Hello there!
Today we are thinking about Banned Books and a Longer School Year.
1) Look at ALA.ORG. See what books are banned and challenged. See why. Then write a personal response...do you agree? Disagree? Is there any time books should be banned? Should books ever be banned from public libraries or schools? Or should younger readers need special permission? Or do you have another plan?
2) President Obama has been discussing the idea of lengthen the school year. Research a news article or two and write a personal response on your thoughts about this. What do YOU think would help students learn more and better? What helps you to learn?
Enjoy!
I do not agree with schools banning books. Although most parents and teachers are doing it so that their children aren’t exposed to bad things, but it’s their right to read what they want to read. People shouldn’t be afraid of ideas that are in books; children are going to have to grow up sooner or later and realize that in reality there are horrible things in the world, and some of those things are in books. Some of the best books are the ones that show how imperfect the world is, and kids should be allowed to read what ever book they want. Older kids already know all the swear words, and probably the music they listen to is ten times worse than a book. Younger kids don’t understand what the adults see; they’re too young and just think it’s a happy story. Adults should grow up, and stop banning books because they’re just showing people the reality of life.
ReplyDeleteMost of the books that are banned are for obvious reasons such as swearing, or controversial content. Other books are just misunderstood and shouldn’t be banned at all. I agree with some of the books on these banned book lists, and agree that some should be removed from middle schools or require special parent permission to read. I do not agree that any of these books should be banned from public libraries. I disagree because a public library is a place for people of all ages to go and choose books to read. This is unlike a school library where the books are for the students.
ReplyDeletePresident Obama’s plan to lengthen the school year, has caused a lot of controversy among Americans. Obviously, the idea is not very popular among children or people who are to young to vote, and I would prefer to keep the school year the same too. Although this sounds like a bad idea for kids, I think it could be helpful. Many other countries have longer school years than us, and this could be a good idea. If we shortened the school year, we could possibly have shorter school days.
I don’t believe that books should be banned. Many classics such as To Kill a Mockingbird and The Catcher in the Rye have been banned for many different reasons. To Kill a Mockingbird has been banned because it uses foul language and supports racism and white supremacy. The Catcher in the Rye is banned because it is anti-white, obscene, and centered on negativity. I don’t believe that books should ever be banned. It is a violation of freedom of speech. If a person wants to read a book, it is up to them to read it and interpret it as they want. Books should definitely never be banned from schools or public libraries, because just because one person see’s the bad in a book, someone else may be able to see the good. I think that readers under 13 years old should get permission from their parents, just to make sure that they’re okay with it. These younger kids won’t see the bad things an adult sees, and will simply think it’s a story. Once you are a teenager, you should be mature enough to pick your own books, if they are “banned” or not. Kids already know all the foul language in these books, and they need to see the actual reality of the world, not the sheltered version of the world adults want them to believe. These books should not be banned, just read with understanding.
ReplyDeleteBooks can be the light in the world, a lighthouse to another world. Books are meant to be read and to be appreciated. Sometimes, however, some books aren’t friendly and inviting like a campfire. They can be scary to some people, but that doesn’t mean that they should be cut off from the world. The authors wrote them for some reason. Maybe he/she didn’t think that the book would be hurtful to anyone, or that some people would enjoy reading the story. However, some books should not be banned or even challenged at all.
ReplyDeleteBanned Books
ReplyDeletePersonally, I don’t agree with books being banned. Some books might contain information that a particular age level should not be exposed to, but I think the decision of whether to read the book should be up to the reader and their parents. I also believe that books should not be banned from certain age groups. The maturity level of the reader is what really matters.
For some books, a school might not necessarily be the right place for them to be read. The adults in the building need to determine whether they think their students are prepared enough to be reading the book .However, a public library is meant to provide the public with books. If a book has a reason important enough that the patrons should be aware of, the book could have a warning label on it, like some CDs do. Most of the music we listen to these days is just as bad if not worse than many of the books on the banned book list.
