How long does it take your child to silent read a Magic Tree House book?

[pitterpatter]

Please note approximate time and age/grade.

 

Throwing this out before school. Will come back to discuss later.

 

TIA!!

[Chris in VA]

One, in first grade, approx 8, could read a MTH in about 4 hours.

One, in K, at 5, could read one in about 2 hours.

 

It's very individual.

[Kathryn]

My older DS read them from age 5-6. He went through one in about an hour to one and a half. Younger DS isn't there yet.

[SKL]

The book series gets progressively harder, so I'm going to assume you mean the earlier books.

 

My youngest used to read them in grade 1, age 6, and I would say it took her maybe an hour.

 

My eldest read them in grade 2, age 7, and it would take her 2-3 hours, broken up over the course of a day or two.

[hauntedzeppelin]

My oldest 5yo/K is kind of finicky on what catches his fancy. If he is interested in the topic, he can finish one in a single one hour sitting. If the subject is just okay, it takes about 3 hours over numerous sittings. A few he has refused to finish (I'm looking at you, Afternoon on the Amazon...).

[Saraswati]

My 7 year old is reading through them right now. She finishes a book in a couple hours. We already had the whole collection from when my oldest read them, so she's going through the box one book per day. We have all of the research guides, so she reads those too, if there is one for the book she just finished.

[SeaConquest]

My DS5 can finish one in about an hour.

[chicagoshannon]

Dd7 could read them in about an hour.

[pitterpatter]

Starting to get some responses rolling in. My sister is a second grade public school teacher. She says some of her students read an entire Magic Tree House book in 20 minutes. (I also think this time includes taking a multiple choice test on a computer, but let's say they get an extra five minutes for that.) I'm getting from her that this is the gold standard for measuring whether a student can read well and on target in second grade. I've told her time and again that I don't believe it...that they aren't really "reading" it. While I haven't timed myself or my DD reading a Magic Tree House book, it takes Mary Pope Osborne about 60-70 minutes or more to read one of her books aloud on audiobook (deduct a few minutes for intro, etc.). I think she reads them at a good pace for her target audience and that a child might read them at a similar pace in his/her head, if said child made no mistakes and did not look at any pictures. My sister has pretty well said that my DD who is 7.5 is behind in reading because she can't/doesn't/wouldn't do this.

 

Thoughts? Be back later...DD's finished with her work.

[vonfirmath]

End of last year (1st grade, age 6) and when he reads them this year -- 1-1.5 hours or so. It varies depending on his interest level. He mostly won't read them anymore.

[Arcadia]

Mine won't do it because they just don't like magic treehouse series. My older can speedread while my younger can guess multiple choice tests correctly without reading a book. Their public school teacher tests them one on one for reading from kindergarten. My local public schools have testing days.

 

For my local public schools, a 2nd grader is behind if the child can't read his/her own math or english worksheets. These kids see a ESL or LD specialist depending on the cause. Your child aren't behind even by public school standards.

 

There are also plenty of kids locally who has read Magic treehouse before 2nd grade at the library. 20mins for a re-read is easy.

[vonfirmath]

Starting to get some responses rolling in. My sister is a second grade public school teacher. She says some of her students read an entire Magic Tree House book in 20 minutes. (I also think this time includes taking a multiple choice test on a computer, but let's say they get an extra five minutes for that.) I'm getting from her that this is the gold standard for measuring whether a student can read well and on target in second grade. I've told her time and again that I don't believe it...that they aren't really "reading" it. While I haven't timed myself or my DD reading a Magic Tree House book, it takes Mary Pope Osborne about 60-70 minutes or more to read one of her books aloud on audiobook (deduct a few minutes for intro, etc.). I think she reads them at a good pace for her target audience and that a child might read them at a similar pace in his/her head, if said child made no mistakes and did not look at any pictures. My sister has pretty well said that my DD who is 7.5 is behind in reading because she can't/doesn't/wouldn't do this.

 

Thoughts? Be back later...DD's finished with her work.

 

Actually, if she reads the book in an hour on audiobook, then I'd believe it entirely possible that you can read it faster silently. I know I can read much faster silently than the speed it takes to listen to a book on audiobook.  However, I still wouldn't say it was "Normal" to read them that fast. Just that she has some fast readers (And probably readers who have read enough Treehouse they can get the gist of the story enough to pass the test in a quick read -- if this read is even their first time through the book.)

