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All responses should be typed or handwritten neatly. Check spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Always restate and give a complete answer.
Written responses are due the first Friday after school begins.
Sixth Grade
Out of the Dust by Karen Hess
This novel was written in free verse poetic style. Try your hand at this style by writing a series of free verse poems from Billie Jo's perspective ten years after the book closes. What do you think became of her ? Billie Jo says that the man in the freight train and her Ma were like tumbleweeds but her father is not. Create a VENN diagram, or create a chart, to list comparisons of these two personalities. Is Billie Jo a tumbleweed? Explain.
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by EL Konigsberg
Claudia says that she didn't "run away to come home the same". How does the week in the museum change Claudia? What does Mrs. Frankweiler have to do with helping Claudia go home "different on the inside"?
Claudia is described as being "cautious" and Jamie is said to be "adventurous". Find evidence in the novel that supports these descriptions of the children.
Seventh Grade
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
The theme of a book is its main idea or message. A work of literature can have more than one theme. A Wrinkle in Time deals with many different themes—interplanetary travel, extraterrestrials, family, and school. Ask yourself what L’Engle’s book is really about. Then write a paragraph or so explaining what you think is the most important theme of A Wrinkle in Time. Support your answer with details from the novel.
What skills, strengths, ideas, or beliefs help you meet everyday challenges? What values help Meg, her family, and friends through their challenges? Discuss these, and find specific examples in the book that support your conclusions.
The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
Were any of Daniel's crimes justifiable? Why might freeing Samson be justifiable while robbing the old man is not? Discuss the character strengths of Simon, who gives up his business in order to follow Jesus; Joel, a good student who knows much of Holy Scripture by heart; Malthace, who seems to know what is in the hearts of others; and Rosh, who is charismatic but cynical. Which of these characters is the wisest? Explain.
Eighth Grade
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
Remember, a conflict is the opposition of persons or forces. In a novel, the plot, or sequence of events, is always driven by one or more conflict. An external conflict describes a character’s confrontation with an outside force, such as another character, a physical obstacle, nature, or society. An internal conflict takes place within a character and may involve, for example, the character’s struggle with a difficult decision, with guilt, or with fear. In this section, Charlotte Doyle experiences both types of conflict. As you read, identify her conflicts.
Writers often create fictional characters who, like real people, grow and change with each new experience. On a separate sheet of paper, write about the changes in Charlotte’s beliefs and ideas over the course of the novel. What are her values at the beginning of the novel? How do her ideas change? Explain what people or incidents shape her ideas throughout the novel. Support your response with details from the novel.
1984 by George Orwell
Describe Winston's character as it relates to his attitude toward the Party. In what ways might his fatalistic streak contribute to his ultimate downfall?
Discuss the idea of Room 101, the place where everyone meets his or her worst fear. Keeping in mind that for most of Winston's time at the Ministry of Love, he does not know what he will find in Room 101, what role does that uncertainty play in making Room 101 frightening?
