What do you think?
Rate this book
Elsie Edwards #4
Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You
Helen thinks this year might be better than most. There are some neat people in her grade: her friend Louise, Leon, Jack Hanson, even Elsie Edwards.
But Helen's teacher turns out to be Mrs. Lobb. Lobb the Blob makes things so hard for Helen that she decides to live up to her nickname—"Bad Helen"—and do all the things she's always wanted to do.
Being bad is fun, till Helen finds out she might have to stay back a year. That's the last thing she wants to do. But what will it take to get herself out of trouble when she's been in it for so long?
"...this is also a good read, and Helen at her worst will undoubtedly provoke laughter as well as sympathy."
—ALA Booklist
But Helen's teacher turns out to be Mrs. Lobb. Lobb the Blob makes things so hard for Helen that she decides to live up to her nickname—"Bad Helen"—and do all the things she's always wanted to do.
Being bad is fun, till Helen finds out she might have to stay back a year. That's the last thing she wants to do. But what will it take to get herself out of trouble when she's been in it for so long?
"...this is also a good read, and Helen at her worst will undoubtedly provoke laughter as well as sympathy."
—ALA Booklist
Paperback
First published September 4, 1985
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews
June 16, 2010
Helen Nichols has a reputation for being one of the best pitchers, and worst readers, in the sixth grade. She's also known as one of the biggest troublemakers in school. At the start of the year, she's assigned to the classroom of Mrs.Lobb--"Blob" to those who know her--a teacher with very little tolerance and a lot of rules. Although Helen works for hours after school every day with her mother on her homework, she can't fake her way through reading assignments and tests all year, and soon she's in danger of failing the sixth grade. With the sympathetic guidance of some understanding adults (her father, uncle, and new teacher, Mr. Marshall), Helen makes the difficult decision to start taking special ed classes in reading--even if it means getting made fun of by her classmates.
Although many of the references in the book are more than a little out of date--the students talk about playing Van Halen albums and use Pee Chee notebooks--DeClements does an excellent job of creating a relatable pre-teen world. Her sixth graders talk like sixth graders, and act like sixth graders, without ever lapsing into the sort of self consciously good behavior that makes it obvious that they were written by an adult. This is important, not only because it makes the characters believable, but because it is an honest portrayal of the sort of power struggles that kids at this age have with the adults around them. They're not sure if they want to be treated like children or teenagers, and take a great deal of pride in pulling things over on adults (particularly their parents) when they can. Helen frequently does things at her friend's house that she knows her mother wouldn't allow--drive in her friend's brother's fiberglass car, go to a horror movie unchaperoned--and this seemed so wonderfully realistic to me.
DeClements also deals with Helen's bad behavior and reading difficulties with the same sort of empathy and realism. It's not difficult to see why she acts out so much, but the connection between her bad behavior and her disability is never belabored. Also, just because Helen decides to take special education classes doesn't mean that she suddenly loses all of her self-deprecating negativity. "Face it, Helen," she says in the next to last chapter. "You're dumb in reading."
Another facet of DeClement's realism is that the adults in the novel have their problems and short-comings, too. Mrs. Lobb is certainly a beleagured teacher, but she's also unable to find a way to connect with Helen and be a productive figure in her life. Helen's mother also means well with her refusal to let Helen take special education classes, but her actions are mostly motivated by her pride, and Helen's father even admits this to her. Adults aren't perfect either, and I think that demonstrating that shows a lot of respect for young readers.
The other standout aspect of this book is that it really underscores the importance of taking responsibility for oneself and one's actions. Helen not only decides of her own accord to pay back the school for her spray-painting vandalism, but also asks herself to be considered for special ed classes. Later in the book, she assures her mother that at twelve, she's old enough--and responsible enough--to stay at home without supervision after school. Learning to be responsible helps Helen begin to feel better about herself as a person, and I think this is an applicable message for any young reader.
Although many of the references in the book are more than a little out of date--the students talk about playing Van Halen albums and use Pee Chee notebooks--DeClements does an excellent job of creating a relatable pre-teen world. Her sixth graders talk like sixth graders, and act like sixth graders, without ever lapsing into the sort of self consciously good behavior that makes it obvious that they were written by an adult. This is important, not only because it makes the characters believable, but because it is an honest portrayal of the sort of power struggles that kids at this age have with the adults around them. They're not sure if they want to be treated like children or teenagers, and take a great deal of pride in pulling things over on adults (particularly their parents) when they can. Helen frequently does things at her friend's house that she knows her mother wouldn't allow--drive in her friend's brother's fiberglass car, go to a horror movie unchaperoned--and this seemed so wonderfully realistic to me.
DeClements also deals with Helen's bad behavior and reading difficulties with the same sort of empathy and realism. It's not difficult to see why she acts out so much, but the connection between her bad behavior and her disability is never belabored. Also, just because Helen decides to take special education classes doesn't mean that she suddenly loses all of her self-deprecating negativity. "Face it, Helen," she says in the next to last chapter. "You're dumb in reading."
Another facet of DeClement's realism is that the adults in the novel have their problems and short-comings, too. Mrs. Lobb is certainly a beleagured teacher, but she's also unable to find a way to connect with Helen and be a productive figure in her life. Helen's mother also means well with her refusal to let Helen take special education classes, but her actions are mostly motivated by her pride, and Helen's father even admits this to her. Adults aren't perfect either, and I think that demonstrating that shows a lot of respect for young readers.