[Tsuga]

Please note approximate time and age/grade.

 

Throwing this out before school. Will come back to discuss later.

 

TIA!!

 

At seven, end of first grade, maybe 1 hour, and she could answer reading comprehension questions with 100% accuracy. Now, probably about 30 minutes? That's with answering basic reading comprehension questions as well, and I ask her about main characters, why do you think this happened, etc.

 

I do not think slower reading means below target. Some people process things differently and that is not a deficit. It's just a different way of dealing with the material. I read fast and then again and again. My partner reads things once at a glacial pace.

 

What does speed have to do with reading level after fluency (i.e. ability to read MT) is achieved? Does she have some theoretical basis for that?

[Kerileanne99]

Starting to get some responses rolling in. My sister is a second grade public school teacher. She says some of her students read an entire Magic Tree House book in 20 minutes. (I also think this time includes taking a multiple choice test on a computer, but let's say they get an extra five minutes for that.) I'm getting from her that this is the gold standard for measuring whether a student can read well and on target in second grade. I've told her time and again that I don't believe it...that they aren't really "reading" it. While I haven't timed myself or my DD reading a Magic Tree House book, it takes Mary Pope Osborne about 60-70 minutes or more to read one of her books aloud on audiobook (deduct a few minutes for intro, etc.). I think she reads them at a good pace for her target audience and that a child might read them at a similar pace in his/her head, if said child made no mistakes and did not look at any pictures. My sister has pretty well said that my DD who is 7.5 is behind in reading because she can't/doesn't/wouldn't do this.

 

Thoughts? Be back later...DD's finished with her work.

My dd5 is a very advanced reader but still enjoys going through these. It is true that the beginning ones are much easier/shorter than the later books, but the last time I checked she could get through them in under 1/2 hour. That was reading it aloud to her friend, with voices and effects:)

 

Her part time Montessori preschool has her bring home these silly Rainbow Magic Fairy books that are longer and more difficult, and they take about 30 minutes. She has to take a computer test on them when she returns them, and routinely gets 100%, so I know it is possible. Honestly, I don't pay all that much attention as she reads them in the car because I don't want to devote any of our time to them, lol!

That being said, I highly doubt that it is a common thing. Even just at her school it is very, very rare for that to be the case even in the elementary room where she goes for books. Most of the 6, 7,8 year olds get a book and read it over a few days.

[SKL]

Well, my youngest at age 7 was known to allegedly read a thick book (much thicker than a MT book) in a half hour and then pass an AR test on it.  She was doing this to rack up points, not to enjoy the books.  I would rather my kids really digest the books they read.

 

I also don't know about looking at 2nd graders as if they were all the same.  There may be a broad age range in 2nd grade.  A third of my kids' classmates (including bright girls) turned 8 in the spring/summer before 2nd grade.  That naturally skewed the average reading level of the class.

[SKL]

And I am a rather slow reader.  But I always tested 2+ years above grade level in elementary school.  I liked to imagine myself in the story, make pictures in my mind, argue with myself about whether this event is possible given that previous event, go back and check a fact for consistency, etc.  I do remember what I read better than most people.

 

My eldest is an average (or slightly above average) reader, as proven by many tests.  I know she's really reading (as opposed to plowing through) when she stops along the way and makes commentary on how she'd feel in that situation etc.  She won't remember the details for long (memory problems), but at least she will be motivated to read another book soon.  :)

 

I don't like the idea that a 2nd grade teacher views reading as essentially a race.  Do the authors of good kids' literature intend that?  I doubt it.

 

Another thing.  When I was a kid, most children didn't read anywhere near the quantity that the average US kid is expected to read nowadays.  My kids are pretty much expected to read a book (or more) every day or two.  I am not sure whether that's a good or bad thing.  I read far fewer books, but I had a relationship with those books and still remember them today.

[pitterpatter]

I do think that a child could learn to read/skim a MTH quickly and get enough out of it and the pictures to do well on an AR test. What I'm trying to figure out is why I would want to encourage my DD to do this? I'm pretty sure DD would spend half that time just enjoying the pictures...seeing how the illustrations reflect the text. The AR goal for second grade is to read 100 and something (can't remember) books during school time during the year. Those who hit that goal are invited to a special ice cream party or similar. Doesn't this encourage students to rush through their reading and to read below level?

