By Cynthia Levinson, Melissa Stewart, and Jennifer Swanson | Jan 07, 2021
A recent column in the
As nonfiction writers for young readers, we were dismayed though not surprised by Mathews’s assumption that “the books students choose to read are almost always fiction.” We frequently encounter adults who mistakenly believe that children think “Textbooks. Ugh,” as he writes, when they hear “nonfiction.”
We wish Mathews could accompany us on a school visit live or virtual because here’s what kids are actually saying:
“I like nonfiction because you gain knowledge. Then you ask more questions,” Asher, fourth grader.
“Nonfiction is better than fiction because it has real, helpful facts about life,” Kelsey, fourth grader