The other standout aspect of this book is that it really underscores the importance of taking responsibility for oneself and one's actions. Helen not only decides of her own accord to pay back the school for her spray-painting vandalism, but also asks herself to be considered for special ed classes. Later in the book, she assures her mother that at twelve, she's old enough--and responsible enough--to stay at home without supervision after school. Learning to be responsible helps Helen begin to feel better about herself as a person, and I think this is an applicable message for any young reader.
January 30, 2019
I remember being so excited to read this, after I had read Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade a dozen times. I also remember checking that it was the same author after I read it! There's only a passing mention of one of the girls from the first book, and the rest focuses on Helen, who has a learning disability. But where Fifth Grade was so fun because it really felt like the kids were real, this book felt like an adult's attempt to show the kids she was still cool and hip. A lot of the things that Helen does to be bad are either so dumb no sixth grader would even think of it, or things only a much more hardened delinquent would do. Also, her struggles with reading and spelling are depicted as leaving a letter out of each word at random which is . . . not a thing, as far as I've ever heard. I remember thinking it was weird back in the day, but now as a mom of three who has helped in many classrooms, I really want to cry foul. She doesn't reverse any letters, she doesn't use K instead of C, she just . . . leaves the last letter off most words . . . ?
Also, and I know this is stupid, but the names in this book killed me, and they still do. Her name is Helen, her friends are named things like Louise and Leon. This book was written in the 1980's, when everyone was named Tiffany and Jennifer and Jessica! There were three Christophers in my class, and four Brandons in my grade! But LEON? LOUISE? These aren't even parents' names, they are grandparent names!
Also, and I know this is stupid, but the names in this book killed me, and they still do. Her name is Helen, her friends are named things like Louise and Leon. This book was written in the 1980's, when everyone was named Tiffany and Jennifer and Jessica! There were three Christophers in my class, and four Brandons in my grade! But LEON? LOUISE? These aren't even parents' names, they are grandparent names!
July 8, 2010
I tutor a 6th grader who had this book as part of her summer reading requirements. The story is about Helen, a lovable troublemaker who has a pretty bad reading problem. As an educator, I thought it was an interesting way to broach the subject of special education - especially in cases where the student isn't necessarily "retarded" but maybe dyslexic etc. However, like Helen's friends in the story, the gravity of her problem and what she was going through completely went over the head of my student. Once I talked her through it she started to get the point, but in her mind the book was about being a 6th grader with a mean teacher. For summer reading this is a nice light choice, but if you are looking to use this book to teach tolerance etc, it might be better suited for older students in teacher preparation programs.
February 21, 2013
1) Helen Nichols is a textbook “learning-disabled kid who acts out” archetype, but she’s done really well. For one thing, she doesn’t take it out on her classmates, but rather plays pranks on the teachers and faculty. Second, she’s…okay, I try not to use the “relatable” card, I like characters whether or not I can see myself in them. But her feelings about reading are pretty much the same as mine on algebra. D: So I can appreciate her moaning and groaning and GRAR over the whole thing.
2) Sharon Hinkler is a little shit and I don’t know how the girls can still hang out with her. Seriously, in every book she’s bratting it up and annoying everyone and going “MY MOM SAYS THIS”. I get that most groups have the friend that no one likes, but you’d think she’d try a little harder not to be such an ass. She’s still like this even in the later books, IIRC.
Still, I’m glad Helen didn’t punch her lights out at the end. She aint worth it. :P
3) When did this take place? Five bucks can’t buy a whole lot these days unless you’re shopping from the Sathers display at the five-and-ten. :P But the kids said they could get a load of tickets at a carnival for that much.
4) Helen’s mother kind of annoyed me most of the time, especially when she refused to let the school take care of Helen’s reading issues. If her constant tutoring isn’t helping her daughter, maybe that’s a sign it’s time to step down and let someone else deal with it. I wonder if Helen’s acting out also has to do with her mom being such a fussbudget. Still, I was glad to see the woman get a new “project” in the end. We all like to feel useful.
5) I liked the continuity nod to Elsie’s former weight problem. It’s too bad this book is kinda the gaiden of the whole canon, Helen only gets one more mention in the last Elsie book. And I don’t think Louise ever shows up again, which is a shame. She was pretty cool.
Overall this was a great read. I quite enjoy this entire series.
2) Sharon Hinkler is a little shit and I don’t know how the girls can still hang out with her. Seriously, in every book she’s bratting it up and annoying everyone and going “MY MOM SAYS THIS”. I get that most groups have the friend that no one likes, but you’d think she’d try a little harder not to be such an ass. She’s still like this even in the later books, IIRC.
Still, I’m glad Helen didn’t punch her lights out at the end. She aint worth it. :P
3) When did this take place? Five bucks can’t buy a whole lot these days unless you’re shopping from the Sathers display at the five-and-ten. :P But the kids said they could get a load of tickets at a carnival for that much.
4) Helen’s mother kind of annoyed me most of the time, especially when she refused to let the school take care of Helen’s reading issues. If her constant tutoring isn’t helping her daughter, maybe that’s a sign it’s time to step down and let someone else deal with it. I wonder if Helen’s acting out also has to do with her mom being such a fussbudget. Still, I was glad to see the woman get a new “project” in the end. We all like to feel useful.
5) I liked the continuity nod to Elsie’s former weight problem. It’s too bad this book is kinda the gaiden of the whole canon, Helen only gets one more mention in the last Elsie book. And I don’t think Louise ever shows up again, which is a shame. She was pretty cool.
Overall this was a great read. I quite enjoy this entire series.
