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Hour_Squirrel_4914 t1_jdhf495 wrote

Reply to comment by walrussss in Why Kids Aren’t Falling in Love With Reading by drak0bsidian

My sister was an incredible reader and had a fourth grade teacher who did this. My mom pestered him asking if her reading level could be tested so that she could check out books that were more challenging. He finally agreed and she tested at 12th grade level.

His argument then became, "Just because she can understand the text, doesn't mean she can understand the theme. So, she needs to stick to the fourth grade reading level."

No compromise. No flexibility. No interest.

You can guess how many books she borrowed from the library that year.

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Historical_Spring800 t1_jdmkbta wrote

I have come across this with school librarians for years at my kids’ elementary school. We took our kids reading into our own hands. I read a ton as a kid so was able to direct them toward my old favorites depending on the kid and their interests and they now find their own books. Everyone gets new books at birthdays and Christmas such as a fancy illustrated Harry Potter for the youngest or a Steven King series for the oldest. My second grader reads at a 6th grade level and tests in the 99th percentile consistently on standardized tests. His teacher still put him in a mediocre reading group because she wasn’t satisfied with his “decoding” skills. My older kids were also forbidden to read beyond a certain level during elementary school but still tested into the gifted classes and thrived in them. I think elementary teachers can only do so much when they have more kids reading below grade level so it is our responsibility as parents to do what we can at home.

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