Ms. Hall-Rose, Miramar HS Retake Name:___________________ INDEPENDENT CHOICE NOVEL Reading Expectations In this four-week independent novel unit, my hope for you is that you develop your own passion for reading and sharing your reading discoveries. That is why I am giving you a choice in your reading selections. What I or someone else may have to say about a book is not nearly as important as you actually reading the book and forming your own ideas. Because each of you is unique, freedom to choose what you want to read is a great way to discover excitement in your reading. For the next four weeks, you will be reading an independent novel of your choice during class. You will have approximately 25 minutes a day in class to work on your independent novel. Everyday after reading, you will write a response to what you have read. After reading, you will have a choice of three writing activities, two visual activities, and you will write a recommendation for your book. All the details are included in this packet. You may need to complete some of the assigned work outside of class. For some of you, this required reading and assignments may seem like a lot, for others a little. You have control over the time you spend in class and out of class working on this Independent Reading Project. Use your time WISELY!! Enjoy your reading!!! Guidelines for book selection By May 18 th, your independent novel and ALL relating activities must be completed. Again, you may have to complete some of the assigned work OUTSIDE of class. These are the guidelines to use while you make your book selection: ➢ The book must be one that interests you. ➢ Since this is an independent novel unit, your book must have more than 100 pages with adult print. ➢ The book can be fiction or non-fiction. (Romance, Historical fiction, Horror, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Detective, Sports, Autobiography, Young Adult, Modern) Choose a genre that interests you! ➢ The book may not have been made into a major movie (No Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Jurassic Park, Star Wars, etc.) ➢ The book must be approved by the teacher After the selection of your book, you are expected to have it with you every day in class and complete the related assignments to your novel. If you do not bring your book, you will lose points for that day. ****You need to keep this packet and complete all work in it. Any work you do on a separate sheet of paper needs to be neatly attached to this handout. **** DUE DATE: Monday, April 26th!!! Pre-Reading Self-Evaluation 1. How would you rate yourself on each of the following reading skills? Good Fair Poor Reading/pronouncing words Reading Speed Understanding Vocabulary Understanding what you read Summarizing what you read Discussing the meaning of books Knowing when you understand and when you don�t 2. What kinds of books interest you? (Mark as many as you wish) Sports____ Science Fiction____ Romance____ Horror____ Teenage Problems____ Adventure____ Classics____ Biographies____ Humor____ Mysteries____ Fantasy____ History____ Music____ Suspense____ Animals Other: ________________ 3. If you could read anything, what would you read about? 4.Who taught you to read? 5. Do you like to read? Why or why not? 6. Do you read because you want to or because you have to? 7. What do you read for pleasure? 8. How often to you read for pleasure? 9. How often do you read at home for school? 10. Did you do most, some, or none of the reading required in last year�s or this year�s classes? 11. Do you like to read alone or in a group? Why? 12. Write the name of one book you�ve enjoyed reading and tell why you liked it? 13. Write the name of any book you didn�t like and tell why? 14. What books have you liked that a teacher or parent read to you? 15. In what classes is it necessary to read on your own to understand the subject? During Reading: Reader Responses Every time you read your independent novel, you need to complete a reader response. You will need to write down how many pages you read and at least a five-sentence response to the days reading. You need at least 20 Responses to your reading!! Here are some suggestions when writing your responses. You may use these suggestions, or write a response of your own. � Do you like what you are reading? Why/Why not? � Do you like the character(s)? Why? Why not? � What would you do if you were one of the characters? � What do you think will happen next? Why? � What do you wish would happen next? � If you were the author, what would you change? � What does your reading remind you of? Movie, song, another book, example from your life? � What is the author saying about people/humanity/society? � What are some themes you see? � Who is your favorite character? Why? Your least favorite? � ANYTHING ELSE YOU THINK OF AS YOU READ. Record all reading responses on the following pages. If you need more space, attach a sheet of paper to this packet. TITLE:___________________________ AUTHOR:________________ After Reading: Creative Writing Response After finishing your independent novel, you will need to choose 3 (THREE) of the following creative writing responses to respond to. Each response must be at least � page typed or 1 page written. Make sure to indicate what choice you selected. Due Date for completion of novel and all related activities: Monday, April 26st. Creative Writing Suggestions: 1. Choose a character. Tell whether you would want her/him for a sibling, parent, friend, or partner (choose one) and why. 2. Write a letter to your main character commenting on what you think of what she/he did in a significant event in the story. 3. Write a journal entry in the persona of your main character looking back on the events in the story. Tell how you feel about what you did, your struggles, and your motivations. How have you changed? What are you doing now? 4. Choose a character in your book and compare him/her to a character in a movie, TV program, or another book. How are the alike or different? 5. Describe how the setting in your story affects the character and events. Place your story in a new setting and show how it changes the story. 6. If the author of the story asked you what could be improved in the story, what would you tell them? How would you suggest he/she change the plot, setting, style, and or characters? 7. Find song lyrics from any artist that you feel define one of the characters in the book. Copy the lyrics and describe why you think these lyrics define that particular character. 8. Choose one character and write a poem about that character. 9. Rewrite the ending of the novel. Include dialogue and description. 10. Any ideas??? See me. After Reading: Visual Component After finishing your independent novel, you will need to select 2 (TWO) of the following visual suggestions to complete based on your novel. Put effort and skill into creating a quality visual representation of your novel. If you have another suggestion that you would like to do, please see me for approval. Due Date for completion of novel and all related activities: Monday, April 26th Visual Component Suggestions: 1. Draw a multi-colored cover (BIG) for your book. Must be different from any other cover for that book. Include important �book jacket� info. 2. Draw a multi-colored map of the town, showing where most of the action occurs. Label where the events happen. 3. Draw a multi-colored portrait of the main character. 4. Draw a multi-colored drawing of one of the major events in the book. 5. Draw a multi-colored movie poster for the book. Put usual movie info on it. (who would you cast in the movie, etc.) 6. Create a collage for a main character. From magazines and newspapers, use pictures and words which represent his/her thoughts, feelings, career, etc. 7. Create a timeline of the major events in your book. Use drawings or magazine cutouts to show the events along the timeline. Label each event. 8. Your ideas???? See me. After Reading: You�ve Got to Read This After reading your novel, you are going to create a You�ve Got to Read This Response in the same outline as below. Use this example as you write your own. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (Title and author) LENGTH: 550 pages RECOMMENDED TO ME BY: (Did you hear about this book from anyone? If not, what made you decide to choose this novel) No one recommended this book to me. I just picked it up after we did the play here last March because I wanted to find my parts and have something good to read. I really got into it, even though I knew what happened. DIFFICULTY: (Was this an easy or a difficult read? Why?) The first couple of chapters are pretty hard, but the plot picks up in no time and isn�t hard to follow at all. The only real problem which may arise is getting past the southern dialect. SUMMARY: (Write a summary on your novel) The Joad family of 12 lives in Oklahoma during the Great Depression. The stock market crashes, the banks close, and the Joad�s lose their farm, so, like thousands of other families, they buy a cheap jalopy, pack as many of their earthly belongs as would fit, and head to California in search of work. Their journey is and endless struggle for food, and shelter and all of the characters undergo incredible changes in their personalities and outlooks on life. PERSONAL REACTION: (What is your reaction to this novel? What did you learn about life? Did you like this book? Why?) I took simple things like food and shelter entirely for granted till I read this book. No other book has ever made me cry as much as the closing paragraph of �Grapes� did. The story is so simple yet so amazingly complicated. I can�t think of a better book to read about life in general. It�s a very tragic story, but has some very funny and light moments, which make it an enjoyable read. Independent Novel: Assessment The following criteria is what you will be graded on. The points for each assignment are also listed below. Your grade will depend on the completion of the assignment, the effort put into it, and the quality of the assignment turned in. You will get a grade for EACH of the assignments listed below. You will also receive a grade for the entire project (all grades averaged together) that will count as a TEST grade. 1. Pre-Reading Self Evaluation (50 points) 2. Reading Responses in Packet (100 points) 3. THREE (3) Creative Writing Responses (50 points each) 4. TWO (2) Visual Responses (50 points each) 5. You�ve Got to read this Response (100 points) 6. Staying on Task (100 points-5 points a day) ➢ You will earn (or lose) up to five points a day depending on your ability to stay on task. You will lose points for disruptive behavior, sleeping, doing other work, forgetting materials, and other such behaviors that prohibit you from staying on task for the day. Checklist Use the following checklist as you are reading and completing your independent novel to make sure you have all the components that you will be graded on. Check each item as you finish it. 1.___Selecting a book and having it approved 2. ___Pre-Reading Self Evaluation 3. ___Reading Responses completed every time after reading 4. ___1 Creative writing piece 5. ___2 Creative writing piece 6. ___3 Creative writing piece 7. ___1 Visual Response 8. ___2 Visual Response 9. ___You�ve Got to Read This Response