Theme: Perseverance

Perseverance is commitment, hard work, patience and endurance. Perseverance is being able to bear difficulties calmly and without complaint. Perseverance is trying again and again.

The characters in each book demonstrate how hard work and determination help them to reach their final goal.

Assignment:

Students are required to read THREE books over the summer —
the one Required Reading & two other choices from the list below.

Click here for the assignments!

Required Reading:

Lowry, Lois.  Number the Stars.
In 1943, during the German occupation of Denmark, 10-year-old Annemarie learns how to be brave and courageous when she helps shelter her Jewish friend from the Nazis.
On the web!: http://www.loislowry.com/number_stars.html

Choose at least two others from the titles below:

Abbott, Tony. Quest for the Queen or Voyage of the Jaffa Wind (Secrets of Droon series)  (Lexile: 410-510 )
Eric and his friends find entry into the world of Droon by using a staircase in Eric's basement.

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Fever, 1793. (Lexile: 580)
Sixteen-year-old Matilda Cook, separated from her sick mother, learns about perseverance and self-reliance when she is forced to cope with the horrors of the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia in 1793.

Applegate, Katherine. The Stranger. (Lexile: 530)
Rachel and her fellow Animorphs believe they have a real chance at defeating the Yeerks when they discover the location of the alien regeneration pool, but their plans are disrupted by an all-powerful Ellimist who offers them an opportunity to go live on another planet. (Part of Animorphs series.)

Avi. The Secret School. (Lexile: 540)
In 1925, fourteen-year-old Ida Bidson secretly takes over as the teacher when the one-room schoolhouse in her remote Colorado area closes unexpectedly.

Clements, Andrew. Frindle. (Lexile: 830)
When he decides to turn his fifth-grade teacher's love of the dictionary around on her, clever Nick Allen invents a new word and begins a chain of events that quickly moves beyond his control.

Crane, Stephen. The Red Badge of Courage. (Lexile: 920)
During his service in the Civil War, a young Union soldier matures to manhood and finds peace of mind as he comes to grips with his conflicting emotions about war.

DiCamillo, Kate. The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread.(Lexile:  670) The adventures of Despereaux Tilling, a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess that he loves, the servant girl who longs to be a princess, and a devious rat determined to bring them all to ruin.

Ellis, Deborah. The Breadwinner. (Lexile: 630)
Because the Taliban rulers of Kabul, Afghanistan, impose strict limitations on women's freedom and behavior, 11-year-old Parvana must disguise herself as a boy so that her family can survive after her father's arrest.

Fox, Paula. The Slave Dancer.(Lexile: 970)
Kidnapped by the crew of an Africa-bound ship, a 13-year-old boy discovers to his horror that he is on a slaver and his job is to play music for the exercise periods of the human cargo.

Hamilton, Virginia. Cousins. (Lexile: 550)
Concerned that her grandmother may die, Cammy is unprepared for the accidental death of another relative.

Levine, Ellen. Henry's Freedom Box.  (Lexile: 380)
A fictionalized account of how in 1849 a Virginia slave, Henry "Box" Brown, escapes to freedom by shipping himself in a wooden crate from Richmond to Philadelphia.

Lowry, Lois. The Giver. (Lexile: 760)
Given his lifetime assignment at the Ceremony of Twelve, Jonas becomes the receiver of memories shared by only one other in his community and discovers the terrible truth about the society in which he lives.

Mills, Claudia. Being Teddy Roosevelt. (Lexile: 670)
When he is assigned Teddy Roosevelt as his biography project in school, 4th-grader Riley finds himself inspired by Roosevelt's tenacity and perseverance and resolves to find a way to get what he most wants--a saxophone and music lessons.

Orr, Wendy. Peeling the Onion. (Lexile: 780)
Following an automobile accident in which her neck is broken, a teenage karate champion  begins a long and painful recovery with the help of her family.

Osborne, Mary Pope. Buffalo Before Breakfast. (Lexile:380 )
The magic tree house takes Jack and his sister Annie to the Great Plains where they learn about the life of the Lakota Indians. (Part of Magic Tree House series.)

Peterson, John. The Littles. (Lexile: 400)
When the Biggs go on a three-month vacation and an untidy family from the city moves into the house, the Littles must take action.

Reiss, Johanna. The Upstairs Room. (Lexile: 380)
A Dutch Jewish girl describes the two-and-one-half years she spent in hiding in the upstairs bedroom of a farmer's house during World War II.

Roy, Ron. A to Z Mysteries series. (Lexile: 300-500)  Dink Duncan, Josh Pinto & Ruth Rose Halloway are third graders who love solving a good mystery! There are 26 books in the series, one for each letter of the alphabet.  The series begins with The Absent Author and ends with The Zombie Zone.

Smith, Roland. Elephant Run. (Lexile: 750)
Nick endures servitude, beatings, and more after his British father's plantation in Burma is invaded by the Japanese in 1941.  When his father and others are taken prisoner and Nick is stranded with his friend Mya, they plan a daring escape on   elephants, risking their lives to save Nick's father and Mya's brother from a Japanese prisoner of war camp.

Sperry, Armstrong. Call it Courage. (Lexile: 830)
Relates how Mafatu, a young Polynesian boy whose name means Stout Heart, overcomes his terrible fear of the sea and proves his courage to himself and his people.

Spinelli, Jerry. Wringer. (Lexile: 690)
As Palmer comes of age, he must either accept the violence of being a wringer at his town's annual Pigeon Day or find the courage to oppose it.

Yolen, Jane. Wizard's Hall. (Lexile: 930 )
A young apprentice wizard saves the wizard's training hall by trusting and believing in himself.

Email readingsummer@chelseaschools.com 
if you have questions about the books or the assignments.

These books can be checked out from:

The Chelsea Public Library
Monday 10am-6pm
Tuesday 10am-8pm
Wednesday/Thursday/Friday 9am-5pm
(Closed on Saturday/Sunday)
 
Chelsea High School Library
Tuesday & Thursday
8am-1pm
June 28th - July 28th