He’s in the 5th grade. How is this considered a book worthy of being on the curriculum? Don’t get me wrong, I adored those books and movies when I was a kid, but reading those was just for fun. I was reading Lord of the Flies in 5th grade (but then again I was not in the US).
My boyfriend just told me he read Captain Underpants in 5th grade. Is this not weird to anyone?
Lord of the Flies is part of our 9th grade curriculum. Reading doesn’t always have to be serious.
Dr.Smitha said:
Lord of the Flies is part of our 9th grade curriculum. Reading doesn’t always have to be serious.
Same here—in every district around me, it’s grade 9.
Kids aren’t reading as much these days. Get a book in their hands. Have a fun whole-class read. Skills can be built with almost any book that’s accessible for that age. Hell, I whip out children’s books to demonstrate line of reasoning with my AP Lang juniors!
Dr.Smitha said:
Lord of the Flies is part of our 9th grade curriculum. Reading doesn’t always have to be serious.
We read non-serious books too. Lord of the Flies was just my favorite. I was just asking if this is weird because I didn’t go to middle school in America, so I didn’t know if it was normal to have just books like that on the curriculum.
Is it a book required for everyone in the curriculum, or is it free choice? We let our kids pick books for independent reading, and a LOT of my kids pick Wimpy Kid books. I’m just glad they’re reading.
@Johnstone
Why does the difference matter? Do you think it would be a problem if the book was required for everyone?
Wyatt said:
@Johnstone
Why does the difference matter? Do you think it would be a problem if the book was required for everyone?
Didn’t say that. I asked a question. If it’s free-choice reading, I don’t see why OP is concerned. I’ve never heard of a school requiring it; I’d just like to know.
@Johnstone
If it’s free-choice reading, you don’t see why OP is concerned? And if it’s not, would you see why OP is concerned? Because that’s what your phrasing implies.
Wyatt said:
@Johnstone
If it’s free-choice reading, you don’t see why OP is concerned? And if it’s not, would you see why OP is concerned? Because that’s what your phrasing implies.
Why so hostile? If it’s required, I would think that at least warrants a couple more questions. For example…
What educational standards does this address?
Are they ready for more academically rigorous options?
Is this representative of the student population?
SkillDeveloper2 said:
@MABLE
[deleted]
Possibly you are getting u/Holiday-Reply993 and u/Whiskey-7 confused? Might want to review the reply chain.
If anything is weird, to me, it’s that 75% of the middle school students I teach are reading five to six grade levels below where they should be. When I share this test data, individually, with students and parents, they don’t react with utter shock and concern, and don’t ask what they can do to improve their reading.
Oseah said:
@KodhekMike1
Teacher: Are they reading at home?
Parent: Student doesn’t like to read.
I mean, I didn’t either until I learned how. And if it was a real stinker like most of the Shakespeare stuff, we had supplemental reading (like a modern/teen version of Shakespeare) and plays, class discussions, and movie day. My little nephew is not getting any of that. Just a non-challenging book. Mark it as read. Move on.
Oseah said:
@KodhekMike1
Teacher: Are they reading at home?
Parent: Student doesn’t like to read.
Five grade levels behind (meaning an 8th grader reading at a 3rd-grade level) is not a problem that can be solved by parents handing kids a book and taking away their phone. That is systemic failure of that child.
@Silas
Students spend 1/3 of the day with their teachers, and 2/3 of their day with their parents. Unless parents take the phones away, make kids read books at their grade level, and actually sit and read with the child (or have the child read aloud), the child isn’t going to grow. If parents consistently do that 30 to 60 minutes per day, at a minimum, the child’s reading level will improve very quickly.
@KodhekMike1
That’s not the point, you are right that this is something that needs to happen (though I think you’re importantly wrong about those percentages, many working parents spend much less time with their kids). My point is two-fold:
There will always be parents who fail their kids, and part of the purpose of a public school system is that society doesn’t get to just wash its hands and say “bad luck getting born into the wrong family.”
A 13-year-old being at an 8-year-old level is not only the result of not being made to read for 30 minutes a day.
@KodhekMike1
See, this is what I mean. I’m not trying to sound snobby. Lord knows my reading comprehension alone isn’t what is helping me in the real world. I was just asking if anyone thought it was weird. So thank you for answering as a teacher.
Jesus, we can’t win. Kids don’t read enough! Don’t let them read that! Why are they reading that in school? Back in my day, kindergarteners played! Back in my day, kids read War and Peace in 5th grade! Kids are on screens too much, but let’s nag their reading habits! Why are they reading silently in school? That’s not learning! If I wanted them to read that, they could read at home!
Maybe they are doing a genre study. Maybe it’s engaging. Maybe it’s during silent reading. Maybe it’s a soft opening.