Summer Reading

May 2026

Dear Students and Parents: 

Summer is on the horizon—a welcome change of pace, an opportunity to travel and relax, and a chance for students and teachers alike to set aside the rigors of school for a while.

Priory will continue its tradition of summer reading to help instill the habit of reading in our students. Students should return to school in August prepared to discuss the assigned books with a group of peers and a faculty member. In addition to a special discussion period during the first days of school, students will be asked in English class to write a short response to the books in order to further explore their ideas.

It remains our conviction that reading represents one of the richest paths to a full education and that it remains rewarding throughout a lifetime. The benefits of becoming a strong and consistent reader are well documented, including increased empathy, greater knowledge of other cultures and historical periods, expanded vocabulary, and improved stamina and focus.

Our hope is that reading becomes a common practice in your home and that families discuss books together. In addition, the reading skills and vocabulary measured by national tests develop most naturally and easily in students who read habitually. Summer, with its abundance of free time, provides an excellent opportunity for families to read and to enjoy books together.

Students should bring their summer reading books to school with them for the first week of classes in August, as there will an in-class writing assignment based on the books in English class.

We hope this will be the case in your home.

Enjoy the summer. We look forward to seeing you in August, when—hopefully—we will all be a little older, wiser, and more well-read.

Respectfully,  

Mr. Tim Woodcock
English (Humanities) Department Chair