 

Honestly, I should really just not give a hoot, right?

[blondeviolin]

My oldest could have easily hit the 100 books last year, even non-MTH books. BUT, if we were just focusing on how many books, she'd have definitely chosen the easier MTH books. Because I wasn't worried about it, she enjoyed books like Black Beauty, the Secret Garden, Harry Potter, the Tale of Desperaux, Because of Winn-Dixie, and several more. She loved these books much more than the brain candy of MTH.

[pitterpatter]

This is me and I can see it in DD too. (My DD is similar to yours...she just has to read me her favorite parts, laughs out loud while reading, shakes her head, stuff likes that.) I've read so many books within a specific genre now that I have a very difficult time finding new ones worth reading. When new books by my favorite authors are released, I totally savor them. I re-read certain paragraphs three, five times or more to imagine every detail and create a film segment of sorts in my head. I read funny or intense dialogue over and over until it loses its appeal.

 

I'm right to think quantity isn't quality reading here, right? The AR goal is the grade's directive. It's not set by the individual teacher.

 

 

And I am a rather slow reader.  But I always tested 2+ years above grade level in elementary school.  I liked to imagine myself in the story, make pictures in my mind, argue with myself about whether this event is possible given that previous event, go back and check a fact for consistency, etc.  I do remember what I read better than most people.

 

My eldest is an average (or slightly above average) reader, as proven by many tests.  I know she's really reading (as opposed to plowing through) when she stops along the way and makes commentary on how she'd feel in that situation etc.  She won't remember the details for long (memory problems), but at least she will be motivated to read another book soon.  :)

 

I don't like the idea that a 2nd grade teacher views reading as essentially a race.  Do the authors of good kids' literature intend that?  I doubt it.

 

Another thing.  When I was a kid, most children didn't read anywhere near the quantity that the average US kid is expected to read nowadays.  My kids are pretty much expected to read a book (or more) every day or two.  I am not sure whether that's a good or bad thing.  I read far fewer books, but I had a relationship with those books and still remember them today.

 

[vonfirmath]

Most of the 6, 7,8 year olds get a book and read it over a few days.

 

Note: Just because a kid holds a book for a few days does not necessarily mean thye are reading it over that time.

 

My son is not good at the "Return a book and get another one" thing. But generally has a book read before he gets home from school. Their library day is Wednesday. The library is open after hours on Mondays so it will be Monday before he exchanges the book (when he goes with me) and then he'll read it and exchange again when the class goes on Wednesday.  what does he do in between? He reads the book again. He picks up books we have at home and reads those. Often its a matter of "what first comes to hand"  (He was reading one of my magazines last night though I pointed out it was an adult magazine and not one of his. Not sure how much he got out of it.)

 

Luckily, while they do the AR thing at my son's school, it is -not- with an expectation to read a horrible amount of books. (That have tests accompanying. My son easily reads the #s. He read over 100 different books the summer before starting first grade just for the Area library program. It's the testing part that we would have problems with)  They need to be regularly reading at least 20 minutes a day (logged) but can read anything their parents say is okay, including some options for reading on online story websites they sent home login information for. And they need to pass AR tests, at minimum, on the books that are read in their reading groups. That becomes part of their reading grade.  There are prizes for taking more tests, etc. But no grade penalties for kids like my son that are not that interested in racking up the numbers. (though he did get recognized before Christmas for being one of the "most improved" in the class. IE the reading levels gone up by the most from the beginning of the year to that point)

 

 

 

[SKL]

Our school has high stretch AR goals too.  For 1st grade it was 75 points.  100 points for 2nd.  125 for 3rd.  The prize is an ice cream party.  As the kids get older, I've noticed fewer and fewer reach the goal.

 

Also, this year my kids are not allowed to read below or above a certain narrow range.  (In 1st & 2nd they had a ceiling but not a floor.)  It is pretty hard to find 100+ books within a narrow range that they are motivated to read with interest.  A lot of the books that are right for their developmental/interest level are above or below that narrow range.  One of my kids will read at 2x-3x as much as the stretch goal anyway, so it is not an issue for her.  The other really doesn't like reading all that much.  She wants to reach the goal, but it may end up being an exercise in drudgery.  Or maybe she will just give up on the ice cream party.