July 29, 2008
the scene where the principal makes everyone write out "school makes me puke" is embedded in my memory.
December 7, 2019
this is just so sad. First you have a writer who doesn't explain WHAT she is talking about. especially now forty years later she's talking about pee chees [folders] == why not just mention folders? She seemed to not realize that books travel out of their author's states.
THEN you have people within the book [particularly TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS] who don't understand that if you have a problem within reading, other subjects involving reading WILL SUFFER. the reading difficulty only hinders understanding if you rely solely on reading for those other subjects.
THIRD: all writers are taught this one thing: WRITE ABOUT WHAT YOU KNOW. You can tell that Ms DeClements had NO idea about 'dyslexia [???]'. its the reversing of a b/d/q/p but also 6/9. The eyes see a 6 but brain switches it to a 9... Helen doing her 'dum' is not dyslexia or ANY DISABILITY. its lack of remedial reading to begin with. That's not discovered in 6th grade, try second or first!
FOURTH: You have the criminal aspect of this. This weird uncle who takes her to get fire crackers without telling her that she should only light these with an adult... whatever. She sneaks it into school with matches and she lights one WITHIN THE BUILDING!!!! ridiculous! even back then that would have been a criminal offense -- regardless of the legality of the firework status.
All her 'bad' behavior was not accidental or opportunity arose, this was premeditated. this had nothing to do with her reading troubles.
the only thing I was OK with in the book was the RETARD thing [hear me out]. back then this was the 'reality' of the stigma of being put into special ed. in fact, back then, the only special ed was: mainstreaming or BOCES Boards of Cooperative Educational Services -- which is an on site facility where severely special needs children go to get schooled. so the fact that people didn't want to get tested because they will be labeled retarded IS a reality back then and WAS a stigma that people really did fear.
THEN you have people within the book [particularly TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS] who don't understand that if you have a problem within reading, other subjects involving reading WILL SUFFER. the reading difficulty only hinders understanding if you rely solely on reading for those other subjects.
THIRD: all writers are taught this one thing: WRITE ABOUT WHAT YOU KNOW. You can tell that Ms DeClements had NO idea about 'dyslexia [???]'. its the reversing of a b/d/q/p but also 6/9. The eyes see a 6 but brain switches it to a 9... Helen doing her 'dum' is not dyslexia or ANY DISABILITY. its lack of remedial reading to begin with. That's not discovered in 6th grade, try second or first!
FOURTH: You have the criminal aspect of this. This weird uncle who takes her to get fire crackers without telling her that she should only light these with an adult... whatever. She sneaks it into school with matches and she lights one WITHIN THE BUILDING!!!! ridiculous! even back then that would have been a criminal offense -- regardless of the legality of the firework status.
All her 'bad' behavior was not accidental or opportunity arose, this was premeditated. this had nothing to do with her reading troubles.
the only thing I was OK with in the book was the RETARD thing [hear me out]. back then this was the 'reality' of the stigma of being put into special ed. in fact, back then, the only special ed was: mainstreaming or BOCES Boards of Cooperative Educational Services -- which is an on site facility where severely special needs children go to get schooled. so the fact that people didn't want to get tested because they will be labeled retarded IS a reality back then and WAS a stigma that people really did fear.
May 22, 2013
I thought that this book was great. It teaches people that you're gonna make it in life no matter what kind of education you get. You're going to be ok, whatever you are good or bad at. The best thing you can do is just sit back and watch your life take its toll and remember to control those big decisions in life. We even have to have a little fun in our lives just like "Bad Helen". I liked the characters that was her dad and Mr. Marshall. I liked her dad because he was easy-going about Helen's education. Mr. Marshall I liked because he was so nice to Helen at the book. I recommend this book to anyone because of the lesson in it. Even though this book was copyrighted in 1985, I think it should be read throughout eons to come.
November 27, 2018
This book is... well, how do I describe it? It isn't really a book that I recommend. The whole story is just one confusing mess. Helen is a sixth grader who isn't good at reading because she mixes up words.
The story makes some confusing decisions when it comes to chapters, instead of doing traditional numbers, it uses words which is harder for me. If I want a specific chapter, I just need to count the chapters, which I find harder to do. I would prefer numbers with the chapters (unless it's something odd with the version I have.) but I can't complain more than I have, now can I?
I don't feel sympathy for any of the characters. They just feel like plastic shells. All in all, this book really isn't one you should reread again and again unless your a fan of the author.
The story makes some confusing decisions when it comes to chapters, instead of doing traditional numbers, it uses words which is harder for me. If I want a specific chapter, I just need to count the chapters, which I find harder to do. I would prefer numbers with the chapters (unless it's something odd with the version I have.) but I can't complain more than I have, now can I?
I don't feel sympathy for any of the characters. They just feel like plastic shells. All in all, this book really isn't one you should reread again and again unless your a fan of the author.
December 21, 2017
Read the series other than this book so many years ago, that I had to finish the one I didn't. :) It was cute for its age limit and, even as an adult, had me laughing.
March 21, 2016
This book was good. It is about a girl named Helen that is now in 6th grade and she is really naughty. She gets lots and lots of discipline slips until something changes a little. She becomes good for awhile she is now in the special education group because Helen has all F's in social studies reading and spelling. And she needs help BIG time.
April 16, 2019
My eight year old daughter liked this, but I found it very juvenile- this is not literature to be enjoyed by adults with their kids. Neither has it aged well (I believe it was written in the early 80’s)- use of the word “retarded,” for example, or the very dismissive way both kids and adults handled a child with a learning disability.
