Summer Reading & Supply Lists

Dear Kindergarten Student and Family, 

Your kindergarten teachers would like to welcome you to Abby Kelley Foster. We are very excited to meet you and look forward to working with you and your classmates. Please note that the first day of school for Kindergartners will be a full day on August 24th, and we will expect you here between 8:30-8:45 a.m. each day. Students will be marked tardy after 8:45 a.m. Please plan your transportation accordingly.  More information about the start date will be sent over the summer.

The updated bus schedule is available on the school website. If you would like to make any changes to your child’s dismissal, please contact Mrs. Jenn Giusto, Assistant Principal, at 508-854-8400 x2628 or via email at [email protected].

Here are a few classroom supplies that you will need to bring with you on the first day of school. Please remember to label personal items with your child’s first and last name. Please be aware that some of the supplies are used daily and will need frequent replenishment. In addition, please visit our school website for suggested summer reading books.

Student School Supplies:

• two (2) big pink erasers

• eight (8) glue sticks

• one (1) 1-inch white three-ring binder (for their Portfolio)

• change of clothes labeled with your child’s name (please include shirt, pants, socks, and underwear, does not need to be uniform)

Classroom Supplies:

• • three (3) packages of unscented baby wipes
  • one (1) package of napkins

• one box of Ziploc baggies (gallon size)

• one box of Ziploc baggies (sandwich size)

Optional (recommended): 

• 8/10 count package of markers

• Wired Headphones (must be able to plug into a Chromebook)

Please note that due to safety concerns, parents will not be able to go into their child’s homeroom on the first day of school. Please remember to label all supplies with your child’s name and homeroom teacher so they can be delivered to the correct classroom. Thank you for your understanding. 

If you need additional information, please visit our website at www.akfcs.org throughout the summer for updated information. We are very excited to meet you, and we hope you enjoy your summer and will be ready to start school full of energy and enthusiasm! 

Sincerely, 

The Kindergarten Team 

Mrs. Michelle Champagne ([email protected])

Mrs. Tasha Gosselin ([email protected])

Mrs. Lisa Joslyn ([email protected])

Mrs. Lucy Marcil ([email protected])

Mrs. Cindy Prest ([email protected])

Ms. Kristin Sherwood ([email protected])

 

K-3 Summer Reading List- 2023

Dear First Grader,

All of us First Grade teachers at Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School would like to welcome you to First Grade. Please note that the first day of school will be a full day on Wednesday, August 23, 2023, and we will expect you here between 8:25-8:40 a.m. each day. Remember that students will be marked tardy after 8:45 a.m. Please plan your transportation accordingly.

The updated bus schedule is available on the school website. If you would like to make any changes to your child’s dismissal, please contact Jenn Giusto at 508-854-8400 x2628 or via email at [email protected] before the start of the school year.

Here are a few classroom supplies that you will need to bring with you on the first day of school. In addition, please see our Kindergarten-Grade 3 Summer Reading List at akfcs.com.

Student School Supplies:

• one (1) 1-inch white 3-ring binder with a clear plastic view cover (for their Portfolio)
• three (3) boxes of 16 or 24 crayons
• two (2) packs of thin Expo dry-erase markers
• two (2) pairs of scissors

We are asking that all student school supplies come in a gallon Ziplock bag labeled with your child’s name and homeroom teacher on it (otherwise, you will need to label each item with their name). Classroom and wish list items can come in any bag. Supplies not requested (markers, pencils with designs, etc.) may be sent back home at the teacher’s discretion.

Optional (recommended): 

• • standard #2 yellow pencils (sharpened)

• extra Expo dry-erase markers

Information regarding supply drop-off will be emailed to families in August. Please remember to label all supplies with your child’s name and homeroom teacher so they can be delivered to the correct classroom. Thank you for your understanding.

If you need additional information, please visit our website at www.akfcs.org throughout the summer for updated information. We are very excited to meet you! We hope you enjoy your summer and return to school full of energy and enthusiasm for the new school year. 

Sincerely,

The First Grade Team

Ms. Danielle Armiger ([email protected])

Ms. Crystal Eager ([email protected])

Ms. Jillian Fiore ([email protected]) 

Ms. Kayla Mezzano ([email protected]) and Ms. Allyssa Boykin ([email protected])

Mrs. Katie Mossetty ([email protected]) 

Ms. Elisa Williams  ([email protected])

 

K-3 Summer Reading List- 2023

Dear Second Grader,

Next year is going to be a big year for you. We will see some old faces and make some new friends. We will be learning so many new things!  In addition, you will have a lot more responsibility in second grade. It will be a big change, but we know you are ready for these new challenges. Please note that the first day of school will be a full day on Wednesday, August 23, 2023, and we will expect you here between 8:30-8:45 a.m. each day.  Remember that students will be marked tardy after 8:45 a.m. Please plan your transportation accordingly.

