Middle School
Literacy
Rising 6th Grade
This summer, we are asking you to read two books: one from your grade-level list and another of your choosing.
- Read one of the following books:
- Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend (fantasy)
- Starfish by Lisa Fipps (verse fiction)
- Two Degrees by Alan Gratz (realistic fiction)
- Whale Eyes: A Memoir about Seeing and Being Seen by James Robinson (memoir)
- You Are Here: Connecting Flights by Ellen Oh (short stories)
- Read a book of your choosing - any format, any genre, any topic! We encourage you to visit your local public library for summer reading resources. If you don’t have a library card, now is the time to get one!
- D.C. Public Library
- Montgomery County Public Libraries
- Prince George’s County Libraries
- Looking for a challenge? Check out the Capitol Choices Reading Challenge and browse their 2026 Noteworthy Book lists, a curated list from librarians in Metropolitan DC.
Rising 7th Grade
This summer, 7th graders will read two books, one from the 7th-grade list and another of their choosing. You will also keep an Observation Journal (directions below).
- Read one of the following books and be prepared to write a book review during the first week of classes:
- Dress Coded by Carrie Firestone (realistic fiction)
- At Last She Stood: How Joey Guerrero Spied, Survived, and Fought for Freedom by Erin Entrada Kelly (nonfiction)
- They Called Us Enemy by George Takei (graphic memoir)
- A World Worth Saving by Kyle Lukoff (fantasy)
- Read a book of your choosing—any format, any genre! We encourage you to visit your local public library for summer reading resources. If you don’t have a library card, now is the time to get one!
- D.C. Public Library
- Montgomery County Public Libraries
- Prince George’s County Library
- Looking for a challenge? Check out the Capitol Choices Reading Challenge and browse their 2026 Noteworthy Book lists, a curated list from librarians in Metropolitan D.C.
- Observation Journal Directions: Create an observation journal by writing 8 entries (on paper or in a notebook) over the summer.
- Choose a location you can visit 8 times.
- Visit on 8 different days (no two entries on the same day).
- For each visit, spend 15 minutes recording what you perceive: sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures.
- You will submit your journal when school starts in the fall.
Rising 8th Grade
This summer, 8th graders will read two books, one from the 8th-grade list and another of their choosing. They will also keep an Observation Journal (directions below).
- Read one of the following books and be prepared to write a book review during the first week of classes:
- Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (fantasy)
- Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (fantasy)
- I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys (historical fiction)
- How To Be Black by Baratunde Thurston (nonfiction)
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson (nonfiction)
- When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed (graphic nonfiction)
- Read a book of your choosing—any format, any genre! We encourage you to visit your local public library for summer reading resources. If you don’t have a library card, now is the time to get one!
- D.C. Public Library
- Montgomery County Public Libraries
- Prince George’s County Library
- Looking for a challenge? Check out the Capitol Choices Reading Challenge and browse their 2026 Noteworthy Book lists, a curated list from librarians in Metropolitan D.C.
- Observation Journal Directions: Create an observation journal by writing 8 entries (on paper or in a notebook) over the summer.
- Choose a location you can visit 8 times.
- Visit on 8 different days (no two entries on the same day).
- For each visit, spend 15 minutes recording what you perceive: sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures.
- You will submit your journal when school starts in the fall.
Math
Rising 6th Grade
Families looking for practice with equations and written problems can find a variety of activities online, such as those listed below. Let your child be the guide, and encourage them to use the skills they know.
All students will have access to iReady over the summer (learn more, troubleshooting guide) and this work packet.
Teachers have curated a list of iReady lessons for their classes. Students can access these lessons when they log in to iReady by clicking on the lessons under “teacher assigned.” Some concepts in both the packet and iReady will be previews of things to come, and students are encouraged to try them (though they may choose to skip them). Some of the lessons in iReady will overlap with topics in the packets, and others will cover concepts not in the packets. Students can choose to do only the packet, the iReady lessons, or a combination.
iReady only allows 10 lessons to be available at a time, so as students work through the list, new lessons will pop up as they complete others. iReady access will close mid-August when the database is rolled over for the coming school year.
Resources
Rising 7th Grade
Families looking for practice with equations and written problems can find a variety of activities online, such as those listed below. Let your child be the guide, and encourage them to use the skills they know.
All students will have access to iReady over the summer (learn more, troubleshooting guide) and this work packet.
Teachers have curated a list of iReady lessons for their classes. Students can access these lessons when they log in to iReady by clicking on the lessons under “teacher assigned.” Some concepts in both the packet and iReady will be previews of things to come, and students are encouraged to try them (though they may choose to skip them). Some of the lessons in iReady will overlap with topics in the packets, and others will cover concepts not in the packets. Students can choose to do only the packet, the iReady lessons, or a combination.
iReady only allows 10 lessons to be available at a time, so as students work through the list, new lessons will pop up as they complete others. iReady access will close mid-August when the database is rolled over for the coming school year.
