The Literacy Bridge - Large Print - The Report Card [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Andrew Clements (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 2, 2004 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: The Literacy Bridge - Large Print

A Christopher Award-winning Author

Fifth grader Nora Rose Rowley is a genius. But Nora always gets average grades so she can avoid the pressure-cooker gifted program or the Brainiac Academy. Then, fed up over testing and the fuss everyone makes about grades, she brings home a terrible report card. Pretty soon her teachers, parents, and the principal are launching a massive effort to find out what's wrong. Can Nora convince them that tests alone are a stupid way to measure intelligence?

Available only in The Literacy Bridge 5.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7--Fifth-grader Nora Rowley has a problem with grades, and her latest report card, with five D's and one C, proves it. What nobody knows because she's kept it a secret is that she is really a genius and has earned those low marks on purpose because of her friend Stephen. She doesn't like the way tests make him feel about himself (dumb); plus, she can do without the stress as teachers prepare students for the state achievement test. The plan she hatches to sabotage test scores eventually begins to backfire, and the plot develops steadily around that crisis. Narrated by a very bright protagonist, the story has moments of engaging tension: Will the librarian disclose that Nora has been accessing college-level courses online? Will the school psychologist discover her high IQ and place her in the gifted program? Will she and Stephen be suspended for inciting a rebellion? This novel highlights the controversial issues of testing and grades from a child's point of view, but it also reveals the pressure that everyone, including teachers, administrators, and parents, feels. Clements's style, the large print, and the appealing cover illustration will easily capture the attention of even the most reluctant readers.--Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-7. With the federal law placing increased importance on test scores, this timely novel gives both kids and adults plenty to think and talk about. Fifth-grader Nora Rowley is a genius masquerading as an average student to avoid the pressures that come with her gift. When her best friend, Stephen, a nice, hard-working child who really is average, scores low on the state mastery tests and starts to think of himself as "dumb," Nora decides it's time to do something. Feeling she has nothing to lose, she brings home a terrible report card, setting off a whole chain of events that affect not only Stephen but also her family, her other classmates, her teachers, and herself. Veteran author Clements has once again built a solid story around a controversial issue for which there is no easy answer, and to his credit, he never tries to offer one. There are no good guys or bad guys in the mix; everyone simply manages with the hand he or she is dealt. A novel sure to generate strong feelings and discussion. Lauren Peterson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 148 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Press; 1 edition (August 2, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786267674
• ISBN-13: 978-0786267675
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,345,772 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Most of my characters are fairly normal people who are dealing with the basics of everyday life--getting along with others, finding a place in the world, discovering talents, overcoming challenges, trying to have some wholesome fun along the way, and getting into some scrapes and a little mischief now and then, too. I guess I hope my readers will be able to see bits and pieces of themselves in the stories, particularly the novels that take place in and around school. School is a rich setting because schools and education are at the heart of every community. The stories that are set in school seem to resonate with kids, teachers, parents, librarians--readers of all ages. Everyone's life has been touched by school experiences. And I also hope, of course, that kids and others will enjoy reading, enjoy the use of language, enjoy my storytelling.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed Feelings, April 10, 2004

By 

Lisa G. Scott (Sarasota, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Report Card (Hardcover)

I am a teacher who adores Andrew Clements' books. I use them for class reading and for literature circles. Clements never talks down to kids-- he writes both kids and adults as people rather than caricatures or puppets to advance a plot-- and his stories are engaging and interesting.

I enjoyed reading The Report Card, although it was a bit preachier than his other books, and some characters, especially Nora's parents, are not as well developed or realistic as I expect from Andrew Clements. The debate about standardized tests is highlighted, and as a teacher it was nice to see it pointed out to kids that most teachers are not test fans either. The fact that standardized test numbers can't really tell you much about a child seems to be Clements' main point, and it's one I agree with.

My main concern about The Report Card is the mixed message it sends about being smart, especially being a smart girl. Nora, the highly gifted heroine, has been hiding her intelligence for years, in large part so she won't make her best friend, a boy, feel bad. I had expected Nora to come to a realization that her intelligence was a gift to be celebrated and shared. However, the resolution leaves Nora content to be "normal," which by Nora's definition means not to pursue any opportunities available to learn about and expand her gifts, and essentially to continue masking her intelligence so that other people won't be made to feel bad.

My worry is that girls in the target age group will read <i>The Report Card and conclude that "normalcy" does not include intelligence. While I don't believe that this was Clements' intention, the message is there. Girls have hidden or downplayed their academic abilities far too long-- we should be teaching them to embrace their talents.

20 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars the pressure to be yourself, April 9, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Report Card (Hardcover)

Nora brings home a report card full of D's on purpose to protest grades and how kids label themselves based on grades. This act of rebellion upsets her parents and starts an investigation which uncovers the secret Nora has been keeping since she was a toddler and learned to read. She is actually a profoundly gifted girl masquerading as a "normal" one.

Both editorial reviews mention this secrecy in a neutral/positive way; it being a reasonable method to avoid the "pressures" associated with high intelligence.

What disturbed me greatly about this book is that the author evidently agrees. This report card is not the first one that Nora has manipulated, just the first one that was caught. Nora has been manipulating report cards since she started school, maintaining a nondescript C+ average. Imagine how much pressure that takes, to never ever let it slip to the teacher or classmates that you really understand the material in a significantly deeper way? Every day in class discussions, homework, written assignments, tests... constantly being on guard not to get too many answers right or answer something too thoughtfully and blow your cover. Doesn't that put a lot of pressure on a child? Not for Nora.

The author gives Nora a compelling reason for this behavior: hide your talents so you can have friends. Nora has found wonderfully caring, honest and brave friends, especially Stephen, and believes that to keep her friends she must act normal - just like they are. To maintain her special friendship with an honest, trustworthy, wonderful boy, Nora has to maintain a life of deceit. In a world where teen age girls often feel pressured into dumbing themselves down to attract boyfriends, Nora wins the prize by starting in kindergarten.
What a role model!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ashley's Review, June 5, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Report Card (Paperback)

The Report Card is a good example of showing that kids can actually make a difference. I really liked this book!

Nora is a eleven-year-old girl with two smart older siblings. She is a genius but keeps it a secret because she doesn't want to stand out! For her first report card, her parents were expecting average grades because that's what Nora usually got. Instead of average grades, Nora got all D's and one C! Her parents were very upset because she wasn't doing her best and wasn't herself at school or at home. The reason for all the chaos was her best friend Stephan. Stephan wasn't the smartest boy in the class but Nora thought he could be! Nora's big plan was what would happen when every kid in the school got really bad grades on tests and quizzes. Nora thought school was for fun and to learn a little bit, but not to do work! She was totally wrong. When she got to school the next day, she found out that mostly every kid had gotten a zero on every paper that had been assigned to them. Nora knew what she was doing was totally wrong to the worst degree, but she thought it was great that she was actually making a difference! When all the teachers found out about Nora's plan they took it straight down to the principal and told her what was happening and who was a ahead of all the mess. The principal found out Nora was the one, she called her down to her office and made her confess what she did. Nora ended up telling everyone she was very smart and just wanted to make a difference. She told them she did it because having Stephan feel so bad about himself she wanted him to feel better and to think he was actually smart.

This book was so powerful, I couldn't put it down! I recommend this book to all kids who are worried about their grades!