All students enrolled in any Blytheville High School English class are required to complete summer reading assignments. It is the responsibility of the student to obtain a copy of the book(s). Students may read the books online, borrow a copy from the public library, or purchase their own copy to keep.
Due Dates:
Some of these titles are hyperlinked to a page that allows you to download a free eBook of that title.
Due Dates:
- All Courses Except AP:
- Your work is due August 20th, the first Friday of school.
- You will receive extra credit for turning it in on the first day of classes.
- AP Language and AP Literature:
- Your work is due August 17. No exceptions. See your teacher/assignment for details.
Some of these titles are hyperlinked to a page that allows you to download a free eBook of that title.
9th Grade
Freshman Summer Assignments
English 9 & Honors English 9
As an introduction to high school literature, we want to see how much you already know! Using one of the books listed below, complete the Reading Scavenger Hunt. Physical copies of the assignment can be picked up in the foyer at the high school. Do your best on this, and write decent short answer responses in the table. This activity is one of my first impressions of you as a reader and writer! Parents are encouraged to review the language of choice books, and if they are uncomfortable with their students reading that particular book, selecting a different book from among the remainder of the choices.
As an introduction to high school literature, we want to see how much you already know! Using one of the books listed below, complete the Reading Scavenger Hunt. Physical copies of the assignment can be picked up in the foyer at the high school. Do your best on this, and write decent short answer responses in the table. This activity is one of my first impressions of you as a reader and writer! Parents are encouraged to review the language of choice books, and if they are uncomfortable with their students reading that particular book, selecting a different book from among the remainder of the choices.
- The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
- If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
- The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan
- Paper Towns by John Green
- The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
- Scythe by Neal Shusterman
- Unwind by Neal Shusterman
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- The Road to Memphis by Mildred D. Taylor
- The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
- Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
10th Grade
Sophomore Summer Assignments
English 10
In your 10th grade year, we will look at stories from around the globe. To kick off your studies of world literature, read one of the books below and complete the Reading Scavenger Hunt. Physical copies of the assignment can be picked up in the foyer at the high school. Do your best on this, and write decent short answer responses in the table. This activity is one of my first impressions of you as a reader and writer! Parents are encouraged to review the language of choice books, and if they are uncomfortable with their students reading that particular book, selecting a different book from among the remainder of the choices.
In your 10th grade year, we will look at stories from around the globe. To kick off your studies of world literature, read one of the books below and complete the Reading Scavenger Hunt. Physical copies of the assignment can be picked up in the foyer at the high school. Do your best on this, and write decent short answer responses in the table. This activity is one of my first impressions of you as a reader and writer! Parents are encouraged to review the language of choice books, and if they are uncomfortable with their students reading that particular book, selecting a different book from among the remainder of the choices.
- Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (Nigeria)
- Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Nigeria)
- The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho (Brazil)
- Kite Runner by Kaled Hosseini (Afghanistan)
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling (England)
- The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (Japan)
- The Life of Pi by Yann Martel (Spain/Canada)
- Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (Iran/Austria)
- Night by Elie Wiesel (Romania/Germany
- I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai (Pakistan/UK)
Honors Sophomore English Summer Assignment
Honors English 10
Students will read two of the works listed above, one of which must be Night by Elie Wiesel and complete the Reading Scavenger Hunt for both novels.
The first week of school, students will write a timed essay in response to the following prompt:
Students will read two of the works listed above, one of which must be Night by Elie Wiesel and complete the Reading Scavenger Hunt for both novels.
The first week of school, students will write a timed essay in response to the following prompt:
- In literary works, cruelty often functions as a crucial or a major social or political factor. In Elie Wiesel’s Night, acts of cruelty are important to the theme. Review the dialectical journal of your close reading of Elie Weisel’s Night and then write a well-developed essay analyzing how cruelty functions in the work as a whole and what the cruelty reveals about the perpetrator and/or victim(s).
AP World History: Modern Summer Assignment
Students enrolling in AP World History (10th grade) for the 2021-2022 school year MUST complete the following summer assignments prior to the start of the school year. This assignment must be completed in your own words. Copying or sharing answers is unacceptable and will face academic dishonesty consequences. All vocabulary work must be handwritten. *Due during the first week of school. Electronic section must be submitted to Google Classroom. The vocabulary section will be turned in to me in-person. No work will be accepted after Friday, August 20, 2021.
- Log onto the CollegeBoard AP World History website and familiarize yourself with the course.
- Complete this summer packet. This assignment is due the first week of school.
11th Grade
Junior Summer Assignments
English 11
Take a stance that responds to the following question and develop your argument using at least three examples from Fahrenheit 451:
Take a stance that responds to the following question and develop your argument using at least three examples from Fahrenheit 451:
- What is Bradbury’s argument regarding the importance of literature?
