09/06/2026
A shrinking number of kids are reading widely and voraciously for fun, Katherine Marsh wrote in 2023. https://theatln.tc/dTcNIvrl
She spoke with educators and librarians about this trend, and they gave many explanations for it, but one of the most compelling that she heard was rooted in how our education system teaches kids to relate to books.�When she was in school, Marsh recalled, the focus was on reading as many books as possible and engaging emotionally with them as a way to develop the requisite skills. “Now the focus on reading analytically seems to be squashing that organic enjoyment,” Marsh wrote. She cited an example from the third-grade English-language-arts Common Core standard, which asks that kids “determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.”
There is a fun, easy way to introduce this concept: reading Peggy Parish’s classic, ‘Amelia Bedelia, in which the eponymous maid follows commands such as “Draw the drapes when the sun comes in” by drawing a picture of the curtains. But here’s how one educator experienced in writing Common Core–aligned curricula proposed this be taught: First, teachers introduce the concepts of nonliteral and figurative language, then kids read a single paragraph from “Amelia Bedelia” and answer written questions, Marsh noted.
“The best way to present an abstract idea to kids is by hooking them on a story,” Marsh continued. “The process of meeting a character and following them through a series of conflicts is the fun part of reading. Jumping into a paragraph in the middle of a book is about as appealing for most kids as cleaning their room.” But as several educators told her, “the advent of accountability laws and policies, starting with No Child Left Behind in 2001, and accompanying high-stakes assessments based on standards, be they Common Core or similar state alternatives, has put enormous pressure on instructors to teach to these tests at the expense of best practices.”
“We can’t let tests control how teachers teach,” Marsh argued at the link. “Close reading may be easy to measure, but it’s not the way to get kids to fall in love with storytelling.” �
📸: Hulton Archive / Getty
