Advanced Placement Language and Composition

American School of Kuwait

Mrs. Sherine Aboelezz
Email: aboelezzs@ask.edu.kw
Summer Assignment
Welcome to AP Language and Composition!
I commend you on your decision to challenge yourself this upcoming year. While this
summer assignment is rigorous, keep in mind that it is not meant to torture you. Rather,
it is intended to give you a glimpse into what will be in store for you in AP Language and
Composition. Please note that ALL parts of the summer assignment are due on the first
day of class. This summer assignment will count as a formative grade when you return,
while a major quiz on rhetorical and grammatical terms will be administered the first
week and will count as a summative grade. Failure to complete the summer assignment
will result in the removal from the course. All work should be formatted using MLA
guidelines: typed (12 point, Times New Roman font), double spaced, 1 margins (2.5
cm) on all sides, etc. All work must be submitted to turnitin.com through our class
moodle. You may email me with any questions.
Part I: Read and Complete the Tasks for Chapter 1: An Introduction to Rhetoric
You must read, and annotate, the first chapter of the AP Language textbook. A scanned
copy of the first chapter will be provided on Moodle. This chapter is the foundation for
the course. You are not responsible for the Tone Words just yet. The Best in Class
piece by Margaret Talbot will be the first assignment given our first week back to school.
I provided it just in case you wanted a head start. Upon reading this chapter, you must
complete the below task:
1) You must type up a SOAPSTone analysis for Tribute to the Dog by George Graham
Vest (located after the chapter). A SOAPSTone graphic organizer will be provided to
assist you through this process. A rubric is provided alongside this summer assignment.
You are encouraged to watch Youtube instructional videos on SOAPSTone. A welldeveloped paragraph must be written for each category (S.O.A.P.S.Tone/Minimum of
Six Paragraphs) in response to the speech. Type this all up on a Word Document and
submit it to turnitin.com on our class moodle account.

Part II: Read a Non-Fiction Book and Complete the Provided Tasks

You must read ONE of the following non-fiction books over the summer:

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

Upon reading the book, you will complete a SOAPSTone evaluation of

the text. A paragraph, with textual evidence, must be written for each
element (S.O.A.P.S.Tone). A rubric is included alongside this summer
assignment. The assignment must be no less than six paragraphs.
Follow the below format and submit your writing on turnitin.com
through our class moodle account.
FORMAT:

Speaker: Think about who the speaker is and what he or she NEEDS to communicate
to the reader. Answer the following:
Introductory Facts (authors background and relationship to the topic, bias, etc)
Ethos- How does the speaker establish credibility and character on the given topic?
Note words that show the authors attitudes and/or bias. Are there shifts in attitude or is
it consistent?
Note when the author directly states what he/she feels about the topic

Occasion: Think about what caused the author to write this topic. Answer the following:
The authors reasons for writing- what is his/her motivation for writing on this topic?
Historical, Social, Political issues that are occurring at the time that this issue is taking
place
What are the authors personal reasons for writing this piece?
What are the characteristics of the time period and culture that this piece takes place
What are some of the stereotypes and biases of the people and time that the piece is
written?
Audience: Think about the person or people the author intended to view this piece. Is
the author able to communicate with the audience effectively?
Evidence of who the author is trying to reach
Any places where the author directly addresses a specific audience (remember there
can be more than one audience)
Any call to action that the author is issuing to the audience
Pathos- does the author appeal to your sense of emotion through any anecdotes and
figurative language?

Purpose: Think about the authors purpose in writing this book and whether or not
he/she is effective in that purpose.
Specific reasons for writing (informing, persuading, arguing, refuting, exemplifying)
There can be multiple purposes
Logos- How does the author appeal to reason? How does the author make you believe
in his/her purpose?
Subject: Think about what the book is discussing and whether the author shows you
why this subject is important.
How does the author deepen or show the importance of the issue
How the author shows the complications of the issue and the implications it will have on
you, a country, the world, etc.
Tone: What is the attitude of the author towards the subject matter being discussed?
Is the author emotional, objective, neutral, or biased about this topic?
What types of details tell the authors feelings about the topic?
What types of diction (choice of words), syntax (sentence structure), and
imagery (metaphors, similes, and other types of figurative language) help reflect the
tone?
How would you read the passage aloud if you were the author?

Rhetorical Devices: Look over your rhetorical terms, and find three different examples
of rhetorical devices found in your text. Quote and label the four devices found.
What effect does each of the devices you identified have on the audience? Explain
your answer.

Subject

Your
identification of
the subject is
reasonable and
you support it
with reference to
the document.

Your
identification of
the subject is
reasonable, but
you do not
support it with
any reference to
the document.

Your
identification of
the subject is
not reasonable.

Your
identification of
the subject is
missing.

Occasion

Your

Your

Your

You do not

Criteria

explanation of
both the time
and place is
probable and
you support it
with reference to
the document.

explanation of
both the time
and place is
probable, but
you do not
support it with
any reference to
the document.

explanation of
both the time
and place is not
probable.

explain time or
place.

Audience

Your
identification of
the intended
audience(s) is
reasonable and
you support it
with reference to
the document.

Your
identification of
the intended
audience(s) is
reasonable, but
you do not
support it with
any reference to
the document.

Your
identification of
the intended
audience(s) is
not reasonable.

You do not
identify the
intended
audience(s).

Purpose

Your
explanation of
the
author/creators
purpose(s) is
believable and
you support it
with reference to
the document.

Your
explanation of
the
author/creators
purpose(s) is
believable, but
you do not
support it with
any reference to
the document.

Your
explanation of
the
author/creators
purpose is not
believable.

Your explanation
of the
author/creators
purpose is
missing.

Speaker

Your
identification of
the author is
clear, and you
explain the
credibility of the
author by
referring to the
document

Your
identification of
the author is
clear, but you do
not support the
credibility of the
author with any
reference to the
document.

Your
identification of
the
author/creator is
not clear.

You do not
identify the
author/creator.

Tone

Your
identification of

Your
identification of

Your
identification of

You do not
identify the tone

the authors
tone is clear,
and you use
textual evidence
to explain how
you identified
the tone

the tone is clear, the tone is not

but you do not
clear.
support the tone
with reference to
the document

of the passage
or text.

Part III: Read and Study Sentenced for Life

You are responsible for understanding all of the grammatical rules detailed in the
chapter. The below grammar website (Grammar Bytes) provides a lot of interactive
practice and lessons: http://www.chompchomp.com/menu.htm
Be prepared for a major quiz on this topic the first week of school.

Part IV: Memorize the List of Rhetorical Terms

Be prepared for a major quiz on this topic the first week of school. Terms are outlined in
the first chapter of the textbook (on Moodle) and in the Rhetorical Handbook (also on
Moodle). You will only be responsible for the following terms (below) for the quiz:
AP LANGUAGE RHETORICAL TERMS
Antithesis

Anaphora
Allusion
Analogy
Euphemism
Hyperbole
Juxtaposition
Paradox
Pun
Understatement
Rhetorical Question
Ethos
Pathos
Logos