40% of 4th graders cannot read in 2026

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think we can blame parents. It’s not fair to expect parents to spend an hour a day tutoring what should be taught in the 7 hours they’re in school daily.

I blame edtech. Get rid of the laptops and force reading from paper books and textbooks. It’s not the same to read on a screen.

There are reports showing on 37% of parents of toddlers read tot heir kids daily with 55% reading to their toddlers 5 days a week. That is the start of the problem. Kids who are read to regularly, preferably daily, are exposed to sounds, letters, blends, and the basic skills needed for reading early on. The majority of those kids will learn to read by K. The kids who had been read to regularly and struggle with reading themselves tend to have learning issues.

But when kids walk into K and don’t know their sounds or basic letters because no one was reading to them regularly as toddlers and pre-K they are behind.

So yeah, not reading in early ES is on the parents. Asking teachers to make up for 5-7 years of not being read to at home at school is ridiculous.

The reason the education gap exists is because people who had parents who had the time and money and did things like read to their kids tend to produce kids who end up with jobs who have the time and money and knowledge to read to their kids. People who did not do well in school or dropped out or never really attended because their parents didn’t care tend to have similar kids and the pattern persists. Asking teachers to fix a problem that is 1) generaational 2) parent based is unreasonable. It tells me you don’t understand how the brain develops or how education works.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is that book learn to read in 100 easy lessons or something like that. It's really very simple and short, but requires ~10-15 min of 1:1 instruction each day (and sometimes much less). I think schools should figure out how to make this program happen. Maybe it's fifth graders, or a subset of them pairing with kindergarteners, maybe it's high schoolers, maybe it's only kids who are flagged by January of K, but it is very effective.

I actually disagree that book is simple or short, but agree that schools have to teach reading explicitly with some kind of program (does not need to be that book). I taught my DC the basics of reading using BOB books when our initial lessons with 100 Easy Lessons were too much of a slog, and then her K teacher did the rest with a very strong phonics program at school.

Though we should also teach children media literacy so that unlike OP, they don't assume that a single headline in a YouTube video of dubious origin is a reliable resource.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think we can blame parents. It’s not fair to expect parents to spend an hour a day tutoring what should be taught in the 7 hours they’re in school daily.

I blame edtech. Get rid of the laptops and force reading from paper books and textbooks. It’s not the same to read on a screen.

There are reports showing on 37% of parents of toddlers read tot heir kids daily with 55% reading to their toddlers 5 days a week. That is the start of the problem. Kids who are read to regularly, preferably daily, are exposed to sounds, letters, blends, and the basic skills needed for reading early on. The majority of those kids will learn to read by K. The kids who had been read to regularly and struggle with reading themselves tend to have learning issues.

But when kids walk into K and don’t know their sounds or basic letters because no one was reading to them regularly as toddlers and pre-K they are behind.

So yeah, not reading in early ES is on the parents. Asking teachers to make up for 5-7 years of not being read to at home at school is ridiculous.

The reason the education gap exists is because people who had parents who had the time and money and did things like read to their kids tend to produce kids who end up with jobs who have the time and money and knowledge to read to their kids. People who did not do well in school or dropped out or never really attended because their parents didn’t care tend to have similar kids and the pattern persists. Asking teachers to fix a problem that is 1) generaational 2) parent based is unreasonable. It tells me you don’t understand how the brain develops or how education works.

Is it generational and parent-based though? I read to my kids WAY more than my parents ever read to me. When I was a kid I was not read to much at all (certainly not daily) and I also had plenty of TV exposure -- I know my parents used the TV as a babysitter all the time and some of my earliest memories are sitting on the floor watching TV (including Sesame Street, though also lots of BS cartoons). But I still learned to read. It was the 80s, so kids were not expected to read fluently in Kindergarten. I'm sure some did; I did not. I learned to read in 1st grade and have clear memories of reading my first "See Spot Run" type book on my own while sitting in my first grade classroom.

It seems like most kids used to learn to read in school. I'm sure there were many parents who were more diligent about reading to their kids than mine were, but do you really think it was more than 40% of the population? Literacy rates used to be way lower than they are now, which means plenty of people grew up in families in the 20th century where their parents were not capable of reading to them.

