Matt Sabatowski

Period 7 Cadet Teaching

Reading Assignment

http://www.rcsi.k12.in.us/documents/Parents/Recommended%20Reading%20Lists/2003ReadingList-03-05.pdf
Upon first glance at this list, I am hit with a wave of nostalgia, as many of these stories I
have fond memories of from when I was in 3rd grade, and it surprises me that so many stories
have remained stalwart despite it being over a decade since my serving as a student. Books such
as the Wayside School series, Where the Red Fern Grows, and the Rats of Nimh, among others,
continue to be a staple of young readers collections, and their quality will continue to live on
throughout generations. The materials listed include works from fiction and nonfiction alike,
including poetry, biographies, magazines/periodicals and reference tools. This wide swath of
information is beneficial to the growth of a student, and all of it will be used in one format or
another.
Selection for Reading Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar Chapters 1
12 (pages 1-50)
I chose this book to read for my selection because it was my absolute favorite book back
rd
in 3 grade. Every day for a month or so, my third grade teacher would read us one chapter from
the book, leaving us all dying in laughter due to its absurdist, goofy humor that permeated every
sentence. Reading over it again, I feel that the humor, although I have outgrown it, still presents
itself as perfect for this grade level, which is why I think it was added to the reading list. Favorite
parts from this section include a student named Mauricea storing ice cream in her desk and being
unhappy, resulting in the teacher bringing in flavors that taste like the students, a student named
Calvin bringing a note to a teacher named Mrs. Zarves on the 19th floor (it turns out she doesnt
exist the builders forgot to build a 19th story), and a new kid named Sammy who, once all of his
raincoats are removed, turns out to be a dead rat in disguise (The teacher always has problems
with dead rats in her classroom!). As can be seen from these examples, the humor is absolutely
ridiculous and wacky, which falls in line with third graders sense of humor greatly, while also
providing a challenging level of comprehension and writing style. For these reasons, it definitely
deserves its place on this list.
Article 1: http://www.readingrockets.org/article/reading-difficulties-and-family-history
This article details the factors regarding family and background that lead to increases in
risk for reading disabilities among children. On average, it has been found that 5 to 10% of kids
of normal intelligence given proper care and schooling struggle with a learning disability of
some kind. When looking at the parents of these children, the rate of reading disabilities among
parents skyrockets to a median 37%, which is much higher than the predicted 5 to 10% of the
population. This means that if parents who have learning disabilities have a higher chance of
passing this on to their kids, so the article suggests that these kids are very closely monitored as
they grow, experiencing extra checks and tests before kindergarten begins in order to curtail any
disabilities they might develop over time.

Matt Sabatowski
Period 7 Cadet Teaching
Reading Assignment

Article 2: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2016/02/15/iowa-pilot-projecthelp-struggling-3rd-grade-readers/80403508/ (this was linked from Reading Rockets)

In Iowa, 25% of their students did not pass standardized reading tests during the 3rd grade,
putting them at a disadvantage for the rest of their school careers. Starting in 2017, several
counties in Iowa are having a mandatory summer reading program in order to move on to fourth
grade if the test scores are not reached, with transportation and food expenses paid for by the
school. The pilot program will take place during the summer of 2016 in order to discover
effectiveness in a summer program such as this, as well as figuring out scheduling and
transportation logistics, among other things. Due to the impending disaster that would occur if
drastic measures were not taken to help improve this pitiful test percentage, districts from all
over the state are participating in hopes of improving, from urban and rural communities alike.