IB APPLICATION FOR INCOMING FRESHMAN

Enrolling in IB at Quartz Hill High School

Guide to the Diploma Program

8th Grade Assessment Form

IB APPLICATION FOR INCOMING FRESHMAN

The assessment form from middle school should be mailed by March 1, 2024. 

Contact us for any questions you may have.

IB English 11

Summer Reading Assignment
2024-2025

All students enrolled in IB English 11 for the 2024-2025 school year are required to read the following material during the summer prior to the opening of school:
 
Novel --The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Link to free pdf

The Great Gatsby is NOT available for checkout at the QHHS Book Depot over the summer. Students have the option of checking out books from the public library, purchasing the book on your own, accessing the free pdf online, or speaking with Mrs. Stephenson if there are special circumstances. A pdf of the work will allow you to complete the summer assignment, but a hard copy of the texts will be required for class. If you are unable to access the internet over the summer, please contact Mrs. Stephenson @ bstephenson@avhsd.org or Mrs. Flannery in the Textbook Depository.

Step 1: Access the novel listed below (Students are responsible to purchase, borrow, or find a
PDF of the reading selection on their own--it will not be provided by the school until students return in August):

● The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Step 2: Read the novel in its entirety.

Step 3: Complete the written assignment: Quote and Response Logs

For each text, you will record 30 quotes in chronological order and respond to each quote. This section must prove the entire novel was read by responding to quotes from beginning to end. How you respond to each quote is up to you, but your response must be original and insightful, and may not be a plot summary.

Each response must be AT LEAST 2-3 sentences and show an intelligent engagement with the text. Some ideas for how to respond to a quote:

● Discuss how the quote shows the personality trait(s) of a character
● Identify a literary device, how it’s used, and how it adds meaning to the text
    List of literary devices
● Explain how a quote gives meaning or teaches the reader about the setting (time period or place)

You can also consider the following questions in your response:
What is the author’s purpose in each section of the text?
How does the narrator show that they are “credible” or “reliable”? Why should you believe what they say as truth?
Who is the intended audience, and how does the author or narrator seek to connect with them? How does the narrator describe the other characters in the work?
How do shifts in tone contribute to the mood of the text?

This entire section must be handwritten neatly on lined paper. Each quote must be numbered and
include the page number after the quote. Do your own work! Any plagiarism (either copying from
another student, any AI programs, or the internet) will result in an automatic zero and possible removal from English 11IB.

Example of an acceptable Quote with Response log entry:

Quote
Response
 “Whoever holds the conch gets to
speak” (34).
As long as people agree to the conch rule, it really does give everyone a voice, even the littlest kids. Even Jack, who acts like he hates the conch, still recognizes its power, because when the conch breaks is when he says that he really is chief now--so it seems that as long as the conch existed, he couldn't be chief because he didn't want others to have a voice.  So, is that what happens in politics? A dictator needs to get rid of the means of free speech so they can control everyone? Is that what happened to Twitter and Facebook?

All 30 quotes and their analyses are due the second Wednesday of school. No exceptions! This entire section is worth 300 points.
 

If you want to spend a couple of hours with a superficial celebration of Great Gatsby glam and glitz, the Baz Luhrmann version starring Leonardo diCaprio is entertaining. It will not help you develop much of an understanding of the ideas in the novel. Luhrmann’s energy was focused on the surface glitz, not the meaningful story.

Please contact Mrs. Stephenson at bstephenson@avhsd.org for questions about IB English 11.

**It is highly recommended that students acquire their own copy of the novels to take notes in over the summer. At the start of the school year, students will have the option to check out these titles from the textbook depository if they were not able to purchase or borrow a copy over the summer** 
 

Advanced Placement
International Baccalaureate 

AP/IB English 12
Summer Reading Assignment
2024-2025

All students enrolled in AP/IB English 12 for the 2022-2023 school year are required to read the following books during the summer prior to the opening of school.

AP/English 12
Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five
Tim O’Brien, In the Lake of the Woods

IB/English 12
Thi Bui, The Best That We Could Do
Tim O’Brien, In the Lake of the Woods

Students should take careful notes examining literary elements including, but not limited to themes, motifs, characters, setting, tone, and point of view. These are terms students should be conversant with as they enter the advanced level senior year classroom. During the first few weeks of school, teachers will be focusing on these novels during in-class discussions; therefore, it is important that students are prepared. As a culminating activity, students will write an analytical essay at their teacher’s direction.

Note: These books contain adult themes.

As you read, take notes on notebook paper, in a Google Doc, or on Post-It notes in the book. You may choose to purchase your own copy so that you can write notes directly on the pages. If you cannot purchase a copy, please consider using the public library. If neither of these are available to you, please  contact English Department chair Mrs. Jennifer McElroy at jmcelroy@avhsd.org.

IB students may contact Mr. Jonathan Fitch at jfitch@avhsd.org with questions about the summer reading or any other IB12 Literature issue.