Literary Investment: Summer Reading Requirement
Heritage Christian Academy has consistently emphasized reading the literary classics. Through books, we enter into the thoughts and lives of others, growing and learning alongside them, succeeding and failing, rejoicing and grieving, journeying and dying. It is among our greatest human delights. One of our responsibilities as educators and parents is to see that our children acquire not only the ability to read well, but also acquire a taste for what is good and beautiful in literature. For each grade we have selected books that:
a) enlarge a student’s imagination about God, the world, or humanity;
b) evidence the highest quality writing and story-telling;
c) are conducive to the formation of virtue;
d) are “age-appropriate,” even if challenging;
e) have endured the test of time or have influenced literate culture;
f) integrate with other areas of the curriculum.
In addition to the books that students may read in class with their fellow students and teachers, we hope to help students develop the habit of reading books on their own. In order to do this, we will now require students going into first grade through sixth grade to keep a “literature log” of the books they read throughout the summer. Each book they read will receive a particular point value based on its length and difficulty. Half of the required points should come from the suggested list, and half of the required points can come from self-selected books. For self-selected books, students earn 1 point per 100 pages read. Students will receive a grade based on their accumulated points for the summer. This grade will represent 15% of their Reading Grade for Quarter One.
Students may earn points for a book if
a) they read it on their own,
b) someone reads it to them, or
c) they listen to an audio version of the book.
In order to encourage families to read together, when they do so, each student in the family will receive the appropriate credit for the book, according to their grade levels. If a child listens to an audio version of a book, we ask parents to verify that their children are appropriately attentive while the recording is playing.
Students are required to read books from the designated Literature List available from the web site on the elementary academics page, which have been selected by HCA according to the above criteria.
If you have any questions, please contact Stacy Loyd at sloyd@heritagechristian.info.
Reading Requirements
Students entering first grade are required to read (or have read to them) and record the titles of twenty picture books or emergent readers. (Books longer than traditional picture books or emergent readers may count for more than one title according to their length 32 pages = 1 book).
Students going into second grade are required to read and record the titles of twenty picture books or appropriate level readers. (Books longer than traditional picture books or emergent readers may count for more than one title according to their length 32 pages = 1 book).
Students entering grades three through sixth are required to read books from the following book list to earn the required points.
Third Grade 10+
Fourth Grade 12+
Fifth Grade 16+
Sixth Grade 18+
Verification of Reading
Parents are responsible for verifying that a book has been read by their child, or that they have listened attentively to one that has been read to them. Titles of books, authors, and point values should be recorded on the child’s literature log and submitted by September 29. The required parent signature certifies that the parent has verified the child’s reading as well as the accuracy of all points recorded.