I don’t understand the concept of banning books, and I think people should be able to be responsible for what they read and make their own decisions.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that the president should lengthen the school year. Students need to be able to relax and do things that they want to do without fear of a test, a project, or homework. If people are constantly under pressure or they have a lot of stress in their lives, then they start degrading psychologically and physically. Scientific studies have shown that continuous stress can shorten people’s lives. Personally, I don’t want to die at thirty when I could live to be over ninety.
ReplyDeleteI don’t believe that our school year should be lengthened. I do believe that we should get better teachers and a better curriculum. The 15 extra days of school won’t make a huge difference, and if kids have three extra weeks of school, they might just not try, or goof off and waste the time of the teachers and the money of the government. We shouldn’t have a longer school day either, because teenagers are tired and already overloaded with sports, homework, and life. I think that we should have longer math and science classes, since those are the areas President Obama is very concerned about. We try to learn, but sometimes the teachers don’t teach well enough for us to learn and be competent. I think that teachers how are not teaching well or have students not making the cut consistently should not get to keep their jobs. A good teacher who is excited and experienced in what they are teaching helps me learn better, and there should be more of them in the school system.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think that any books should be banned, ever. It doesn’t matter how awful the contents of the book are, they should be available to read for anyone. It doesn’t matter even if the books were about others. The information should be marked as
ReplyDeletea vulgar book, or that it contains strong content, but if someone seeks the information about what happened, or what someone thought, they should be blessed with that information.
I really do not think that the approximately 16 days of school added to the school year Obama plans to add to the school year will make much of a difference. The problem isn’t that we aren’t in school long enough, it’s that we lose so much of the knowledge we gained from the school over the summer. I think to combat the knowledge loss, we should be required to do a smaller summer project for each subject-not just English. This would help us retain the stuff we learn from the previous year. Sure, doing more work in the summer isn’t fun, but it’s better than having no summer at all.
I think that books should not be banned, it is your choice if you want to read and book or not. I do not agree with Winnie the Pooh being banned, I read that book when I was a kid and I do not feel it has made me a “juvenile delinquent.” What it promoted was hugs not drugs. I do not think To Kill a Mockingbird should be banned for saying “damn” and “whore lady”; worse words are used in the hallway. I also don’t think To Kill a Mockingbird promoted white supremacy I think it showed how unfair it was. Harry Potter is banned because it makes kids pretend their wizards if anything harry potter helps kids release their inner child and lets them expresws themselves in a creative way.Books should not be banned
ReplyDeleteUuuuuuh…… How bout... NO? I disagree completely. It’s called, don’t read the book. If you find it may be offending to yourself, then don’t read it! I mean, Winnie-the-Pooh is on the possible ban list. He’s a yellow ball with eyes who wears a red shirt, has legs, and arms who eats honey with his best friends, Piglet, Christopher Robin, Eeyore , and Tigger. I mean, if it bothers you that he doesn’t have pants on, take that up with the mastermind behind this all. I don’t understand how this children’s series is located on the ban list. The Holy Bible is number one on the government banned list. If you don’t believe in the contents in the bible, then my suggestion would be to not read it and or believe it. Go with your own beliefs and disregard the existence of the Bible. Really, this is quite redonculous. Books should never be banned. If they are too mature or not right for a person, they should just ignore the book. Younger readers should have to request permission to read the books that may bring question when deciding. That, is my plan.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteokayy well what i really think is that some books such as "The Land" should be banned becuz of the rasist word which is disrepectful becuz people think its funny to say it and its not. And children books should not be banned what are kids gonna read? How are they gonna learn? thats the most important question. Kids under the age of 12 shouldnt be reading books about violence and things with cuss words. I think that the parents and teachers should read the book before the class does and see if its apropriate to the kids or not. Also, I feel strongly about this becuz they think its funny to cuss at people such as teachers and even parents. Some things are NOT what you think. So I would think carefully about what the heck you read because people will think that you are gonna start something so i would choose DONT READ!!! :)Just remember to ask yourself questions like "how will this change who i am"? "will this make people think i want violence"? "why are there jerks who think its cool to make fun of people like this?" -hopey <3
ReplyDeleteOkay this is totally wrong. Books should not be banned. If they are so bad that they have to be banned then they shouldn't have been published in the first place. But i do believe that certain books should be restricted to certain age groups. Some books have vulgar language or talk about mature things that elementary students shouldn't know at that age. Yet students in the highschool already know about those kinds of things and they are older and more mature and understand better. And books should deffinately NOT be banned from PUBLIC libraries. That's just wrong. A public library is for everyone. They should just have certain sections for different age groups. Not ban books. It's just flat out stupid.
