to think Coram Boy is not a suitable book for year 7s

[vegetaria]

My 11 year old had night mares last night and is afraid to go to sleep tonight.

For anyone who doesn't know it is about a man who buys unwanted children in the UK in the 1700s, and sells them into slavery if they are above 5, or kills them by burying them alive if they are younger, and it describes several scenes of babies being buried alive and other harrowing events

Its the class book at the moment

I think a lot of “critically acclaimed” children’s literature is horrific misery lit - pretty much anything by Michael Morpurgo, who is some kind of sadist, frankly.

I agree with you OP. We read 'I'm the King of the Castle' for GCSE and I found it incredibly upsetting and disturbing. I still think of it regularly and I'm now 44! It didn't put me off reading as I went on to do a degree in English Literature and read some far more disturbing books but I do think that the first time you read a book that really opens your eyes can be very jolting and can have a profound effect on you, especially at a young age.

My children are younger so I haven't had this experience yet so I'm not sure what I'd do in this case other than reassurance and talking through the issues and feelings raised but I don't think you're overreacting and I don't think your child is particularly 'over sensitive' to have had this reaction.

There will be worse stuff in the Shakespeare they will be doing. Try to reassure him but there's nothing you can say to the school without looking silly.

I'd see it as a good thing that my lovely son wasnt desensitised to violence.

Whaaaat? My main objection to MM is his books are so boring!

But no one needs to learn about the worlds suffering in an English lesson. I’ve certainly put books down, turned the TV off. In a sense it doesn’t matter who is upset by what, if it’s upsetting someone it’s hardly likely to endear them to books and reading.

What the fuck gives any teacher, school, governors education system the right to decide children have to be force fed this age 11 - and as to teachers thinking it can be done "supportively" - who do they think they are? They teach English! They know nothing about trauma, or Psychiatry!

Please feel free to home educate since we English teachers don’t know what we’re doing.

I could reply - those parents thinking they can comment on the texts we teach - who do they think they are? They know nothing about teaching English!

But I won’t, because I’m not unbelievably rude.

^ This.

11-12/ secondary school age is old enough to start studying literature with more difficult themes. Part of literature classes are about discussing emotional reactions to texts and the whole point is to read things that are difficult, provocative, and make you feel something. It is a children's book so I'm sure it's not graphic/ gruesome, just difficult themes.

Having English and education qualifications does not in any way at all make anyone qualified in trauma or psychiatry

I don't know anything about this book but given its name and mention of the foundling hospital I assume it's linked in some way to the (amazing) children's charity Coram (who run the Foundling Museum at Coram fields in London).

Could you frame it to your DS as being a period in history that led to radical social reform and the start of a children's rights movement that has helped to shape all the rights and protections he enjoys today? Flip it on its head and use it as a cause to celebrate children today and how society has changed for the better!

https://www.coram.org.uk/

Equally we can’t wrap children up in cotton wool forever and then be surprised that they can’t cope with anything remotely unpleasant when they’re older. You mentioned in another post about someone in Year 11 who read it three years ago and still cried about it; that’s just ridiculous.

YANBU, I was still playing with my Baby Born when I was 11. Just because they're at secondary school, doesn't mean that they're not still children. There's plenty of teenage years left to understand serious and miserable things about the world, it doesn't have to be several years before they become adults.

again, discussing it, or looking at the "context" is exactly the reverse of helpful!

His baby cousin is ill in hospital, he has seen him struggling to breath, and had him holding on to him with his little fingers. How on earth is discussing the context of babies this age being thrown alive into their graves going to in any way help?

Getting as far away from the discussing it as possible is going to help

@WitsEnd10 why is it ridiculous someone still find li affects them years after reading? Thought that would be a plus for the author it's was so evocative?
As my pp I found the premise of it awful, and actually slept horrifically last night as it kept popping into my head, I'm cosleeping and bf a tiny baby so likely linked, but don't see why we have to use such awful themes in literature.

It’s ridiculous because they are children. FGS. Adults (especially teachers) know best what’s good for them and they need to grow up and get on with it.

I don’t know the book but it sounds very gruesome.

Forcing a child to read something that distresses them is not going to make them be able to ‘cope’ with dark topics, world news, etc; rather, it will make them feel unsafe.

I do t know what to suggest to the OP. If my child were distressed by something to the point of wanting to avoid school, i certainly wouldn’t force them to read it. I guess I would start by speaking to the teacher but I would be strongly advocating for him to just just skip this book.

Well I don’t think they are overly sensitive. I think this book would play on my mind too. It sounds awful. There are plenty of great books out there - can’t imagine why this has been chosen.

Discusting hun

You shud pull him out an home educate x

that is not true though, is it, English teachers know about English and education, not about trauma and psychiatry

I was being a bit sarcastic OP. Sorry if I didn’t convey they very well!

It was shocking when my DC was assigned Goodnight Mr Tom in Yr 6 with descriptions of abuse and death including the child being locked in a cupboard with a dying/dead baby. The teacher kept saying it must be age appropriate because the national curriculum listed it as such. However, in an interview the author said it was written for 14/15 year olds. It was some curriculum specialist who decided they knew better than the author.

@vegetaria I am completely with you and understand your feelings. We are forcing our children - and 11 is still young fgs - to hear about atrocities that they’re not emotionally and psychologically mature enough to process. It’s damaging even if some children appear fine. It is not ‘good’ to be exposed to extreme trauma in childhood. Not back in the 1700’s and not now. So many adults think of children as mini adults, but they’re not.

sorry, my mistake, I am a bit stressed! Child is getting ready for school, but crying silently and I don't know if they will actually be going in or not

Why the fuck did you take an 11 year old to see a baby in hospital? Surely that is more traumatic than reading a book?

One of my children is a sensitive reader. But reads at a high level. We have always asked if they want to go to things they might find too upsetting eg she did not attend her nana's funeral as she knew she would have been too upset.

I am going to ring the school when it opens at 8

he hasn't?

It’s an absolutely wonderful novel. I have taught it before- generally to older students but I wouldn’t dismiss it for Year 7. I think I found it more traumatic than the students! The whole point of literature is to explore complex ideas and feelings. Your summary makes it sound like a Penny Dreadful. It’s based in historical fact and is beautifully written. The increasing intrusion of parents into text choices is frustrating and generally comes from a place of ignorance. I’ve even had complaints about GCSE texts where the texts aren’t even chosen by us,

Tell them its discusting what there doing to your poor lad x