This week's question is: "Required Reading: Which book from your school days do you remember reading and enjoying? Is there a book published now that you'd like to see in today's curriculum for kids?"
I'm definitely sure my response would be very different from other bloggers. Why? Because in my school (and in my city, for that matter), reading books was NOT compulsory! The novels, I mean. And it's pathetic, I know. I guess they've started with it now, but it's books like 'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen and 'Jane Eyre' by Charlotte Bronte, which anyway are not full versions when given to the kids to read and are too uninteresting to keep them hooked. That's totally wrong.
Anyway, I'm glad and truly thankful to my wonderful Mom, who's a primary school teacher and always got loads of books for me to read, ever since I was tiny! Hence, I picked up books from the library on my own and thinking back to that time, I guess I loved reading 'Oliver Twist' and 'A Christmas Carol' by Charles Dickens and 'The Secret Garden' by F.H. Burnett (I was a classics fan back then! I mean I still like them, but that was different. Like there's a time when you like something A LOT).!
I believe reading is the strongest tool to self-discipline and in understanding situations from different viewpoints. I wish this art be accepted and embraced by school kids worldwide, especially in countries where it's not focused on. I would suggest these books for school children, since they would be interesting and even if they're forced to read, they wouldn't regret it!
1. The Secret Garden (F.H. Burnett), simply because of its purity and depth of meaning about trials and tribulations and love and innocence.
3. The Harry Potter series (J.K. Rowling). Though I think compulsory or not, kids would anyway love to read it, but still. There are kids who love the HP movies, but wouldn't ever read the books. They ought to know how different and more beautiful it actually is! And I'm pretty sure many will begin their love for novels with this series! :)
I think 'The Star of Kazan' by Eva Ibbotson would be a good read too (for young teens)! I greatly enjoyed that one!
There's a quote by Elizabeth Scott that I totally love and I hope and wish that school students too, develop this feeling. :)
Oo, I love the Secret Garden! It wasn't long ago when I last read it, guess I have to buy it to my bookshelf one day :) And Harry Potter is a must read!
ReplyDeleteMonaliz @ Mind Reading?
Yes! Harry Potter is revolutionary! I feel sad when people watch the movies and don't read the books. Books are awesome! :)
DeleteAnd Secret Garden's one of my favorites too! :)
I'm glad there are so many more interesting books out there for kids these days than when I was going to school. I liked a lot of the assigned poetry and even the classics, but there wasn't anything modern (at the time) assigned to us.
ReplyDeleteHey Tanya. I'm glad too, I feel it's really important to inculcate the habit of reading since early years, and interesting books make it easier! :)
DeleteThanks for dropping by :)
Harry Potter would be cool, even though probably too long.I think we should read books that are actually real fun, making us want to read even more, unlike some of the novels we have to read. Then again, maybe we wouldn't enjoy them as much once our teachers made us read them? Hmm..
ReplyDeletePatricia // My Hop
That's the point! Like if we want to read a book and the next thing we know it's in the school curriculum, there's a drop in interest. Agreed. Classics can be good, but there are just a few that would do. For the rest, there are so many magical creatures! As children, I loved those, so I guess that would be an area kids would like.
DeleteI appreciate your comment. Thanks! :)
Great picks! I'll admit that the only books I've read in your list are the first 2 books in HP but the rest are on my wishlist to read. I hope you'll drop by and check out my first TGIF post.
ReplyDeletehttp://notyourmothersbookblog.blogspot.com/2012/02/friday-hops-february-24-2012.html
Sure I will! Thanks for dropping by. :)
DeleteI hope you read the other books in the HP series soon :)
I loved Christmas Carol!! I have to say that when I was in high school decades ago, I didn't like Oliver Twist. I have no idea why. I was a social bookworm so if my friends didn't like it I didn't either. I know it's sad to say.
ReplyDeleteI taught ESL in Korea and I was having a hard time relating to my new students and then one day I came into class and saw three students in the corner of the class with their Harry Potter books. I decided to change it up and made my lesson plan for the week about Harry Potter. It was AMAZING!! They were early to class stayed late and their English was improving. We did Harry Potter everyday for a year! LOL!!
Hey! I felt so good reading your comment! Harry Potter is actually totally amazing! I've re-read the series so many times. And it's so engaging that kids (like your Korean students) wouldn't leave it. And for many, it would be the beginning of their love for books, right? :)
DeleteThanks for dropping by! :)
Oooh, I loved the Nancy Drew books, too! Forgot all about those.
ReplyDeleteAnd I can't imagine going to a school where reading wasn't required. I think when I was in middle school there was a class called "reading" long before there was one called English.
But having a teacher for a Mom is awesome. So glad that she introduced you to the world of books! I was a huge fan of Charles Dickens, too!
Great TGIF post!
Yes! Charles Dickens ruled my taste back then. We did have reading, but it came with the language subjects and was only meager, not whole books.
DeleteThanks so much Rachel, for dropping by! :)
I somehow feel a little awkward seeing all these names that you just suggested. Except for the harry potter series and 2 more, I have never even heard of them. Maybe it's because I started reading quite late and I know very little, if anything about the world of books.
ReplyDeleteBut now that I have a bookworm friend, I sure can take a tip or two on what to read and such.... :)
You sure can! :)
DeleteKeep reading reviews and suggestions here and you could choose what suits you! :)
I think The Secret Garden would be a great read to recommend! It's one of my favorite classics, and I revisit it periodically :)
ReplyDeleteMe too! I find it soulful and beautiful. Like a completely different world. :)
DeleteThat's really interesting that it wasn't required to read novels! The idea horrifies me (haha), but I suppose I understand it -- liberal arts programs are generally thought to be less important here, so I could see how that could extend to no required readings in classrooms. I wish it always was everywhere, because books are such a brilliant world-opener...
ReplyDeleteAnyway! I loved The Secret Garden and the Nancy Drew series! I always wanted a Ned haha.
Thank you for the comment and following my blog, I am very happy to return both :)
Ashley @ Ashley Loves Books
I know! We even tried a classroom books exchanging program in middle school but it didn't work out because kids didn't want to read much! I too, hope the system here gets better.
DeleteNancy Drew was my favorite too, and there was a time when I wanted to be a detective like her! :P
Thanks for your lovely comment and following too :)