 

I have so many books that would benefit my eldest, but she's already above that reading level for AR purposes (or aren't on the AR list at all - some great older books in this category).  My eldest doesn't have time to do outside reading on top of a 125 point AR goal.  So, I'm considering having her just read the good books, and promising her a private ice cream party instead.

[Wheres Toto]

Ds could read one in about an hour at 6/7 years old.  Dd is currently 7 and takes about 90 minutes.

[Kerileanne99]

Note: Just because a kid holds a book for a few days does not necessarily mean thye are reading it over that time.

 

My son is not good at the "Return a book and get another one" thing. But generally has a book read before he gets home from school. Their library day is Wednesday. The library is open after hours on Mondays so it will be Monday before he exchanges the book (when he goes with me) and then he'll read it and exchange again when the class goes on Wednesday. what does he do in between? He reads the book again. He picks up books we have at home and reads those. Often its a matter of "what first comes to hand" (He was reading one of my magazines last night though I pointed out it was an adult magazine and not one of his. Not sure how much he got out of it.)

 

Luckily, while they do the AR thing at my son's school, it is -not- with an expectation to read a horrible amount of books. (That have tests accompanying. My son easily reads the #s. He read over 100 different books the summer before starting first grade just for the Area library program. It's the testing part that we would have problems with) They need to be regularly reading at least 20 minutes a day (logged) but can read anything their parents say is okay, including some options for reading on online story websites they sent home login information for.)

No, of course not:). And there is nothing at all wrong with reading a school book for a few minutes per day and choosing to read other things, lol. In fact, I would be that for most kids, particularly those that enjoy reading, this is the norm--and a good thing considering some of the stuff even my dd5 brings home to read.

I also think it really matters the emphasis the school puts in the AR system. If the kids are consuming constant fluff at a surface level to rack up points, I see zero point.

For what it is worth, dd goes to a Montessori school so there is no emphasis on competition. They don't get points, but do take the tests in order to get new books and gauge where they are (approximately). Dd does not even know really what they are for:) this means that she gets to read the books at school just for fun and because she likes to find new books. I realize that not all schools can do this, but I really wish there was a better system than the stories I hear about:(

[Wheres Toto]

Starting to get some responses rolling in. My sister is a second grade public school teacher. She says some of her students read an entire Magic Tree House book in 20 minutes. (I also think this time includes taking a multiple choice test on a computer, but let's say they get an extra five minutes for that.) I'm getting from her that this is the gold standard for measuring whether a student can read well and on target in second grade. I've told her time and again that I don't believe it...that they aren't really "reading" it. While I haven't timed myself or my DD reading a Magic Tree House book, it takes Mary Pope Osborne about 60-70 minutes or more to read one of her books aloud on audiobook (deduct a few minutes for intro, etc.). I think she reads them at a good pace for her target audience and that a child might read them at a similar pace in his/her head, if said child made no mistakes and did not look at any pictures. My sister has pretty well said that my DD who is 7.5 is behind in reading because she can't/doesn't/wouldn't do this.

 

Thoughts? Be back later...DD's finished with her work.

 

I read very quickly.  It's not unheard of for me to finish an entire book, like one of the In Death series or similar length, in one day of sporadic reading around other things.  

 

I'm not sure I could read an entire MTH in 20 minutes if you mean actually reading it word for word and not skimming for the general idea.  Maybe a couple of the shorter/easier ones. (ETA:  Of course the fact that I find these awkward and extremely boring may have something to do with it too).

[forty-two]

Under 30 min (possibly in 15-20 min), age 8. I haven't timed it exactly, but it's pretty fast.

[forty-two]

Starting to get some responses rolling in. My sister is a second grade public school teacher. She says some of her students read an entire Magic Tree House book in 20 minutes. (I also think this time includes taking a multiple choice test on a computer, but let's say they get an extra five minutes for that.) I'm getting from her that this is the gold standard for measuring whether a student can read well and on target in second grade. I've told her time and again that I don't believe it...that they aren't really "reading" it. While I haven't timed myself or my DD reading a Magic Tree House book, it takes Mary Pope Osborne about 60-70 minutes or more to read one of her books aloud on audiobook (deduct a few minutes for intro, etc.). I think she reads them at a good pace for her target audience and that a child might read them at a similar pace in his/her head, if said child made no mistakes and did not look at any pictures. My sister has pretty well said that my DD who is 7.5 is behind in reading because she can't/doesn't/wouldn't do this.