January 5, 2008
6th grade approved reading list. DID NOT LIKE. This book pissed me off, particularly with its portrayal of those with learning disabilities. Even though the main character is the one with the LD, it seems like she's a caricature.
September 1, 2021
i got this book for $1 as a joke but it was kinda funnn
June 9, 2026
I remember my friend reading this in fourth grade and I was utterly scandalized. This book is about sixth grade. We weren't old enough.
I went at least a decade in used children's books without hearing a customer mention or request this book, but it seems to have gone through plenty of printings and has some kind of staying power, enough that I still see it in garage sales and Little Free Libraries pretty often, and I'd decided last summer, after not bothering to buy a 25¢ copy at a garage sale, that next time I saw it, I would read it. And then I found it in a Little Free Library last week and here we are.
At its heart, this book is in a complicated conversation with itself over three generations. Barthe De Clements was born in 1920. This book came out in 1985. She spent three decades teaching before she became a writer. She grew up in the Greatest Generation talking animal era of publishing, her adult life took place in the boring realism era, and she seems to have gained success in the Judy Blume watershed of issues and unmentionable topics, so Helen the protagonist gratuitously compares her bust to her friend Louise's bust; but the kids are all named Helen, Louise, Carol, and Jimmy; but Helen has access to fireworks in a way that kids maybe had in the '20s but didn't so much by the '50s or the '80s.
How school works is so strange here, too. I've never heard of an elementary school where the class lists are posted on the door the first day of school. That's insane. So are the lunch trays. The cafeteria workers wheel thirty trays of food to each classroom x at least two classrooms per grade x K-6 school= 420 meals being transported by adults on carts around the school every day instead of making the kids walk to the cafeteria. And there's a specialist teacher for music but not gym or art. Helen's stakes are so confusing too: When it's first discussed, it sounds like the alternative to muddling through mainstream school with severe dyslexia is going full time to a special school for mentally disable children, but by the end of the book, she's going to the resource room for two hours a day and that's so much more realistic. Maybe normal school and special school were the only options for the early part of De Clements' career, but this book was written for the '80s after minor interventions were invented.
Speaking of the '80s: "Eddie Van Halen. I wish I could run my fingers through his chest hair." Huh? What? These are either the awkward words of an eleven-year-old girl who's trying to figure out how to say that a boy is cute without sounding insane and failing wildly, or a 65-year-old woman who has no idea how tweens talk when they are actually gushing over cute boys, and that line can be both. Weird words in this book. A couple times, Helen describes the corn in the backyard, so you wonder if her father is a farmer, but turns out he's a CPA, so she just lives in a small town or a walkable suburb where corn abuts her backyard, but it's never described, there's just corn out back.
This book is rather true to life in the sense that it's just a bunch of stuff that happens over Helen's year. She starts school best friends with Louise, who's diverse because she's Italian-American, but they drift apart. Helen's uncle visits and takes her to get her ears pierced. She plays some pranks against the awful teacher who isn't trying to figure out what's wrong with her and why she can't read. Mid-year, her mother demands that the school put her in a different classroom, so Helen ends up with the fun male teacher, who advocates for her to get the reading help she needs. Helen's mother was a piece of work, or a lesson about the importance of women working in second wave feminism? Every night, she drills Helen in reading and helps her memorize her homework, but she discourages Helen from doing things like following the words with her index finger because that helps Helen keep track of where she is on the page, but Helen's mother believes that it's not something Helen should be doing. And Helen's mother is adamant that Helen not get special help. Has anyone explained the resource room to her? But her arc is resolved when Helen's dad takes her on as a secretary, so she has something to do besides fail to help Helen read better.
I was worried that "sixth grade can really kill you" meant that this was a Bridge to Terabithia situation, but everyone survives and grows onwards. Overall, this was a romp through a confusing mess of a presentation about the earnest reality of a post-Are You There, God interpretation of what school is like. It was a fine summer read that took less than two days, but if I was a kid, I think it still would have triggered my red flags for weirdness. Good on Barthe De Clements for becoming a novelist late in life, though. I bet this spoke to some dyslexic kids in the '80s.
I went at least a decade in used children's books without hearing a customer mention or request this book, but it seems to have gone through plenty of printings and has some kind of staying power, enough that I still see it in garage sales and Little Free Libraries pretty often, and I'd decided last summer, after not bothering to buy a 25¢ copy at a garage sale, that next time I saw it, I would read it. And then I found it in a Little Free Library last week and here we are.
At its heart, this book is in a complicated conversation with itself over three generations. Barthe De Clements was born in 1920. This book came out in 1985. She spent three decades teaching before she became a writer. She grew up in the Greatest Generation talking animal era of publishing, her adult life took place in the boring realism era, and she seems to have gained success in the Judy Blume watershed of issues and unmentionable topics, so Helen the protagonist gratuitously compares her bust to her friend Louise's bust; but the kids are all named Helen, Louise, Carol, and Jimmy; but Helen has access to fireworks in a way that kids maybe had in the '20s but didn't so much by the '50s or the '80s.
How school works is so strange here, too. I've never heard of an elementary school where the class lists are posted on the door the first day of school. That's insane. So are the lunch trays. The cafeteria workers wheel thirty trays of food to each classroom x at least two classrooms per grade x K-6 school= 420 meals being transported by adults on carts around the school every day instead of making the kids walk to the cafeteria. And there's a specialist teacher for music but not gym or art. Helen's stakes are so confusing too: When it's first discussed, it sounds like the alternative to muddling through mainstream school with severe dyslexia is going full time to a special school for mentally disable children, but by the end of the book, she's going to the resource room for two hours a day and that's so much more realistic. Maybe normal school and special school were the only options for the early part of De Clements' career, but this book was written for the '80s after minor interventions were invented.
