The Magic Tree House: Just Right for the First Stage of Independent Reading
By: Keith
My older boy, Neil, 7, finished the Hooked on Phonics Master Reader program about a year ago. Throughout the program, from Kindergarten all the way through Master Reader, I had sat next to him for his lessons. But, once the Master Reader program was finished, it was time for him to start reading alone. We tried a number of other series, but the one he likes the most is also the most ubiquitous of them all, The Magic Tree House series, by Mary Pope Osborne (there’s a reason it’s popular I guess). After a few fits and starts where he misunderstood the meaning of independent reading (he thought it meant play Nintendo), and where he got involved in books that were a bit over his head (Holes, Percy Jackson), we finally found The Magic Tree House. Fortunately for us I have a sister whose son is 6 years older than Neil, and that means they get to try things first and pass them down to us. We got, in the mail last year, almost the entire series of books. It saved me money, and we discovered something Neil actually loves to read and that doesn’t strain the limits of his reading comprehension.
The Age Appropriateness
I’d say Neil is just about the standard age for these books – perhaps a bit on the young side. He’s 7 and it’s intended for 8 – 12 year olds, but those ages are wild guesses by the publisher anyway; every kid is different. For an example, here is an excerpt from Lions at Lunchtime, Book #11 of the series:
They ran farther up the river, away from the incoming wildebeests. Finally, they stopped to catch their breath. They looked back.
Everything seemed fine. The wildebeests were scrambling safely over the riverbank. Soon they would graze on the grass prepared by the zebras.
Research Guides
About half the books in the series also come with supplementary reading, what they call research guides. Your kid will read the fictional tale about the Magic Tree House and Jack and Annie (the two kids who go on adventures in the tree house), and then, for some of the books, there is a non-fiction book they can read afterwards. For instance, Magic Tree House #9, Dolphins at Daybreak, has an optional research guide called Dolphins and Sharks. Kids can learn all about sharks and dolphins. We always read both the research guide and the adventure. Now Neil knows a little something about a bunch of stuff: Sharks, Pirates, the Titanic, Outer Space, Dinosaurs, etc… .
Although The Magic Tree House is one of the best known series in this age group, it is also one of the best and most complete. None of the books are long enough to cause reading anxiety, and they all impart some kind of interesting life lesson or non-fictional information. If you’ve done Hooked on Phonics through Master Reader, this is an excellent next step. I received no compensation for this review and was not contacted in any way by the publisher for my opinion. The Magic Tree House series has a rather comprehensive website that I’d recommend for further information.
Here is Neil reading a portion of The Magic Tree House #11 – Lions at Lunchtime:
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We too love these books, but I’m actually reading them to my three (almost four) year old. He can’t get enough of them (and luckily for us, there are so many!). I think some of the overall topics go right over his wee little head, but he loves Jack and Annie, and the idea of them zooming off in their Magic Tree House, interacting with animals, and so on and so forth. I look at it like when we DO get into some of these subjects: Pompeii, Egypt, The Amazon….he’ll already have some of the vocabulary and recognition and will (could) make learning about these subjects all the more easier. And if not, oh well! We’re having a great time reading them anywho! Another winner along a similar vain are The Magic School Bus books of course….but, that’s another post.
Also, have y’all read the Boxcar Children books? Those are another household favorite-with plenty in the series-I think there are something like 75 now?!
.-= Krystal´s last blog ..Summertime Fun =-.
This tree house series is definitely the best series for this age group!
.-= Magical Hotels´s last blog ..5 Amazing Treehouse Hotels =-.