Thursday, December 27, 2012

Dumb question in NYT

Here's how it's phrased:
Should parents object if a 6-year-old picks up “Harry Potter”? Do children rush past picture books too soon?
Duh. If the kid can read Harry Potter, his brain is a lot older than you think. As a person who read adult novels at 5, I find the notion of pushing "picture books" on such a child to be appalling. Give the kid "Ulysses" if he wants to read it.

Let kids read whatever they want to read, no matter what it is. If they're confused, they can always ask you questions. Then again, if you were thinking of pulling an adult book from your child's hand and substituting "The Cat in the Hat", maybe the child should look outside the family for someone to talk to.

PS: Some of the "discussion" included in the article is good. The writers seem to agree with my sentiment, for the most part. It's just the question itself. Oy.