The updated bus schedule is available on the school website. If you would like to make any changes to your child’s dismissal, please contact Jenn Giusto at 508-854-8400 x2628 or via email at [email protected] before the start of the school year.

Here are a few classroom supplies that you will need to bring with you on the first day of school. In addition, please see our Kindergarten-Grade 3 Summer Reading List at akfcs.com.

Student School Supplies:

• one (1) 1-inch white binder with a clear plastic view cover (for their Portfolio)
• one (1) pencil bag (soft)
• two (2) pairs of scissors
• fifteen (15) EXPO thin dry-erase markers (black, blue, green, or red only)
• three (3) packages of crayons (24 counts or smaller)

We are asking that all student school supplies come in a gallon Ziplock bag labeled with your child’s name and homeroom teacher on it (otherwise, you will need to label each item with their name). Classroom and wish list items can come in any bag. Supplies not requested (markers, pencils with designs, etc.) may be sent back home at the teacher’s discretion.

Optional (recommended): 

• wired or wireless computer mouse

• • standard yellow #2 pencils (sharpened)

• baby Wipes

• clear plastic page protectors

Information regarding supply drop-off will be emailed to families in August. Please remember to label all supplies with your child’s name and homeroom teacher so they can be delivered to the correct classroom. Thank you for your understanding.

If you need additional information, please visit our website at www.akfcs.org throughout the summer for updated information. We are very excited to meet you! We hope you enjoy your summer and return to school full of energy and enthusiasm for the new school year. 

Sincerely,

The Second Grade Team

Mrs. Kristen Chicoine ([email protected]) 

Ms. Erin Comber ([email protected])

Mrs. Danielle Frommer ([email protected]) & Ms. Kathryn Lipscomb ([email protected]) 

Ms. Kelsie Payne ([email protected])

Ms. Lisa Salonich ([email protected])

Ms. Emily Stone ([email protected])

 

 

 

K-3 Summer Reading List- 2023

Dear Third Grader,

Next year is going to be a special year for you. We will be learning so many new things, making new friends, and setting a good example for the younger grades! We know you are ready for these new challenges. Please note that the first day of school will be a full day on Wednesday, August 23, 2023, and we will expect you here between 8:30-8:45 a.m. each day. Remember that students will be marked tardy after 8:45 a.m. Please plan your transportation accordingly.

The updated bus schedule is available on the school website. If you would like to make any changes to your child’s dismissal, please contact Jenn Giusto at 508-854-8400 x2628 or via email at [email protected] before the start of the school year.

Here are a few classroom supplies that you will need to bring with you on the first day of school. In addition, please visit our school website for suggested summer reading books.

Student School Supplies:

• one (1) one-inch, 3-ring, black binder with clear plastic view cover (for their Portfolio)
• one (1) pack of clear, plastic page protectors with 3-hole punches along the side
• one (1) pencil bag (soft)
• one (1) pair of scissors
• two (2) packages of dry-erase markers (black, blue, green, or red only)
• one (1) box of crayons
• one (1) pack of washable markers
• four (4) glue sticks
• fifty (50) standard #2 pencils (sharpened)

We are asking that all student school supplies come in a gallon Ziplock bag labeled with your child’s name and homeroom teacher on it (otherwise, you will need to label each item with their name). Classroom and wish list items can come in any bag. Supplies not requested (markers, pencils with designs, etc.) may be sent back home at the teacher’s discretion.

Optional (recommended): 

• wired or wireless computer mouse

• dry erase markers
• Elmer’s glue
• paper plates, cups, plastic utensils

Information regarding supply drop-off will be emailed in August. Please remember to label all supplies with your child’s name and homeroom teacher so they can be delivered to the correct classroom. Thank you for your understanding.

If you need additional information, please visit our website at www.akfcs.org throughout the summer for updated information. We are very excited to meet you! We hope you enjoy your summer and return to school full of energy and enthusiasm for the new school year. 