ReplyDeleteOKAY! First of all the president shouldnt really even think about cutting our summer in half Thats NOT cool. I hate school enough why the heck does he think that we really want to be in school for more days. He must of got smacked around to many times to be this mean. And if he does more kids would want to get out of school meaning they will drop out and not go to college living at home with their parents. What does Obama think. All becuz he has money dont mean we all do. What are kids gonna do they will be on the streets robbing,killing,drug dealing,just to make money so then they get introuble for what they did but hes just making lives more crapper then ever! He's taking away what kids love the most....SUMMER! How would he like it if hes kids were in this situation.. like wtf! HE MUST BE CRAZY TO PUT US IN THIS SITUATION!!!!! I think we should keep it the way it is! There is no reason to make us stay more hours. I'm telling uncle sam! He made this country freedom the freaking red white and blue...OBAMA DID NOT!! I THINK SOMEONE ELSE SHOULD OF BEEN THE PRESIDENT ATLEAST THEY CARE!! WE GET BARELY ANY SLEEP STAYING IN SCHOOL TILL 4 5 AT NIGHT WHAT IF PEOPLE GOT SPORTS! HE MUST OF HAD BEEN SHAKING TO MANY TIMES WHEN HE WAS A BABY! THIS IS SO WRONG! GAWD I HATE PEOPLE LIKE HIM. WE BARELY GET SLEEP NOW SO WE MUST GET LIKE 5 OR 6 HOURS OF SLEEP WHEN YOUR BRAIN NEEDS 8 HOURS OF SLEEP TO FUNCTION!! DUHH! MAN I SWEAR THIS WOULD BE THE STUPIDEST BILL EVER...!!!!!!!!! IM GONNA KEEP GOING! IM SO MAD! I THINK HES LOST HIS MIND... PEOPLE HAVE JOBS FOR FAMILYS. ALL BECUZ HE LIVES IN THE WHITE HOUSE AND WE LIVE IN CRAPPY PLACES DOESNT MEAN WE HAVE THE MONEY TO PAY EXTRA HOURS!!! -hope D:<
ReplyDeleteAND YEAH I PUT THE CAPS ON WHAT HE GONNA DO ABOUT IT! :D -hope
ReplyDeleteooohhh snap. cap locks are vicious! watch out Obama! :D
ReplyDeleteheck yeahh ally <3 we got this..
ReplyDeletehope and ally: YO OBAMA ARE YOU NUTS!
obama: oh no the cap lock
hope and ally:YEA WE GOT THE CAP LOCK WHAT YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT!!
obama:i think i should run!
hope and ally:YEAH FOO YOU BETTER RUN! US KIDS RUN THIS STATE!
obama:okay okay ill veto that bill
hope and ally:YOU BETTER THINK TWICE ABOUT THAT STUPID THING! kids: DONT ADD MORE HOURS TO SCHOOL! DONT ADD MORE HOURS TO SCHOOL!
obama:*runs and forgets about the school thing*
hope and ally: *yells in happiness* YEAHH MAN! WHAT NOW!!!
dude. we rule.
ReplyDeleteBAHAHAHAHA
1) Some books have reasons to be banned, but if people want to read them, then that shouldn’t be a problem. People should be able to read whatever they want. Therefore I don’t agree with the banning of books, in school, or public libraries. I think that if people have a problem with a certain book, or books then they don’t have to read it, but that doesn’t mean for people who want to read them shouldn’t be able to. I do not think that in order to read a book you should need permission, unless a parent or guardian does not approve. Also a book that surprised me was Charlottes’ Web, I read that book in elementary school, and I can not imagine why that book is banned.
