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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Why can't their be a suggested list to choose from BUT if the kid wants to deviate from that, they have to propose a) the book, b) how it meets the teaching objective for the unit/assignment? This would seem to meet the needs of people who are demanding required reading and kids who have strong preferences as to what they want to read.

I'm a voracious reader. Even i had a LOT of trouble with "assigned" reading in school. It had nothing with comprehension but I just hated the books - i couldn't relate to them, they weren't interesting . . . and it makes it hard to like a class and to like reading in that instance.

I'm no teacher. So this may not be a good "method" but it seems reasonable. Plus, it give control to the student and forces them to really think about a book that deviates from the list.

My two cents.[/quote]

I wonder if these parents asked their kids how they felt about this what they would hear. The PARENTS want “classic” required reading. But I teach kids and the kids... usually don’t. [/quote]

I'm the poster you're responding to and I've gone back to read some of the "classic" books that I was forced to read (or are usually forced on kids) as a kid. And it is interesting. Some of them are quite good but, frankly, I can see why most MS/HS kids are not interested in them. They can be boring if they are used to reading Harry Potter, Lord of The Rings, and other similar books. I think you can get some of the same themes in the classics without having to read the classics, imo. And so why shouldn't they be able to if they can make the case that the book qualifies for the unit/lesson? I think for kids who want the classics, maybe offer that as an elective?

I will also say that some of the classics I didn't love in HS, I loved way more as an adult (The Great Gatsby, being one). Some that are revered as great works are crap, imo (A Tale of Two Cities - I almost couldn't get through it; I'm struggling now getting through Huckleberry Finn). I intellectually get why they are considered great works but, sorry, not my cup of tea.

I think kids -well, my kid and me as a kid- learn better when they're interested and engaged. I get that is not 100% always possible but, with literature, it USUALLY can be made that way.

Anyway, like I said, I'm not a teacher. So take it for what it's worth . . . [/quote]

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