Bethel Park High School
Summer Reading Assignments for
Honors & AP English
Embedded Files
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Summer reading is required for students enrolled in Honors or Advanced Placement English courses.
Click on each link to read the welcome letter, reading list, and any additional information.
All assigned texts should be read, along with any related work, before the start of the school year.
9th Grade Honors
This class is an accelerated English course designed for the high-achieving student who reads and writes at an advanced level and who is willing and able to work at an advanced level and pace. The main focus of this course is to assist students to strengthen and refine their skills in literary analysis, analytical writing, and oral communication.
Specifically, reading selections will encompass a variety of literary genres; major works covered include Animal Farm, Fahrenheit 451, Romeo and Juliet, Ella Minnow Pea, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Midsummer Night’s Dream. As part of the curriculum, students will also be required to complete independent reading: These works include the prerequisite summer reading works and other assigned texts during the school year.
Furthermore, students will practice writing in a variety of modes in the course; however, to prepare students for the work required in future English honors and advanced placement courses, student writing will predominantly focus on practicing the composition of persuasive literary analysis essays. Please enjoy our summer reading list.
Mrs. Williams
10th Grade Honors
Course message from Ms. Totty & Mr. Casagranda
Summer Reading list and additional information.
*LeighAnn: ADD ALL THESE DIRECTIONS TO A SINGLE DOCUMENT ON THE INFORMATION LINK, please. I don't want to have a lot of instructions on this website page. Thank you.
eText Folder of Pride & Prejudice in 3 Volumes, plus Glossary
Optional P&P Study Guide: Click and when it opens go to file-make a copy and answer the material in the new file that belongs to you. This is optional.
Pride and Prejudice audio in 44 parts: This audio link was created four years by an actress, J. Ehle. She played Elizabeth Bennet in a film production of Pride and Prejudice. This is a supplement to your reading of the text. Begin with Part 1, then continue if it is to your liking.
11th Grade Honors
Welcome to English 11 Honors! In this project-based course, we will explore all genres of American literature, beginning with two summer reading novels. Please read and complete the summer reading requirements and browse our course website to get a sense of what we'll be studying next school year. Email me at bellini.mike@bphawks.org if you have any questions.
11th Grade AP Language & Composition
Welcome to AP English Language and Composition! This year-long curriculum emphasizes the development of college-level writing skills while also providing an overview of American literature. To qualify for this class, students must be eager to learn and expand their awareness. Curriculum and the summer assignments are centered around fiction, nonfiction, and current events. Please prepare for class by completing the tasks outlined in this letter.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Bouch
12th Grade Honors
Welcome to 12th Grade Honors English! In this accelerated, discussion- and writing-based course, students will explore a wide range of literature, including fiction, poetry, drama, film, and nonfiction from both ancient and contemporary contexts. Through thematic and comparative studies, students will examine how literature reflects cultural values, human experiences, and enduring ideas that continue to influence society today. Literary analysis will be paired with intensive writing, research, and critical thinking, including analytical essays, creative and reflective writing, and a formal literary research paper. Please read this summer reading list for the requirements of the course.
Mr. Wilson
12th Grade AP Literature & Composition
AP Literature is a skills-based literature survey course, focusing on the skills - character, setting, structure, narration, figurative language, and literary argumentation, that require students to closely read and intellectually interact with exemplar texts. The course of study focuses on reading fiction, drama, and poetry, analyzing, and discussing these texts orally and in writing.
Overall, this year’s study is structured with the “Enduring Understandings,” knowledge, and skills as outlined in The College Board program in preparation for the Exam. Regardless of whether students take the AP Literature and Composition exam in May, this course provides clarity and practice on how to analyze literature and how to discuss those understandings in well-organized responses that are based on textual evidence. Practically every week a student is reading a class text, independent long fiction, and writing analytically, and sometimes creatively. Class work and intellectual products in the course include AP exam practices, paragraphs, essays, poems, journal entries, and research paper work. Please enjoy your summer reading list and course website.
Mrs. Williams
If you have questions about summer reading or experience issues with this webpage, please contact BPHS ELA Curriculum Facilitator, Christopher Jack, by calling the high school at 412-854-8581.
English Language Arts Texts Selection
Literary texts in the BPHS English Language Arts courses are thoughtfully selected by English faculty, then reviewed and approved by District administrators. English teachers consider the contribution that each work may make to the education of the reader, its aesthetic value, its authenticity, its readability for a particular group of students, and its appeal to adolescents. The approved curriculum includes classic and contemporary texts selected particularly to equip students for their future as citizens in a democratic society and readers in post-secondary study. In acknowledging that all texts may not suit all students alike in style and substance, English teachers respect the right of individuals to be selective in their own reading while opposing efforts of individuals or groups to limit the freedom of choice or to impose their own standards or tastes upon the students at large. Students or parents who find a particular text not suited to their needs are advised to see their teacher and select an alternative text for independent study.
Click here to view the Bethel Park School District 2026-2027 Course Description Guide
Make the Most of your Year and add an English Elective.
Make the Most of your Year and add an English Elective.
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