Speaking of the '80s: "Eddie Van Halen. I wish I could run my fingers through his chest hair." Huh? What? These are either the awkward words of an eleven-year-old girl who's trying to figure out how to say that a boy is cute without sounding insane and failing wildly, or a 65-year-old woman who has no idea how tweens talk when they are actually gushing over cute boys, and that line can be both. Weird words in this book. A couple times, Helen describes the corn in the backyard, so you wonder if her father is a farmer, but turns out he's a CPA, so she just lives in a small town or a walkable suburb where corn abuts her backyard, but it's never described, there's just corn out back.
This book is rather true to life in the sense that it's just a bunch of stuff that happens over Helen's year. She starts school best friends with Louise, who's diverse because she's Italian-American, but they drift apart. Helen's uncle visits and takes her to get her ears pierced. She plays some pranks against the awful teacher who isn't trying to figure out what's wrong with her and why she can't read. Mid-year, her mother demands that the school put her in a different classroom, so Helen ends up with the fun male teacher, who advocates for her to get the reading help she needs. Helen's mother was a piece of work, or a lesson about the importance of women working in second wave feminism? Every night, she drills Helen in reading and helps her memorize her homework, but she discourages Helen from doing things like following the words with her index finger because that helps Helen keep track of where she is on the page, but Helen's mother believes that it's not something Helen should be doing. And Helen's mother is adamant that Helen not get special help. Has anyone explained the resource room to her? But her arc is resolved when Helen's dad takes her on as a secretary, so she has something to do besides fail to help Helen read better.
I was worried that "sixth grade can really kill you" meant that this was a Bridge to Terabithia situation, but everyone survives and grows onwards. Overall, this was a romp through a confusing mess of a presentation about the earnest reality of a post-Are You There, God interpretation of what school is like. It was a fine summer read that took less than two days, but if I was a kid, I think it still would have triggered my red flags for weirdness. Good on Barthe De Clements for becoming a novelist late in life, though. I bet this spoke to some dyslexic kids in the '80s.
January 6, 2022
For such a short book, this was stupid and incredibly annoying. I am not noting that to take a crack against people with dyslexia. The attitude towards dyslexia was shockingly insensitive in this book, and I have no idea whether or not that was common in the mid-80s, which is when this book was written. I've only ever heard people with dyslexia refer to it as, "It means you can't read," said curtly and they don't discuss it further. I asked a person, ignorantly and meaning well, if red cellophane might help. She shook her head and didn't look at me. "What does it do?" someone else asks. "Well, it slows you down," she mumbled. She said increased font sizes and time to read through things in advance helped her. I felt awful; I'd handed her a project with a ton of big, strange words that -everyone- had to ask me about. It wasn't my intent. I make sure now to ask people what accommodations they need, while still realizing I won't get it. So that's a blatant "look at me, I'm one of the good ones!'" and it -still- is less offensive than this book.
The MC, Helen, is hard to relate to. She likes baseball. I couldn't care less. This takes place in a small town maybe half an hour driving outside of Seattle, which the book mentions at least twice per page. It also repeatedly mentions other places in Washington State that would ordinarily have me, as someone who lived in Seattle during the 90s and has been there my whole life, going, "Yes! Woohoo! My state!" Instead, it had me going, "Yeah, I've been there. Move on, please." Helen mentions baseball often, but never mentions the Mariners, who had been around for nine seasons by that time. Okay then. In an effort to hide that she's dyslexic, she pulls mean-spirited pranks that increasingly had me wondering if she was a sociopath.
In the opening chapter, she's a mean-spirited girl who uses string to trip the teacher. By the end of the book, she's lighting off firecrackers. She cannot shut up about the fact that she wears a bra and is able to hide stuff in it. Ew. Also, she's eleven, so please be quiet. She is quite proud of her jewelry that is made of precious gemstones and ugh, I do not care. What she's describing sounds so tacky, not like the fine jewelry the author was probably aiming for. I like fine jewelry and precious gemstones, so that was a letdown. The mean pranks are sometimes to get out of reading out loud, but they--keep going.
I don't know about school in Washington State in the mid-80s, when this took place. However, I do know about school in the 90s and 2000s. Her school had a definite overreaction to her not being able to read, and was giving out discipline slips (ugh, that brought back memories) for her academic shortfalls. They were gonna have all her teachers in one room and discuss right in front of her...whether to hold her back a grade. HAVING ALL THE TEACHERS IN ONE ROOM IS DECIDIING WHETHER TO EXPEL A STUDENT. WHAT THE FUCK. If you're getting held back, they send a bunch of letters to your parents, and you meet with the principal, and beforehand, you have to get your teachers to fill out multiple progress reports and sign and comment on them for -months-. It takes a long time, NOT LIKE THIS BOOK. Was--was this a scare tactic the author was using towards dyslexics? And in the acknowledgments section, she thanks real-life teachers for their expertise! AAAAGH!
