book!

The main character is a young teen who struggles with staying out of the gang in his inner-city life.  It was super interesting to see the world from his eyes and deal with his decisions he makes because his family is hungry.  At one point I threw the book down and cried.  And when the story was done, it made me think long afterwards.

Todd Strasser writes a awesome book that will keep you engaged the entire time.  I can't wait to pick up another book of his, Boot Camp.  I bet it's very similar.

If you are needing a good book that's super fast--try this one!  Great for girls and GUYS!  For sure, guys.

THS Pre AP English I Summer Reading Assignment

Dear Student and Parent or Guardian, 

Pre-AP English I is a course designed to build a foundation for the knowledge and skills required to succeed in upper level English courses.  Over 50 literary terms are introduced and applied to both classic and modern literature during the course; two of the literary selections read by students independently.  In order to begin discussion on the first day and assess retention of knowledge and skills gained in middle school, a summer reading assignment has been created. Attached is a list of novels the students may choose from. We highly encourage students to choose novels that coincide with their lexile score, a score they received after taking the SRI test in eighth grade. Students are required only to read one novel, but reading more than one is always highly encouraged. Follow the directions below. 

Directions: 

1. Choose two novels from the attached list. You will need to choose one novel from the contemporary list and one novel from the classics list. Books may be borrowed from the library or purchased. 
2. Read your novel selections before the first day of school. 
3. Students will do a dialectical journal for each novel that includes ten entries (This will be due the first day of school). 

To do a dialectical journal: 

Draw a line down the middle of the paper, making two columns.

The left column is used for passages (direct quotations) from the text and page numbers. Look for quotes that seem significant, powerful, thought provoking or puzzling. For example, you might record:

• effective &/or creative use of stylistic or literary devices

• passages that remind you of your own life or something you’ve seen before

• structural shifts or turns in the plot

• passages that make you realize something you hadn’t seen before

• examples of patterns: recurring images, ideas, colors, symbols or motifs.

• passages with confusing language or unfamiliar vocabulary

• events you find surprising or confusing

• passages that illustrate a particular character or setting

The right column is used for commenting on notes in the left column.  Personal reactions to the notes on the left go here. The comments on the

right may include:

• what the passage prompts in thinking or memory associations;

• feelings toward the author’s words;

• words or passages not understood;

• questions about something unclear or that may prompt new discussion;

• words or passages that look important; and

• connections among passages or sections of the work.

Label the entries using the following:

1. (Q) Question – ask about something in the passage that is unclear
2. (C) Connect – make a connection to your life, the world, or another text
3. (P) Predict – anticipate what will occur based on what’s in the passage
4. (CL) Clarify – answer earlier questions or confirm/disaffirm a prediction

e. (R) Reflect – think deeply about what the passage means in a broad sense

– not just to the characters in the story. What conclusions can you draw about the world, about human nature, or just the way things work?

f. (E) Evaluate - make a judgment about the character(s), their actions, or

what the author is trying to say their dialectical journal.

Sample Dialectical Journal: from To Kill a Mockingbird

1. On the first day of school, students will be expected to be able to discuss their novel utilizing 
2. After discussion, students will be expected to write an in-class essay using the prompt below: 

All of the books from the list are considered young adult (YA) literature. Because young adult novels are written for a teenage audience, the main character, or protagonist, is usually a teenager that deals with issues facing young adults everywhere. 

Possible issues can include but are not limited to: 

• Peer relationships 
• Romantic relationships 
• Rebellion against authority 
• Peer pressure 
• Pressure from adult expectations 

After you have read both a contemporary young adult novel and a classic young adult novel, identify the major issues that each protagonist must deal with in the novel. Once you have identified these issues, in a five paragraph essay compare and contrast the way each protagonist deals with the issues before him or her, and ultimately what the outcome is for each.

Please contact Mr. Jeremy Boesch with any questions at jeremyboesch@wentzville.k12.mo.us.

THS English I Summer Reading Assignment

Dear Student and Parent or Guardian, 

English I is a course designed to build a foundation for the knowledge and skills required to succeed in upper level English courses.  Over 50 literary terms are introduced and applied to both classic and modern literature during the course; two of the literary selections read by students independently.  In order to begin discussion on the first day and assess retention of knowledge and skills gained in middle school, a summer reading assignment has been created. Attached is a list of novels the students may choose from. We highly encourage students to choose novels that coincide with their lexile score, a score they received after taking the SRI test in eighth grade. Students are only required to read one novel, but reading more than one is always highly encouraged. Follow the directions below. 

Directions: 

1. Choose a novel on the attached list and acquire a copy. Books may be borrowed from the library or purchased. 

1. Read your novel selection before the first day of school. 

1. Students will do a dialectical journal for their novel that includes ten entries (This will be due the first day of school). 

To do a dialectical journal: 

Draw a line down the middle of the paper, making two columns.

The left column is used for passages (direct quotations) from the text and page numbers. Look for quotes that seem significant, powerful, thought provoking or puzzling. For example, you might record:

• effective &/or creative use of stylistic or literary devices

• passages that remind you of your own life or something you’ve seen before

• structural shifts or turns in the plot

• passages that make you realize something you hadn’t seen before

• examples of patterns: recurring images, ideas, colors, symbols or motifs.

• passages with confusing language or unfamiliar vocabulary

• events you find surprising or confusing

• passages that illustrate a particular character or setting

The right column is used for commenting on notes in the left column.  Personal reactions to the notes on the left go here. The comments on the

right may include:

• what the passage prompts in thinking or memory associations;

• feelings toward the author’s words;

• words or passages not understood;

• questions about something unclear or that may prompt new discussion;

• words or passages that look important; and

• connections among passages or sections of the work.