Download the Verification of Reading form here.
Title | Author | SuggestedReading Level | |
Adam of the Road | Vining | 5+ | |
Adventures of Sherlock Holms, The | Doyle | 6 | 5+ |
Adventures of the Greek Heroes | McLean | 3 | 3+ |
Al Capone Does My Shirts (and sequels) | Choldenkro | 3 | 6+ |
Alice in Wonderland | Carroll | 3 | 5+ |
All Creatures Great and Small (and sequels) | Herriott | 6 | 6+ |
Always in His Keeping | Hamby | 2 | 5+ |
Anne of Green Gables (and sequels) | Montgomery | 6 | 4+ |
Arabian Nights | Houseman | 6 | 4+ |
At the Back of the North Wind | MacDonald | 4 | 6+ |
Ballet Shoes | Streatfeild | 5 | 5+ |
Bambi | Salten | 3 | 4+ |
Bear Called Paddington, A (and sequels) | Bond | 3 | 3+ |
Betsy-Tacy Books (1-3 in the series) | Lovelace | 2 | 3+ |
Big Red | Kjelgaard | 4 | 5+ |
BlackHorn Winter | Wilson | 3 | 4+ |
Black Stallion, The (and sequels) | Farley | 5 | 6+ |
Borrowers, The (and sequels) | Norton | 4 | 3+ |
Boxcar Children, The (and sequels) | Warner | 2 | 3+ |
Boyhood of Ranold Bannerman, The | MacDonald | 5 | 5+ |
Breaking Stalin’s Nose | Yelchin | 2 | 6+ |
Bronze Bow, The | Speare | 5 | 5+ |
Buried in the Snow | Hoffman | 3 | 4+ |
By the Shores of Silver Lake | Wilder | 4 | 3+ |
Caddie Woodlawn | Brink | 4 | 5+ |
Calico Bush | Field | 3 | 4+ |
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch | Latham | 6 | 4+ |
Champions of the Round Table, The | Pyle | 6 | 3+ |
Chester Cricket’s New Home | Selden | 3 | 3+ |
Cricket in Time’s Square | Selden | 3 | 3+ |
Door in the Wall, The | De Angeli | 3 | 5+ |
Eight Cousins | Alcott | 6 | 4+ |
Elsie Dinsmore series (original) | Finley | 7 | 6+ |
Emily of New Moon (and sequels) | L.M. Montgomery | 7 | 5+ |
Esperanza Rising | Ryan | 3 | 4+ |
Escape from Warsaw | Serraillier | 4 | 5+ |
Faith, Hope, and Ivy June | Reynolds | 3 | 5+ |
Farmer Boy | Wilder | 6 | 3+ |
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew | Sidney | 5 | 3+ |
From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler | Konigsburg | 3 | 4+ |
Ginger Pye | Estes | 4 | 5+ |
Golden Key, The | MacDonald | 2 | 5+ |
Good Master, The | Seredy | 3 | 4+ |
Great Brain, The (and others) | Fitzgerald | 3 | 3+ |
Harry Cat’s Pet Puppy | Selden | 3 | 4+ |
Heidi | Spyri | 7 | 3+ |
Hitty: Her First Hundred Years | Field | 3 | 2+ |
House at Pooh Corner, The | Milne | 3 | 3+ |
Hundred and One Dalmations, The | Smith | 4 | 4+ |
Hundred Dresses, The | Estes | 2 | 3+ |
In Grandma’s Attic (and others) | Richardson | 2 | 3+ |
Indian Captive | Lenski | 6 | 5+ |
Inside Out and Back Again | Lai | 3 | 6+ |
Jack and Jill | Alcott | 7 | 4+ |
Joel: A Boy of Galilee | Johnston | 4 | 4 |
Jo’s Boys | Alcott | 7 | 4+ |
Justin Morgan Had a Horse | Henry | 4 | 4+ |
Just So Stories | Kipling | 2 | 4+ |
Lad, A Dog | Terhune | 6 | 3+ |
Lassie Come Home | Knight | 5 | 5+ |
Letters to Anyone and Everyone (and others) | Tellegen | 2 | 3+ |
Light Princess, The | MacDonald | 5 | 6+ |
Little Grey Men, The (and Sequel) | B.B. | 5 | 4+ |
Little House on the Prairie | Wilder | 5 | 3+ |
Little Lord Fauntleroy | Burnett | 7 | 5+ |
Little Men | Alcott | 7 | 4+ |
Little Prince, The | deSaint Exupery | 3 | 5+ |
Little Princess, The | Burnett | 7 | 4+ |
Little Women | Alcott | 7 | 4+ |
Littles, The series | Peterson | 1 | 2-3 |
Love that Dog | Creech | 1 | 4+ |