But that's -nothing- compared to the firecrackers. An eleven-year-old student tags the school with black spray paint and the principal intimidates her about it. I just--ugh. We did that in middle school, too, and they just gave kids in-school suspension or detention if they got caught. In -high school-, the teachers laughed and secretly hoped you'd tag a specific wall with nasty remarks about them. Sure, they gave you detention, but I asked a teacher about it later and honestly, tagging was a joke. Being nasty -to their faces-, however, had real consequences and was an entirely different situation. So, this same eleven-year-old, in this book for children, escalates from tripping her teacher with string, to tagging walls at school, to throwing an alarm clock in a wastebasket to simulate a fire alarm, to -lighting off firecrackers.-
She has a lot of behavioral and emotional issues. They have nothing to do with her dyslexia. She -chooses- to light off firecrackers, trip her teacher, and try to simulate a fire alarm. And yet, she was examined by shrinks repeatedly and they found nothing wrong with her. YOU ARE BAD AT YOUR JOBS, unless she's a good liar. That would explain a lot. An eleven-year-old lights off firecrackers. The school is not evacuated. They don't go into lockdown. Lockdown, in the 90s and 2000s, was a proto-school shooter drill. They shut the lights off, you huddled in a corner for fifteen minutes, and were absolutely still...until you started giggling and whispering. Nothing like today. At all. So, this was not done in the book. No, the principal runs around and a teacher in the opposite direction and they flap their jaws. Then they just...scold Helen. In the 90s and 2000s, this could and would land you in juvenile hall. The principal and teachers had a severe underreaction and I was appalled. Helen is quite proud of herself and thinks it's funny.
She's even saving a firecracker for her first year of middle school, which is next year.
Author, WHY. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? BAD AUTHOR! BAD!
The MC, Helen, is hard to relate to. She likes baseball. I couldn't care less. This takes place in a small town maybe half an hour driving outside of Seattle, which the book mentions at least twice per page. It also repeatedly mentions other places in Washington State that would ordinarily have me, as someone who lived in Seattle during the 90s and has been there my whole life, going, "Yes! Woohoo! My state!" Instead, it had me going, "Yeah, I've been there. Move on, please." Helen mentions baseball often, but never mentions the Mariners, who had been around for nine seasons by that time. Okay then. In an effort to hide that she's dyslexic, she pulls mean-spirited pranks that increasingly had me wondering if she was a sociopath.
In the opening chapter, she's a mean-spirited girl who uses string to trip the teacher. By the end of the book, she's lighting off firecrackers. She cannot shut up about the fact that she wears a bra and is able to hide stuff in it. Ew. Also, she's eleven, so please be quiet. She is quite proud of her jewelry that is made of precious gemstones and ugh, I do not care. What she's describing sounds so tacky, not like the fine jewelry the author was probably aiming for. I like fine jewelry and precious gemstones, so that was a letdown. The mean pranks are sometimes to get out of reading out loud, but they--keep going.
I don't know about school in Washington State in the mid-80s, when this took place. However, I do know about school in the 90s and 2000s. Her school had a definite overreaction to her not being able to read, and was giving out discipline slips (ugh, that brought back memories) for her academic shortfalls. They were gonna have all her teachers in one room and discuss right in front of her...whether to hold her back a grade. HAVING ALL THE TEACHERS IN ONE ROOM IS DECIDIING WHETHER TO EXPEL A STUDENT. WHAT THE FUCK. If you're getting held back, they send a bunch of letters to your parents, and you meet with the principal, and beforehand, you have to get your teachers to fill out multiple progress reports and sign and comment on them for -months-. It takes a long time, NOT LIKE THIS BOOK. Was--was this a scare tactic the author was using towards dyslexics? And in the acknowledgments section, she thanks real-life teachers for their expertise! AAAAGH!
But that's -nothing- compared to the firecrackers. An eleven-year-old student tags the school with black spray paint and the principal intimidates her about it. I just--ugh. We did that in middle school, too, and they just gave kids in-school suspension or detention if they got caught. In -high school-, the teachers laughed and secretly hoped you'd tag a specific wall with nasty remarks about them. Sure, they gave you detention, but I asked a teacher about it later and honestly, tagging was a joke. Being nasty -to their faces-, however, had real consequences and was an entirely different situation. So, this same eleven-year-old, in this book for children, escalates from tripping her teacher with string, to tagging walls at school, to throwing an alarm clock in a wastebasket to simulate a fire alarm, to -lighting off firecrackers.-
She has a lot of behavioral and emotional issues. They have nothing to do with her dyslexia. She -chooses- to light off firecrackers, trip her teacher, and try to simulate a fire alarm. And yet, she was examined by shrinks repeatedly and they found nothing wrong with her. YOU ARE BAD AT YOUR JOBS, unless she's a good liar. That would explain a lot. An eleven-year-old lights off firecrackers. The school is not evacuated. They don't go into lockdown. Lockdown, in the 90s and 2000s, was a proto-school shooter drill. They shut the lights off, you huddled in a corner for fifteen minutes, and were absolutely still...until you started giggling and whispering. Nothing like today. At all. So, this was not done in the book. No, the principal runs around and a teacher in the opposite direction and they flap their jaws. Then they just...scold Helen. In the 90s and 2000s, this could and would land you in juvenile hall. The principal and teachers had a severe underreaction and I was appalled. Helen is quite proud of herself and thinks it's funny.
She's even saving a firecracker for her first year of middle school, which is next year.
Author, WHY. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? BAD AUTHOR! BAD!
January 13, 2018
Recently my daughter and I read "Fish in a Tree," about a girl who is dyslexic and how she deals with that challenge both in the classroom and socially. It reminded me so much of this 80s book that was a favorite of mine when I was just my daughter's age. Cultural references are dated but it's still a great story! Read it in 90 minutes.