This was one of the main reasons public education was developed -- it was a way to educate kids who came from uneducated families. I really do not think it's too much to expect of schools that they be capable of teaching young children to read, even in situations where the parents do not or cannot contribute to that project. Obviously it's better if the parents support reading at home, but it has never been the case that most parents actually do that, so schools need to be set up to teach reading even when the ideal home environment isn't available.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think we can blame parents. It’s not fair to expect parents to spend an hour a day tutoring what should be taught in the 7 hours they’re in school daily.

I blame edtech. Get rid of the laptops and force reading from paper books and textbooks. It’s not the same to read on a screen.

There are reports showing on 37% of parents of toddlers read tot heir kids daily with 55% reading to their toddlers 5 days a week. That is the start of the problem. Kids who are read to regularly, preferably daily, are exposed to sounds, letters, blends, and the basic skills needed for reading early on. The majority of those kids will learn to read by K. The kids who had been read to regularly and struggle with reading themselves tend to have learning issues.

But when kids walk into K and don’t know their sounds or basic letters because no one was reading to them regularly as toddlers and pre-K they are behind.

So yeah, not reading in early ES is on the parents. Asking teachers to make up for 5-7 years of not being read to at home at school is ridiculous.

The reason the education gap exists is because people who had parents who had the time and money and did things like read to their kids tend to produce kids who end up with jobs who have the time and money and knowledge to read to their kids. People who did not do well in school or dropped out or never really attended because their parents didn’t care tend to have similar kids and the pattern persists. Asking teachers to fix a problem that is 1) generaational 2) parent based is unreasonable. It tells me you don’t understand how the brain develops or how education works.

I’m the OP; while I agree with you on the importance of parents reading to their pre-K children, I can’t place all the blame here on parents alone.

While I reject the entire “privilege” and “lens of equity” nonsense as the unrealistic nonsense it truly is, I acknowledge some kids simply won’t have parents (or a parent) to read to them. For example: all the children in orphanages. But somehow most of those children end up as educated and productive members of society.

The job of our schools is to educate. Our schools should find ways to make up for deficits such as lack of being read to.

Somehow, schools in 2025 are increasingly failing our children. That’s the point of my thread: we are facing a crisis of early education .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think we can blame parents. It’s not fair to expect parents to spend an hour a day tutoring what should be taught in the 7 hours they’re in school daily.

I blame edtech. Get rid of the laptops and force reading from paper books and textbooks. It’s not the same to read on a screen.

There are reports showing on 37% of parents of toddlers read tot heir kids daily with 55% reading to their toddlers 5 days a week. That is the start of the problem. Kids who are read to regularly, preferably daily, are exposed to sounds, letters, blends, and the basic skills needed for reading early on. The majority of those kids will learn to read by K. The kids who had been read to regularly and struggle with reading themselves tend to have learning issues.

But when kids walk into K and don’t know their sounds or basic letters because no one was reading to them regularly as toddlers and pre-K they are behind.

So yeah, not reading in early ES is on the parents. Asking teachers to make up for 5-7 years of not being read to at home at school is ridiculous.

The reason the education gap exists is because people who had parents who had the time and money and did things like read to their kids tend to produce kids who end up with jobs who have the time and money and knowledge to read to their kids. People who did not do well in school or dropped out or never really attended because their parents didn’t care tend to have similar kids and the pattern persists. Asking teachers to fix a problem that is 1) generaational 2) parent based is unreasonable. It tells me you don’t understand how the brain develops or how education works.

I don’t think reading to your kid is always enough. We read to our kids every night from the day they are born and I still needed to do explicit phonics instruction. I started with sounds at 3 and my five year old is now on lesson 60 of 100 lessons (the book definitely takes time). That has really worked for us. Really thankful for dcurbanmoms in recommending that resource.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parents need to get off their phones and get their kids to the libraries and read to their kids. Like, every week. Takes out books and bring them home, and read every single night. Boom, kids will start reading.

Why didn’t the parents of kids with dyslexia or learning disabilities or English as a second language think of that!? Brilliant!

[Anonymous]

I love learn to read in 100 early steps. I also believe that it is a parents responsibility to teach kids to read. Sure the schools should do it, but they aren’t doing it well. Read to your kids!!!! Have them read with you. Every single day

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents need to get off their phones and get their kids to the libraries and read to their kids. Like, every week. Takes out books and bring them home, and read every single night. Boom, kids will start reading.

