Read Kids Book Reviews Written By Second Graders

NORTHBROOK, IL — Most book reviews of children's books are written by adults, rather than members of the target audience for the material.

Try as they might, "sometimes grown-ups just don't know what kids really like," according to the creators of a blog compiling reviews of children's books written by second grade students at Northbrook School District 28.

Second grade students in teacher Michelle Anderson's class at Westmoor School launched the blog earlier this month to share their reviews with a global audience.

“We want people from around the world to be able to Google us and be excited to read the books that we are excited to read,” Anderson said.

Her students picked some of their favorite books to compose reviews focused on the lessons and appeal of the stories. Several of the second graders included teasers like "read to find out."

One student reviewed "Mr Tiger Goes Wild," which she described as "one of the best books ever," and not only because the author visited Westmoor.

"The message of the story is everyone is different in different ways. Here is an example, I used to try to be like my friends because they were nice and made lots of friends. At that time I didn't have as many friends as my friends had. But then I realized I had to be myself, because not being myself was very frustrating. Being myself is much easier. You will make more friends if you just be yourself," she wrote.

"If you like tigers and being different, you will love this book. You should give it a try! It's a good book, and I think you will like reading it."

Another student reviewed "After The Fall: How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again."

"This book reminds me of when I was scared of a big roller coaster, but I went on it and it was actually really fun. If you ever conquered a fear or have a fear, I recommend this book to you," wrote the 8-year-old reviewer.

"One reason I like this book is because it has happy words like 'congratulations.' Another reason I like this book is because of the lesson," a student wrote, in a review of "Exclamation Mark."

So far, all reviews posted on the class' Room 122 Book Reviews blog have been positive.

In the process, students have learned what makes compelling writing and how to edit their work, according to Anderson. Presenting students' work to an outside audience has served to engage the students.

“One of the benefits of having our book reviews on a blog is that suddenly students are into proofreading and editing," the teacher said. "In the past we have not been too excited about that part of the writing process."