Independent Novel Study Booklet
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
INDEPENDENT NOVEL STUDY
Name: ___________________
Grade: _____
In this English Language Arts course, you will be required to complete an independent novel study on a novel of your choice. You are to have your novel approved by your teacher to ensure it is appropriate content as well as a suitable fit for your reading level. Your due date will be at the end of your first semester and decided within the first week of classes! This leaves you with a sufficient amount of time and understanding of hand in expectations, which means this is a hard deadline!
There are three parts to this novel study. Please see below for a brief description of each:
- Record of Reading- keep track of the reading you do in order to complete the novel. If you change your novel due to lack of interest in your original choice, this should be recorded on this chart as well. You are also to record any time you spent working on journal entries or summary projects.
- Journal Entries- this is your opportunity to showcase your ability to reflect on what you read and evidence of drawing connections to the novel. Journal entries should be a well written paragraph and you should have at least 5 completed in this booklet. You can include your opinions on a character’s actions or topics in the book that spark your interest. Your journal entries should reflect the same dates as your Record of Reading chart.
- Summary Projects- these will be summative assessments based on the four main elements of fiction. These include plot, setting, theme, and characters. I have provided a chart to give you different choices in what you would like to create. You will choose one project from each row. If you have an alternative idea that is not on the chart, run it by me to make sure it will work! You will present your completed 4-part summary project to your class prior to or on the due date.
In order to have a mark of completion, all parts of this booklet must be completed. This is not an assignment to save until the last minute. Your novel must be a “good fit” book and based on the amount of time given to complete, it is expected to be done thoroughly and well.
| Novel Choice: | Teacher Approval Initial: |
| Change in Novel Choice: (if applicable) | Teacher Approval Initial: |
Goal Setting
I intend to start reading my novel on _________________________________________________
My plan for working through all aspects of this assignment is to ____________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
I will be done my project on the date of ____________________________________
I will present my project on the date of _____________________________________
*Keep in mind that if the whole class chooses to present the same day (ex. the due date), we may have to draw names to ensure there is enough time for everyone to share and it may result in not getting your chosen presentation date.*
Goals for Reading:
- Making Connections: Draw similarities and differences between what you read and your own personal experience/life (text to self), events or elements of the real world or movies (text to world), or another story, novel, or text you know of or have read (text to text).
- Questioning: Ask yourself thick questions about the elements of the novel or the author’s purpose. Think who, what, when, where, why, how.
- Visualizing: Consider how sometimes when we read a novel and then go to watch the movie based on it, we are taken back by the differences in what we pictured in our mind and what the movie shows. Sometimes we picture characters differently based on the descriptions in the novel or we see the setting differently. Making mental pictures in our minds helps us make sense of the events of the novel. Try to sketch something from the novel that stood out as a clear picture in your mind and give a brief description.
- Predicting: Predict what you think might happen next in the story. Include evidence from the novel to support why your prediction is reasonable.
- Making Inferences: When you infer, you use your prior knowledge (schema) to draw conclusions about different parts of the story. Try to answer the questions you come up with as you continue to read. These answers could be guesses backed up with evidence from the story. For example, you could make an inference about why you think a character did something in the novel and use what you know about that kind of behaviour to back up your answer. You could also make inferences about the meaning of different words or phrases based on hearing them before and comparing them to the context they are used in the novel.
- Determining Importance: Pick 1-3 main ideas you gathered from the reading you did. For each main idea, use 3 supporting details to show why it was a significant part of the reading.
- Summarizing: Give a short summary of what you read in your own words.
Record of Reading
| Date | Purpose of Reading (#1-7 from Goals for Reading) | Chapters/ Pages Read | Evidence of Goal (If choosing #1, journal entries will be evidence so use this box to indicate which type of connection your journal entry is for these chapters.) |
Record of Reading
| Date | Purpose of Reading (#1-7 from Goals for Reading) | Chapters/ Pages Read | Evidence of Goal |
Record of Reading
| Date | Purpose of Reading (#1-7 from Goals for Reading) | Chapters/ Pages Read | Evidence of Goal |
Journal Entries
| Date: | Chapters/ Pages Read: |
| Date: | Chapters/ Pages Read: |
| Date: | Chapters/ Pages Read: |
Journal Entries
| Date: | Chapters/ Pages Read: |
| Date: | Chapters/ Pages Read: |
| Date: | Chapters/ Pages Read: |
Summary Projects
| Choice Board- Remember to choose one project per row. Consider the rubric on following page. | |||
| Setting time/place | Create a model, map, or diorama of the town/place where the story takes place. Give specific details. Include a paragraph that explains the setting. | Research a topic (person, thing, idea, event, etc.) brought up in your novel. Create a paragraph, PowerPoint, brochure, or poster board to share the new information you found. | Make an illustrated timeline showing at least 6-8 shifts in setting throughout the book. |
| Charactersprotagonistand antagonist | Create a Facebook or Instagram page (on paper or online) for one of the major characters in your book. Be sure to make your profile very specific and reveal details about your character. | What do you have in common with the characters in the story? Include personal traits, physical traits, actions, family situations, etc. Create a thinking map (ex. Venn diagram) to show your comparison using pictures as well as words. Make sure you explain your comparisons clearly. | Write a poem about one of the characters. Be sure to include at least five facts and details about the character. |
| Plotevents | Identify an important conflict in the novel and compare/contrast it to a similar experience from your own life. You can do this using a Venn Diagram or another method of your choice. Make sure that your ideas are clear! | Write a script depicting an important scene from the novel. Make sure that your script is accurate in characterization, dialogue, etc. You may work with classmates to act out the scene for the class. | Create a comic strip for an important scene in the novel focusing on an important conflict. You must include dialogue that is appropriate for the characters, setting, and/or plot. |
| Thememoral message/ lesson | Using a famous quotations website, find a | Find several songs you think reflect an important message from the book. Print out the lyrics for the songs and write a paragraph explaining how these songs express the book’s meaning. | Create a multi-media presentation that fully explores a key theme from the novel. Use at least 3 media (ex. painting, poetry, music, photography, drama, sculpture, etc.). Include a paragraph that explains your creations and how they represent the theme. |
| Additional Summary Project Ideas: Personal/ Narrative Essay, Character Letters, Open-Mind Portraits, Musical Compositions, Picture Book, Cereal Box Summaries, Paper Bag Representations, Character Interviews, Book Review. *Ask Ms Smith for clarification on any of interest! | |||
Self Evaluation
On a scale of 1 to 5, how much effort do you feel you put into your Independent Novel Study?
Minimum 1 2 3 4 5 Maximum
Why do you choose this number?
Was your novel a “good fit” book? No, Too Easy. Yep, Just Right. Too Challenging.
Did you follow your Goal Setting plans to complete? Not really. Sometimes. YES!