Skip To Main Content

Summer Work

Throughout the summer, students of all ages are expected to continue to engage their minds in preparation for the upcoming school year.

Note about Summer Solutions math workbooks: Books can be purchased directly from the Summer Solutions website for $16.99 (plus shipping). To receive 10% off any Summer Solutions book order, please use promo code BEREADY (offer expires 9/1/2026).

Rising First Grade

While there is no formal summer work for students entering First Grade, PBDA encourages you to take time each day to practice “academic activities” with your child. A little bit goes a long way!
 
Summer Reading & Writing:
Reading for 15-20 minutes a day can greatly improve fluency and comprehension. This can be a time for independent reading or shared reading between you and your child. Your child may also want to keep a summer journal.
 
Summer Math:
Practice math facts on a daily basis. These can be written or you may choose to purchase flashcards. Count and write from 1-100 and back. Practice skip counting by 2’s to 20, 5’s and 10’s to 100.
 
Optional Math Workbook:

Rising Second Grade

Summer Reading & Writing:
Reading for 20-30 minutes a day can greatly improve fluency and comprehension. This can be a time for independent reading or shared reading between you and your child. Your child may also want to keep a summer journal.
 
Summer Math:
The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. Rushing to complete the book at the beginning of the summer or the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and move on. If more space is needed to show the work, extra paper is recommended. Completed workbooks should be given to your child’s teachers during the first week of school. Students should work on addition/subtraction fact fluency if time allows.
 
Math Workbook:

Rising Third Grade

Summer Reading & Writing:
Reading for 30 minutes a day can greatly improve fluency and comprehension. This can be a time for independent reading or shared reading between you and your child. Your child may also want to keep a summer journal.
 
Summer Math: The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. Rushing to complete the book at the beginning of the summer or the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and move on. If more space is needed to show the work, extra paper is recommended. Completed workbooks should be given to your child’s teachers during the first week of school. Students should work on addition/subtraction fact fluency if time allows.
 
Math Workbook:

Rising Fourth Grade

Summer Reading:

Students entering 4th Grade should select one of the following books that they can read independently. We encourage students to read the assigned book later in the summer so the story is fresh in their minds when we return in September.  

Students will have the opportunity to respond to basic comprehension questions about their chosen novel through writing assignments in their Language Arts class. Responses will focus on the main character, the problem, and the resolution, rather than minor details.

We also encourage students to continue exploring other books throughout the summer that spark their interests and love of reading.

Book Choices:

  • A Week in the Woods by Andrew Clements
  • Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
  • How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
  • Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary
  • Ramona Forever by Beverly Cleary
  • The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
  • Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
  • Matilda by Roald Dahl
  • Stuart Little by E.B White

Summer Math:

The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. To do the book all at the beginning of the summer or all at the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and move on. If more space is needed to show thorough work than the space provided, extra paper is recommended.

Workbook:

Rising Fifth Grade

Summer Reading:

Students entering 5th Grade will select one of the following books that they can read independently. Students will need their summer reading book on the first day of school to complete an extension activity.

Book choices:

  • Frindle by Andrew Clements
  • The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo
  • Wish by Barbara O’Connor
  • Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Throughout the summer, we encourage students to continue exploring other books that spark their interests and love of reading.

Summer Math:

The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. To do the book all at the beginning of the summer or all at the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and move on. If more space is needed to show thorough work than the space provided, extra paper is recommended.

Families will be contacted by their student’s current math teacher before June 1, 2026, with specific information on which book to complete, as well as a direct link to purchase the book. If your child is not moving in level, you may also click on the link below for the course your child completed in the 2025-2026 school year:

 

Rising Sixth Grade

Summer Reading - English:

Students at PBDA are lifelong readers, and our goal is to foster a love of reading in all our students. Students in grades 6-8 are required to read at least one fiction book beyond what they are reading over the summer for history class, and will complete a jotting/annotation journal to go along with their book prior to the first day of school.

As you read, fill out the jotting journal that you received in Language Arts class. If you lose your journal, you can use any small notebook. If you need another copy of the jotting directions, click here.

Bring your completed jotting journal and your book to school with you on the first day of school.

Students may select a grade-level appropriate book from one of the following categories:

Students may select a book:

  • from one of the above lists
  • of their choosing
  • on June 8 during the Book Café; students will have the opportunity to find and check out a book to read.