ReplyDelete2) Obviously kids in school do not want a longer school year. I don’t agree on having a longer school year, because if it is possible to learn everything we already do in the school year we do have, what’s the point of making it longer. I think that kids need a break too; I know that school is important but we all look forward to summer vacation. For other countries, school is all the children have and I can see why they would look forward to going, but that doesn’t mean that is how we are. Barack Obama wants to make the school year longer by a month, or 17 days. He says “It would make a difference”. Also he says that people are falling behind in math and science. I don’t agree with this for many reasons. If some kids are falling behind then those are the kids who should be punished. Also I don’t see how 17 days would make much of a difference.
The Great Gatsby by Scott Fizgerand, was banned for language and sexual references in the book. I agree that some books should be banned but some are just banned for foul language. Books should be banned if they have high sexual content and maybe some bad reference of the bible. Some books should be banned from libraries especially in elementary or lower grades. I do think that certain people should have to have special permission to view the book.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think that kids would do better in school with a longer year and days. It would just make kids complain more about school. Also he even said "We can no longer afford an academic calendar designed when America was a nation of farmers who needed their children at home plowing the land at the end of each day,” last year. It will just backfire on him. If he’s going to lengthen the school day it would put more stress on farmers because he’s keeping the kids at school longer and not at home plowing. I would just try to improve the system and education. I really don’t think a extra couple of hours and days is going to help anyone.
1. okayyyy hiiii!!! So I think when banning books there should a few exceptions. I think if you decide to pick a book and it has swearing and sexual words or any type of sexual content then it’s your choice. You should not be told you can or can not read a book because of certain content of a book.
ReplyDelete2.
Barack Obama is trying to extend school for an extra 17 days, which isn’t that bad but still this whole situation is stupid! How would you like to sit in a school 5 days a week, for six hours, for ten months! Now he wants to add 17 more days! Please NO! I can’t sit still for this long! Now he wants to add 17 more days which is 102 more hours of school!
I dislike what Obama is planning do to our school days. Obama is crazy to want us to go to school until 5:30. I don’t like going to school as it is but three more hours that’s about when my dinner is so what’s happens to all the after school activities clubs ,sports and student counsel.
ReplyDeleteI do not think books should be banned because that includes harmless books like charlottes web and Winnie the Pooh. I think they should have a certain age limit for certain books. Some books have swear words that elementary kids should not read about and things that middle school and high schoolers have heard of. Also I disagree that books should be banned in a public library because that’s were people come to learn and if it has certain words that express the books emotion that are somewhat acceptable that’s okay. I think that Obama should not extend the school day because kids these days already have enough going on after school.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think that banning books should continue. I think books should have ratings like video games and movies. So that people can’t complain and fuss when a book says something someone is offend by.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, books should never be banned. In an entire country, or just in a local library, I think its wrong. I remember in 6th grade when i went to get a book out of library at Algonquin i wasnt allowed to. This was a book that only 8th graders could read and this made no sence to me. The reason was that it was too mature and I thought that was a bad reason. I had seen the book in Barnes and Noble and had started to read it and it was perfectly fine for me. Like Bryce said i think books should have a rating. This was make it so that everyone can read what they want but they are also warned about the content of the book.
ReplyDeleteNow about the Obama education plan. The two main topics that I’m worried about are:
To lengthen the school year and day.
To put more successful teachers in schools and to get rid of unsuccessful ones.
First for the length of the school year. Summer is the one time that students don’t have to worry about school. They can hang out with friends and release the stress that has been building during the previous school year. So cutting this, would be a problem.
Kids who aren’t excelling in school wont just suddenly excel if the school year is longer. In fact, it might be the exact opposite. A longer school year would mean more school work, more stress, and less time to relieve that stress. So a longer school year, might make test scores go down.
Now for getting rid of unsuccessful teachers to put in successful teachers. This part sounds really good for I believe it will increase test scores until I thought of all the teachers that will be fired. Some of these teachers are in they’re 30s or 40s and now they are out of a job. Jobs in the US are already a problem so firing more wouldn’t solve anything. Are these people just supposed to go back to college and get another degree in another field? This is very unrealistic to me. I don’t know if Obama has a plan for this but from what I read there isn’t. So I will have say that I am defiantly against the new education plan.
