I
am very excited to be a part of your next chapter (#englishteacherjoke) at STEM
School. One of my goals as an English teacher is to help students develop a
love of reading and literature. With this in mind, I want to keep summer
reading simple:
Choose two books, fiction or literary
nonfiction (basically, something that tells a story about a real person, place,
thing, or event – as opposed to a technical manual), to read over the summer.
We’ll share a bit about our summer reading in the fall. That’s it. No test, no
questions to answer, no paper to write. Just get lost in your books.
I
know this year has been challenging, and I know it is difficult to imagine what
challenges we have yet to face. One positive, though, is the amount of free
resources available to students, parents, and teachers. Among those is books.
Now, I know the rabid readers out there likely have a list of books at the
ready, and for them, this will be a breeze. And I know my reluctant readers may
look at this with trepidation and have no idea where to start. Don’t worry! I
have ideas and recommendations to get you started. My first recommendation is
the Chattanooga Public Library’s 2021 Summer Reading List. It has a little something for just about
any interest. If nothing gets you excited, there are many other lists out
there. If you need some help, let me know.
Here
are some places to get great books:
- The
Chattanooga
Public Library – All Hamilton County Schools students are
eligible for a free library card, but if you don’t have one already. Get in
touch, and we’ll help you get access. The library has a great selection of
books and media that can be accessed online.
- Amazon’s Best Seller lists include the Top 100 free kindle books: Top 100 free Teen & Young Adult eBooks. You can also change categories for additional titles.
- Audible has also released quite a few free
audiobooks to everyone. Just visit stories.audible.com
to listen for free. You can also access these stories from the Audible app for
phones (which makes them easier to listen to on the go).
- Amazon
Prime members have access to an extensive library of books included with
their Prime membership. All you need is the kindle app.
- Project
Gutenberg includes thousands of free ebooks, mostly classics,
that are in the public domain.
- Riveted by Simon
Teen offers several free young adult titles each month,
including new and recent releases.
- SYNC
is a free summer audiobook program for teens 13+.
·
As
a parent, I know it’s sometimes difficult to know what’s appropriate for my
kids. One of the resources I use to make informed decisions is Common
Sense Media. But I also encourage you to read along with your
students. You might be surprised at the rich discussions that a good book can
lead to. If you have no idea where to begin, or if you would like some
personalized recommendations, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Mr. Kubisak ([email protected]).