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[CCBC-Net] fiction vs. nonfiction on Mock Newbery lists
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From: Giffard, Sue <SGiffard>
Date: Thu, 17 Jan 2008 18:29:03 -0500
This is my fourth year of running a Mock Newbery with my students. I choose 5 or 6 books for students to read, and I have not ever chosen a work of non-fiction. Part of this reflects the fact that my students prefer reading fiction for their leisure reading, and possibly my own preferences as well. Actually, I try to provide a range of fiction genres each year, so that there is enough of a range to satisfy a range of readers. But part of it is simply practical: if I included all the great non-fiction in the reading that I have to do between January and the end of September, which has to be my cut-off for practical purposes, there is no way that I could do the project. I've wanted to do a "Best Non-Fiction of the Year" project with students, but so far it has not moved beyond the realm of thought.
Sue Giffard Ethical Culture School New York, NY 10023 sgiffard at ecfs.org
(212)712-6292
"If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?" ? Albert Einstein.
-----Original Message----- From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu on behalf of Susanna Reich Sent: Thu 1/17/2008 6:11 PM To: ccbc-net at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu Subject: [CCBC-Net] fiction vs. nonfiction on Mock Newbery lists
In looking over the Mock Newbery lists that were posted recently, I was struck by how few nonfiction books were on the lists of books that kids were asked to read. How does this reflect the biases of those doing the choosing? We know that nonfiction books hardly ever win the Newbery
(and that is one reason the Sibert was created). Is it because we think fiction is harder to write? Or that novels are more significant literary accomplishments? Having written both fiction and nonfiction, I can attest to the fact that both are difficult to do well, but they present different challenges to the writer. I'd love to hear people's thoughts on this. Susanna
www.susannareich.com coming in July: Painting the Wild Frontier: The Art and Adventures of George Catlin (Clarion) Penelope Bailey Takes the Stage (Marshall Cavendish) Jose! Born to Dance (Simon & Schuster) Clara Schumann: Piano Virtuoso (Clarion)
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Received on Thu 17 Jan 2008 05:29:03 PM CST
Date: Thu, 17 Jan 2008 18:29:03 -0500
This is my fourth year of running a Mock Newbery with my students. I choose 5 or 6 books for students to read, and I have not ever chosen a work of non-fiction. Part of this reflects the fact that my students prefer reading fiction for their leisure reading, and possibly my own preferences as well. Actually, I try to provide a range of fiction genres each year, so that there is enough of a range to satisfy a range of readers. But part of it is simply practical: if I included all the great non-fiction in the reading that I have to do between January and the end of September, which has to be my cut-off for practical purposes, there is no way that I could do the project. I've wanted to do a "Best Non-Fiction of the Year" project with students, but so far it has not moved beyond the realm of thought.
Sue Giffard Ethical Culture School New York, NY 10023 sgiffard at ecfs.org
(212)712-6292
"If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?" ? Albert Einstein.
-----Original Message----- From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu on behalf of Susanna Reich Sent: Thu 1/17/2008 6:11 PM To: ccbc-net at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu Subject: [CCBC-Net] fiction vs. nonfiction on Mock Newbery lists
In looking over the Mock Newbery lists that were posted recently, I was struck by how few nonfiction books were on the lists of books that kids were asked to read. How does this reflect the biases of those doing the choosing? We know that nonfiction books hardly ever win the Newbery
(and that is one reason the Sibert was created). Is it because we think fiction is harder to write? Or that novels are more significant literary accomplishments? Having written both fiction and nonfiction, I can attest to the fact that both are difficult to do well, but they present different challenges to the writer. I'd love to hear people's thoughts on this. Susanna
www.susannareich.com coming in July: Painting the Wild Frontier: The Art and Adventures of George Catlin (Clarion) Penelope Bailey Takes the Stage (Marshall Cavendish) Jose! Born to Dance (Simon & Schuster) Clara Schumann: Piano Virtuoso (Clarion)
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Thu 17 Jan 2008 05:29:03 PM CST
