SOUTH ORANGETOWN MIDDLE SCHOOL

SOMS Summer Literacy Program

We are always eager to promote and encourage young people to read and are very pleased when so many students ask their teacher for summer reading suggestions. Students who read widely increase their vocabularies, their general knowledge and their comprehension skills. Summer reading has the added advantage of allowing students to read at a more leisurely pace while experiencing the pleasure to be gained from the written word.

Summer reading helps students to become thoughtful, independent readers. The suggested reading lists are extensive allowing for much freedom of choice so that individual student interest can be pursued. We hope that you and your child have a wonderful summer sharing these books.

You are to choose TWO (2) books to read during the summer, using the attached reading lists as a guide. However, you are not limited to these titles and authors.

The titles you read are your choice. You may even choose titles by the same author. Be sure the selections are appropriate for your reading level. Note, however, that R.L. Stine, Christopher Pike, Goosebumps or Babysitter’s Club are not acceptable.

ACCOUNTABILITY: An appropriate book activity, review and / or report will be assigned related to these readings. It will be explained to students the first week of school.

CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION will be given to students who read FIVE (5) or more books and hand in the log below signed by their parents.

Please complete the following reading log and have your parents sign each time you complete a book. Hand this in to your ELA TEACHER the first week of school. If you need more space, please duplicate or print another copy.

READING LOG

	Title	Author	Parent's Signature
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15

This is a SUGGESTED reading list. Any books by the same author are acceptable.

Freedman, Russell The Voice that Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights

Hannigan, Katherine Ida B-- : And Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World

Armstrong, Jennifer Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Exraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance

Denenberg, Barry So Far From Home: the Diary of Mary Driscoll, an Irish Mill Girl

------- The Invisible Ladder: An Anthology of Contemporary American Poems for Young Readers

------- The Place My Words Are Looking For: What Poets Say About and Through Their Work / Selected By Paul B. Janeczko

Kassinger, Ruth Build a Better Mousetrap: Make Classic Inventions, Discover Your Problem-Solving Genius, And Take The Inventor's Challenge

------- *The Next Fifty Years: Science in the First Half of The Twenty-First Century

Newman, Arnold *Tropical Rainforest: Our Most Valuable and Endangered Habitat with a Blueprint For Its Survival Into the Third Millennium

Pinkwater, Jill Superpuppy: How to Choose, Raise, and Train the Best Possible Dog for You Scientific American Understanding series