Hello incoming 6th graders!
Summer is a great time for reading, and we encourage you to read as many books as possible. We hope you even make time to do some reading that is not part of a school assignment!
You have many options for obtaining your summer reading books. You can buy them, check them out from a public library, or, if you are a returning student, check them out from the Dwight library or as ebooks using Sora.
If you are a returning student and would like more information on how to use Sora to check out ebooks for summer reading, make sure to visit the Sora page on this website.
Students must read a minimum of two books, including the required book. Below we have some recommendations for the other book, or you may choose your own. Please keep a Google document with all of the books you read, and prepare to share it with your teacher by September 5th.
Everyone will read: From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks. You are expected to read this over the summer, in anticipation of an assignment you will get on the first day of school.
While these books listed below offer excellent recommendations, we also encourage you to take some time this summer to explore library shelves and visit bookstores. Discovering new books that ignite your passion for reading can be an exciting journey.
Wishing you a joyful summer of reading!
If you have any questions, or if you are not able to complete the reading before the start of school, email the Head of Middle School Humanities, Ms. Nieto, at mnieto@dwight.edu.
Zoe Washington knows a few things: she wants to be a professional baker, she usually loves summers because it means she hangs out with her neighbor Trevor every day, and she has the best mom, step-dad, and grandma around. On her 12th birthday, Zoe's world is turned upside down by the arrival of a letter from her biological dad, Marcus. He's in prison for a terrible crime... a crime he tells Zoe he never committed.
Could Marcus really be innocent? Zoe is determined to uncover the truth. Even if it means hiding his letters and her investigation from the rest of her family. While Zoe is trying to uncover the truth about Marcus, she's also interning at a real bakery, and trying to perfect her own original cupcake recipe so she can prove to her parents that she's worthy of auditioning for Food Network's Kids Bake Challenge. With bakery confections on one part of her mind, and Marcus's letters on the other, this is one recipe Zoe doesn't know how to balance by herself.
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
The Door of No Return by Kwame Alexander
Island of Spies by Sheila Turnage
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman by Gennifer Choldenko
It's All or Nothing, Vale by Andrea Beatriz Arango
Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell
Alex Wise vs. The End of the World by Terry J. Benton-Walker
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
The Last Hope School for Magical Delinquents by Nicki Pau Prieto
The Ruby Code by Jessica Khoury
The Bellwoods Game by Celia Krampien
The Liars Society by Alyson Gerber
The Westing Game by Ellen Baskin
The Amelia Six by Kristin L. Gray
Treasure Island by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Bite by Bite by Marc Aronson and Paul Friedman
Black Hole Chasers by Anna Crowley Redding
Extra Life by Steven Johnson
Abandon Ship! by Michael J. Tougias and Alison O'Leary
The Curse of the Mummy by Candace Fleming