Year 7 Reading Success
Year 7 students have one English lesson each week devoted to individual reading. During this lesson they are helped to choose appropriate books and encouraged to read at home.
To give their reading some structure, all students work towards bronze, silver and gold awards. For the bronze award, students have to read 5 books by 5 different authors and complete a short written activity for each book. We expect most Year 7 students to gain this award. For the silver award, students have to read 10 books, each from a different genre and complete a short written activity for each book.
The focus of the Gold award is literary merit. For the gold award students must read 10 books chosen from a list of suitable books and complete a short activity for each book. Only a few students gain this award each year. I am pleased to congratulate Indigo and Xanthe both from 7R who have completed their Gold Award. Below are examples of the activities they wrote in response to their reading. Well done!
Ms Green
Librarian
Indigo read A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett and wrote a poem about the book.
What is this magic that transforms my room,
Every blessed night.
Who is this friend I never see,
Who comes in the moonlight?
My room was bare and wintry,
My bed was cold and hard.
You pitied me and came along,
To give me warmth and comfort.
You gave me back my happiness,
And all I could do to thank,
Was write a card with my gratitude,
And give you all of my love.
Xanthe read Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli and wrote an alternative ending to the story.
At the end of the book, Star girl goes to her school dance alone, having been rejected by her boyfriend Leo because she refuses to behave like other girls. She arrives flamboyantly and soon becomes the centre of attention; much to the frustration of the most popular girl. The popular girl starts assaulting her but Star girl just kisses the girl on the cheek and dances to all the songs without a care in the world. At the end of the evening, Star girl leaves; never to be seen again…
My alternative ending is that Star girl turns up and gets assaulted by the popular girl. Star girl gives her a kiss on the cheek and the whole student body realises that she is the bigger person and that our differences should be celebrated. The popular girl realises that what she did was wrong and she graciously apologises to Star girl. Star girl accepts. Everyone cheers. From the crowd emerges Star girl’s ex boyfriend Leo. He says that he never meant to hurt her feelings and that he only fell in love with the real her. Leo also said that he should not change for anyone in the world and that she should always be herself no matter what! Star girl smiles and asks Leo to dance. Leo accepts and brings her onto the dance floor. They all dance the whole night through, including the popular girl, the football player and the headteacher. Everyone enjoys themselves and has lots of fun.
Near the end of the night, Star girl, Leo and the popular girl stand up on the stage and sing ”You will never walk alone” and “Lean on me“. The whole school rejoice and sing along. Everyone sways to the music. In every students mind, they make a promise : They will never be apart again.