Label the entries using the following:

1. (Q) Question – ask about something in the passage that is unclear

1. (C) Connect – make a connection to your life, the world, or another text

1. (P) Predict – anticipate what will occur based on what’s in the passage

1. (CL) Clarify – answer earlier questions or confirm/disaffirm a prediction

e. (R) Reflect – think deeply about what the passage means in a broad sense

– not just to the characters in the story. What conclusions can you draw about the world, about human nature, or just the way things work?

f. (E) Evaluate - make a judgment about the character(s), their actions, or

what the author is trying to say

1. On the first day of school, students will be expected to be able to discuss their novel utilizing their dialectical journal. 

1. After discussion, students will be expected to answer a series of constructed response questions over their novel. Students will be able to use their dialectical journal when answering the questions in order to provide specific examples. 

Please contact Mr. Jeremy Boesch with any questions at jeremyboesch@wentzville.k12.mo.us.

Modern Literature: 

Anderson, Laurie Halse: Speak: 680: 

A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect on Melinda's freshman year in high school.

Sarah Dessen: The Truth about Forever: 840: 

The summer following her father's death, Macy plans to work at the library and wait for her brainy boyfriend to return from camp, but instead she goes to work at a catering business where she makes new friends and finally faces her grief.

Angela Johnson: The First Part Last: 790:

 Bobby's carefree teenage life changes forever when he becomes a father and must care for his adored baby daughter. 

Catherine Murdock: Dairy Queen: 990: 

After spending her summer running the family farm and training the quarterback for her school's rival football team, sixteen-year-old D.J. decides to go out for the sport herself, not anticipating the reactions of those around her.

Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd 840: 

Fourteen-year-old Lily and her companion, Rosaleen, an African-American woman who has cared for Lily since her mother's death ten years earlier, flee their home after Rosaleen is victimized by racist police officers, and find a safe haven in Tiburon, South Carolina, at the home of three beekeeping sisters, May, June, and August.

Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher: 920: 

The daily class discussions about the nature of man, the existence of God, abortion, organized religion, suicide and other contemporary issues serve as a backdrop for a high-school senior's attempt to answer a friend's dramatic cry for help.

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing 1060: 

Various diaries, letters, and other manuscripts chronicle the experiences of Octavian, a young African American, from birth to age sixteen, as he is brought up as part of a science experiment in the years leading up to and during the Revolutionary War.

Copper Sun by Sharon Draper 820: 

Includes bibliographical references. Two fifteen-year-old girls--one a slave and the other an indentured servant--escape their Carolina plantation and try to make their way to Fort Moses, Florida, a Spanish colony that gives sanctuary to slaves

Because I am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas 990: 

The youngest of three siblings, fourteen-year-old Anke feels both relieved and neglected that her father abuses her brother and sister but ignores her, but when she catches him with one of her friends, she finally becomes angry enough to take action.

Looking for Alaska John Green 930: 

Sixteen-year-old Miles' first year at Culver Creek Preparatory School in Alabama includes good friends and great pranks, but is defined by the search for answers about life and death after a fatal car crash.

The Sledding Hill by Chris Crutcher: 1010: 

Billy, recently deceased, keeps an eye on his best friend, fourteen-year-old Eddie, and helps him stand up to a conservative minister and English teacher who is orchestrating a censorship challenge. 

Romeo's ex : Rosaline's story: Lisa Fiedler 910: 

In a story based on the Shakespeare play, sixteen-year-old Rosaline, who is studying to be a healer, becomes romantically entangled with the Montague family even as her beloved young cousin, Juliet Capulet, defies the family feud to secretly marry Romeo.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne 1080: 

Bored and lonely after his family moves from Berlin to a place called "Out-With" in 1942, Bruno, the son of a Nazi officer, befriends a boy in striped pajamas who lives behind a wire fence.

Three Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter 810:

Ashley Rhodes-Courter provides an account of her life, focusing on the nine years she spent in Florida's foster care system after being removed from her mother at the age of three, and explaining how her life changed after she was adopted.

Classic Lit

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card 780:

Wiggin may prove to be the military genius Earth needs to fight a desperate battle against a deadly alien race that will determine the future of the human race.

A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines: 750

Tells the story of a young African-American man sentenced to death for a murder he did not commit, and a teacher who tries to impart to him his learning and pride before the execution.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou 1070

Poet Maya Angelou chronicles her early life, focusing on her childhood in 1930s rural Arkansas, including her rape at the age of five, her subsequent years of muteness, and the strength she gained from her grandmother and Mrs. Bertha Flowers, a respected African-American woman in her town.

A Separate Peace – Knowles 1110

Gene Forrester looks back fifteen years to a World War II year in which he and his best friend Phineas were roommates in a New Hampshire boarding school. Their friendship is marred by Finny's crippling fall, an event for which Gene is responsible and one that eventually leads to tragedy.

Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger 790

An adolescent boy, knowing he is about to be dropped by his school, spends three days and nights in New York City.

The Chocolate War by Robert Comier: 820 

high school freshman discovers the devastating consequences of refusing to join in the school's annual fund raising drive and arousing the wrath of the school bullies.

Black Boy by Richard Wright No Lexile:

The autobiography of an African-American writer, recounting his early years and the harrowing experiences he encountered drifting from Natchez to Chicago to Brooklyn.

Maze Runner

I'm reading Maze Runner right now by James Dashner.  It's fabulous.  Can't put it down or stop thinking about it.  Great book for a guy or a girl.  Pick it up now!  Check out this book trailer...