Saint John Academy Summer Reading
For Rising 3rd Graders 2019
Greetings, Parents and Students
The books, stories and poems have been carefully selected to foster an enjoyable and thoughtful reading experience. Enjoy this special time with your child. These assignments are meant to be enriching and meaningful.
Be sure to balance the assignments with lots of fun, enjoyable time outside with family and friends.
Best to you and your family,
Mr. Jeffrey P. Presberg
Headmaster
Mrs. Karen Tessier
Assistant Headmaster
Saint John Academy
Core Elements of Summer Reading for Rising 3rd Graders
- You will need a good writing journal (of strong construction)...something that will last.
- From the reading list below, choose 2 to read. Please read books by two different authors.
- Draw a picture of something interesting from each of the two books you choose from the reading list below. First sketch the picture in pencil and then color.
- Write 1 paragraph (3-5 sentences) in your journal describing each picture (pictures may be drawn and placed inside your journal if you would like).
Mary or Francis, The Poor Man of Assisi - Tomie DePaola
Under the Lilacs - Louisa May Alcott
The King’s Chessboard - David Birch
Caddie Woodlawn - Carol Ryrie Brink
The Pied Piper of Hamelin - Robert Browning
The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Little Lame Prince - Dinah Craik
The Courage of Sarah Noble - Alice Dalgliesh
Black Gold - Marguerite Henry or another Marguerite Henry book
Pyramid - David Macaulay
Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan
The Borrowers - Mary Norton
The Trumpet of the Swan - E.B. White
Little House in the Big Woods - Laura Ingalls Wilder or another Laura Ingalls Wilder book
Ramona Quimby, Age 8 - Beverly Cleary
Mr. Popper's Penguins - Richard Atwater
Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective - Donald Sobol
Charlotte's Web or Stuart Little - E.B. White
- Read all four recommended poems, copy one in your journal and memorize, reciting it at home (at the dinner table or some other spontaneous moment). This will also be recited at school.
"The Wind" by Christina Rosetti
"Us Two" by A.A. Milne
"The Mountain and the Squirrel" by Ralph Waldo Emerson
"The Swing" by Robert Louis Stevenson
Aesop's Fables
- Choose three Aesop's Fables to read, no writing required.
The Fox and the Grapes
The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs
The Mice in Council
The Lion and the Mouse
The North Wind and the Sun
The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Boy and the Wolf
The Hare and the Tortoise
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse
The Grasshopper and the Ants
- Read the Annunciation in the Gospel (or have it read to you): Luke 1: 5-38
- Imagine you are at the scene of the Annunciation--as a bird,or insect, or a friend quietly observing.
- Describe some moment from the Annunciation scene and tell it like a story in 1-2 paragraph(s), beginning with the mysterious and surprising moment when the Angel appears and speaks.
- Some things to think about (but not write about): What would the angel look like? Was he frightening but also comforting? Why was Mary afraid, but also calm? What risks did she have to take if she said yes? How was Mary's reaction to the strange and wonderful message different from the reaction by Zachary to the message he received?
Please examine Henry Ossawa Tanner’s Annunciation painting to help you enter into that moment. (see below)
- Suggestion, pray this joyful mystery of the rosary at least once a week. Before you pray it, pause for a few moments, be still and imagine the scene of the Annunciation as if you were there, perhaps also imagining how Mary felt at that moment.