English 9 Honors Required Summer Assignment Students enrolled in the English 9 Honors course for the 2015-2016 school year will be required to complete the enclosed assignments. Failure to complete these assignments will result in removal from the English Honors program for the 2015-2016 school year. Please be sure to follow all directions closely and accurately. Parents/guardians: please sign the last sheet of this packet. Required Summer Reading: Fahrenheit 451 by: Ray Bradbury (provided) Allusions Reference Guide (use as a reference tool, not required to memorize or know completely for reference only!) Superman and Me by: Sherman Alexie (in packet)
Assignment 1 (do this first): Read the article Superman and Me by Sherman Alexie. Pay attention to the way Alexie talks about reading and his experiences with reading and books. Look at the way Alexie uses imagery as he tells his personal story. Then, answer the following constructed response questions on looseleaf. Your answers should be approximately 2-3 paragraphs in length and be in grammatically correct sentences with the prompts (questions) restated. Constructed Response: 1. What was Sherman Alexie s purpose for writing this article, and what was his intended message? Use textual evidence (cite the text) to prove or explain your answer. 2. Explain how Sherman Alexie views reading and why he views it in this way. 3. In the article, Sherman Alexie uses imagery and metaphor to tell his story. For example he describes a paragraph as a fence that held words. Explain how this and other examples of imagery and metaphor make this piece of writing effective. Use textual evidence to explain your answer. Narrative Essay Prompt: Using the imagery and figurative language Alexie writes with as a guide, tell your story of the first time you read a book. Perhaps you were read to as a child, or maybe you remember reading a book in class or in the library. Tell your story in a way that uses figurative language, imagery, metaphor and other narrative techniques like Alexie did. (This essay should be longer than your constructed responses above. The story should have a clear beginning, middle, and end.)
Assignment 2 Fahrenheit 451 Chapter Questions and Writing Prompts Fahrenheit 451 Study Questions Answer the following on a separate piece of paper. Please write in complete sentences and be sure to answer all parts of the questions. (note: if you read the questions before you start reading the questions contain SPOILERS!) Part 1: 1. Describe the society (a fictional America) that Montag lives in. In what ways is it similar to, but more extreme than, our society? What signs are there that this is a dystopia (the opposite of a utopia which is an ideal society.)? 2. What makes Clarisse so special so different from most people in her society? What qualities does Montag have that make him receptive to her influence? 3. Why do you think the mechanical hound has been programmed to react to Montag? 4. Why do you think the woman chooses to burn herself along with her books? Why does this have such a powerful effect on Montag what does it mean to him? 5. What is the point of Bradbury s description of the kind of television show that Mildred likes to watch? [ sound and fury, signifying nothing ] 6. What does the revelation that Montag has so many books hidden in his home tell us about him? Why do Montag s hands seem to have a mind of their own what does this actually mean? 7. What is Beatty s explanation for the current state of their society? 8. What events trigger Montag s transformation from aloof, unthinking fireman to passionate, philosophical rebel? 9. Find three examples of foreshadowing in part 1. 10. Ray Bradbury sometimes writes in an elliptical style meaning he gives us bits of information from which we must infer what is happening, what the characters are thinking and feeling. Cite a paragraph and page number where this happens in part 1. 11. Choose one paragraph/passage from part 1 (cite page and paragraph number) that is an example of an unusual writing style (which is common for Ray Bradbury). Part 2: 1. What does Mildred say about why the television is better than books? What does she mean? Do you agree with her? Why or why not? What is the essential difference between books and television? 2. Why do you think Faber gave Montag his phone number? 3. How do you think Montag would respond to Mildred s question about which is more important her, or Montag s books? 4. What do you think is the meaning of the title of Part Two? 5. What does Montag visit Faber? 6. What three things does Faber say are missing from their society?
7. What disturbing things do the women in Montag s parlor say to each other? Part 3: 1. What does Beatty s speech about Clarisse reveal about him why does he speak about her so passionately? 2. Why do you think that everyone in the world of Fahrenheit 451 thinks that, as Beatty puts it, nothing will ever happen to me there are no consequences and no responsibilities? Is this similar to people in our society today? 3. What attitude or aspect of human nature is fire symbolic of? Think about Beatty s philosophy of burning a problem rather than facing it. 4. Why does Montag burn his entire house and everything in it? 5. What does Bradbury s description of Montag s knee as being hit by a car really mean? (This an example of Bradbury s idiosyncratic style of description.) 6. What do you think Montag is expressing regret about when he calls himself an awful fool, an idiot? 7. How does Montag know Beatty wanted to die? Why do you think he wanted to die? 8. What is Montag s escape plan? Part 3 2 nd half: 9. What does Montag s description of the TV audience mean? [ He imagined thousands of faces with gray colorless eyes, gray tongues, and gray thoughts looking out through the numb flesh of the face. ] 10. What do you think the river symbolizes? 11. What does the sun represent? What connection does Montag see between the sun and time? Why does he decide he must never burn again? 12. How does Montag think Mildred would react to the silence of the countryside? Why? 13. What is the significance of Montag s being fully aware of his entire body why is that so unusual for him? 14. How does the chase end for the TV audience? How is this accomplished, and what more does it reveal about the police? What explanation do the men give Montag for the way the chase ends? 15. What is ethics, and why would it be an ancient study to the people of Montag s society? 16. How do the men and others like them preserve books, and what makes this possible? What are the advantages of using this method to preserve books? 17. Describe the men s strategy for brining books back to society. What view do they have of their own significance? Why are they optimistic about the future of humanity? 18. Why does one of the men tell Montag, Don t judge a book by its cover? 19. Explain Granger s views about why we miss people we ve list. Why doesn t Montag miss Mildred?
20. Describe Granger s grandfather s philosophy of life. Why does he hate a Roman named Status Quo? (Hint: look up the definition of status quo.) 21. In what way is humankind like the Phoenix? In what way is humankind different? 22. What is the meaning of Granger s comment about building a mirror factory? Assignment 3 Plot Chart and Conflict Charts Complete the attached two graphic organizers as you read. Be ready to discuss them when you come to school. (SEE ADDITIONAL FILE FOR THESE CHARTS)
Assignment 4 Fahrenheit 451 Essay Fahrenheit 451 Assessment - Essay Write a five- paragraph essay using at least four examples from the novel (use at least two direct quotations) to prove your thesis. There should be a clear thesis and topic with specific examples from the book. You also need to explain your examples. It should be evident from your essay that you have read and understood the novel. Any evidence of plagiarism will result in an automatic zero. The essay will be worth 60 points** thesis and supporting ideas - 30 organization - 10 conventions/grammar - 20. Choose one of the writing prompts below: 1. Write an essay on the importance of knowledge. In your introduction and conclusion, you should also relate what happened in the novel to what is happening today. 2. Using Clarisse, Montag, and/or the war to prove your thesis, write an essay defending the necessity to ask why. 3. The novel was a warning to society at the time it was written. Write an essay about how the novel can still be used as a warning to people in America today. Be sure to mention what the novel is warning against and how.
12 font Times New Roman Double Spaced Summer Reading 2015 Signature Form Please read and sign this attached form and return it to the guidance office before Wednesday June 10, 2015. I have received and read the Summer Assignment Packet for the English Honors course. I understand that if I do not complete these assignments that I (my child) will not be allowed to continue in the English Honors course and will be placed in an English 9 class. Student Name: Student Signature: Parent/Guardian Signature: