8th Grade Summer Reading

Julia Landon College preparatory and Leadership Development School

 

           Patrick Smith

 

Summary of Allapattah:

Allapattah tells the story of Toby Tiger, a young Indian in despair at having to live in the white man’s world.  “Allapattah” means crocodile – a creature which becomes Toby Tiger’s obsession, and he must wrestle it to set himself free as he struggles with civilization’s encroachment on the Everglades.

 

 

        Conrad Richter

 

Summary:

 

As part of an agreement to keep peace, whites are insisting that captives who have been living with the Indians be returned to their white settlements. True True Son, fifteen years old, has lived with the Delaware tribe since being captured as a baby.

 

 

Books are available at the Jacksonville Public Library, or online at:

Ø      amazon.com

Ø      barnesandnobel.com

Ø      bordersstores.com

Ø      booksamillion.com

Ø      allbookstores.com

Ø      cheapestbookprice.com

 

 

 

Summer Reading Assignment

 

Julia Landon College Preparatory and Leadership Development School

 

 

 

Students should be prepared with their summer reading assignments by the end of the second full week of school.

 

                                          Summer Reading List

 

8th Grade Titles

 

Allapattah

by

Patrick Smith

 

The Light in the Forest

by

Conrad Richter

 

 

 

Directions:

 

1.  Read both required books.

 

2.  In order to be prepared for your work in class with these books, take notes as

     you read each chapter or section.  Do this by using the Summer Reading

     Documentation Chart to take notes as you read.  For each chapter or section, give one

     or more examples of how the main character’s actions help or hinder his or her

     leadership ability.  For each example, give the page number and paragraph where it is

     found.   This will be important when you do your writing and as you participate in the

     seminar.

 

3.  For each main character, make a list of five adjectives that describe the character’s

     Leadership ability.

 

4.  Choose the one main character that you believe is the best example of a leader and

     write a paragraph of 100-150 words explaining your choice.  Include at least two

     specific examples from the text which support your choice and explain them in detail.

     Use the charts to help locate the examples.  Incorporate at least three adjectives

      from the list in your writing.  Students should take care to do their best work without

     assistance.  Teachers will use the student writing to evaluate instructional needs.

 

 

You will also use your chapter notes, adjective lists, and paragraphs as you participate in a seminar discussion led by your teacher.

 

 

Summer Reading Documentation Chart

 

Julia Landon College Preparatory and Leadership Development School

 

 

Student:  ________________________  Book Title:  _____________________________

 

 

Main Character:  ____________________________________________

 

Directions:

 

As you read, take notes on what the main character does as he or she moves through the story.  Make notes about the main character’s important actions on the chart.  Give the chapter number or name, page number and paragraph number (1st complete paragraph from the top, 2nd complete paragraph from the top, etc.) where the action can be found in the book.  When documenting the character’s  important actions, be sure to explain if you think the action was helpful or hurtful to the character’s leadership ability.  You may duplicate the chart as many times as necessary.  If you are doing your work electronically, the chart will automatically expand as needed.  More than one chapter may be documented on the same chart.  You will need your charts for a seminar discussion once school has started.

 

Chapter

Page

Paragraph

Action

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet the Authors

 

Patrick Smith is a 1999 inductee into the Florida Artists Hall of Fame, the highest and most prestigious cultural honor that can be bestowed upon an individual by the State of Florida.
In May 2002 Smith was the recipient of the Florida Historical Society’s Fay Schweim Award as the “Greatest Living Floridian.” The one-time-only award was established to honor the one individual who has contributed the most to Florida in recent history. Smith was cited for the impact his novels have made on Floridians, both natives and newcomers to the state, and for the worldwide acclaim he has received.

 

Conrad Richter wrote about the history of the areas he knew best: the areas in which he lived. He, better than anyone else writing historical fiction, was able to capture the rural traits, traditions and dialects of the 19th and early 20th century west with such novels as The Sea of Grass and Tacey Cromwell as well as the early pioneers of the Pennsylvania and Ohio valleys. His novels have been greatly loved and praised.