Much Ado About Teaching
Summer reading in ap lit..
A few years ago I revamped my summer reading assignment.
It marked an important departure for me. It was a significant step in my growth as a teacher. I’ll explain why, but first I want to share what I have done in years past.
THE OLD SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT
My summer assignment has gone through different iterations over the years, but the gist of it has always been that the students had to read two books — How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines and 1984 — and develop an outline for each. There are many versions of this assignment online. Its probably where I first developed the idea. I must have Googled “ How to Read Literature Like a Professor summer assignment.” A bunch of results came up, and seeing that a lot of other teachers paired Thomas C. Foster’s work with another novel probably validated its worth in my mind.
I liked that both books were accessible and my students could find help online if they needed it.
I liked that I was introducing my students to good literature without ruining their summer with dense texts and mountains of work.
I liked that when students returned from school I could assess them by asking them to apply a chapter from How to Read Literature Like a Professor to 1984 .
I liked that I was doing something to prevent the summer slide.
THE PROBLEM WITH THE OLD ASSIGNMENT
There was nothing pedagogically wrong with my old summer reading assignment. But there were certain things about it that had bothered me over the years:
- Students can easily find summaries of How to Read Literature Like a Professor online ( like this link) .
- Many of my students are not readers of classic literature on their own. In spite of its cheeky humor and tone, they did not have the awareness of texts mentioned in How to Read Literature to fully appreciate the references.
- Students felt that How to Read Literature Like a Professor simplified the process of reading, reducing everything to either a symbol or an allusion.
- The assignment was not thoroughly thought through. It was too simplistic. Basically I was asking students to read and outline. I felt like I was simply following what others were doing without making this assignment a true reflection of my teaching and my goals.
- There wasn’t much feedback I could provide on an outline and consequently little room for growth.
THE GOALS OF SUMMER ASSIGNMENTS
I believe that when students are faced with low-rigor tasks, they create low achievement even when students do well on these tasks. In addition, such tasks contribute to the boredom students so often complain about when they spend too many hours on work that is routine and bland, often centered on discrete skills.
Outlining a text is a low-rigor task. It requires little skill beside extrapolation and summarization.
I want my summer assignments to have what I believe are the three principles of an effective assignment:
1. Effective assignments provide clear expectations about what should be completed, how it should be completed, and why the assignment is important.
I needed to rethink the final part of that criteria. While the original assignment provided clear expectations and walked students through the steps to be completed, it never explained why the assignment was important. When there is no value attached to an assignment, the work can feel like busy work.
Assignment-making requires teachers to clarify what learning is demonstrated and how it can be demonstrated. I needed to answer questions about purpose and relevance: “Why are my students doing this? What greater good will result from this work? As well as, are there significant concepts connected to the curriculum?”
2. Effective assignments are formative, providing feedback that allows teachers to adjust their instruction and scaffold learning.
I also needed to understand how my teaching can be informed by what the students completed. This is where the outlines of the prior assignment failed to be valuable. I was learning nothing about my students nor anything about their thinking.
With the new summer assignment adjustments would I make based on the work that students produced? What was I learning about their reading skills or their writing skills?
Good assignments, whether in the summer or during the school year, should inform instruction, giving teachers a chance to assess skills and modify instruction accordingly.
3. Effective assignments set high expectations and provide pathways to achieve those expectations.
I want the new assignment to communicate high expectations for critical thinking and levels of analysis. I want my students to be challenged no matter what skill sets or content background they bring into the course.
WHAT MY STUDENTS ARE DOING INSTEAD
- I want my students to have a summer experience that is not punitive but is preparatory. I don’t want to punish them with mountains of work or use a summer assignment as a gatekeeper for the class. I want to set a foundation for the enjoyment that comes from reading, thinking, and writing creatively and analytically.
- I want my students to see that great ideas can be expressed in a variety of formats. Therefore, they will read blog articles, watch YouTube videos, and read poems as well as a novel.