 

Thoughts? Be back later...DD's finished with her work.

Well, as I posted (before reading the rest of the thread), my dd8 reads one that fast, and she really is *reading* it - she's just a very fast silent reader (and prolific - she reads several hours a day). I can read one silently in 15 min or so, probably at around 600 wpm. Max read aloud speed is generally estimated at 150 wpm, so a book that can be read aloud at a good clip in 60 min could be read silently at 3-4x that rate, so 450-600 wpm, which is 15-20 min. So ime it's quite plausible for good readers to read one that fast.

 

But I do agree with you it ought not be the *norm* for everyone to reach in 2nd grade.

 

Eta: I know when I'm reading fiction at a good clip it's more than skimming but less than reading each and every word. It *feels* like I'm taking in each and every word, but some of it is actually seeing the words I expect to see - automatically using grammar knowledge to fill in the "little" words, mostly, along with some story knowledge giving rise to expectations. I wouldn't know I do this, except that when I re-read books sometimes I come across a word I swear I haven't read before, and every so often my expectations are wrong and I come to a halt, going "huh?" and go back and re-read more carefully. And the harder the book (either content-wise or structure-wise) the slower I go, because I can't fill in the blanks as usual.

 

I'm fairly certain my dd8 does the same thing - despite me being hard-core phonics-only in teaching her, she automatically used picture and context and grammatical clues in reading from the very beginning (she really hated to sound things out and hated reading things with no context - I can only imagine how little phonetic knowledge she would have ended up with if she'd been taught via whole language and *encouraged* to use context clues :svengo:).

[OneStepAtATime]

Starting to get some responses rolling in. My sister is a second grade public school teacher. She says some of her students read an entire Magic Tree House book in 20 minutes. (I also think this time includes taking a multiple choice test on a computer, but let's say they get an extra five minutes for that.) I'm getting from her that this is the gold standard for measuring whether a student can read well and on target in second grade. I've told her time and again that I don't believe it...that they aren't really "reading" it. While I haven't timed myself or my DD reading a Magic Tree House book, it takes Mary Pope Osborne about 60-70 minutes or more to read one of her books aloud on audiobook (deduct a few minutes for intro, etc.). I think she reads them at a good pace for her target audience and that a child might read them at a similar pace in his/her head, if said child made no mistakes and did not look at any pictures. My sister has pretty well said that my DD who is 7.5 is behind in reading because she can't/doesn't/wouldn't do this.

 

Thoughts? Be back later...DD's finished with her work.

I will be honest, I hate the AR mindset.  And I hate that this type of mindset is really being pushed by the public school system.  Rush through a reading and take a test to prove you can read.  So what?  That doesn't actually prove much of anything.  Lot of kids get good at skimming just to pass the tests.  Doesn't mean they are learning how to read with any depth.  If racking up points by rush reading is inspiring a child to read more, then I guess it might be helpful to encourage someone to read.  But I don't see how this is a good idea in the long run.  

 

There are books I read as a child that I still re-read.  Why?  Because I learn more, or see things from a different perspective each time I read them.  Because I wasn't being taught that rushing through a ton of books was the best way to read.  Because the volume of reading was not as emphasized as the depth of the reading.  I was encouraged to take my time, see the subtle nuances, get the depth as well as the breadth.  

 

Granted, there isn't a ton of depth in a Magic Tree House book.  But if they are encouraged to rush through the story then when do they get the encouragement to pause and think about the story?  Maybe ask questions about the topic and look into those questions further?  Where is the encouragement to re-read a book so they can discover the subtleties in concept/understanding that they missed the first time through?

 

Frankly, unless you are seeing that your child is struggling with decoding and fluency when she reads out loud to you, I don't see how your child could be considered "behind" if she doesn't rush through a Magic Tree House book in  a half hour or less.  If she is capable of reading fluently at grade level and can comprehend well at her grade level, how is she "behind"?  I think your sister, frankly, has been a bit brainwashed, no disrespect intended.  I was that way once, too.

 

And just to add, there are some who will read very quickly.  And some who will not.  It does not mean that the fast reader is better than the slow reader or vice versa.  It only means one is fast and one is slower.  Reading success is more determined by fluency and comprehension than speed, IMHO.

