REYNOLDSBURG HIGH SCHOOL

ENGLISH 10-12 SUMMER READING (OPTIONAL) BELL ACADEMY

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

❖ For this OPTIONAL assignment, you may choose to read ONE of the non-fiction novels listed below. Choose which of the novels most interests you and/or correlates to your chosen BELL pathway.
❖ You must choose a novel that you have not previously read. This means that if you are a Junior or Senior doing this project, you cannot choose the same novel that you chose to read for your 10th or 11th grade school year.
❖ Once you have read your novel of choice, you will need to write an analytical essay. Specific requirements for the essay are listed on the last page and vary according to your novel of choice.
❖ Understand that this summer reading assignment is NOT mandatory. However, if you choose to “jump ahead” by doing this project, you will be qualified to participate in an exclusive Auction within the first several weeks of 1st Quarter.
❖ If you have any questions about this project, please email brianna.butler@reyn.org .

NOVEL OPTIONS

BUSINESS
●	Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
●	I Love Capitalism! by Ken Langone
●	The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and The Age of Amazon by Brad Stone
●	Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
●	Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow
●	#GirlBoss by Sophia Amoruso
●	Start Something That Matters by Blake Mycoskie ●	Hit Refresh by Satya Nadella
●	Walt Disney by Bob Thomas
●	Built From Scratch by Arthur Blank & Bernie Marcus
●	Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh

LEADERSHIP
●	I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
●     Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding the Courage to Lead by Cecile Richards
●	Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandburg
●	Becoming by Michelle Obama
●	Wisdom of Walt: Leadership Lessons by Jeffrey Barnes
●	Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and Win by Willink & Babin
●	The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls ●	Bossypants by Tina Fey
●	I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons by Kevin Hart

EDUCATION
●	I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
●     Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover ●     Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
●	The Water Is Wide: A Memoir by Pat Conroy
●	Educating Esme: Diary of a Teacher’s First Year by Esme Raji Codell
●	The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke by Jeffrey C. Steward
●	Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
●     I’m the Teacher, You’re the Student: A Semester in the University Classroom by Patrick Allitt
●	The Lost Education of Horace Tate: Uncovering the Hidden Heroes Who Fought for Justice in Schools by Vanessa Walker

LAW
●	When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
●	The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
●	Between the World & Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates ●	Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
●	Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
●	Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
●	First: Sandra Day O’Connor by Evan Thomas ●	The Innocent Man by John Grisham
●	Mrs. Sherlock Holmes by Brad Ricca
●	Don’t Pee On My Leg and Tell Me It’s Raining by Judge Judy

REYNOLDSBURG HIGH SCHOOL

ESSAY PROMPTS

BUSINESS PROMPT: What did you learn about business, business ethics, or money from this novel? How did your perspective on business change after reading? Cite textual evidence in your response.

EDUCATION PROMPT: What did you learn about education (its importance, flaws, etc.) from this novel? How did your perspective on education change after reading? Cite textual evidence in your response.

LEADERSHIP PROMPT: What did you learn about leadership (its importance, obstacles, etc.) from this novel? How did your perspective on leadership change after reading? Cite textual evidence in your response.

LAW PROMPT: What did you learn about law and crime from this novel? How did your perspective on modern law/hate crimes change after reading? Cite textual evidence in your response.

ESSAY REQUIREMENTS

❏ Your essay should be typed in Times New Roman, font size 12, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins. ❏ Essay should be 3 full pages.
❏ NOTE: If you choose, the first page of your essay can be a summary of the novel. However, at least 2 pages need to answer the specific essay prompt required for your novel.
❏ Essay should be free of capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and sentence formation errors. ❏ You will turn in a printed copy of your essay to your English teacher.
❏ Do NOT plagiarize. If any aspect of your essay is copied from another source, the assignment will be discredited.

PROJECT RUBRIC

	
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Purpose & Real-World Connections
	
Essay lacks understanding of the BELL topic manifested in text and/or does not make personal connections to the text.
	
Essay demonstrates some understanding of the BELL topic manifested in text and/or makes few personal connections to the text.
	
Essay demonstrates understanding of the BELL topic manifested in text and/or makes personal connection to the text.
	
Essay demonstrates strong understanding of the BELL topic manifested in text and makes significant personal connections to the text.

Conventions & Textual Evidence
	
Grammatical errors render the essay unreadable and/or no textual evidence is cited.
	
Essay contains many grammatical errors and/or minimal textual evidence is cited.
	
Essay contains some grammatical errors and/or textual evidence is cited.
	
Essay is virtually free of grammatical errors and strong textual evidence is cited.

In order to get credit for this project, you need to turn it in to your English teacher by August 23.