Genesis 暑假作业

亲爱的创世纪学生们:

This summer, you will be asked to read 两个 books from the lists below. While reading, you should keep track of important information from the books.

For the required book, all students (grades 6-8) must complete a “One-Pager.” This will help prepare them for an in-class essay in September. Please see the information and sample 在这里欲知详情.
For the second book, students have a choice. Please review these options with your parents/guardians and use websites like www.commonsensemedia.org to evaluate the books before you make your selection. Rising 7th and 8th graders will have had an independent reading book approved by their 英语 teacher in June. Students should take notes while reading as they will be required to write an in-class essay on the book during the first full week of classes.

If you have any questions, please email me.

享受你的夏天!

Mr. 布伦丹·戈尔曼04年

Dean, Xaverian’s Genesis Program

bgorman@johnlloydracing.com

Below is the book that all rising 6th graders must read this summer. For a brief description of the book, click on the title below.

1项清单.

飞行课程 & Other Stories, edited by Ellen Ho

Great stories take flight in this adventurous middle-grade anthology crafted by ten of the most recognizable and diverse authors writing today. Newbery Medalist Kwame Alexander delivers a story in-verse about a boy who just might have magical powers; National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson spins a tale of friendship against all odds; and Meg Medina uses wet paint to color in one girl’s world with a short story that 激励d her Newbery award-winner Merci Suárez Changes Gear. +, seven more bold voices that bring this collection to new heights with tales that challenge, 激励, and celebrate the unique talents within us all.

Below is a list of books from which all rising 6th graders must choose 一个在这个夏天读书. For a brief description of the book, click on the title below before making your selection.

4项清单.

Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle, by Christina Uss

A determined 12-year-old girl bikes across the country in this quirky and charming debut middle-grade novel.

Introverted Bicycle has lived most of her life at the Mostly Silent Monastery in Washington, D.C. 当她的监护人, 妹妹万达, announces that Bicycle is going to attend a camp w在这里 she will learn to make friends, Bicycle says no way and sets off on her bike for San Francisco to meet her idol, 著名的自行车手, certain he will be her first true friend.

Who knew that a ghost would haunt her handlebars and that she would have to contend with bike-hating dogs, 一匹喜欢骑自行车的马, bike-crushing猪, and a mysterious lady dressed in black. Over the uphills and downhills of her journey, Bicycle discovers that friends are not such a bad thing to have after all, and that a dozen cookies really can solve most problems.
Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish - Pablo Cartaya

Marcus Vega is six feet tall, 180 pounds, and the owner of a premature mustache. When you look like this and you're only in the eighth grade, you're both a threat and a target. Marcus knows what classmates and teachers see when they look at him: a monster.

But appearances are deceiving. At home, Marcus is a devoted brother. And he finds ways to earn cash to contribute to his family’s rainy day fund. His mom works long hours and his dad walked out ten years ago—someone has to pick up the slack.

After a fight at school leaves him facing suspension, Marcus and his family decide to hit the reset button and regroup for a week in Puerto Rico. Marcus is more interested in finding his father, though, who is somew在这里 on the island. Through a series of misadventures that take Marcus all over Puerto Rico in search of the elusive Mr. Vega, Marcus meets a colorful cast of characters who show him the many faces of fatherhood. And he even learns a bit of Spanish along the way.

Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish is a novel about discovering home and identity in uncharted landscapes.
Strange Birds: A Field Guide to Ruffling Feathers, by Celia C. 佩雷斯

When three very different girls find a mysterious invitation to a lavish mansion, the promise of adventure and mischief is too intriguing to pass up. Ofelia Castillo (a budding journalist), Aster Douglas (a bookish foodie), and Cat Garcia (a rule-abiding birdwatcher) meet the kid behind the invite, 莱恩DiSanti, and it isn't love at first sight. But they soon bond over a shared mission to get the Floras, 他们当地的童子军, to ditch an outdated tradition. In their quest for justice, 独立, and an unforgettable summer, the girls form their own troop and find something they didn't know they needed: sisterhood.
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky - Kwama Mbalia

Seventh-grader Tristan Strong feels anything but strong ever since he failed to save his best friend when they were in a bus accident together. All he has left of Eddie is the journal his friend wrote stories in. Tristan is dreading the month he’s going to spend on his grandparents’ farm in Alabama, w在这里 he’s being sent to heal from the tragedy. But on his first night t在这里, a sticky creature shows up in his bedroom and steals Eddie’s journal. Tristan chases after it — is that a doll? — and a tug-of-war ensues between them underneath a Bottle Tree. In a last attempt to wrestle the journal out of the creature’s hands, 特里斯坦打了那棵树, accidentally ripping open a chasm into the MidPass, a volatile place with a burning sea, 鬼骨船, and iron monsters that are hunting the inhabitants of this world. Tristan finds himself in the middle of a battle that has left black American gods John Henry and Brer Rabbit exhausted. 为了回家, Tristan and these new allies will need to entice the god Anansi, 织工的, to come out of hiding and seal the hole in the sky. But bartering with the trickster Anansi always comes at a price. Can Tristan save this world before he loses more of the things he loves?

Below is the book that all rising 7th graders must read this summer. For a brief description of the book, click on the title below.

另外, rising 7th graders will have had a book of their choice approved by their 英语 teacher in June.

1项清单.

The Hunger Games -- Suzanne Collins.

Winning means fame and fortune. Losing means certain death. The Hunger Games have begun. . . .

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. 但如果她要赢, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Below is the book that all rising 8th graders must read this summer. For a brief description of the book, click on the title below.

另外, rising 8th graders will have had a book of their choice approved by their 英语 teacher in June.

1项清单.

And Then T在这里 Were None – Agatha Christie

第一个, t在这里 were ten—a curious assortment of strangers summoned as weekend guests to a little private island off the coast of Devon. Their host, an eccentric millionaire unknown to all of them, is now在这里 to be found. All that the guests have in common is a wicked past they're unwilling to reveal—and a secret that will seal their fate. For each has been marked for murder. A famous nursery rhyme is framed and hung in every room of the mansion:

"Ten little boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then t在这里 were nine. Nine little boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then t在这里 were eight. Eight little boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay t在这里 then t在这里 were seven. Seven little boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in half and then t在这里 were six. Six little boys playing with a hive; A bumblebee stung one and then t在这里 were five. Five little boys going in for law; One got in Chancery and then t在这里 were four. Four little boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then t在这里 were three. Three little boys walking in the zoo; A big bear hugged one and then t在这里 were two. Two little boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then t在这里 was one. One little boy left all alone; He went out and hanged himself and then t在这里 were none."

When they realize that murders are occurring as described in the rhyme, terror mounts. One by one they fall prey. Before the weekend is out, t在这里 will be none. Who has choreographed this dastardly scheme? And who will be left to tell the tale? Only the dead are above suspicion.