[LaughingCat]

No doubt there are kids that can truly read them in 20 minutes - but generalizing that to being what a 2nd grader should be able to do and that a child is behind if they can't do it is a leap that it is sad to hear a PS teacher making.  

 

FWIW the fluency standard I have seen is 80-95 wpm at the end of 2nd grade  -  95 wpm  would be 50 minutes for Dinosaurs Before Dark (4750 words). 

[Korrale]

My son (5) can read one of the first 8 Magic Tree Books in 30-45 minutes. We haven't read furthar into the series than that. He has a reading proficiency beyond that of a second grader and he does reader faster than normal. And yes I know he is genuinely reading as I have quizzed him extensively, and even tried to trick him and he will correct me.

[SKL]

With my kids at least, there's a big difference between "does" and "can."  I don't actually time my kids' reading, they go to their room and read and then re-emerge about an hour later.  I'm sure they are not speed-reading, and they may be taking breaks.  Who knows?  I do notice that if I tell them they can do something really fun after they finish reading xyz, their speed can surprise me, and they are able to answer questions when I skeptically quiz them.

 

I've never read a MTH book myself, so I don't know how long it would take me.  One of my kids reads at least as fast as I do, the other is slower.

[SparklyUnicorn]

It depended on the book.  They are not all comparable level wise.

 

 

[Grover]

8 y.o. about 20 minutes

5 y.o. about an hour of solid reaidng, but she might do that in 3 goes

[SoCal_Bear]

6yo about 20-25 minutes for the first set in the series. 25-30 minutes for longer Merlin Missions. He is an advanced reader though and started reading at 3. He is capable of reading 6th grade level reading material, but that's much harder work for him.

 

[pitterpatter]

Thanks, everyone! I'm convinced most kids are probably working the system and are not developing healthy reading habits. Given the size of the school, I think it would be extraordinary for there to be even one super reader per class. (This particular class, as in the grade level as a whole, doesn't have many exceptional students.) Take into account class distractions, stopping to view pictures, etc., I'm not buying it. And, for a child to speed read a MTH a day, ugh...sounds painfully exhausting to me. Maybe kids are different today, but I remember silent reading when I was in school...it was read a bit, look around, read a bit, look out the window. Perhaps I was just a poor student, but I remember an awful lot of smiling faces peeking back at me.

[SKL]

Maybe kids are different today, but I remember silent reading when I was in school...it was read a bit, look around, read a bit, look out the window. Perhaps I was just a poor student, but I remember an awful lot of smiling faces peeking back at me.

 

When I was a kid, there was no external reward system for silent reading.  The reward was the enjoyment of the book; therefore I took it as slow as necessary to savor it.  Many times I regretted finishing a really good book because now there was no more of it.  (And I went to the library in search of another similar book.)  Sometimes a good book was re-read multiple times.  (Nowadays there is a disincentive to re-read as you can only get points for a book the first time.)

 

I liked AR in the 1st and early 2nd grade because it encouraged vocabulary development and fluency IMO.  But now I am thinking it is not so good for the higher grades.  Or at least, the ever-increasing point goals are not so smart.  Maybe a lot of kids are dropping out because they and/or their parents feel the same.

[OneStepAtATime]

When I was a kid, there was no external reward system for silent reading.  The reward was the enjoyment of the book; therefore I took it as slow as necessary to savor it.  Many times I regretted finishing a really good book because now there was no more of it.  (And I went to the library in search of another similar book.)  Sometimes a good book was re-read multiple times.  (Nowadays there is a disincentive to re-read as you can only get points for a book the first time.)

 

I liked AR in the 1st and early 2nd grade because it encouraged vocabulary development and fluency IMO.  But now I am thinking it is not so good for the higher grades.  Or at least, the ever-increasing point goals are not so smart.  Maybe a lot of kids are dropping out because they and/or their parents feel the same.

Yes.

[Mommy_of_4]

My 7yr old can read one in bout 30 minutes.

[Tsuga]

 

Sometimes a good book was re-read multiple times.  (Nowadays there is a disincentive to re-read as you can only get points for a book the first time.)

 

Our kids are allowed to re-read the same book as many times as they want. The points are for time read. I told both my daughter's teachers that she was reading the same book over and over for two weeks straight--was that okay? They said that was normal and if she was enjoying herself, great.

