who flew the planes into the buildings or why the event
happened. Children cannot understand this event in histo-
ry without knowing that nineteen radical young Muslim
men believed they pleased their god by flying a plane into
a building to kill Americans. In this instance, Scholastic
books omitted critical information in an attempt to shape
a child’s moral views.
Good literature always feeds a child’s imagination. It
transports readers to new worlds and different places and
creates exciting adventures. In stories, children are placed
into difficult situations or challenging dilemmas and inev-
itably wonder, “What would I do and what should the
character do?” These types of questions are not meaning-
less or unimportant. They are moral and ethical questions.
As children read a book about the attack on 9/11 or the
American Revolution, they are daydreaming about being
there, and in those dreams, they must make moral deci-
sions about the situations they are presented with in the
literature. Subtly, children are also given instructions about
what is right or wrong by the decisions the characters make
or the outcome of the story.
LITERATURE SHAPES A CHILD’S
MORAL IMAGINATION
Literature stretches a reader’s moral imagination and ethi-
cal muscles. That is where problems arise with Scholas-
tic books. Children are reading books for fun, but in the
process, the morality of the author and publishing compa-
ny is shaping the reader through the characters that walk
onto the pages and provide a model on how to respond to
the life situations they face.
Views of morality are in every Scholastic book. We could
point to many examples of positive choices modeled for
children in Scholastic books, but the unbiblical views are
overwhelmingly high and are poisonous to the faith devel-
opment of impressionable and vulnerable children. A
quick glance through the most recent Scholastic book cata-
log reveals the morality of the publishing giant is nowhere
close to the morality of the Bible. 2 In Star Crossed, Mattie
likes to play with Gemma and wonders if she might have a
crush on boys and girls. In Unwanted: Stories of the Syrian
Refugees, children are to imagine they are refugees trying
to escape a war zone and the country they want to come to
doesn’t want them. Witch Boy tells the story of characters
who do not fit in with others and learn to gain the courage
to be themselves—a witch. What Should She Do encour-
ages feminism by teaching girls to challenge inequality,
gender stereotyping, body shaming, and bullying.
Are your children reading Scholastic books? If so, it’s
time to find an alternative. Choose books that build a
child’s morality from a biblical perspective instead. ■
FOUR SUGGESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
Parents must monitor everything a child reads.
If you are not doing that already, that is step one. It
takes diligence and time, but it is a critical aspect of
helping children develop a biblical worldview. If you
see a book published by Scholastic, assume there is
an unbiblical morality woven into the story.
Find a Christian alternative for Scholastic books.
Scholastic is a publishing company, so begin by
identifying Christian publishing companies with
great moral books for children and purchase books
from them. Some of the Christian publishing com-
panies our family uses include Grace & Truth Books,
Rabbit Room Press, Master Books, New Growth
Press, Leaf Publishing House, P&R, and Shepherd’s
Press. You could also look at who published some of
the books you love and see what else they offer.
If you are a Christian school, use a Christian
publisher for your book club. Most publishers
offer a print catalog, and I’m sure if the publishing
company was contacted directly, a discount could
be established if your school wanted to create a
book club using their catalog.
Locate vetted reading lists. There are entire books
devoted to this, such as Honey For a Child’s Heart,
The Read-Aloud Family, Books that Children Love, and
Books that Build Character. These are a good place
to start and will likely lead you to more sources. We
have personally benefited from Carol Joy Seid’s book
lists, which recommend the best books from many
publishers. There are so many books published to-
day that we have a simple principle: only read great
books. You won’t find Diary of a Wimpy Kid on our
shelves. Good books are easy to find. We want the
best of the best!
ENDNOTES
1. “Scholastic Reports Q4 And Fiscal 2019 Results And Outlook,” Scholastic, July 25, 2019,
http://investor.scholastic.com/news-releases/news-release-details/scholastic-reports-q4-
and-fiscal-2019-results-and-outlook.
2. Scholastic, accessed September 18, 2019, https://editions.mydigitalpublication.com/
publication/?i=602872#{%22issue_id%22:602872,%22page%22:0}.
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