What reading level is this, in your opinion?

[Runningmom80]

Ha!  I said 3rd.  I was waaaayyyy off! :laugh:

[Penelope]

Well, I was originally going to vote for 5th grade because I thought, "I could've figured that out by fourth, so 5th seems like a safe guess." And then I remembered that I used to teach Language Arts to 8th graders, and only about the top 10% of them would have been able to figure this out. So I decided that maybe by 10th they'd have more vocabulary exposure...but I still think it likely that a large percentage of the adult population probably just gets the general gist of this form and couldn't come close to actually defining at least a few of the words in it. It is, after all, written by book-lovers. ;-)

I think this is more of a reflection of poor adult literacy rates than the actual reading level of the piece.

 

ETA: I said fourth grade, but I think it is probably higher than fourth grade reading level... However, I don't think reading levels really progress by grade. I expect that most children without disabilities, taught appropriately and as needed, should have a reading level much higher than "fourth grade reading level" by fourth grade. And that by ninth or tenth grade, they should be able to read and comprehend just about anything (all but specialized advanced academic language). When I said fourth grade, I meant that I would hope a fourth grader could read it and understand it. Maybe by that standard, fifth grade would be a better estimate.

[HSmomof2]

If they can't legally enter into contracts, why have them sign one?

I don't know how it is for other libraries, but in our local library system, there is a similar but shorter statement on the cards. The kids sign them, but the reality is because they cannot enter into a contract as minors, they can never be sent to a collection agency or actually have to pay the fines. (They can't checkout anymore while fines are over $10.) When they turn 18, the 'juvenile' fines on their cards are cleared off. Parents are not financially responsible for their children's fines either.