APS -- Want to return but spouse resistant -- please clarify curriculum 5th grade

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:


The point is parents are helicoptering over which/how many novels their kids are reading. If youre that concerned, get your kids more books. If they’re below benchmarks call the reading specialist. There are resources for every kid. APS is not failing kids on literacy bevy they’re not reading the same 10 novels.



I mean I can get them a high powered laptop and a guitar, but I don't expect them to become a FAANG employee or rock star all on their own. Reading complex literature, understanding the themes and processing content that spans more than a paragraph are important skills for any career, and practice and instruction are part of that. Sure I can HOMESCHOOL them for their reading curriculum, but I already have a job and I hate to have my kid wasting 6 hrs of their day waiting for other kids to READ OUT LOUD.

How can there really not be more novels assigned? Why is there not earlier reading differentiation, since even at 5th grade some students are very advanced readers and need more to be challenged -- even if not marked "gifted" (and since APS switched to push in, gifted has been a bit of a farce)

A couple of thoughts:

--Many parents want their kids to have choices of books to read, or object to certain novels, so assigning the same novels to all kids is something US schools have really moved away from over the last 20 years
--Many kids are more willing to read if they can make their own choices
-- Reading non-fiction is actually more important to building kids' background knowledge and vocabulary. Most schools have students reading a mix of non-fiction and fiction, and if you're not counting the non-fiction they are reading, you are missing an important factor.

I would be ESTATIC if we had history textbooks, or they were reading biographies or even natural science/history book.

So kids get choices to what to read, do I get to ask to not teach them about tectonic plates or the civil war? If a kid doesn't want to learn fractions, do they get to make choices in math topics so they are more willing?

I really want to bend spouse to returning to APS, but this level of student directed curriculum is not going to have the scope they are looking for.

[Anonymous]

I would be ESTATIC if we had history textbooks, or they were reading biographies or even natural science/history book.

So kids get choices to what to read, do I get to ask to not teach them about tectonic plates or the civil war? If a kid doesn't want to learn fractions, do they get to make choices in math topics so they are more willing?

I really want to bend spouse to returning to APS, but this level of student directed curriculum is not going to have the scope they are looking for.

5th grade has a strong science focus because of the science SOL in 5th. Social studies is lesser in 5th.
You can’t choose what you learn in math. Your teacher will follow the state SOLs, and in 5th there are a lot of skills.
There is a new reading program so I can’t attest to what it will involve (CKLA). Writing a persuasive/opinion essay is also a focus because there is a writing SOL in 5th. We do book clubs for kids during the year when there is time as well as extensions like jacobs ladder or DBQ. Some kids still need foundational instruction so it depends on the kid’s needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have no idea what novels my kid read in 5th this year but i just saw they scored 96-99th percentile on their reading assessments. They must be doing something right.

Diebels seems like more of a screener for below benchmark rather than a leveling assessment ?

The point is parents are helicoptering over which/how many novels their kids are reading. If youre that concerned, get your kids more books. If they’re below benchmarks call the reading specialist. There are resources for every kid. APS is not failing kids on literacy bevy they’re not reading the same 10 novels.

I mean I can get them a high powered laptop and a guitar, but I don't expect them to become a FAANG employee or rock star all on their own. Reading complex literature, understanding the themes and processing content that spans more than a paragraph are important skills for any career, and practice and instruction are part of that. Sure I can HOMESCHOOL them for their reading curriculum, but I already have a job and I hate to have my kid wasting 6 hrs of their day waiting for other kids to READ OUT LOUD.

How can there really not be more novels assigned? Why is there not earlier reading differentiation, since even at 5th grade some students are very advanced readers and need more to be challenged -- even if not marked "gifted" (and since APS switched to push in, gifted has been a bit of a farce)

If you can, homeschool them for reading (and, if possible, also public speaking). The truth is that being articulate and having a robust vocabulary, both developed by reading voraciously, will be the key differentiator in interviews (as if it’s not already) when all kids are on an equitable pass/fail grading system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:


A couple of thoughts:

--Many parents want their kids to have choices of books to read, or object to certain novels, so assigning the same novels to all kids is something US schools have really moved away from over the last 20 years
--Many kids are more willing to read if they can make their own choices
-- Reading non-fiction is actually more important to building kids' background knowledge and vocabulary. Most schools have students reading a mix of non-fiction and fiction, and if you're not counting the non-fiction they are reading, you are missing an important factor.



