Dear Parents/Caregivers and ENSATS Students:
Now that the school year is ending and summer is soon to begin, we want to remind everyone that summer reading is the expectation for all Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School students, including incoming freshmen. All students are required to read at least two books.
BOOK #1: The first book is an open-choice book and can be fiction or nonfiction, but must be written for young adults or adults.
BOOK #2: Incoming Grade 9 students will read Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life… And Maybe the World by Admiral William H. McRaven. Books may be purchased at amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, and in support of local businesses bookshop.org. Grades 10, 11, and 12 will read The Power of a Positive Team by Jon Gordon. Books may be purchased at amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, and in support of local businesses bookshop.org.
When students return to school at the start of the next school year, each Pathways teacher will give students a Summer Reading Project for the assigned title. English teachers will give students a Summer Reading Project for the open-choice title. Past assignments have included book talks, Goodreads book reviews, and creative projects based on the books such as movie trailers, children’s book adaptations, sculptures, music playlists, and more.
Please note that students who are taking either A.P. English Language and Composition in grade 11 or A.P. English Literature and Composition in grade 12, have been given a separate summer reading assignment, but all students, including those in these A.P. classes, will be expected to read their class read listed above.
Grades 10, 11, and 12 students may access an e-book or audiobook of The Power of a Positive Team. Please consider choosing your open-choice book from the SORA and/or the EBSCO eBooks collection, both located on our library website library.essextech.net. Here you can download a “great read” to any device. For students with access to Learning Ally, you can download an audiobook version.
Our goal for summer reading is to keep students reading throughout the summer and to unite our school community through a book about qualities from our Graduate Profile. These include: Kindness, Perseverance, Responsibility, Collaboration, Culturally Proficiency, and Entrepreneurship. This year’s Summer Reading will focus specifically on responsibility and collaboration. We think these are important qualities to talk about when we all return for the start of the next school year, and we look forward to these discussions.
If you have any questions about summer reading, please feel free to contact me, Dr. O’Toole, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, & Assessment, at totoole@essextech.net.
Thank you and read on!
Thomas J. O’Toole, Ed.D.
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, & Assessment