Magic Tree House series | Osborne | 1 | 2-3 |
Mary Poppins (and sequels) | Travers | 4 | 5+ |
Meet Addy (and sequels) | Parker | 2 | 2-3 |
Meet Felicity ( and sequels) | Tripp | 2 | 2-3 |
Meet Kaya (and sequels) | Shaw | 2 | 2-3 |
Meet Kit (and sequels) | Tripp | 2 | 2-3 |
Meet Kristen (and sequels) | Shaw | 2 | 2-3 |
Meet Molly (and sequels) | Parker | 2 | 2-3 |
Meet Samantha (and sequels) | Adler | 2 | 2-3 |
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, The | Pyle | 7 | 5+ |
Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The | DiCamillo | 4 | 3+ |
Misty of Chincoteague | Henry | 4 | 4+ |
Misty’s Twilight | Henry | 4 | 4+ |
Moffats, The (and sequels) | Estes | 4 | 5+ |
Mouse and the Motorcycle, The | Cleary | 2 | 3+ |
Mr. Popper’s Penguins | Atwater | 2 | 4+ |
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH | O’Brien | 5 | 5+ |
NO Talking | Clements | 2 | 4+ |
Number the Stars | Lowry | 2 | 4+ |
Old Mother West Wind (and others) | Burgess | 2 | 2-3 |
Old Yeller | Gipson | 3 | 5+ |
On the Banks of Plum Creek | Wilder | 5 | 3+ |
Out of My Mind | Draper | 3 | 6+ |
Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy (and others) | Birdsall | 4 | 4+ |
Peter Pan | Barrie | 5 | 5+ |
Phantom Tollbooth, The | Juster | 5 | 5+ |
Pilgrim’s Progress (Retold) | Schmidt | 3 | 4+ |
Pippi Longstockings (and others except for Pippi on the Run-1 pt.) | Lindgren | 2 | 3 |
Prairie Dog Town (original) | Oke | 2 | 2+ |
Pollyanna | Porter | 5 | 5+ |
Raggedy Ann Stories (and others) | Gruelle | 2 | 2-3 |
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm | Wiggin | 6 | 3+ |
Redwall (and sequels) | Jacques | 7 | 5+ |
Reluctant Dragon, The | Grahame | 1 | 6+ |
Return of the King, The | Tolkien | 9 | 6+ |
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | Taylor | 6 | 5+ |
Rosa of Linden Castle | Schmid | 3 | 4+ |
Rose in Bloom | Alcott | 7 | 4+ |
Saint George and the Dragon | Hodges | 1 | 4 |
Sarah, Plain and Tall | MacLachlan | 1 | 3+ |
Sign of the Beaver | Speare | 3 | 4+ |
Singing Tree, The | Seredy | 3 | 4+ |
Sir Gibbie | MacDonald | 6 | 6+ |
Sounder | Armstrong | 2 | 5+ |
Star of Light | St. John | 3 | 3+ |
Stormy, Misty’s Foal | Henry | 4 | 4+ |
Strawberry Girl | Lenski | 3 | 4+ |
Stuart Little | White | 2 | 3+ |
Summer of the Monkeys | Rawls | 6 | 4+ |
Through the Looking Glass | Carroll | 3 | 5+ |
Tree for Peter, A | Seredy | 3 | 3+ |
Trumpet of the Swan | White | 3 | 3+ |
Twig | Orton | 3 | 3 |
Uncle Remus | Harris | 6 | 3+ |
Under the Egg | Fitzgerald | 4 | 4+ |
Velveteen Rabbit, The | Williams | 1 | 3+ |
Winnie the Pooh | Milne | 3 | 3+ |
Yellow Star | Roy | 3 | 6+ |
Biographies from: | |||
Childhood of Famous American Series | 2 | 3, 4 | |
The Landmark Series | 3 | 3+ | |
Christian Heroes: Then and Now | 4 | 3+ | |
The Sower Series | 4 | 3+ | |
Heroes of the Faith | 5 | 3+ | |
Christian Living Informational: | |||
Boy After God’s Own Heart: Your Awesome Adventure with Jesus | George | 3 | 4+ |
Girl After God’s Own Heart: A Tween’s Adventures with Jesus, A | George | 3 | 4+ |
Speak Love: Making Your Words Matter | Downs | 3 | 6+ |
Young Man After God’s Own Heart: Turn Your Life into an Extreme Adventure, A | George | 3 | 6+ |
Young Woman After God’s Own Heart: ATeen’s Guide to Friends, Faith,, Family, and the Future, A (and others) | George | 3 | 6+ |
Adapted from Cair Paravel’s “Book me a Passage” Literature Policy Document. http://www.cpls.org/
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