OCEANA HIGH SCHOOL

                                            Jefferson Union High School District

                                         401 Paloma Avenue, Pacifica, CA 94044

                                       Telephone (650) 550-7300   FAX (650) 550-7310

                                                                                                                                                May 28, 2008

Dear Parents and Students,

 

The Summer Reading Program is an important part of the high school educational process. This summerÕs assignment for 12th grade students is designed to prepare them for humanities class discussions and to begin exploring senior exhibition topics. These assignments will be due on the first day of school.

 

Part I – Advanced Placement English Language & Composition

 

You will need to obtain two books from a library, bookstore, or on-line. Both books are still in print, but may not be readily available in your local library or bookstore, so please do not wait until the last minute to look for them.

  1. Native Son is a novel written by Richard Wright in 1940. Read the novel and come to class on the first day of school prepared to take a quiz based on the book.
  2. Notes on a Native Son is a book of essays written by James Baldwin in 1955.  Read the ÒAutobiographical NotesÓ at the beginning of the book. Then read the title essay, ÒNotes of a Native Son,Ó which appears in Part Two of the book. Please do a close reading of this essay and consider why Baldwin titled the essay as he did. Come to class prepared to discuss this question. Be sure to bring the book and your notes on the essay.

 

Part II – all 12th Grade Students

We would like you to use the summer months to begin thinking about and preparing for your senior exhibition. To help with this process, you should read daily newspaper and weekly or monthly magazines. As youÕre reading, pay attention to topics and events that interest you. If you have already selected a topic for your exhibition, find two articles in a current newspaper or magazine that relate to this topic. If you have not selected a topic, find two current articles on a topic that interests you.

1. Clip (or make photocopies of) the two articles (each article must be at least 500 words in length)

2. Write a properly formatted annotated bibliography for the two articles. The following is an example of a correct annotation. Make sure you put the annotations in alphabetical order and make sure they are typed.

 

Annotation Example:

Berkoff, Fran. ÒEating Disorders a Weighty Issue.Ó Online: Toronto Sun, January 31, 2001: pp.38. Electric Library. < http://www.elibrary.com/s/edumark/>.
       This article, which originally appeared in the Toronto Sun newspaper, discusses psychological and physical problems associated with eating disorders. It reports on interviews with five individuals with eating disorders as well as two medical doctors and three psychologists who have treated people with eating disorders. It is a credible source because its evidence is based on scientific studies by professionals and it is published in a reputable newspaper. It will be a useful resource for my research because it explains the differences between types of eating disorders. It also looks at common difficulties between doctors and patients with eating disorders.

 

Enjoy your summer. We look forward to an exciting senior year.

 

Sincerely,

The Senior Humanities Teachers