1). Banning certain books can be both beneficial and not so beneficial. If the book is crude in one way or another, offending to certain races of people, or is just down-right bad, I would definitely agree to ban it. Its all a matter of freedom of speech, really. However, lately there’s been a thin line drawn that’s been crossed over. On the America Association Website, there is a list of banned books. Books you’d be surprised that were banned included the infamous Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White and….wait for it…Winnie-The-Pooh. Are you kidding me?! Although there wasn’t a clear explanation for banning these books in particular, I still disagree with it. In the same breath, I think that the people who put To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee- despite that I LOVED the book- had a point. I understand banning books from schools so kids aren’t influenced the wrong way, but I think that books should absolutely NOT be banned from public libraries. Libraries are supposed to be places where all books are and should be…
ReplyDelete2). Run the idea of extending the school year across the minds of children and chances are that you’ll get a respo0nse with a groan, a “NOOOOO!”, or a cringe. Promoted by President Barack Obama, this “fabulous” idea is beginning to be taken seriously in several news articles. Defending his plan, journalists have set out to GET. THE. STORY. Most of the articles that I’ve read concerning the topic have similarly pointed out that American students are behind countries such as China and India. Personally, I think that students would be miserable and therefore inattentive. I understand that us Americans are behind in other countries curriculum, but then why doesn’t somebody think to improve our education rather than extend it. What kid really wants extra weeks added on to the school year? I know that I, for one, don’t.
1). Banning certain books can be both beneficial and not so beneficial. If the book is crude in one way or another, offending to certain races of people, or is just down-right bad, I would definitely agree to ban it. Its all a matter of freedom of speech, really. However, lately there’s been a thin line drawn that’s been crossed over. On the America Association Website, there is a list of banned books. Books you’d be surprised that were banned included the infamous Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White and….wait for it…Winnie-The-Pooh. Are you kidding me?! Although there wasn’t a clear explanation for banning these books in particular, I still disagree with it. In the same breath, I think that the people who put To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee- despite that I LOVED the book- had a point. I understand banning books from schools so kids aren’t influenced the wrong way, but I think that books should absolutely NOT be banned from public libraries. Libraries are supposed to be places where all books are and should be…
ReplyDelete2). Run the idea of extending the school year across the minds of children and chances are that you’ll get a respo0nse with a groan, a “NOOOOO!”, or a cringe. Promoted by President Barack Obama, this “fabulous” idea is beginning to be taken seriously in several news articles. Defending his plan, journalists have set out to GET. THE. STORY. Most of the articles that I’ve read concerning the topic have similarly pointed out that American students are behind countries such as China and India. Personally, I think that students would be miserable and therefore inattentive. I understand that us Americans are behind in other countries curriculum, but then why doesn’t somebody think to improve our education rather than extend it. What kid really wants extra weeks added on to the school year? I know that I, for one, don’t.
1). Banning certain books can be both beneficial and not so beneficial. If the book is crude in one way or another, offending to certain races of people, or is just down-right bad, I would definitely agree to ban it. Its all a matter of freedom of speech, really. However, lately there’s been a thin line drawn that’s been crossed over. On the America Association Website, there is a list of banned books. Books you’d be surprised that were banned included the infamous Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White and….wait for it…Winnie-The-Pooh. Are you kidding me?! Although there wasn’t a clear explanation for banning these books in particular, I still disagree with it. In the same breath, I think that the people who put To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee- despite that I LOVED the book- had a point. I understand banning books from schools so kids aren’t influenced the wrong way, but I think that books should absolutely NOT be banned from public libraries. Libraries are supposed to be places where all books are and should be…
ReplyDelete2). Run the idea of extending the school year across the minds of children and chances are that you’ll get a respo0nse with a groan, a “NOOOOO!”, or a cringe. Promoted by President Barack Obama, this “fabulous” idea is beginning to be taken seriously in several news articles. Defending his plan, journalists have set out to GET. THE. STORY. Most of the articles that I’ve read concerning the topic have similarly pointed out that American students are behind countries such as China and India. Personally, I think that students would be miserable and therefore inattentive. I understand that us Americans are behind in other countries curriculum, but then why doesn’t somebody think to improve our education rather than extend it. What kid really wants extra weeks added on to the school year? I know that I, for one, don’t.