Q&A - Literature In the Classroom

As children get older they often have more literary choices. A classroom can be a great place for children to explore their literary interests. As a childcare professional, you should be aware of what books and book themes work best in your classroom for the children in your care. Below are some questions and answers that may help you decide which books would be appropriate for the children in your classroom. 

​Question: Are Harry Potter books appropriate for younger children or are the concepts too complex?

Answer: The concepts in the Harry Potter books are intended for school-age audiences and school-age refers to ages 5-12. Depending upon the intended use of the Harry Potter books there are options for all ages. Obviously, a kindergarten child wouldn’t be ready to read the Harry Potter series, but some may enjoy hearing it read aloud. Likewise, you can adapt the reading for slightly older children by using passages from the text.
Overall, it is important to know the group of children that you work with and plan accordingly. As with all things in teaching and child care you must make adaptations and adjustments for many reasons.
 

Question: How do I get my kids interested in Harry Potter books?

Answer: A great way to get students interested in Harry Potter is to use it during your daily read-aloud time in your classroom. This can be helpful especially if your students are younger and/or not quite ready to read it on their own just yet. If you do work with upper level school age students, you can use Harry Potter in a book club or small group reading. I recommend reviewing the accompanying lesson plans in the training to connect the story to other subjects and in your classroom to enhance learning. You can also look for ideas on Pinterest, if none of those are appropriate for your classroom. 
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Question: How do you keep 4 and 5 year olds interested in Harry Potter?

Answer: You will want to decide if the Harry Potter books are appropriate for your specific students. Some children that are 4 or 5 years old have the attention span to handle 10 to 15 minutes of read aloud time. Others do not. You may want to break the story up into more sections than just the chapters that are already there. Also, using props, voices, and varying your tone may help keep them engaged.  
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Question: What percentage of children have difficulty telling the difference between reality and fantasy?

Answer: The percentage of children that cannot tell the difference between fantasy and reality depends on developmental level. The Hobbit and JRR Tolkien books are obviously not intended for young children but can work as a read aloud for them. In that case I would say the percentage is fairly high however they should be encouraged to use critical thinking skills to sort through any confusion. Caregivers and educators have a responsibility to assist with this as well.

If we are referring to the older school-age children that the training refers to then we begin to see a smaller percentage of children who cannot tell the difference between fantasy and reality. Overall, it depends on many factors and changes with each group. I taught fourth grade and nearly all of my students knew the difference between fantasy and reality. Even if we were not studying literary genres specific to either category they were still well aware of the difference.
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Question: Would it be okay to read Roald Dahl books to pre-kindergartners?

Answer: You will need to decide if the books are appropriate for your students or not, as you know them better than almost anyone! Some Pre-K students will absolutely LOVE them for read aloud time, and others may not have the attention span to handle longer chapters and books without pictures just yet. 

​Question: Would it be okay to read Goosebumps books to pre-kindergartners?

​Answer: I would not recommend Goosebumps books for most preschool children, however, it is up to the individual teacher whether or not to include them in their program. There are multiple benefits of scary literature for older children, however, it is important to judge your group on their individual characteristics. 
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Question: What books would you recommend for children under 12 months old?

The important thing to consider when choosing what to read to children under 12 months of age is how you read to them and how often. You can really read any books that you’d like, though I recommend picture books and sturdy board books for younger children. It is important to expose children to books and build a relationship with a caring adult through that reading time. If children this young seem disinterested in the actual book, that is perfectly normal. Allow them the flexibility to move on with their activities and come back to the book later if they show interest.
 
We also have a training course that is specific to picture books in the classroom. Here is a link in case you’re interested: https://www.cdastars.com/store/p649/Picture-Books
 
Here are some resources for book lists as well:

• http://www.parenting.com/gallery/building-babys-first-library-25-must-have-books
• https://www.barnesandnoble.com/b/books/kids/_/N-7Z29Z8q8Ztu1
• https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/839.Books_for_one_year_old_children​
  

​Question: How do I respond to children who admire or say they like the “bad guy” in a book? For example, one of the children really likes Voldemort from Harry Potter.

Answer: It is completely normal for kids to like the villain in a story.  They don’t do this because they would rather choose the bad over the good. Or because they want to provoke you.  It’s just that they are not fully aware that hurting people is bad. They just know that what the villains are doing is somehow similar to the strong emotions that continue to build up inside of them. When they watch the villains fight, they are somehow glad that what they feel inside can actually be expressed just the way the villains are doing it in the movies or in the story. Children are often clueless as to what actions really mean. They have very little understanding that actions can either be good or bad. What they are aware of, are the strong emotions inside of them that they can’t seem to control.
 
It is actually pretty normal for all ages to be fascinated by supervillains. From a psychological perspective, views vary on why we are so interested in superhuman bad guys.  There is an interesting article here on the subject: https://www.wired.com/2012/07/why-do-supervillains-fascinate-us/
 
In regard to the little one that says they like Voldemort best, I would be supportive of them expressing themselves as long as it is in a positive way. Encourage them to share what they like about Voldemort, and don’t criticize their favor of the character. 

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For more information on Chicka Chicka Boom Boom in the Classroom, 
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For more information on Exploring the Magic of Harry Potter, 
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For more information on Fantastic Mr. Dahl, 
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For more information on Guide to Goosebumps, 
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For more information on Teaching with Tolkien, 
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For more information on The Wonderful Author of Oz, 
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