Resources
Rising 8th Grade
Families looking for practice with equations and written problems can find a variety of activities available online, like the ones listed below. Let your child be the guide, and encourage them to use the skills they know.
All students will have access to iReady over the summer (learn more, troubleshooting guide).
Students are required to practice for the HSPT/SSAT using Test Innovators. Families received login information for Test Innovators in late May/early June.
Spanish
Rising 6th Grade
We encourage Middle School students to practice Spanish over the summer. The frequency of practice is more important than its length. In other words, a few minutes of practice most days is better than hours of practice in just a handful of days.
Required Work
Students who are new to Lowell and have not previously taken Spanish must work on Duolingo throughout the summer to prepare for Middle School Spanish.
Resources
We encourage students to use Duolingo to practice. The Duolingo web application can be used for minutes or hours at a time. They can download the Duolingo app on a mobile device or access it via a computer.
How Does Duolingo Work?
Duolingo is broken into “units” that look like medallions on the home screen. Within each unit is a range of 3 to 10 lessons that a student can complete. There is also a function called “Strengthen Skills,” which encourages users to repeat for retention and mastery. When a student has mastered a unit, it turns gold. If a student stops using Duolingo for a while, those gold units change back to their original colors, encouraging users to practice again.
Over the summer, students should maintain the units they have covered and work ahead into new units once all their previous units are gold. Here is a video that explains more.
Why Duolingo?
We have used Duolingo in the classroom for several years. There are many advantages to using Duolingo for summer practice, including:
- Immediate assessment and feedback based on student responses
- Explanations and instructions are included in the website feedback
- Algorithms track student use of the site and adjust review material accordingly to create better retention
- Practice includes not just reading and writing, but listening and speaking as well
- Practice can easily be broken into many small sessions that can better fit within busy summer schedules
- Practice anywhere: when downloaded on a mobile device, students can practice when in the car or on the Metro
Rising 7th Grade
We encourage Middle School students to practice Spanish over the summer. The frequency of practice is more important than its length. In other words, a few minutes of practice most days is better than hours of practice in just a handful of days.
Required Work
Students who are new to Lowell and have not previously taken Spanish must work on Duolingo throughout the summer to prepare for Middle School Spanish.
Resources
We encourage students to use Duolingo to practice. The Duolingo web application can be used for minutes or hours at a time. They can download the Duolingo app on a mobile device or access it via a computer.
How Does Duolingo Work?
Duolingo is broken into “units” that look like medallions on the home screen. Within each unit is a range of 3 to 10 lessons that a student can complete. There is also a function called “Strengthen Skills,” which encourages users to repeat for retention and mastery. When a student has mastered a unit, it turns gold. If a student stops using Duolingo for a while, those gold units change back to their original colors, encouraging users to practice again.
Over the summer, students should maintain the units they have covered and work ahead into new units once all their previous units are gold. Here is a video that explains more.
Why Duolingo?
We have used Duolingo in the classroom for several years. There are many advantages to using Duolingo for summer practice, including:
- Immediate assessment and feedback based on student responses
- Explanations and instructions are included in the website feedback
- Algorithms track student use of the site and adjust review material accordingly to create better retention
- Practice includes not just reading and writing, but listening and speaking as well
- Practice can easily be broken into many small sessions that can better fit within busy summer schedules
- Practice anywhere: when downloaded on a mobile device, students can practice when in the car or on the Metro
Rising 8th Grade
We encourage Middle School students to practice Spanish over the summer. The frequency of practice is more important than its length. In other words, a few minutes of practice most days is better than hours of practice in just a handful of days.
Required Work
Students who are new to Lowell and have not previously taken Spanish must work on Duolingo throughout the summer to prepare for Middle School Spanish.
Resources
We encourage students to use Duolingo to practice. The Duolingo web application can be used for minutes or hours at a time. They can download the Duolingo app on a mobile device or access it via a computer.
How Does Duolingo Work?
Duolingo is broken into “units” that look like medallions on the home screen. Within each unit is a range of 3 to 10 lessons that a student can complete. There is also a function called “Strengthen Skills,” which encourages users to repeat for retention and mastery. When a student has mastered a unit, it turns gold. If a student stops using Duolingo for a while, those gold units change back to their original colors, encouraging users to practice again.
Over the summer, students should maintain the units they have covered and work ahead into new units once all their previous units are gold. Here is a video that explains more.
Why Duolingo?
We have used Duolingo in the classroom for several years. There are many advantages to using Duolingo for summer practice, including:
- Immediate assessment and feedback based on student responses
- Explanations and instructions are included in the website feedback
- Algorithms track student use of the site and adjust review material accordingly to create better retention
- Practice includes not just reading and writing, but listening and speaking as well
- Practice can easily be broken into many small sessions that can better fit within busy summer schedules
- Practice anywhere: when downloaded on a mobile device, students can practice when in the car or on the Metro