Dh and I were both gifted and I don’t think my kids are dumb, but none learned by osmosis. I read at a minimum 30 min a day to my kids. Halfway through K my oldest hadn’t learned to read so I bought phonics books and she picked it up instantly. Shocking! After finally being explicitly taught, she got it.

By 4th grade I realized my kids weren’t reading to themselves and enforced mandatory reading time at home. I also bought any book of any genre that they wanted. They all are big readers now.

I don’t understand why school isn’t working for kids anymore but it’s just not.

For a self described gifted person you are making comments and using anecdotes that are unrelated to the problem. It became clear to you that reading wasn’t a favorite activity for your average kids and you stepped in to strengthen their average skills. If only it was that easy for every child. That’s not the case with so many kids that struggle to read for a variety of reasons.

[Anonymous]

Anyone else find it ironic that OP complains about kids’ reading skills by posting a video, rather than actual studies/data? 😂

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think we can blame parents. It’s not fair to expect parents to spend an hour a day tutoring what should be taught in the 7 hours they’re in school daily.

I blame edtech. Get rid of the laptops and force reading from paper books and textbooks. It’s not the same to read on a screen.

There are reports showing on 37% of parents of toddlers read tot heir kids daily with 55% reading to their toddlers 5 days a week. That is the start of the problem. Kids who are read to regularly, preferably daily, are exposed to sounds, letters, blends, and the basic skills needed for reading early on. The majority of those kids will learn to read by K. The kids who had been read to regularly and struggle with reading themselves tend to have learning issues.

But when kids walk into K and don’t know their sounds or basic letters because no one was reading to them regularly as toddlers and pre-K they are behind.

So yeah, not reading in early ES is on the parents. Asking teachers to make up for 5-7 years of not being read to at home at school is ridiculous.

The reason the education gap exists is because people who had parents who had the time and money and did things like read to their kids tend to produce kids who end up with jobs who have the time and money and knowledge to read to their kids. People who did not do well in school or dropped out or never really attended because their parents didn’t care tend to have similar kids and the pattern persists. Asking teachers to fix a problem that is 1) generaational 2) parent based is unreasonable. It tells me you don’t understand how the brain develops or how education works.

I don’t think reading to your kid is always enough. We read to our kids every night from the day they are born and I still needed to do explicit phonics instruction. I started with sounds at 3 and my five year old is now on lesson 60 of 100 lessons (the book definitely takes time). That has really worked for us. Really thankful for dcurbanmoms in recommending that resource.

Agreed, it is not enough but it sets the foundation. When kids arrive at K knowing their sounds and letters and having been exposed to books an reading, it is easier for them to absorb reading instruction from teachers, like phonics and the like. When kids arrive at school and don’t know their letters and sounds an have not been read to, they are starting with a big gap. They are not used to sitting and being read to and have to develop that habit. Plus learn their letters and sounds before you can start with things like phonics.

The standard for what is grade level is going to be hard to hit for kids who are arriving at school unprepared for whatever reason. Given the percentage of kis living in poverty in the US and ESOL, 40% of kids being under grade level is not a surprise.

And I didn’t watch the video. The reality is that this is far more a problem at home than at school. There is only so much a teacher can do. Homes that do not prioritize education are going to have kids who fall below the standard and there is not a darn thing the schools can do to fix that. A kid who arrives at school whose parents didn’t read to them as toddlers and pre-K kids is not likely to have a parent at home that will practice reading with them at home once school starts. Or help with math homework or any of that.

[Anonymous]

The "Mississippi Miracle" was partly achieved by embracing phonics education. 15 to 20% of children have some form of dyslexia. Phonics works for them, and it also works well for non-dyslexia kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone else find it ironic that OP complains about kids’ reading skills by posting a video, rather than actual studies/data? 😂

No, it's not ironic, because the video contains the data. You actually have to watch it to know that though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone else find it ironic that OP complains about kids’ reading skills by posting a video, rather than actual studies/data? 😂

Vídeo Killed The Reading Star

[Anonymous]

Stop acting like you truly care.. These kids come from lower class backgrounds, so this is to be expected and it's been like this for years. They aren't upper class, so you certainly look down on them.

[Anonymous]

I can already tell that’s a source I have no interest in clicking on. Thanks though.