[LaughingCat]

Interesting the viewpoints on how the old way led to reading slowly - that was not true for me -- we had no reward system either but I zipped through books.  No slowing down and savoring here - I was far too invested in the story to slow down (or take breaks either - still have that problem actually).  Kinda like the difference in people who like to reread and people who don't perhaps?

[OneStepAtATime]

Our kids are allowed to re-read the same book as many times as they want. The points are for time read. I told both my daughter's teachers that she was reading the same book over and over for two weeks straight--was that okay? They said that was normal and if she was enjoying herself, great.

That is definitely not the case here.  I'm glad you are not in the same situation.  

 

The kids here are only allowed to test on an AR book once.  They are encouraged to speed read through as many books as possible to wrack up points.  The number of points required at each grade level increases quite a bit.  They are very much discouraged from reading a book more than once.  They are told that it is a waste of time since they cannot test on the book again and they need to "get those points".  And up until recently you were not allowed to read a book above your grade level so if you were an advanced reader that was too bad.  Obviously you could read something at home but for testing purposes it had to be at your grade level.  They would not allow a child to test on any book that was above grade level.  The reasoning?  They couldn't properly police whether the content was age appropriate and because the child might read through all the books at the higher level and run out of books to test on when they go to higher grades.   :confused1: 

 

That has finally changed but it was ridiculous and frustrating for a lot of kids.

[Kerileanne99]

That is definitely not the case here. I'm glad you are not in the same situation.

 

The kids here are only allowed to test on an AR book once. They are encouraged to speed read through as many books as possible to wrack up points. The number of points required at each grade level increases quite a bit. They are very much discouraged from reading a book more than once. They are told that it is a waste of time since they cannot test on the book again and they need to "get those points". And up until recently you were not allowed to read a book above your grade level so if you were an advanced reader that was too bad. Obviously you could read something at home but for testing purposes it had to be at your grade level. They would not allow a child to test on any book that was above grade level. The reasoning? They couldn't properly police whether the content was age appropriate and because the child might read through all the books at the higher level and run out of books to test on when they go to higher grades. :confused1:

 

That has finally changed but it was ridiculous and frustrating for a lot of kids.

That is awful:(

Talk about completely missing the point and practically guaranteeing that kids will despise reading and eschew pleasure reading in all forms. I also think this is exactly the type of scenario that teaches kids only to skim-and they later really struggle to read anything that isn't fluff for content:(

[forty-two]

Interesting the viewpoints on how the old way led to reading slowly - that was not true for me -- we had no reward system either but I zipped through books. No slowing down and savoring here - I was far too invested in the story to slow down (or take breaks either - still have that problem actually). Kinda like the difference in people who like to reread and people who don't perhaps?

This is me too - the reason I fly through books is *because* I'm so invested in the story. I remember reading a blog post where a person was talking about having read Pride and Prejudice in one day of non-stop reading and she was ashamed of it, thought it was a bad thing, that the book deserved more time spent. It baffled me, because some of my very best days of reading were reading a good book from start to finish in one go - best way to be fully immersed in the book ime - and I think that's of value, too. I do re-read books, so just because I read it once straight through doesn't mean I lose the chance to read it slower over time. And finishing a book fast doesn't mean I don't think about it and discuss it afterward - I don't brain dump a book the moment I'm finished with it, so that if I don't interact with it copiously during the initial reading I don't interact with it at all. And reading fast doesn't mean I don't stop and consider things mid-read, either; I read fast because I love to read, not because I want to get it over with. As C.S. Lewis said, there's no such thing as a book that's too long ;).

[SKL]

Hmm, I do read through some books pretty fast, others much more slowly.  I am not sure why.  So all the HP books were done in a day or less (each), but Charles Dickens takes me a while.  (I'm reading Bleak House right now, so maybe that's not a fair comparison, LOL.)  Some books just seem meant to be read slowly.

[pitterpatter]

This is the case here. It's all about hitting the goal. Little else matters.

 

That is definitely not the case here.  I'm glad you are not in the same situation.  