Sincerely,

The Third Grade Team

Ms. Lindsay Burns ([email protected]) 

Ms. Kaitlyn Greenwood ([email protected]) 

Ms. Stephanie Harms ([email protected])

Miss Hannah LaLancette ([email protected]) and Mrs. Laurie Bento ([email protected]) 

Mr. Peter Magerowski ([email protected]) 

Ms. Mackenzie Woll ([email protected]) 

K-3 Summer Reading List- 2023

Congratulations, you are now a fourth grader! The fourth-grade teachers hope you have a great summer and that you will be excited about returning to a brand-new school.  We are going to have a lot of fun next year.  Please note that the first day of school will be August 23, 2023.  The middle school doors open at 7:05 a.m., and students will be marked tardy after 7:25 a.m.  

In order to be prepared for next year, you will have to do some work over the summer. Please reference the 4th and 5th summer choice book reading list that your student received at the end of 3rd grade. You will need to pick at least one book from this list to read.  You will also be required to pass in a summer reading response booklet within the first two days of the new school year for the choice book. If you can not find your copy of this assignment, you can join the Summer Reading google classroom using the code: iitnjzj. If you need additional information, please reference our Middle School website. In addition to your summer reading don’t forget to practice math!  You should memorize the addition and subtraction facts (1-12) as well as multiplication facts (1-12) before the start of school.

All fourth-grade students should bring in classroom supplies, art supplies, and student school supplies on the first day of school.  The student school supplies were chosen with the intent to help students develop organizational skills.  

Art Supplies:

• One pair of scissors
• 6 pack of Elmer’s glue sticks
• 1 set of crayons
• 1 set of markers

Student School Supplies:

• One sturdy folder of students’ choice
• 1 – 1 subject notebooks
• One composition notebook
• Four packages of pencils, 12 pack or more
• 2 – 4 pack black EXPO markers
• One package of pencil top erasers
• Soft-sided pencil case with zipper

 Additional Supplies and Materials:

• One-box sandwich or quart-size Ziploc bags
• Plastic water bottle

Please remember to label all supplies with your child’s name and homeroom teacher (listed above) so they can be delivered to the correct classroom.

For information about the middle school bus routes, please visit the school website at www.akfcs.org (click on “Parents/ Students” then “Bus Routes”) or contact Brian Gero, MS Assistant Principal, at 508-854-8400 x2647.

We appreciate you following the mandatory supply list in order to ensure your child will be ready for Fourth Grade.  Thank you in advance for helping make this a successful school year.

Sincerely,

The Fourth Grade Team

Incoming Grade 4 Summer Reading- 2023

Every student attending Abby Kelley Foster Charter Middle School is REQUIRED to read one book of choice from the list and complete a book journal before the school year begins.  

Students who read more than one book, and complete a book journal for each additional book, will be invited to a movie night at the high school in September.

Choice Book Summer Reading Assignment 

For this year’s summer reading, you will complete a book journal around the book you have chosen from the Choice Book List.  You must complete the front and back cover of the journal and 6 out of the ten questions inside the journal.  This will be your “ticket” to our annual pizza lunch book group.  Students who do not complete their journals will not be allowed to participate in the pizza party book clubs. The journal can be found in the Summer Reading Google Classroom or on the AKFCS website and is due to your homeroom teacher no later than August 31.   

Journal to print: Click this link

Journal Digital: Click this link and make a copy 

Incoming 4th Grade Choice Book List  

(All students must read at least one book during the summer and must complete the journal provided)

The Unforgettable Logan Foster   by: Shawn Peters       *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) An undersized 12-year-old orphan named Logan has an eidetic (photographic) memory, zero filters, and a belief that someday he’ll find the younger sibling he was separated from when he was three years old. When a seemingly boring couple, Gil and Margie, bring him home, Logan notices some odd details. While he’s trying to put his observations together to form a rational explanation, the family is attacked by an earthquake-making supervillain, and he realizes his foster parents are superheroes.

Odder  by: Katherine Applegate                    *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) Inspired by the true story of a Monterey Bay Aquarium program that pairs orphaned otter pups with surrogate mothers, this humorous tale told in free verse examines bravery and healing through the eyes of one of nature’s most beloved and charming animals. Odder spends her days off the coast of central California, practicing her underwater acrobatics and telling quirky stories for which she’s known. She’s a fearless daredevil, curious to a fault. But when Odder comes face-to-face with a hungry great white shark, her life takes a dramatic turn, one that will challenge everything she believes about herself―and about the humans who hope to save her.