I would be ESTATIC if we had history textbooks, or they were reading biographies or even natural science/history book.

So kids get choices to what to read, do I get to ask to not teach them about tectonic plates or the civil war? If a kid doesn't want to learn fractions, do they get to make choices in math topics so they are more willing?

I really want to bend spouse to returning to APS, but this level of student directed curriculum is not going to have the scope they are looking for.

I'm the PP. You have completely misunderstood my post.
I was responding to what you wrote about novels, which made it seem as if you think of novels as the only type of reading kids do in 5th grade, and that the novels should be assigned, so that everyone is reading the same one. I was pointing out that:
-- teachers also have students read non-fiction (no, not science books, but some biographies and news articles)
--it is documented that kids will read more novels if they can choose the novel. Since 5th graders are not yet reading the classics, having them choose what novels they want to read is harmless. Teachers often offer 5 or 6 novels with the same theme to kids and they read them and complete similar analysis on what they read. It is not at all like taking fractions or the civil war out of the curriculum.

Since you have some very old-fashioned ideas about what constitutes good reading instruction, it sounds like you would be better off keeping your kid in private school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:


A couple of thoughts:

--Many parents want their kids to have choices of books to read, or object to certain novels, so assigning the same novels to all kids is something US schools have really moved away from over the last 20 years
--Many kids are more willing to read if they can make their own choices
-- Reading non-fiction is actually more important to building kids' background knowledge and vocabulary. Most schools have students reading a mix of non-fiction and fiction, and if you're not counting the non-fiction they are reading, you are missing an important factor.



I would be ESTATIC if we had history textbooks, or they were reading biographies or even natural science/history book.

So kids get choices to what to read, do I get to ask to not teach them about tectonic plates or the civil war? If a kid doesn't want to learn fractions, do they get to make choices in math topics so they are more willing?

I really want to bend spouse to returning to APS, but this level of student directed curriculum is not going to have the scope they are looking for.

I'm the PP. You have completely misunderstood my post.
I was responding to what you wrote about novels, which made it seem as if you think of novels as the only type of reading kids do in 5th grade, and that the novels should be assigned, so that everyone is reading the same one. I was pointing out that:
-- teachers also have students read non-fiction (no, not science books, but some biographies and news articles)
--it is documented that kids will read more novels if they can choose the novel. Since 5th graders are not yet reading the classics, having them choose what novels they want to read is harmless. Teachers often offer 5 or 6 novels with the same theme to kids and they read them and complete similar analysis on what they read. It is not at all like taking fractions or the civil war out of the curriculum.

Since you have some very old-fashioned ideas about what constitutes good reading instruction, it sounds like you would be better off keeping your kid in private school.

You seem to be misunderstanding what has been reported. I’m not against assigning each student their own choice of novel to read and then report on their own. What has been reported is that zero novels or full length books are assigned for independent reading. It’s solely “read 20 mins at night” and then reading novels aloud in class. If those reports are false my spouse might consider leaving private (my pref).

[Anonymous]

No, you are not understanding. APS’ reading curriculum the past few years has been Lucy Calkins reading units. The reading units have students mostly do research or use short texts or a read-aloud to practice skills. Separately some teachers also do book clubs where students read novels in groups. This happens once or twice per year.
Now we will have a new curriculum that no teacher has been trained in yet. It remains to be seen if there will be mandated book clubs or if teachers will have time to run them on the side. No one can answer your question for sure.

My APS 5th grader this year read 2 books for book clubs this year in 5th. She chose the books from a set of choices for one and then was put in a group for the other one.
She is an avid reader so always had a book for independent reading when she had time at school.

