College English 101 Summer Reading Project

OCCC/Pine Bush High School

One of the primary objectives in College English 101 is to develop your skills in the critical reading of non-fiction. 

To this end, please read the following text in its entirety BEFORE completing the writing assignment:

• Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor Books, 1996. Print.

Writing Assignment:

Each chapter of Into the Wild begins with an epigraph (a short quotation or saying at the beginning of a book or chapter, intended to suggest its theme). Choose FIVE epigraphs from Into the Wild and complete a one-two page analysis of EACH. Your analysis should do the following:

• Summarize/analyze the epigraph as an individual piece of writing.
• Discuss how the epigraph relates to the themes/events of its CHAPTER. 
• Discuss how the epigraph relates to the themes/events of the ENTIRE novel. 

Pay careful attention to detail, grammar, and MLA format. Additionally, be prepared to submit your work to turnitin.com.

DUE: On the FIRST day of class in September. 

 

College English 102 Summer Reading Project

OCCC/Pine Bush High School

Poetry Preparation

You are to make your own poetry anthology, consisting of 8 poems. Your completed anthology is due the first day of third quarter. 

Requirements: 

• The poems must be chosen from the attached list of poets whose selected poems are available at www.famouspoetsandpoems.com or https://www.poetryfoundation.org/. 
• You must include at least one poem by each of the following poets:

1. William Shakespeare
2. Emily Dickinson
3. Robert Frost
4. Langston Hughes
5. Gwendolyn Brooks
6. Billy Collins
7. Naomi Shihab Nye

As you can see, the requirements by poet do not add up to 8 poems. You have the flexibility to pick the final poem BY ANY POET of your choosing, not just from this list.  

There should be variety to the lengths of poems. Use your good judgment in meeting the expectations of the assignment. 

Format: 

• Order the poems in your anthology one of the two following ways: 

1. chronologically from earliest to latest. If unsure of publication year of the poem, use the poet’s birth year as a guide. 
2. thematically, clearly identifying the thematic subject(s). 

• When you find a poem on either website, cut and paste the title, the poet’s full name and the poem itself into a Word document / Google document. 
• For EACH of the 8 selected poems, type a one-page polished response that provides the explanation for why you’re including the poem in your anthology. You are permitted to use first-person “I”. Your explanations should be insightful and refer to specific textual examples in the poems. 
• What you should discuss in your explanations: 

1. connections to your own life experiences. 
2. your reaction to the poem; for example, why you liked it (or didn’t like it). 
3. your insights about how poetic devices (figurative language, imagery, rhyme, meter, tone, etc.) contribute to the overall meaning of the poem. 

If you should have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your English teacher. Have a wonderful summer and see you in September!