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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I found a paper I'd written as a third grader and almost died. I was so articulate compared to my current third grader (who is not considered behind). He could not have written even close to what I'd written, and I was by no means a genius or over achiever. The standards have shifted.[/quote]

I totally had the same (sobering) experience, except it was a 6th grade paper, which is sort of even more frightening given that you would think my middle school DC certainly should have mastered basic grammar, sentence structure, vocab, etc.  And although I became a better student, at that time I was middle-of-the-pack at my not especially fancy public school and a terrible speller to boot.

I feel like this is such an unwinnable war though because: 
(1) Even though I "make" my kids read--and one of the two actually enjoys it  :wink:--it is remarkable how "dumbed down" today's popular middle grade literature* is. When I read, even e.g. Harry Potter, I'm shocked by how much more advanced the writing is.  And I pulled out the Wizard of Oz series at some point and you would have thought it was James Joyce from the kids' perspective.
(2) We limit screens to only weekends, but it is a lost cause given how much time the kids are on screens at school. They do work on screens, get rewarded with "educational" video games, do homework on screens. It is ubiquitous -- at least after e.g. mid elementary school. 
(3) General screen addiction. I'm on them, DH is on them, the entire culture is working in memes and tweets and texts. Other than creating a separatist bubble, I am not sure what to do.

*I think all books are good books. But if kid's literature [i]across-the-board [/i]is simplified and shortened, well... we end up in the situation we are in now.[/quote]

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