Summer Reading 2012

    Introduction    |     Book Suggestions     |     Assignments by Grade Level

    "The average American child spends 78 minutes a week reading, 102 minutes a week on     homework and study, and 12 hours a week watching television. . . . If households simply reversed the status quo, reducing kids television watching to 78 minutes and boosting their reading to 12 hours a week, it would do more to improve academic achievement in America…
    (Edward Humes …School of Dreams).

    Many studies have shown that reading promotes students' mental growth, capacity to process information, and ability to understand themselves and the world around them. Good readers become good thinkers and good writers. Success in school and in the workplace depends heavily on the ability to read. In high school classes, students are required to read complex passages and decipher their meanings as part of instruction and assessments. The High School Assessments and countywide finals require students to understand complex questions and highlight the important information contained within a question. Students who take the SAT, Advanced Placement examinations, and International Baccalaureate examinations will encounter tests similarly designed to evaluate their critical reading ability, understanding of a variety of vocabulary, and writing skills. In the workplace, employees are expected to understand their tasks based on written information. Therefore, it is important to expect all students to read during the summer. Research strongly suggests that reading, like most skills, improves with practice. Summer reading serves as one measure for determining proficiency of the following MCPS indicator and objective:

    • Indicator Refine and extend comprehension skills through exposure to a variety of texts, including traditional print and electronic devices.
    • Objective: Read a minimum of 25 self-selected and/or assigned books or book equivalents representing various genres per year.
      In order to prepare our students for these challenges both in high school and beyond, Ms. Sherry Weiss, students from grades 9-12, and members of the English Department @ RHS have prepared a comprehensive reading list of recommended titles and authors who are diverse in terms of challenge, genre, ethnicity and culture, topic, and classic or contemporary period.. Students will be required to answer selected survey questions about their summer reading when they return in the fall.

    It is important that each student be fully aware of his/her responsibilities for Summer Reading 2012 as the course requirements vary by grade level.

    The RHS Summer Reading 2012 list, and the MCPS Summer Reading 2012,  a support for parents/guardians and students as they make appropriate reading selections, are available below.

    Books may be checked out through the Media Center or through Mr. Martin McCarrick, English Resource Teacher, Room 2044. 

    Sincerely,
    Martin McCarrick
    English Resource Teacher
    301 517-5532
    Martin_J_McCarrick@mcpsmd.org

    Book Suggestions

    Assignments by Grade Level

    9th Grade

    10th Grade

    11th Grade

    12th Grade