 

The kids here are only allowed to test on an AR book once.  They are encouraged to speed read through as many books as possible to wrack up points.  The number of points required at each grade level increases quite a bit.  They are very much discouraged from reading a book more than once.  They are told that it is a waste of time since they cannot test on the book again and they need to "get those points".  And up until recently you were not allowed to read a book above your grade level so if you were an advanced reader that was too bad.  Obviously you could read something at home but for testing purposes it had to be at your grade level.  They would not allow a child to test on any book that was above grade level.  The reasoning?  They couldn't properly police whether the content was age appropriate and because the child might read through all the books at the higher level and run out of books to test on when they go to higher grades.   :confused1:

 

That has finally changed but it was ridiculous and frustrating for a lot of kids.

 

[forty-two]

Hmm, I do read through some books pretty fast, others much more slowly. I am not sure why. So all the HP books were done in a day or less (each), but Charles Dickens takes me a while. (I'm reading Bleak House right now, so maybe that's not a fair comparison, LOL.) Some books just seem meant to be read slowly.

For some reason I tend to read Dickens while pg, so I get extra emotional over the horrible treatment of children and must take breaks to rant to dh about the horribleness of it all :lol:.

 

I tend to read books at the speed they lend themselves to, fast enough to have enough to think about and slow enough so that I *can* think about it. So it takes me two weeks to work through a 200 pg theology book and half a day to read a 500 pg thriller, and all sorts of rates in between. There are some books that have too little content that there's no way to read them fast enough to have enough to think about, and there's books that are worth an hour a page, and there's books that deliver at all speeds - you can think on them at multiple levels, spend as much time as you want.

[SKL]

For some reason I tend to read Dickens while pg, so I get extra emotional over the horrible treatment of children and must take breaks to rant to dh about the horribleness of it all :lol:.

 

I tend to read books at the speed they lend themselves to, fast enough to have enough to think about and slow enough so that I *can* think about it. So it takes me two weeks to work through a 200 pg theology book and half a day to read a 500 pg thriller, and all sorts of rates in between. There are some books that have too little content that there's no way to read them fast enough to have enough to think about, and there's books that are worth an hour a page, and there's books that deliver at all speeds - you can think on them at multiple levels, spend as much time as you want.

 

Yes!  And even in Bleak House, I zip through the more story-romance parts and pause more at the social-issue historical jargon parts....

 

I have never been able to finish one single page in a "romance novel."

 

I don't know where MTH would fall in the fluff-meat continuum for an average 7yo.  Would it be impossible for a strong reader to want to read through it at a leisurely pace?

[Dory]

Threads like this really drive home how slow my boys are. Ds 7 would take 4-5 hours total to read one and that would be if he pushed himself. He is a very, very, very slow reader, but his comprehension is great. Ds11 could do it in 20 min (I had him read one just now so I could time it), but his comprehension is barely passable at that speed. Dd9 takes about 30 min with good comprehension afterwards.

[pitterpatter]

Most of my bedtime reading is not high literature. When I discover a new series I love that has a dozen or more books in the series, I zoom through because I can't get enough. When I get down to three or four, I slow waaaaaaaaay down because I know I'm going to have to work hard to find another series I like as much. I used to inhale all my books, but I've learned it's no fun waiting a year for a next installment to be released.

 

Sometimes it really makes me sad how little personal choice children are granted. Here we are as adults talking about how we prefer to read fast or read slow, but all kids in these public schools are pushed to read fast (and many are provided very little choice in the books they are allowed to read).The worst part is that the slower kids (whether they are truly reading "slow" or not) are made to feel shame in their reading abilities or that they aren't as academically fit as the fast kids. For those who really want to go to the ice party (and perhaps don't have parents at home helping them out), they may feel compelled to work the system and read just anything to rack up the points. So instead of fostering the love of reading, the schools are fostering the love of ice cream.

 

 

Hmm, I do read through some books pretty fast, others much more slowly.  I am not sure why.  So all the HP books were done in a day or less (each), but Charles Dickens takes me a while.  (I'm reading Bleak House right now, so maybe that's not a fair comparison, LOL.)  Some books just seem meant to be read slowly.

 

[SKL]

Right.  This thread has me thinking that I will talk to my kid and just promise her an ice cream if she reads good books and gets something out of them.  Screw the "wall of fame."

[LaughingCat]

Right.  This thread has me thinking that I will talk to my kid and just promise her an ice cream if she reads good books and gets something out of them.  Screw the "wall of fame."

 

My experience was that it's a hard sell to compete with the peer pressure of AR.