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Is learning to read in NYC schools getting in the way of reading whole books?

By

Jessica Gould

Published May 9, 2026

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Kids reading books in a park.

 

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By

Jessica Gould

Published May 9, 2026

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When Bronx teacher Jessica Beck began teaching two decades ago, middle schoolers in her English class often read 20 books a year. Under the city’s new, mandated literacy curriculum, however, she’s hoping to get through four books in class by the end of June.

She said that’s because much of the kids’ class time is dedicated to reading excerpts and supplementary activities.

“They come to me and they're like, ‘Miss, this is so boring. I miss talking about books,’” Beck said.

With literacy rates at crisis levels among students throughout the five boroughs, the education department has recently implemented major reforms to reading instruction as part of an effort called NYC Reads. The city began with an overhaul of the early grades. By fall 2027 all middle schools must adopt one of two reading curricula, from EL Education or Wit & Wisdom. Officials said the two programs were selected because they align with the latest science on reading, focusing on phonics, vocabulary, knowledge building and comprehension.

But teachers and parents said they’re worried kids are now being forced to slog through mind-numbing exercises in workbooks, rather than nurturing the joy that comes from reading whole books.

The critique reflects concerns across the country about a decline in whole books taught at school. A national survey out this week found teachers assign four whole books on average.

“I have a firm belief that following characters for 300 or 400 pages builds a muscle that there's no other way of building,” said Jonathan Goldman, a parent at Manhattan School for Children.

Lists of the books included in the two city-approved curricula show middle school students are expected to read four to seven books in a school year, depending on the grade.

NYC public schools' middle school reading lists.

Public middle schools must use one of two reading curricula: EL Education or Wit & Wisdom. Here are the book lists for both.

EL Education

Sixth grade

Seventh grade

Eighth grade

Wit & Wisdom

Sixth grade

Seventh grade

8th grade

Goldman, an English professor, said his daughter has been coming home with reading assignments that look more like test prep with short excerpts followed by comprehension questions.

“We keep being told that our kids don't have the attention span anymore that previous generations did, and I think that they don't have the attention span because they haven't been given enough opportunities to stretch out their attention span, frankly,” Goldman said.

New York City’s literacy overhaul reflects a nationwide course correction from teaching methods that experts said have now been disproven. Critics said popular strategies created bad habits by encouraging students to guess words by using pictures, while glossing over important lessons on letter sounds.

Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels and Mayor's Office of Childcare Executive Director Emmy Liss read to students at PS 03.

NYCPS

As soon as the new curriculum was introduced at the elementary level, parents started raising alarms about fewer whole books. Now, as the effort expands to middle schools, those worries have spread. Parents fear the shift exacerbates the attention-span crisis for kids surrounded by screens.

But education department officials insisted that whole books are still at the core of the city’s reading program. They said the new curriculum creates more consistency and ensures kids have the skills they need.

And they said it’s working: Reading scores on state exams spiked last year. New York City students’ reading scores went up 7.2 points in grades three through eight, with 56.3% of those students testing proficient on the state reading exams.

Danielle Giunta, deputy chancellor for teaching and learning for the public schools, said the gains show the literacy overhaul has been a “game changer” for students.

She said the new curricula still centers whole books, with middle schoolers assigned popular titles including “The Lightning Thief,” “The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind,” “Hidden Figures,” “Farewell To Manzanar,” “Maus,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Animal Farm.”

She also noted that kids have been borrowing digital library books in record numbers.

But she acknowledged that the new coursework “balances” whole texts with excerpts and activities. “New York City Reads is really centered on this concept of a literacy ecosystem, making sure there’s a breadth of exposure on a topic to different authors, to different perspectives,” she said.

“We often refer to literacy in [grades] K-2 as learning to read, and then from grade three on shifting to reading to learn,” she said.

Giunta encouraged parents to use a new tool that offers more insight into what kids are reading about in school.

Representatives from the two curriculum companies, EL Education and Wit & Wisdom, both said whole books are central to the curriculum and serve as anchors to related content meant to deepen students’ knowledge and skills.

“We believe whole books matter,” said Abbas Manjee, co-founder and chief academic officer at the company Kiddom, which includes EL Education. “Books are sacred.”

In EL Education, Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” is paired with a unit on Greek mythology where students research a Greek god, and each rewrites a scene with a character they invent, among other tasks. “Hidden Figures” is paired with a speech with historical documents and debates about space exploration.

The curriculum says teachers should have students read excerpts in class so they have time to reflect and respond, and “invite” them to read the rest for homework. There are assessments — like quizzes and tests — that accompany the units.

Evan Stone, CEO of Educators for Excellence, said the advocacy group made up of thousands of New York City teachers is very supportive of NYC Reads. He said teachers appreciate the new approach and “see real value in going very deep on a smaller number of texts.”

But many teachers and parents are frustrated with the changes. In addition to decrying a decrease in whole books, some have criticized the new “boxed curriculum” as too rigid and lacking diversity.

“The students you have and what’s happening in the world should determine what you’re reading in the classroom,” Beck said.

Susan Neuman, a professor of childhood literacy and education at NYU, said, overall, she’s “very impressed” with the curriculum changes, which have been effective in teaching kids the basics of literacy. But she said there’s room for improvement, including more time spent on whole books.

“We now have a systematic program that focuses on helping children connect sounds and letters and helps children learn how to blend these sounds into words,” she said. “ I really think that one of the things we need to do, and we may be neglecting to some extent, is time spent reading.”

Tagged

education

new york city

Jessica Gould

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Jessica is the education reporter for WNYC and Gothamist. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Jessica reported on the shutdown and reopening of the nation’s largest school system, highlighting the unprecedented impacts on learning, health and mental health for students, staff and families. Got a tip? Email [email protected]

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