In all, there are three assignments for IB seniors,  and these assignments are designed to ensure not just that you excel in the course, on the exam, but also during your college application process and in college.  Each assignment will receive a separate grade for the first marking period of the first semester.  So, you must complete all three assignments over the summer and submit them on the first day of class.

Required Nonfiction Reading Assignment

Your first assignment is to read and outline the advice given in How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines by Thomas C. Foster.  You must outline each chapter, noting in your journal the advice and concepts Foster presents.  This must be the first assignment in your journal.  Itis very important that you familiarize yourself with the concepts presented in this book, as it will aid you in your analysis throughout the course, on the exam, and in future literature courses.  For your journal, you have the option to type and print it, to type and email it as a document attached or embedded in an email, or to handwrite it in a spiral bound or a marble composition notebook.  You can obtain a PDF version of the book at this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ew0MuuBY_Bsg1jdodpGmZs2As3DNHEbC/view?usp=sharing.

Required Literary Reading and Journal Assignments

An important aspect of your discussions and assessments during the course will focus on the influence of the society in and about which the author is writing.  Even though most of the selections are works of fiction, the authors cannot ignore their experiences as they put pen to paper, and it is quite often evident that culture, politics, and values all play a part in an author’s attitude toward the subject. Therefore, as you read, and when you complete the follow-up activities in your journal, you should reflect on the role of these influences, i.e. culture, politics, and societal values. You may read as many of the recommended readings as you like, but you must read at least one of the recommended sets and complete a Reader Response Journal Entry for each book in the set.

Reader Response Journal Assignment:

1. Write a synopsis of the text and your reaction to it.
2. Comment on the author’s background in relation to the text: What are the author’s dates and nationality?  What relationship does this information have to the text?  Essentially, why is this important to know?
3. Comment on the title’s thematic relationship to the text: What is the relationship of the title to the text, if any?
4. Evaluate the effects of the point of view.  From what point of view is it told?  What is the significance of the author’s choice of point of view?
5. Evaluate the theme: How does the author develop the theme of the human condition (e.g. humans in an unsympathetic world)? How do characters’ struggles and choices in handling those challenges reflect and advance the theme?

RecommendedSet 1: The American Dream

1. “To A Mouse” by Robert Burns (poem)
2. The Great Gatsbyby F. Scott Fitzgerald (novel)
3. A Raisin in the Sunby Lorrain Hansberry (play)
4. Death of A Salesmanby Arthur Miller (play)
5. Of Mice and Menby John Steinbeck (novel)
6. A Street Car Named Desire by Tennessee Williams (play)

RecommendedSet 2: Post-Colonialism

7. Things Fall Apartby Chinua Achebe (novel)
8. The Heart of Darknessby Joseph Conrad (novel)
9. “White Man’s Burden” by Rudyard Kipling (poem)
10. “A Far Cry from Africa” by Derek Walcott (poem)
11. Poisonwood Bibleby Barbara Kingsolver (novel)
12. Lilies of the Fieldby William Barrett

Recommended Set 3: British Feminist Classics

13. Jane Eyreby Charlotte Bronte (novel)
14. “Yellow Wall Paper”by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (short story)
15. Wide Sargasso Seaby Jean Rhys (novel)
16. Pride and Prejudiceby Jane Austen (novel)

RecommendedSet 4: Shakespeare Classics

17. The Tempestby William Shakespeare (play)
18. The Merchant of Veniceby William Shakespeare (play)
19. Othelloby William Shakespeare (play)
20. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Deadby Tom Stoppard (play)

RecommendedSet 5: Classic Greek Drama

21. Oedipus at Colonusby Sophocles (play)
22. Antigoneby Sophocles (play)
23. Medeaby Euripides (play)

College Essay Writing Assignment

In an effort to assist you in the college application process, it is a prerequisite that over the summer you complete your college application essays for the colleges of your choice and/or for the common application.  You must then submit your college essays on the first day of class as an email attachment or embedded in the email for both review and a grade.

Note:  If ever you need help or feedback at any stage of the college writing process or with any part of the summer reading and journal assignments, please feel free to email me at ngranado@ebtbrooklyn.com.

Enjoy your reading and your summer! ☺

Ms. G.

IB English A_ Language and Literature Summer Assignment for Seniors