AP English Literature and Composition



AP English Literature and Composition

Summer Assignment 2015

Mrs. Newbright

Dear AP Students,

The idea of a summer assignment makes many students unhappy, but since you are challenging yourself by taking Advanced Placement Literature, I know that you will understand the need to hit the ground running in August. I am a big believer in making assignments worth your while; I recognize and respect that you are busy young men and women. For that reason, these assignments are meant to be both useful and thought-provoking. We will use the novel, the DEJ entries and the personal statement essay in the beginning weeks of class, so make sure that you have everything complete and in your hands when you arrive in class on the first day. Also, in the first few days of class you can expect to write a timed essay over the novel The Awakening.

In this packet you should have received a model of a Double Entry Journal (DEJ) and a list of the Common Application essay prompts. It is important to me that the summer work you do is useful to you in your final steps toward college preparation as well as challenging enough to drive rich discussion and writing once we are together this fall.

I can’t wait to meet you all and dig in to the work of the class. I promise to give you my best, and I look forward to helping you grow!

The assignments:

* Read The Awakening (Kate Chopin). You should annotate the text as you read. This will make it easier to find passages/quotations when you write your analysis paper (when we return to school).

* Keep a double entry journal (DEJ) as you read. You must complete one DEJ entry for every 3 chapters for a total of 12 DEJ entries. This does not have to be precise; this suggestion is to help you to pace yourself and to create entries covering the scope of the novel (as opposed to concentrating all of your entries in one section of the book). I have included instructions and sample entries. I prefer this be typed, but I will happily accept handwritten DEJs if they are neat and legible.

* Choose one of the 5 prompts for the Common Application and write a personal essay. Follow the Common Application instructions for your essay. Follow MLA format. If you need help with MLA format, visit the OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Purdue University:

We have a great deal of work to do this year, but I promise you it will be worth it. You will marvel at how much you grow as a critical reader, writer and thinker!

See you soon,

Mrs. Newbright

theresa.newbright@

mobile number: (937) 418-3058 (in case you need me to talk you down off the ceiling )

Dear Students,

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. While Dickens may have been talking about pre-revolutionary France, he might well have been talking about AP English Literature too. You are about to take the best English class ever. Seriously. Let me explain what I mean…

Next year you will learn more about analyzing literature than you ever wanted to know. The rewards of the class are great academically, and I hope personally as well. Let me warn you, however, that AP English is not for everyone. If you are concerned with maintaining a 4.0 grade point average, this may not be the class for you. That’s not to say you won’t / can’t earn A’s, but the grade cannot be more important to you than the opportunity to learn and challenge yourself. Although some make the transition easier than others, until you adjust to the expectations of the class you may struggle. It’s okay to struggle; it’s not okay to give up. You didn’t just hike up your diaper one day and take off running across the living room; you fell a thousand times before you got the hang of it. Ask your parents. If you take this class, you will achieve much more than you thought possible.

The first thing I need to address with you is the summer assignment. In your envelope you should have two packets and a note on purchasing the novel The Awakening.

DO NOT BE FRIGHTENED OFF BY THE SUMMER ASSIGNMENT!

That is not my intention at all. It is merely important that you have a foundation and a flavor for what we’ll be doing this year. It also allows us to hit the ground running in August. Throughout the year you may find yourself frustrated at times. Don’t quit on yourself. You can do this! Set goals for yourself and stick to your self-imposed due dates. E-mail me. Stop in during CPT, my conference period, before school, after school, during lunch. Call me. We will work through things together.

It is paramount that you learn to manage your time. A large element of this class is time management and self-discipline: you work for what you achieve. If you’re not good at this now, don’t use it as an excuse to bail to college prep or put less than your best effort into your work. AP is a better class for you if you are going to college. Steel yourself and take the plunge. Your new mantra is “I can do this.”

I will always do my best to be straight with you. One of the advantages of an AP class is that since it is a college-level course, I can treat you like adults. I promise not to talk down to you. As adults, I expect you to refrain from whining about assignments. Yes, they are tough. I know this. But I also know you can handle it, and you will be better for it in the end. You may not fully appreciate it until you’ve been through a semester or two of college, but it will be worth the blood, sweat and tears (just kidding…there’s no blood!). My goal is to help you grow. It’s tough in college. I want you to be ready.

Don’t be afraid to contact me if you need anything this summer. If you don’t hear back from me right away don’t panic. I may be out of town for a few days here and there. I will get back to you.

I’m going to warn you not to procrastinate too long. Let me repeat that: don’t procrastinate. I know some of you will anyway. I’d suggest reading through the assignment first and deciding on your personal timeline. It doesn’t really matter whether you write the personal statement (Common Application essay) before, during or after your reading; it needs to work for your schedule. Assignments are due on the first day of school.

One last comment: AP classes are often my favorite periods of the day. There are days when the student-led discussions just come together, and it’s like magic. I promise to do my best for you so you can experience that. It’s going to be a great year!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Newbright

theresa.newbright@

(937) 418-3058

**You will need to purchase a copy of The Awakening in order to complete the assignment. You can download it for free (it's out of copyright), borrow a copy from the library, or purchase your own copy.

General Instructions for the DEJ (Double Entry Journal)

Divide your paper into two columns (this can be done in Microsoft Word by clicking Format and choosing Columns). In the left column, copy a meaningful passage from the book you’re reading – perhaps a bit of dialogue, a description, or a character’s thought (be sure to include the page number with the passage. You may need it later.). In the right column, respond to the passage you chose. Did it strike you? Puzzle you? Remind you of a pattern you’ve seen in other literature? Perhaps it confused you? Maybe you’re noticing some qualities in a character that were not immediately obvious? I have included samples so that you have an idea of what this looks like in practice.

DEJs offer a great way to record your thinking process on paper. It’s incredibly useful for discussion in class (isn’t it much more meaningful when the thoughts and questions come from your classmates than from a list of questions the teacher makes up?). We will use your DEJs to drive the discussion of The Awakening when we return to school in August.

Remember, you need to complete 12 entries. I’m recommending a pace of 1 entry for every 3 chapters, but this is not a rigid rule. The idea is to have a variety of entries that span the length of the book, so it’s okay if you have 2 entries for chapters 4-6 and the next one isn’t until chapter 10.

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