Language Arts

  •  Required Summer Reading 2020

    ALL West Chicago Community High School students are required to participate in summer reading. The English faculty promotes summer reading for a number of reasons:
    1. Wildcats are readers!
    2. Reading is exciting when you find the right book! We want you to say, “I’m a reader!”
    3. If students do not read over the summer, (ideally a minimum of six books), “summer slide” can occur and the student will lose the reading gains made during the school year.
    Fall English classes will include activities and writing based on these summer books.
     
    This is an overview of the reading list for all grade levels. Details are below.
     

    Incoming Freshmen - English 1

    Class of 2024

    Summer Reading List 2020

    Freshman Summer Reading List

    Freshman Video Preview

     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

    If you are not able to purchase a hard copy of a book, these freshmen summer reading books are available for free online as PDFs:

    The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

    Eleanor and Park

    Gathering Blue.

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

    Incoming Freshmen - English 1 Honors

    Class of 2024

    Summer Reading List 2020

    English 1 Honors Summer Reading List 2020: (See page 1 and 2.) 

     
     
     
     
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

    If you are not able to purchase a book, these freshmen summer reading books are available for free online as PDFs:

    The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

    Eleanor and Park

    Gathering Blue

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

     
    Rising Sophomores - English 2
     
    Class of 2023
     
    Summer Reading List 2020
     
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

    If you are not able to purchase a hard copy of a book, these sophomore summer reading books are available for free online as PDFs:

    Animal Farm

    The House of the Scorpion

    The Uglies.

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

     
    Rising Sophomores - English 2 Enriched
     
    Class of 2023
     
    Summer Reading List 2020
     
     
     
    “No Dark Corner” (online article)
     
    TedTalk: Why Privacy Matters (20:28)
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

    If you are not able to purchase a hard copy of the book, the English 2 Enriched summer reading book, The Circle, is available for free online as a PDF.

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

     
    Rising Sophomores - English 2 Honors
     
    Class of 2023
     
    Summer Reading List 2020
     
     
     
     
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

    If you are not able to purchase Animal Farm, it is available for free online as a PDF.

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

     
    Rising Juniors - English 3
     
    Class of 2022
     
    Summer Reading List 2020
     
     
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

    If you are not able to purchase a book, this English 3 summer reading book is available for free online as a PDF:

    The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

     
    Rising Juniors - English 3 Enriched
     
    Class of 2022
     
     
     
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

     

    If you are not able to purchase How to Read Literature Like a Professor, it is available for free online as a PDF.

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase The Woman in the Window.

     
    Rising Juniors and Seniors - AP Language
     
    Class of 2021 and 2022
     
    Summer Reading List 2020

    Please read all four assignments:

    Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer

    • Use the AP Language Summer Reading Google Classroom to help you annotate the material. Use classroom code:
      • Ms. Osborne's Class Code:7zilvwi
      • Mr. Turnbaugh's Class Code: 6c5tybr
    • Join us on Twitter: 
    • Mr. Turnbaugh @wegotwits  
    • Ms. Osborne @ItsCaptOz  
    • #Wegoreads 

    READINGS: (Required) (It is recommended you take notes; if you know your work well...well then, how many notes will you take?) 

    • Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (Take some notes here.)
    • Ch.1 from The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker (to help you with your writing craft) 
    • Chapters 2, 3, and 4 from On Writing Well by William Zinsser (to help you with your writing craft)
    • Future articles we find appropriate...to be added to the Classroom over the summer. 

    LISTENING EPISODES: (Required)

     
    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book.
     
     
    Rising Seniors - British World Literature and Senior Electives
     
    Class of 2021
     
    Summer Reading List 2020
     
    British World Literature and Senior Electives Summer Reading List
     

    All summer reading books are available in our LRC ebook collection. Some are also available as audiobooks.

    Go to https://soraapp.com/library/westchicagoil and log in using your student ID and network password.

    You can either search for a specific title or scroll down on the home page to see lists organized by grade. 

     

    If you are not able to purchase a book, these senior summer reading books are available for free online as PDFs:

    Frankenstein

    Tuesdays with Morrie

    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book or are unable to find one online.

     
    Rising Seniors - AP Literature
     
    Class of 2021
     
    Summer Reading List 2020
     

    Read both:

    Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (Hard copy required.)

    The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka 

                 and

    Choose one:

    Modernist and/or existential novels on the

    AP Literature Summer Reading Google Doc


    Free online:

    See links on the list above.

    AP Lit Loom Video

     
    Please email English department chair, Mary Howard, at mhoward@d94.org if you are unable to purchase a book.