Just Right Jillian  by Nicole Collier                 *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) Fifth-grader Jillian will do just about anything to blend in, including staying quiet even when she has the right answer. After she loses a classroom competition because she won’t speak up, she sets her mind on winning her school’s biggest competition. But breaking out of her shell is easier said than done, and Jillian has only a month to keep her promise to her grandmother and prove to herself that she can speak up and show everyone her true self.

When Winter Robeson Came by Brenda Woods            *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) When Eden’s cousin Winter comes for a visit, it turns out he’s not just there to sightsee. He wants to figure out what happened to his dad, who disappeared ten years earlier from the Watts area of L.A. So the cousins set out to investigate together, and what they discover brings them joy–and heartache. It also opens up a whole new understanding of their world, just as the area they’ve got their sights on explodes in a clash between the police and the Black residents. For six days, Watts is like a war zone, and Eden and Winter become heroes in their own part of the drama. Eden hopes to be a composer someday, and the only way she can describe that summer is a song with an unexpected ending, full of changes in tempo and mood–totally unforgettable.

A True Home: Heartwood Hotel #1  by: Kallie George When Mona the Mouse stumbles across the wondrous world of the Heartwood Hotel in the middle of a storm, she desperately hopes they’ll let her stay. As it turns out, Mona is precisely the maid they need at the grandest hotel in Fernwood Forest, where animals come from far and wide for safety, luxury, and comfort. But the Heartwood Hotel is not all acorn souffle and soft moss-lined beds. Danger lurks, and as it approaches, Mona finds that this hotel is more than a warm place to spend the night. It might also be a home.

Front Desk  by Kelly Yang               Front Desk YouTube read aloud     *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old Mia manages the front desk of the Calivista Motel and tends to its guests. Number 2: Her parents hide immigrants. And if the mean motel owner, Mr. Yao, finds out they’ve been letting them stay in the empty rooms for free, the Tangs will be doomed. Number 3: She wants to be a writer. But how can she when her mom thinks she should stick to math because English is not her first language? It will take all of Mia’s courage, kindness, and hard work to get through this year. Will she be able to hold on to her job, help the immigrants and guests, escape Mr. Yao, and go for her dreams?

5th Grade Supply List 

2023-2024

• Earbuds (these are required for multimedia instruction and assessment)-in-school and home use
• Pack of 3-hole punched lined paper (1)
• Glue sticks (3)
• Pencils (3 dozen)
• Pencil top erasers
• Highlighters -multi-colored pack
• Fabric zipper pencil pouch 
• Colored pencils
• Expo dry-erase markers (1 package)
• Composition or single-subject notebooks (for Math)

 

 

 

 

Incoming Grade 5 Summer Reading- 2023

Every student attending Abby Kelley Foster Charter Middle School is REQUIRED to read one book of choice from the list and complete a book journal before the school year begins.  

Students who read more than one book, and complete a book journal for each additional book, will be invited to a movie night at the high school in September.

Choice Book Summer Reading Assignment 

For this year’s summer reading, you will complete a book journal around the book you have chosen from the Choice Book List.  You must complete the front and back cover of the journal and 6 out of the ten questions inside the journal.  This will be your “ticket” to our annual pizza lunch book group.  Students who do not complete their journals will not be allowed to participate in the pizza party book clubs. The journal can be found in the Summer Reading Google Classroom or on the AKFCS website and is due to your homeroom teacher no later than August 31.   

Journal to print: Click this link

Journal Digital: Click this link and make a copy 

Incoming 5th Grade Choice Book List  

(All students must read at least one book during the summer and must complete the journal provided)

The Unforgettable Logan Foster   by: Shawn Peters       *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) An undersized 12-year-old orphan named Logan has an eidetic (photographic) memory, zero filters, and a belief that someday he’ll find the younger sibling he was separated from when he was three years old. When a seemingly boring couple, Gil and Margie, bring him home, Logan notices some odd details. While he’s trying to put his observations together to form a rational explanation, the family is attacked by an earthquake-making supervillain, and he realizes his foster parents are superheroes.

Odder  by: Katherine Applegate                    *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) Inspired by the true story of a Monterey Bay Aquarium program that pairs orphaned otter pups with surrogate mothers, this humorous tale told in free verse examines bravery and healing through the eyes of one of nature’s most beloved and charming animals. Odder spends her days off the coast of central California, practicing her underwater acrobatics and telling quirky stories for which she’s known. She’s a fearless daredevil, curious to a fault. But when Odder comes face-to-face with a hungry great white shark, her life takes a dramatic turn, one that will challenge everything she believes about herself―and about the humans who hope to save her.