- I want them to learn from readers, writers, and thinkers that I admire. I’m not just handing them books and asking them to read them, I want them to observe how others analyze and how others approach the act of writing. These pieces have the levels of analysis that will promote high expectations for my students.
- I want them to choose the novel they read, not have one assigned to them.
- I want them to have a space of their own creation (their StudyTee Notes) where they will respond to each text that they encounter in thoughtful and diverse ways.
THE SUMMER READING TEXTS
- StudyTee’s Note-Taking Method
- The NerdWriter Analyzes Edward Hopper’s “Nighthawks”
- Leo Babauta’s Why I Read (+ a Dozen Book Recommendations)
- Any novel on this list or this one
- Poetry Foundation’s Poem of the Day
Download the Summer Reading Assignments for Susan Barber and Brian Sztabnik
Concluding thoughts.
I know that I am asking my students to complete somewhat unorthodox summer assignments. They are not being handed a textbook or a stack of novels and asked to complete a series of study guide questions or outlines. There comes a point in a teacher’s career when he or she stops doing things just because everyone else is doing them and strikes out on his or her own path.
And this has been that moment for me.
Instead, I am giving them models of critical thinkers. I am exposing them to a variety of texts across a span of genres. I am giving them the power to choose the novel and poems that they want to read. And it will have clear expectations, an understanding of why each component of the assignment is important, a chance for me to gain formative feedback, and high expectations for success.
Brian Sztabnik is just a man trying to do good in and out of the classroom. He was a 2018 finalist for NY Teacher of the Year, a former College Board advisor for AP Lit, and an award-winning basketball coach.
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©AP Lit & More: Literature & Writing Resources, 2018 AP English Literature Summer Reading and Assignments Greetings and welcome to AP English Literature! This is a fun, yet challenging course designed to strengthen your writing skills and broaden your abilities in analyzing literature. In preparation for our
The AP Literature and Composition Summer Reading Assignment Packet Mrs. Phinney ... Below, please study the checklists as you complete your summer assignments. Meeting these minimum checklist items allows you the opportunity to access "A-level" work; however, the specific mastery points, such as intellect, insights, ...
How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster (ISBN: 978--0623-0167-3) Assignment for Book #1: Create a digital notebook in a Google doc. (If you do not have access to a computer this summer, you can create a handwritten notebook.) At the very beginning, type out a schedule with your own deadlines to complete the reading of all ...
3 AP Literature & Composition Literary Terms by Subject (PROSE) General Allegory A narrative or description having a second or symbolic meaning beneath the surface one Allusion A reference, explicit or implicit, to something in previous literature or history Anecdote A short account of an interesting or humorous incident Artistic unity That condition of a successful literary work whereby all ...
THE OLD SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT. My summer assignment has gone through different iterations over the years, but the gist of it has always been that the students had to read two books — How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines and 1984 — and develop an outline for each. There are ...
year. Purchase your own copies of all summer reading works as part of the assignment to annotate as you read. During the first week of class, while you are completing an in-class writing assignment, I will check your annotated books. One of the first grades you receive for AP English Literature and Composition will be for completing annotation ...
2022-2023 Mrs. A. Dales, M.Ed. -Combs High School AP Literature and Composition. The first partof the summer assignment is designed to help you prepare for college and the AP Literature Exam, where skills developed by avid reading are essential. Only the well-read student can respond intelligently to any essay question on the AP exam ...
2021-22 A.P. Literature and Composition Summer Reading This course will be reading and writing intensive of course, conducted as a workshop that is student driven, ... You can buy this book, or access it on my class website under AP Assignments. And one of your choice from the following: Beloved by Toni Morrison Indian Killer by Sherman Alexie
On return from summer break, students will be assessed on the summer assignment in the following ways: 1. First Week of Class: • Submission of your annotated copy of Jane Eyre - 100-point homework/daily grade • Submission of Jane Eyre Study Guide - 100-point quiz grade • Multiple-Choice test - 100-point test grade 2.
SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT 2021-2022 Welcome to AP English Literature & Composition. In order to get ready for the new school year, you will be reading two great pieces of literature. You must select TWO (2) of the following novels to read (and enjoy!). Annotate and
assignment, but not to extend beyond the end of 1st quarter. Regardless of when you enroll, it will be imperative that you begin reading as soon, and as deeply, as possible, because this will be the first major work discussed in class. AP Literature and Composition Summer Reading Assignment The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
AP English Literature & Composition Summer Reading Assignment 2021-2022 Rachel Scarborough: [email protected] I am so happy you are entering the strange and exciting world of AP Literature! Yes, we will work hard. Yes, we will learn a lot. Yes, we will have FUN!! (You might have to trust me on that last one…)
What are the AP Literature and Composition summer reading requirements? ... For each day that summer reading assignments are late, 10% will be deducted from the student's summer reading grade. AP Cue Cards . You will complete a Cue Card for each of the two texts read over the summer. Ideally, you will also
AP Literature and Composition Summer Reading Assignment Welcome to AP Literature and Composition. Your summer reading assignment is to read and think seriously about four novels of literary merit: One of these books is required: The Round House by Louise Erdrich You can sign out a copy from Mrs. Evan, Social Studies and English Department ...
2023-2024 Mrs. A. Dales, M.Ed. - Combs High School AP Literature and Composition Overview/Rationale Part One of the summer assignment is designed to help you prepare for college and the AP Literature Exam, where skills developed by avid reading are essential. Only the well-read student can respond intelligently to
In AP Literature, we will focus on analysis in order to create multiple, disparate meanings (themes) in the literature. Your summer reading assignment is designed to help get you thinking this way. This course prepares students for the AP Literature Examination in May and provides the equivalent of a freshman college course.
2016 Summer Reading Assignments Expectations for Students in AP Literature and Composition: You are (or will soon become) a well-read, culturally knowledgeable student of literature, skilled in interpretation, critical analysis, and written expression. You will read each piece of literature prescribed in its entirety and complete assignments in ...
AP ENGLISH LITERATURE . SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT 2019-2020 OVERVIEW/DIRECTIONS. The following assignments are designed to demonstrate your knowledge of the text and to provide you with a resource you can use both in class discussion and at college. You might find that you again will be asked to read some of these titles or that they may relate ...
AP Literature Summer Reading Assignment 2018 Due Dates: Tuesday, September 4th - Annotated novel submitted to Mrs. Lasik Friday, September 7th - Response submitted to Turnitin.com by 8:00 AM Rationale Good readers are close readers, and close readers are intentional thinkers. Much like a
AP Literature and Composition Teacher: Phyllis Wolfe : [email protected]. Bastrop ISD: ELA Content Specialists: Jennifer Greene Gast: [email protected]. Ph: 512-772-7172. All summer reading assignments for Pre-AP or AP English are available on the campus and district websites.
AP Literature 2023 Summer Reading The following summer reading assignment should give you a head start for the 2022-23 school year. Below is the potential schedule for the first month of school. As you can see, this will be a busy time with a lot to accomplish in class. The summer reading is composed of three assignments:
Novel Assignment 1: Prose Analysis - Due: First Day of School In addition to the novel, How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster, you are also tasked with reading one of the novels on the summer reading list. The reasoning behind the summer reading is to give students exposure to a wider range of literary works in
comes from reading, thinking, and writing creatively and analytically which is why I want you to pick a novel of your . choice from the list below. The AP summer reading assignment is used to 1. Assess students' entry skills to the course, and 2. Provide entry text for instruction during initial weeks, including AP Skills practices and Q3 ...
AP Credit Policy Search. Your AP scores could earn you college credit or advanced placement (meaning you could skip certain courses in college). Use this tool to find colleges that offer credit or placement for AP scores. Many students check the AP credit policies of colleges they plan to apply to before deciding which AP course to take.