Read
January 11, 2026Review to come. This one was rough at points.
April 22, 2019
Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You by Barthe DeClements is a controversial book mainly for the use of the word retarded. This word is frowned upon by almost everyone, with good reason. The book uses this word to talk about people who use resources from the special education room.
This word is definitely not one of my favorite words, and it hurts to read, but I believe that this word in this book can be used to teach students that the words we chose to use are not okay sometimes, and can hurt feelings. A use of this book would be to teach students exactly this. The use of words in this book can be hard to read, but this lesson is very important to teach students. I can understand why this book is so controversial.
This book would be something that I would only use in 5th grade or 6th grade. That book is made for students who are around the same age as the main character of the book, so it makes sense to use it for those students. It can also be good knowing the lesson of using our words carefully around the transition from elementary school to middle school. That can be a very hard transition for students, and I was one of those students who struggled, so it would be ice to be able to relate my personal stories to this book as well. I appreciated when teachers could relate to the content that they are teaching, and that is something that I could do for this book.
This word is definitely not one of my favorite words, and it hurts to read, but I believe that this word in this book can be used to teach students that the words we chose to use are not okay sometimes, and can hurt feelings. A use of this book would be to teach students exactly this. The use of words in this book can be hard to read, but this lesson is very important to teach students. I can understand why this book is so controversial.
This book would be something that I would only use in 5th grade or 6th grade. That book is made for students who are around the same age as the main character of the book, so it makes sense to use it for those students. It can also be good knowing the lesson of using our words carefully around the transition from elementary school to middle school. That can be a very hard transition for students, and I was one of those students who struggled, so it would be ice to be able to relate my personal stories to this book as well. I appreciated when teachers could relate to the content that they are teaching, and that is something that I could do for this book.
July 24, 2020
While definitely better than "fifth grade," this book has some problems that didn't age well. Helen is clearly learning disabled and the school fails to help her. Granted, most of this is due to her mom's stubbornness.
Unlike "fifth grade" it is nice to see a father who takes interest and doesn't just bowl and wait for dinner to be served.
The book promises that Helen acts like "bad Helen" because school is difficult but that's not really explored, we just see her setting off fireworks, tripping the teacher and putting toothpaste on the teacher's chair.
Unlike "fifth grade" it is nice to see a father who takes interest and doesn't just bowl and wait for dinner to be served.
The book promises that Helen acts like "bad Helen" because school is difficult but that's not really explored, we just see her setting off fireworks, tripping the teacher and putting toothpaste on the teacher's chair.
June 13, 2010
this was a good book. I liked it because it was very realistic. I tend to like books that are very realistic.
February 18, 2011
Even though I wasn't in sixth grade when I read this, I love this book. However now that I am...
Read
October 12, 2012sixth grade kill a person
November 25, 2013
Painfully realistic depiction of a talented, athletic girl who also has learning disabilities and behavior problems.
April 9, 2015
Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You
Boring and a waste of my time
Boring and a waste of my time
March 9, 2015
good kids book. Weird for me to see teachers from a "bad" kid's perspective.
April 9, 2018
I give this book two stars because it is not as funny as I thought it would be. If you are looking for a easy book, this is the indicate. There is too much dialog.
July 11, 2024
Of all the kids featured in this series, Helen is my favorite.
July 27, 2026
Now, I’ve read Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You by Barthe DeClements more than once, and I must say, I have found plenty of awesomely neat things to say about it.
For one thing, the main protagonist, 11-year-old Helen Nichols (who tells the story in the first person), sure is pretty neat, and she does have her flaws (as all of us do). Also, she is quite bright but has a reading problem (because she turns letters around), although she is good at math and sports.
If I had to pick one or more than one part of this book that I would choose as my favorite, it would be these:
On Tuesday we had tests in spelling and health. I didn’t mind the spelling really. I knew I was going to flunk it. During most of the test, I wrote down the first three letters of a word and waited for Mrs. Lobb to go on to the next one. Unfortunately, since there were fifty words, that gave me a lot of time to be sitting up straight and smelling Warren. Why didn’t he take a bath? I felt like giving him a hard punch.
Part of the health examination was putting the right numbers on a diagram of the digestive system. Down below the drawing were the numbers followed by words. I couldn’t read all the words, but since I knew the digestive system by heart, I could figure most of them out.
When I wanted the number for the esophagus, I looked through all the words to find one that ended in gus. When I wanted the number for pancreas, I looked through all the words to find one that began with pan. I was so busy, it startled me when Mrs. Lobb asked us to hand our papers in because it was almost lunch time.
“But I’m not finished!” I said right out loud.
“Neither am I,” added Warren. I almost liked him for a minute because he was the only other one in the room who wasn’t done.
Mrs. Lobb frowned at us for not raising our hands, thought a minute, and then said, “Well, if you don’t mind being at the end of the line, you can work until the lunch cart is ready to leave.”
I worked like mad while the other kids filed into the hall to get their food. Jack poked me in the back to let me know when the last kid brought his tray into the classroom. I scribbled down an answer to the final question, slapped my paper on Mrs. Lobb’s desk, and went for the lunch cart. The creamed chicken over mashed potatoes was cold, but I didn’t care. I knew I wouldn’t get a good grade on the test because I couldn’t read all the directions. All I hoped was that I did enough to pass.
The next day was social studies. Twenty-five true-or-false statements. My fingers clawed at my head as I tried to guess the big words from the little words around them. I felt a little better when Mrs. Lobb returned our health papers. All my numbers on the digestive system were right and my grade was a D-plus.