- Length – 1000 words (minimum), 5 paragraphs
- Formatting – MLA 8. This means 12-point Times New Roman font, 1” margins, even double spacing throughout. MLA page numbers, MLA in-text citations, and an MLA style bibliography. If you have any questions about MLA formatting utilize the Purdue OWL’s MLA formatting guide, then email me for help.
AP Language & Composition (11th Grade)
Students entering AP Language & Composition will complete a three-part summer assignment described in this packet. You can also look at Mr. Ferrell’s Google Classroom.
- Part I: Writing Sample: Who Are You?
- Part II: Thank You for Arguing Summaries and Vocabulary
- Part III: AP Choice Novel Artifact Box
AP U.S. History Summer Assignment
Students taking AP U.S. History during the 2021-2022 school year MUST complete all Summer Assignments for credit. All parts must be submitted to Google Classroom by August 20, 2021. The Summer Assignment is split into TWO parts. Students must complete BOTH parts in FULL and be prepared to turn in on Friday, August 20, of the first week of school. This assignment must be completed in your own words. Copying or sharing answers is unacceptable and will face academic dishonesty consequences. All work must be handwritten. *Due during the first week of school. No work will be accepted after Friday, August 20, 2021.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 1
- Log on to the CollegeBoard AP U.S. History website and familiarize yourself with the course.
- Complete this activity packet for Key Concept 1
Part 2
- Read Chapter 1 of American History, take notes (minimum 2 pages: typed, Arial or Times New Roman font, double-spaced, 1in margins.)
- Complete the Guided Reading Questions.
- There will be a quiz over the reading during the first week of school.
12th Grade
Senior Summer Assignment
English 12
Students entering Senior English for the 2021-2022 school year must read the following two novels this summer:
Students entering Senior English for the 2021-2022 school year must read the following two novels this summer:
- The Stranger by Albert Camus
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
[In-Person] AP Literature & Composition (12th Grade)
Students entering AP Literature & Composition for the 2021-2022 school year must read these THREE(3) novels this summer:
ESSAY PROMPT: Write an essay in which you analyze the major conflict(s) in all three novels from your Summer Reading list. Identify the conflict(s) as either internal or external. Discuss the climax of each novel or play, and analyze how the conflict(s) are resolved. The essay may be written in a compare/contrast format.
Students are responsible for acquiring the books. They can borrow from the Mississippi County Library or from other students, download them from the Internet (links provided above), or purchase them from the Blytheville Book Company.
- The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingslover
- The Thornbirds by Colleen McCullough
- The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler
ESSAY PROMPT: Write an essay in which you analyze the major conflict(s) in all three novels from your Summer Reading list. Identify the conflict(s) as either internal or external. Discuss the climax of each novel or play, and analyze how the conflict(s) are resolved. The essay may be written in a compare/contrast format.
Students are responsible for acquiring the books. They can borrow from the Mississippi County Library or from other students, download them from the Internet (links provided above), or purchase them from the Blytheville Book Company.
[Virtual] AP Literature & Composition (12th Grade)
Students enrolled in Virtual AP Lit will read Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor (HTRLLAP). [Copies of HTRLLAP may be checked out from Ms. Sneed prior to June 1st and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.] As they read, they will keep a modified Cornell Note Journal. Click here to make a copy of the template you are to use.
Students will then read Great Expectations by Charles Dickens and analyze it using principles from their reading of HTRLLAP. Don’t forget to record your findings in your Cornell Note Journal. Finally, read the following prompt carefully and respond to it in a well-organized essay.
Prompt: After completing the above assignments, review your Cornell Note Journal carefully and select one chapter/topic from How to Read Literature Like a Professor on which to focus your analysis. Then, write an essay in which you use the strategies and discussion from the chapter to analyze and discuss those specific aspects of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Be sure to use textual evidence, including embedded quotes and in-text citations, to support your analysis. Do not merely summarize the plot.
Students will then read Great Expectations by Charles Dickens and analyze it using principles from their reading of HTRLLAP. Don’t forget to record your findings in your Cornell Note Journal. Finally, read the following prompt carefully and respond to it in a well-organized essay.
Prompt: After completing the above assignments, review your Cornell Note Journal carefully and select one chapter/topic from How to Read Literature Like a Professor on which to focus your analysis. Then, write an essay in which you use the strategies and discussion from the chapter to analyze and discuss those specific aspects of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Be sure to use textual evidence, including embedded quotes and in-text citations, to support your analysis. Do not merely summarize the plot.
AP U. S. Government & Politics
Students entering AP Government & Politics for the 2020-2021 school year must complete the following assignment. This assignment must be completed in your own words. Copying or sharing answers is unacceptable and will face academic dishonesty consequences. All work must be handwritten. *Due during the first week of school.