Comments on: Are School Reading Assignments Making Your Child Dumber?

By: 1minutebookreviewswordpresscom

1minutebookreviewswordpresscom — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 16:59:46 +0000

“How do you ever get past that if no one is making you do it?” Exactly. Series books like the Baby-Sitters Club are fine for fun, but students also need deeper ones. B-C Club author Ann Martin once told me she’d like to see kids have one of her books in one hand and a more challenging one in the other hand. Perfect.

By: nora

nora — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:49:12 +0000

Wow, this makes me so sad. I’ve been a huge reader since I was a kid, and while I probably chose mostly ‘easy’ books for my ‘fun’ reading (anyone remember the Baby-Sitters Club?) I did enjoy the harder school stuff eventually – and now I choose some of those for myself – even if I do on occasion reach for something light and easy. But at least I feel like I have the choice to enjoy either, because I’ve been prepared for it. Sure, you have to slog through some dense prose and it’s not as much fun in the beginning, but how do you ever get past that if no one is making you do it while you’re still young and in school?

By: 1minutebookreviewswordpresscom

1minutebookreviewswordpresscom — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:42:22 +0000

Julie: Ah, those college students, how they love easy assignments! Can you tell I’ve taught them, too? Colleges today are in a difficult situation because so many students haven’t been prepared for the challenging books they will have there. And your students’ comment that they “could understand” the easy books better rings true to me. Should professors acknowledge their reading deficiencies and assign some easier books so students won’t feel defeated? It must be a tough call in many cases, and I appreciate your spelling out the issues. Thanks for your comment. Jan

By: Julie Hakim Azzam

Julie Hakim Azzam — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:20:49 +0000

Thank you for your post! As I read, I felt a twinge of guilt on two accounts. I teach college level English, and always work one “easy” book into the syllabus for a class. (Last class, it was The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, a wonderful book). Can you guess which book is always the favorite? The “easy”, middle grade one! Why? It’s “more enjoyable,” or “I could understand it better.” Second guilty confession: since having children, I’ve can hardly read an “adult” novel.I’m just too tired at the end of the day. Seems the only thing I can read these days are picture books and middle grade/ YA fiction. Do adults who love children’s literature fall into the same category of dumbing down? Of course there’s lots to love in a clever novel written for a ten year-old, such as Alexie’s, but I wonder if the same principle applies. It’s something I’ve thought of again and again, so thank you for your post on this!
I’m blogging about children’s lit at: http://www.instantlyinterruptible.com

By: Amritorupa Kanjilal

Amritorupa Kanjilal — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 09:50:37 +0000

Growing up in India, we were encouraged to read Call of The Wild in 4th Grade, and Prisoner of Zenda in 6th Grade. So yeah, this does look like dumbing down…
Children who have a reading habit will eventually get bored with this sort of a reading list, and those who haven’t developed a habit yet will never see reading as a fun hobby.