Each school is different and. O one can answer your question for certain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, you are not understanding. APS’ reading curriculum the past few years has been Lucy Calkins reading units. The reading units have students mostly do research or use short texts or a read-aloud to practice skills. Separately some teachers also do book clubs where students read novels in groups. This happens once or twice per year.
Now we will have a new curriculum that no teacher has been trained in yet. It remains to be seen if there will be mandated book clubs or if teachers will have time to run them on the side. No one can answer your question for sure.

My APS 5th grader this year read 2 books for book clubs this year in 5th. She chose the books from a set of choices for one and then was put in a group for the other one.
She is an avid reader so always had a book for independent reading when she had time at school.

Each school is different and. O one can answer your question for certain.

Why in the world does have LC reading units prevent teachers from also saying "everyone pick a novel, read it over the next month, then write a paragraph about the book"?? I'm not looking for dissertations here.

[Anonymous]

We would have students write responses about what they have read during independent reading time. However independent reading is not a primary reading instruction method in elementary school and so it’s usually an option when you’ve completed your practice work, done another activity such as Lexia or Ceasar’s English, and then if you have time you can read and respond. So not everyone is getting to independent reading time. There is only so much instructional time in the day.

Sounds like private is the best option for you if you don’t want to encourage your child to read on their own.

[Anonymous]

Why in the world does have LC reading units prevent teachers from also saying "everyone pick a novel, read it over the next month, then write a paragraph about the book"?? I'm not looking for dissertations here.

Sounds like you're looking for old-fashioned book reports done as homework, which are not considered best practices anymore, since there is no guarantee that the kid is writing it themselves.

[Anonymous]

OP, I have had 4 go through APS, with the last one just graduating from WL this month. Number 3 attended a private HS and she struggled with writing all of 9th grade. Emphasis on reading and writing as a student goes through APS is mostly a joke, even in honors and AP classes in HS. I can count on one hand the number of teachers who truly emphasized and spent time on writing. Most barely even added a comment to an essay or a paper., likely in large part because they have too many students in their classes. Just warning you, it does not get better past ES.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Why in the world does have LC reading units prevent teachers from also saying "everyone pick a novel, read it over the next month, then write a paragraph about the book"?? I'm not looking for dissertations here.

Sounds like you're looking for old-fashioned book reports done as homework, which are not considered best practices anymore, since there is no guarantee that the kid is writing it themselves.

Is this a concern for all homework, is this why there is so little homework assigned anymore?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Why in the world does have LC reading units prevent teachers from also saying "everyone pick a novel, read it over the next month, then write a paragraph about the book"?? I'm not looking for dissertations here.

Sounds like you're looking for old-fashioned book reports done as homework, which are not considered best practices anymore, since there is no guarantee that the kid is writing it themselves.

Is this a concern for all homework, is this why there is so little homework assigned anymore?

Because research has shown in elementary school it has no impact on academic achievement and in middle school the impact is small.
https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2019/03/homework-research-how-much/585889/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Why in the world does have LC reading units prevent teachers from also saying "everyone pick a novel, read it over the next month, then write a paragraph about the book"?? I'm not looking for dissertations here.

Sounds like you're looking for old-fashioned book reports done as homework, which are not considered best practices anymore, since there is no guarantee that the kid is writing it themselves.

Is this a concern for all homework, is this why there is so little homework assigned anymore?

Because research has shown in elementary school it has no impact on academic achievement and in middle school the impact is small.
https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2019/03/homework-research-how-much/585889/

That was a useless article.

So colleges have eliminated homework now too?

[Anonymous]

Research shows generally positive correlation of homework and achievement in middle and high school. Results less conclusive for elementary school.

https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ751143

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Research shows generally positive correlation of homework and achievement in middle and high school. Results less conclusive for elementary school.

https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ751143

I would only expect homework after 3rd grade to develop executive function and prep for middle school

Even the most ardent homework proponents don’t expect homework in kinder.