1. 7th Grade Summer Reading Preview

2. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (7th grade required)
Lexile 810 Two competitive fifth graders develop an extraordinary bond by creating an imaginary sanctuary in the woods called Terabithia in this story about acceptance, imagination and freedom. Jess and Leslie's tale is packed full of humor, intense emotion and even grief after an accident changes everything for them. Much-lauded author Katherine Paterson, who twice won Newbery Medals and National Book Awards among other honors, creates a world within a world that pulls intently at the heartstrings of readers. Cross-curricular impact: Social Studies, Cultures, Grammar, Social and Emotional Learning

3. Unwind - (Optional) by Neal Shusterman Lexile 740 Connor, Risa, and Lev are running for their lives. The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state, is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.

4. UnWholly (Optional) by Neal Shusterman Lexile 860 Sequel to the bestselling Unwind, Publishers Weekly called a “gripping, brilliantly imagined futuristic thriller.” Thanks to Connor, Lev, and Risa—and their high-profile revolt at Happy Jack Harvest Camp—people can no longer turn a blind eye to unwinding. Ridding society of troublesome teens while simultaneously providing much-needed tissues for transplant might be convenient, but its morality has finally been brought into question. However, unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political and corporate interests that want to see it not only continue, but also expand to the unwinding of prisoners and the impoverished. Cam is a product of unwinding; made entirely out of the parts of other unwinds, he is a teen who does not technically exist. A futuristic Frankenstein, Cam struggles with a search for identity and meaning and wonders if a rewound being can have a soul. And when the actions of a sadistic bounty hunter cause Cam’s fate to become inextricably bound with the fates of Connor, Risa, and Lev, he’ll have to question humanity itself. Rife with action and suspense, this riveting companion to the perennially popular Unwind challenges assumptions about where life begins and ends—and what it means to live.

5. The Wednesday Wars by Gary D
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt (Optional) Lexile 990 Holling Hoodhood is a seventh grader in the school year of 1967–68. While the Vietnam War consumes his father's attention, Holling is locked into Wednesday lessons with a teacher who insists he read the plays of Shakespeare. The Newbery Award–winning book gets high marks for wit and making a complex sociopolitical era accessible for present-day middle schoolers. Drawing on pop culture, politics and daily news that defined the time, Kitty Palmer says the cross-curricular opportunities—including English, social studies, music and government—are packed into this book. Cross-curricular impact: Literature, Social Studies, Government, Music, Social and Emotional Learning