I have a question for everyone who is commenting about not liking the leveling systems, as is being discussed in another thread. My daughter's school uses AR and I don't like it. It seems like basic factual recall. I've heard teachers at two different schools say the kids should take notes and study the books for the tests, but that seems to me like an effective way to make reading go from her favorite activity to a chore. It seems like one thing to really study a difficult book for an English class to understand it and analyze it, but very different to have to take notes on little details that won't have longer term importance.

So for those of you dealing with leveled systems at school, do you try to make it work for you as an educational exercise or do you just encourage your child to read whatever they like? I just don't even see the point of making her check out certain levels if her ZPD is so broad that she could check out a tenth grade book (if they had more than a few at that level), but most of what she checks out is at an upper sixth to seventh grade level (according to AR). I think it would make more sense to switch from AR to letting her explore interesting books in more depth without focusing on levels.

In the early grades, it seems clear that kids should be able to read challenging books that they enjoy and asking for higher levels seems straightforward. It is very different once challenging books would be beyond what is normally read for relaxation when there is no framework to have rewarding discussions and feedback on those books (like one would have in a good college English class or book club). However, the leveled systems don't seem to allow at all for starting to focus on depth and meaning instead of just choosing certain books.

Edited to add that she does very well on the tests with a 96 percent average. The problem is not that she does't do well on the tests, it's that I don't feel like it's contributing anything to her education except for the obvious value that reading is good!

Last edited by apm221; 01/26/14 07:14 AM.