Just Right Jillian  by Nicole Collier                 *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) Fifth-grader Jillian will do just about anything to blend in, including staying quiet even when she has the right answer. After she loses a classroom competition because she won’t speak up, she sets her mind on winning her school’s biggest competition. But breaking out of her shell is easier said than done, and Jillian has only a month to keep her promise to her grandmother and prove to herself that she can speak up and show everyone her true self.

When Winter Robeson Came by Brenda Woods            *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) When Eden’s cousin Winter comes for a visit, it turns out he’s not just there to sightsee. He wants to figure out what happened to his dad, who disappeared ten years earlier from the Watts area of L.A. So the cousins set out to investigate together, and what they discover brings them joy–and heartache. It also opens up a whole new understanding of their world, just as the area they’ve got their sights on explodes in a clash between the police and the Black residents. For six days, Watts is like a war zone, and Eden and Winter become heroes in their own part of the drama. Eden hopes to be a composer someday, and the only way she can describe that summer is a song with an unexpected ending, full of changes in tempo and mood–totally unforgettable.

A True Home: Heartwood Hotel #1  by: Kallie George When Mona the Mouse stumbles across the wondrous world of the Heartwood Hotel in the middle of a storm, she desperately hopes they’ll let her stay. As it turns out, Mona is precisely the maid they need at the grandest hotel in Fernwood Forest, where animals come from far and wide for safety, luxury, and comfort. But the Heartwood Hotel is not all acorn souffle and soft moss-lined beds. Danger lurks, and as it approaches, Mona finds that this hotel is more than a warm place to spend the night. It might also be a home.

Front Desk  by Kelly Yang               Front Desk YouTube read aloud     *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old Mia manages the front desk of the Calivista Motel and tends to its guests. Number 2: Her parents hide immigrants. And if the mean motel owner, Mr. Yao, finds out they’ve been letting them stay in the empty rooms for free, the Tangs will be doomed. Number 3: She wants to be a writer. But how can she when her mom thinks she should stick to math because English is not her first language? It will take all of Mia’s courage, kindness, and hard work to get through this year. Will she be able to hold on to her job, help the immigrants and guests, escape Mr. Yao, and go for her dreams?

Grade 6 Supply List 

General Supplies 

1. Colored Pencils 
2. Glue Sticks 
3. #2 Pencils 
4. One ORANGE Homework Folder 
5. Highlighter 
6. Headphones/Earbuds

Math

1. Two GREEN Single Subject Notebooks (not composition notebooks)
2. One GREEN pocket folder 
3. Dry-erase markers (One  package)

History

1. One BLUE single-subject notebook
2. One BLUE Pocket folder 

ELA

1. One BLACK notebook
2. One YELLOW pocket folder 

Science 

1. One MARBLED composition notebook
2. One pocket folder

 

 

Incoming Grade 6 Summer Reading – 2023

Every student attending Abby Kelley Foster Charter Middle School is REQUIRED to read one book of choice from the list and complete a book journal before the school year begins.  

Students who read more than one book, and complete a book journal for each additional book, will be invited to a movie night at the high school in September.

Choice Book Summer Reading Assignment 

For this year’s summer reading, you will complete a book journal around the book you have chosen from the Choice Book List.  You must complete the front and back cover of the journal and 6 out of the 10 questions inside the journal.  This will be your “ticket” to our annual pizza lunch book group.  Students who do not complete their journals will not be allowed to participate in the pizza party book clubs. The journal can be found in the Summer Reading Google Classroom or on the AKFCS website and is due to your homeroom teacher no later than August 31.    

Journal to print: Click this link

Journal Digital: Click this link and make a copy 

Incoming 6th Grade Choice Book List  (All students must read at least one during the summer and must complete the journal provided)

The Unforgettable Logan Foster   by: Shawn Peters         *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) An undersized 12-year-old orphan named Logan has an eidetic (photographic) memory, zero filters, and a belief that someday he’ll find the younger sibling he was separated from when he was three years old. When a seemingly boring couple, Gil and Margie, bring him home, Logan notices some odd details. While he’s trying to put his observations together to form a rational explanation, the family is attacked by an earthquake-making supervillain, and he realizes his foster parents are superheroes.

The Other Half of Happy  by: Rebecca Balcarcel 12-year-old Quijana likes to say that she used to be Pangaea. Unsplit. Not half white or half Latina. But that was before her Guatemalan cousins moved to town and before her dad asked her to speak some Spanish. Now her continents are splitting apart. Let’s face it; when you’re named after Spain’s most famous loser, Don Quixote, you might make a secret escape plan. Join Quijana as she navigates between the Anglo and Guatemalan sides of her family, gets a cool new friend and a blooming crush, and tries to figure out what’s going on with her little brother, who is becoming remote and hard to reach, all while trying to determine just who she is.

Hummingbird  by: Natalie Lloyd Twelve-year-old homeschooled Olive is tired of being seen as “fragile” just because she has osteogenesis imperfecta (otherwise known as brittle bone disease) so she’s thrilled when she finally convinces her parents to let her attend Macklemore Elementary. Olive can’t wait to go to a traditional school and make the friends she’s always longed for until a disastrous first day dashes her hopes of ever fitting in. Then Olive hears whispers about a magical, wish-granting hummingbird that supposedly lives near Macklemore. It’ll be the solution to all her problems! If she can find the bird and prove herself worthy, the creature will make her most desperate secret wish come true. When it becomes clear that she can’t solve the mystery on her own, Olive teams up with some unlikely allies who help her learn the truth about the bird. And on the way, she just might learn that our fragile places lead us to the most wonderful magic of all . . .

The Midnight Children  by Dan Gemeinhart           *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) In the dead of night, a truck arrives in Slaughterville, a small town curiously named after its windowless slaughterhouse. Seven mysterious kids with suitcases step out of the vehicle and into an abandoned home on a dead-end street, looking over their shoulders to make sure they aren’t noticed. But Ravani Foster covertly witnesses their arrival from his bedroom window. Timid and lonely, Ravani is eager to learn everything he can about his new neighbors: What secrets are they hiding? And most mysterious of all…where are the adults? Yet amid this shadowy group of children, Ravani finds an unexpected friend in the warm and gutsy Virginia. But with this friendship comes secrets revealed—and danger. When Ravani learns of a threat to his new friends, he must fight to keep them safe or lose the only person who has ever understood him.

Before the Ever After  by Jacquline Woodson            *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) For as long as ZJ can remember, his dad has been everyone’s hero. As a charming, talented pro football star, he’s as beloved to the neighborhood kids he plays with as he is to his millions of adoring sports fans. But lately, life at ZJ’s house is anything but charming. His dad is having trouble remembering things and seems to be angry all the time. ZJ’s mom explains it’s because of all the head injuries his dad sustained during his career. ZJ can understand that–but it doesn’t make the sting any less real when his own father forgets his name. As ZJ contemplates his new reality, he has to figure out how to hold on tight to family traditions and recollections of the glory days, all the while wondering what their past amounts to if his father can’t remember it. And most importantly, can those happy feelings ever be reclaimed when they are all so busy aching for the past?

Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust by: Renee Harman, Joshua Greene Meet Renee and Herta, two sisters who faced the unimaginable — together. This is their true story. As Jews living in 1940s Czechoslovakia, Renee, Herta, and their parents were in immediate danger when the Holocaust came to their door. As the only hearing person in her family, Renee had to alert her parents and sister whenever the sound of Nazi boots approached their home so they could hide. But soon their parents were tragically taken away, and the two sisters went on the run, desperate to find a safe place to hide. Eventually, they, too, would be captured and taken to the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen. Communicating in sign language and relying on each other for strength in the midst of illness, death, and starvation, Renee and Herta would have to fight to survive the darkest of times.

 

7th Grade Supply List  2023/2024

Classroom supplies for homeroom:  

• Tissues (these are used every day)
• Paper Towel Roll
• Wipes (baby or Clorox)

Subject-Specific Supplies: These will be collected on the first day of school by the subject teacher.

• One Five Subject spiral bound notebook: this will be carried around all day for multiple subjects
• One Homework folder – this will be used for multiple subjects
• Headphones or earbuds: these will also be used for multiple subjects 

ELA

• Post-it notes any color 

History

• Composition notebook (this will stay in the classroom)

Math

• 1”  Heavy Duty binder

Science

• Various supplies may be requested throughout the year for labs/projects – advance notice will be given for these items.

Specials

• Three folders for Specials (any color)
• 1” 3-ring binder with pockets (Band/Choir/Strings ONLY)

Incoming Grade 7 Summer Reading – 2023

Every student attending Abby Kelley Foster Charter Middle School is REQUIRED to read one book of choice from the list and complete a book journal before the school year begins.  

Students who read more than one book, and complete a book journal for each additional book, will be invited to a movie night at the high school in September.

Choice Book Summer Reading Assignment 

For this year’s summer reading, you will complete a book journal around the book you have chosen from the Choice Book List.  You must complete the front and back cover of the journal and 6 out of the 10 questions inside the journal.  This will be your “ticket” to our annual pizza lunch book group.  Students who do not complete their journals will not be allowed to participate in the pizza party book clubs. The journal can be found in the Summer Reading Google Classroom or on the AKFCS website and is due to your homeroom teacher no later than August 31.    

Journal to print: Click this link

Journal Digital: Click this link and make a copy 

Incoming 7th Grade Choice Book List  (All students must read at least one during the summer and must complete the journal provided)

The Unforgettable Logan Foster   by: Shawn Peters         *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) An undersized 12-year-old orphan named Logan has an eidetic (photographic) memory, zero filters, and a belief that someday he’ll find the younger sibling he was separated from when he was three years old. When a seemingly boring couple, Gil and Margie, bring him home, Logan notices some odd details. While he’s trying to put his observations together to form a rational explanation, the family is attacked by an earthquake-making supervillain, and he realizes his foster parents are superheroes.

The Other Half of Happy  by: Rebecca Balcarcel 12-year-old Quijana likes to say that she used to be Pangaea. Unsplit. Not half white or half Latina. But that was before her Guatemalan cousins moved to town and before her dad asked her to speak some Spanish. Now her continents are splitting apart. Let’s face it; when you’re named after Spain’s most famous loser, Don Quixote, you might make a secret escape plan. Join Quijana as she navigates between the Anglo and Guatemalan sides of her family, gets a cool new friend and a blooming crush, and tries to figure out what’s going on with her little brother, who is becoming remote and hard to reach, all while trying to determine just who she is.

Hummingbird  by: Natalie Lloyd Twelve-year-old homeschooled Olive is tired of being seen as “fragile” just because she has osteogenesis imperfecta (otherwise known as brittle bone disease) so she’s thrilled when she finally convinces her parents to let her attend Macklemore Elementary. Olive can’t wait to go to a traditional school and make the friends she’s always longed for until a disastrous first day dashes her hopes of ever fitting in. Then Olive hears whispers about a magical, wish-granting hummingbird that supposedly lives near Macklemore. It’ll be the solution to all her problems! If she can find the bird and prove herself worthy, the creature will make her most desperate secret wish come true. When it becomes clear that she can’t solve the mystery on her own, Olive teams up with some unlikely allies who help her learn the truth about the bird. And on the way, she just might learn that our fragile places lead us to the most wonderful magic of all . . .

The Midnight Children  by Dan Gemeinhart           *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) In the dead of night, a truck arrives in Slaughterville, a small town curiously named after its windowless slaughterhouse. Seven mysterious kids with suitcases step out of the vehicle and into an abandoned home on a dead-end street, looking over their shoulders to make sure they aren’t noticed. But Ravani Foster covertly witnesses their arrival from his bedroom window. Timid and lonely, Ravani is eager to learn everything he can about his new neighbors: What secrets are they hiding? And most mysterious of all…where are the adults? Yet amid this shadowy group of children, Ravani finds an unexpected friend in the warm and gutsy Virginia. But with this friendship comes secrets revealed—and danger. When Ravani learns of a threat to his new friends, he must fight to keep them safe or lose the only person who has ever understood him.

Before the Ever After  by Jacquline Woodson            *Audio Book on Libby (Library App) For as long as ZJ can remember, his dad has been everyone’s hero. As a charming, talented pro football star, he’s as beloved to the neighborhood kids he plays with as he is to his millions of adoring sports fans. But lately, life at ZJ’s house is anything but charming. His dad is having trouble remembering things and seems to be angry all the time. ZJ’s mom explains it’s because of all the head injuries his dad sustained during his career. ZJ can understand that–but it doesn’t make the sting any less real when his own father forgets his name. As ZJ contemplates his new reality, he has to figure out how to hold on tight to family traditions and recollections of the glory days, all the while wondering what their past amounts to if his father can’t remember it. And most importantly, can those happy feelings ever be reclaimed when they are all so busy aching for the past?

Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust by: Renee Harman, Joshua Greene Meet Renee and Herta, two sisters who faced the unimaginable — together. This is their true story. As Jews living in 1940s Czechoslovakia, Renee, Herta, and their parents were in immediate danger when the Holocaust came to their door. As the only hearing person in her family, Renee had to alert her parents and sister whenever the sound of Nazi boots approached their home so they could hide. But soon, their parents were tragically taken away, and the two sisters went on the run, desperate to find a safe place to hide. Eventually, they, too, would be captured and taken to the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen. Communicating in sign language and relying on each other for strength in the midst of illness, death, and starvation, Renee and Herta would have to fight to survive the darkest of times.

 

2023 Summer Reading Book Journal

8th Grade Supply List

General: 

• Pencil sharpeners (manual) 
• Pencils 
• Blue or black pens
• Erasers
• Colored pencils

Math:

• Ruler
• Calculator
• Two spiral notebooks (1 subject Notebook)
• Folder
• Pad of graph paper

ELA:

• Two Composition Notebooks
• 2 Folders
• Highlighter
• One package of glue sticks 
• Pencils 

History:

• 2” Binder with one pocket
• Three-tab dividers
• Two packages of college-ruled notebook paper
• One pack of 3×5 index cards

French :

• a 1” or 1½” three-ring binder- separate from other classes
• Four tab dividers
• One package of college-ruled notebook paper
• Pencils and erasers

Science

• One three-ring binder – separate from other classes
• Loose leaf-lined paper
• Pens, pencils, erasers

Spanish 

• Two composition notebooks, Not Spiral 
• color pencils and markers
• One pack of pencils
• glue sticks
• accordion file folder
• loose leaf paper

HIGH SCHOOL SUPPLY LIST

2023-2024

Grades 9-12

History Department

US History I – Freshman – Mr. Morse

• None

US History II – Sophomores – Mr. Babola

• Three Ring Binders OR Folder with pockets – ideally one with hole punch fasteners

World History – Juniors – Mrs. Reynolds

• Notebook and folder OR Three Ring Binder (1 ½ “ or larger)

Civics – Seniors – Mrs. Houck

• Folder

Psychology – elective – Mr. Bova

• Notebook
• Folder
• Highlighter

Global Issues – Elective – Mr. Bova

• Notebook
• Folder
• Highlighter

Sociology – Elective – Mr. Babola

• Three Ring Binders (1 ½ “ or larger), Loose-leaf paper

Math Department

Math Classes

• Two inch Binder
• Loose Leaf White Lined Paper and Graphing Paper
• Pencils
• Calculator:
  • Non-IB Classes: Scientific calculator (TI-30Xs recommended)
  • IB Classes: Graphing Calculator (TI-84 Plus CE recommended)

Science Department

Mrs. Polucha – 9th grade Biology and IB SEHS

• One three-ring binder – separate from other classes
• Loose leaf-lined paper
• Pens, pencils, erasers
• IB SEHS – I have graphing calculators for students to borrow, but you may want to purchase your own to practice with at home
• OPTIONAL – Metric ruler, art supplies [markers, crayons, colored pencils, glue, scissors]

 Mrs. Abbott – 9th-grade Biology and Forensics

• One three-ring binder- separate from other classes
• Loose leaf-lined paper
• Pens, pencils, erasers
• Set of colored pencils and/or crayons

10th-grade Chemistry

• One three-ring binder – separate from other classes
• Loose leaf-lined paper
• Pens, pencils, erasers
• Calculator (same calc that is required for math)

Mr. Gauthier -11th-grade Physics and IB Physics

• One three-ring binder – separate from other classes
• Loose leaf-lined paper
• Pens, pencils, erasers
• Calculator (same calc that is required for math)

 Mr. Kutlowski – A&P and IB Biology

• For notes/handouts, one of the following:
  • Spiral notebook and folder (durable enough to last the year)
  • Three-ring binder and loose-leaf paper
• Pens and Pencils
• Calculator
• OPTIONAL: Hair elastics (to tie back long hair during labs/dissections), safety goggles (lab goggles will be provided, you may want to buy your own if you are concerned about hygiene)

 English Department

All English Classes

• One (small) spiral notebook
• One folder
• Blue or black pens

Foreign Language Department  

Spanish I II and IB

• Two composition notebooks, Not Spiral
• color pencils and markers
• One pack of pencils
• glue sticks
• accordion file folder
• loose leaf paper

French :

• a 1” or 1½” three-ring binder- separate from other classes
• Four tab dividers
• One package of college-ruled notebook paper
• Pencils and erasers