Regardless of how the student chooses their book, they will share the title with their current English teacher for approval before the close of the 25-26 school year. Bring your completed jotting journal and your book to school with you when we return in September.

Summer History:

Students entering Grade 6 are required to read one of the biographies below. If you are so inclined to read more than one of the biographies, please feel free to do so. We will learn about each of these famous people in world history throughout the year. Follow-up/assessment will be discussed in September in each of the history classes. The required history selection is in addition to any selections above for English.

Choose one (1) of the following biographies:

  • Who Was Alexander the Great?, Kathryn Waterfield
  • Who was Julius Caesar?, Nico Medina
  • Who was King Tut?, Roberta Edwards
  • Who was Confucius?, Michael Burgan
  • Who was Joan of Arc?, Pam Pollack
  • Who was Gandhi?, Dana Meachen Rau

Summer Math:

The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. To do the book all at the beginning of the summer or all at the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and move on. If more space is needed to show thorough work than the space provided, extra paper is recommended.

Families will be contacted by their student’s current math teacher before June 1, 2026, with specific information on which book to complete, as well as a direct link to purchase the book. If your child is not moving in level, you may also click on the link below for the course your child completed in the 2025-2026 school year:

Rising Seventh Grade

Summer Reading - English:

Students at PBDA are lifelong readers, and our goal is to foster a love of reading in all our students. Students in grades 6-8 are required to read at least one fiction book beyond what they are reading over the summer for history class, and will complete a jotting/annotation journal to go along with their book prior to the first day of school. Students may select a grade-level appropriate book from one of the following categories:

Students may select a book:

  • from one of the above lists
  • of their choosing
  • on June 8 during the Book Café; students will have the opportunity to find and check out a book to read.

Regardless of how the student chooses their book, they will share the title with their current English teacher for approval before the close of the 25-26 school year. Bring your completed jotting journal and your book to school with you when we return in September.

Summer History:

Students entering Grade 7 are to read Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson over the summer. Follow-up/assessment of the book will be discussed in September in each of the history classes. The required history selection is in addition to any selections for English. 

Summer Math:

The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. To do the book all at the beginning of the summer or all at the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and move on. If more space is needed to show thorough work than the space provided, extra paper is recommended.

Families will be contacted by their student’s current math teacher before June 1, 2026, with specific information on which book to complete, as well as a direct link to purchase the book. If your child is not moving in level, you may also click on the link below for the course your child completed in the 2025-2026 school year:

Rising Eighth Grade

Summer Reading - English:

Students at PBDA are lifelong readers, and our goal is to foster a love of reading in all our students. Students in grades 6-8 are required to read at least one fiction book beyond what they are reading over the summer for history class, and will complete a jotting/annotation journal to go along with their book prior to the first day of school. Students may select a grade-level appropriate book from one of the following categories:

Students may select a book:

  • from one of the above lists
  • of their choosing
  • on June 8 during the Book Café; students will have the opportunity to find and check out a book to read.

Regardless of how the student chooses their book, they will share the title with their current English teacher for approval before the close of the 25-26 school year. Bring your completed jotting journal and your book to school with you when we return in September.

Summer History:
 
Students entering Grade 8 are to read one of the following assigned books over the summer. Follow-up/assessment of the book will be discussed in September in each of the history classes. The required history selection is in addition to any selections for English.
 
  • The Boys in the Boat, Daniel James Brown
  • The Borden Murders, Sarah Miller
  • Attucks! Oscar Robertson and the Basketball Team That Awakened a City, Phillip Hoose
  • Warriors Don’t Cry, Melba Bealls
Summer Math:
 
The Summer Solutions workbook is designed to help a student retain and reinforce concepts covered in the grade level just completed. To receive the best benefits from the summer work, it is recommended that the student do three pages a week over a ten-week period during the summer. To do the book all at the beginning of the summer or all at the end defeats the purpose of the review. Each book has Help Pages and Answers at the back of the book. Students should do their best, circling unfamiliar problems and moving on. If more space is needed to show thorough work than the space provided, extra paper is recommended.
 
Families will be contacted by their student’s current math teacher before June 1, 2026, with specific information on which book to complete, as well as a direct link to purchase the book. If your child is not moving in level, you may also click on the link below for the course your child completed in the 2025-2026 school year: