Hello Class of 2026!
As soon as you have this material, please join the Class of 2026 7th Grade
Summer Reading Google Classroom using this code: u63bvu4
As full as this school year has been, it is coming to an end, so it is time to think about summer reading. We have two assignments for your class:
1. Please read and annotate The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani. Here is a review from GOODREADS:
It's 1947, and India, newly independent of British rule, has been separated into two countries: Pakistan and India The divide has created much tension between Hindus and Muslims, and hundreds of thousands are killed crossing borders.
Half-Muslim, half-Hindu twelve-year-old Nisha doesn't know where she belongs, or what her country is anymore. When Papa decides it's too dangerous to stay in what is now Pakistan, Nisha and her family become refugees and embark first by train but later on foot to reach her new home. The journey is long, di cult, and dangerous, and after losing her mother as a baby, Nisha can't imagine losing her homeland, too. But even if her country has been ripped apart, Nisha still believes in the possibility of putting herself back together.
Told through Nisha's letters to her mother, TheNightDiaryis a heartfelt story of one girl's search for home, for her own identity and for a hopeful future
Here are some tips on things to annotate:
● Parts to which you have a strong reaction
● Themes
● Connections
● Predictions
● Unfamiliar words
● Details about the historical context
NOTE: It is important to annotate steadily, but also with discernment. DON’T ANNOTATE SO MUCH THAT IT BOGS YOUR READING DOWN. Pay attention for those moments that really stand out.
2. You are required to complete a project on the night diary. The directions are linked here.
3. You are each required to read at least 4 additional books of your choice. Every time you finish a book, please make an entry in this form: Summer Reading Log. You can check in with your classmates’ reading to get ideas by reading this spreadsheet. Obviously, if you read more than 4, log them all!
(Note that one of the questions asks whether you have read the book before We certainly hope you will read some books that are new to you, but rereading a favorite book is a rich reading experience, and we are both fine with and encourage it! )
Your Once and Future English Teachers, Mr. Falconer and Ms. Lloyd