The Joys of Summer Homework
Imagine a beautiful mid-summer’s day in Atlanta. The sun is shining and the birds are chirping. It’s summertime and the “livin’s easy.” I open my front door and walk outside, barefooted, along the concrete driveway. I’m on a mission to check the mail. Not expectant for anything of note, I open the mailbox and find a nice pile of bills and catalogs. During my walk back inside, I sort through the pile and find a letter that was hiding between the latest Pottery Barn brochure and All-State invoice. It’s addressed to me!
Excitedly, I rip open the envelope before I even step inside the house. I unfold the perfectly-creased piece of paper, and see my school’s crest imprinted in the top left corner. The second I read the typed words: “Dear AP Calculus Student,” my mind slowly becomes uninterested in this piece of paper that, moments before, had aroused much curiosity. As the letter continued, I discovered that I had a summer math assignment. No big deal, right? My pre-calculus knowledge needs to stay fresh if I’m going to get off to a good start in the next level of math. 71 problems over the summer is a BIG deal, though. I mean not to complain, but WOW… I think I hyperventilated a little when I opened the assignment and saw all of those numbers. It should also be made known that I will be tested on the concepts covered in this lengthy assignment on Wednesday.
In addition to the math set, I was assigned to read three books for my AP English course: Tess of the D’urbervilles, Hedda Gabler, and A Farewell to Arms. About three chapters into my first book, I decided I ought to check the library to see if they had an audio download of it. They did. (Thank you www.netlibrary.com!) So I listened Tess for 13 hours, narrated by a cute British-sounding woman.
I can’t say that I truly enjoyed reading any of these books… but I am proud to say that, as of 12:34am, August 8th, 2009, I have completed all of my summer homework (including the calculus)! Success!