Thursday was reading. Ten long gray paragraphs followed by questions. There wasn’t a chance. Before school was out, we got our social studies tests back. Mine was an F, of course.
I handed it to my mother at the door of the house. “Here’s another F. I got an F in spelling, and I know I got an F in reading today, so that makes three Fs and a D-plus. I might as well quit right now.”
She looked quickly over the paper and then turned it face down on her desk and took in a breath. “All you can do, Helen, is your best. That’s all anyone can do. When is your arithmetic exam?’
“Tomorrow.” I headed for my room.
“You’ll get an A for sure. Wait a minute. Don’t you think we should go over some of the problems?"
“No,” I told her from halfway up the stairs.
“But . . .” She started after me.
I beat her to my bedroom and closed my door. (p. 55-57)
I kept trying, for all the good it did me. On my report card, I got Fs in reading, spelling, and social studies, a D-plus in health, a C in arithmetic, and Ss in the rest of the subjects, except for citizenship which was a U. Under “Comments” Mrs. Lobb had written, “In danger of failing sixth grade.” (p. 69)
Recess, reading, health, and music dragged by until at last the day was over. Mrs. Lobb stood in front of the class with our cards. She called up each student in alphabetical order. Brown, Cannard, Hanson, Hinkler, Ingram. . . Jimmy grinned at me before he sat back down. He must have done all right. Jackson, Jenson, Keller, Mathews, Nichols. I stumbled getting out of my desk. When I reached for my card, it seemed almost as if Mrs. Lobb wanted to hang on to it a while. I kept my hand out until she gave it to me.
I didn’t look at my report until I was back in my seat.
Reading—F, Spelling—F, Social Studies—F, Arithmetic—B, Health—D, P.E.—S, Art—S, Music—S, Citizenship—U. Comments: Helen is working below the sixth-grade level in the majority of her academic subjects. If she continues at her present rate of progress, she will not be promoted to junior high.
I slapped the card face-down on my desk. (p. 100-101)
Eventually, Helen is assigned to Mr. Marshall’s room, where her friend, Louise Martin, is, and then learns of her getting help for her reading problem.
If you want to find out what happens next, I suggest you read the book to find out.
Finally, I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes stories about school, and I give it five stars (although ten stars would be even better). 😎🏫📚
For one thing, the main protagonist, 11-year-old Helen Nichols (who tells the story in the first person), sure is pretty neat, and she does have her flaws (as all of us do). Also, she is quite bright but has a reading problem (because she turns letters around), although she is good at math and sports.
If I had to pick one or more than one part of this book that I would choose as my favorite, it would be these:
On Tuesday we had tests in spelling and health. I didn’t mind the spelling really. I knew I was going to flunk it. During most of the test, I wrote down the first three letters of a word and waited for Mrs. Lobb to go on to the next one. Unfortunately, since there were fifty words, that gave me a lot of time to be sitting up straight and smelling Warren. Why didn’t he take a bath? I felt like giving him a hard punch.
Part of the health examination was putting the right numbers on a diagram of the digestive system. Down below the drawing were the numbers followed by words. I couldn’t read all the words, but since I knew the digestive system by heart, I could figure most of them out.
When I wanted the number for the esophagus, I looked through all the words to find one that ended in gus. When I wanted the number for pancreas, I looked through all the words to find one that began with pan. I was so busy, it startled me when Mrs. Lobb asked us to hand our papers in because it was almost lunch time.
“But I’m not finished!” I said right out loud.
“Neither am I,” added Warren. I almost liked him for a minute because he was the only other one in the room who wasn’t done.
Mrs. Lobb frowned at us for not raising our hands, thought a minute, and then said, “Well, if you don’t mind being at the end of the line, you can work until the lunch cart is ready to leave.”
I worked like mad while the other kids filed into the hall to get their food. Jack poked me in the back to let me know when the last kid brought his tray into the classroom. I scribbled down an answer to the final question, slapped my paper on Mrs. Lobb’s desk, and went for the lunch cart. The creamed chicken over mashed potatoes was cold, but I didn’t care. I knew I wouldn’t get a good grade on the test because I couldn’t read all the directions. All I hoped was that I did enough to pass.
The next day was social studies. Twenty-five true-or-false statements. My fingers clawed at my head as I tried to guess the big words from the little words around them. I felt a little better when Mrs. Lobb returned our health papers. All my numbers on the digestive system were right and my grade was a D-plus.
Thursday was reading. Ten long gray paragraphs followed by questions. There wasn’t a chance. Before school was out, we got our social studies tests back. Mine was an F, of course.
I handed it to my mother at the door of the house. “Here’s another F. I got an F in spelling, and I know I got an F in reading today, so that makes three Fs and a D-plus. I might as well quit right now.”
She looked quickly over the paper and then turned it face down on her desk and took in a breath. “All you can do, Helen, is your best. That’s all anyone can do. When is your arithmetic exam?’
“Tomorrow.” I headed for my room.
“You’ll get an A for sure. Wait a minute. Don’t you think we should go over some of the problems?"
“No,” I told her from halfway up the stairs.
“But . . .” She started after me.
I beat her to my bedroom and closed my door. (p. 55-57)
I kept trying, for all the good it did me. On my report card, I got Fs in reading, spelling, and social studies, a D-plus in health, a C in arithmetic, and Ss in the rest of the subjects, except for citizenship which was a U. Under “Comments” Mrs. Lobb had written, “In danger of failing sixth grade.” (p. 69)
Recess, reading, health, and music dragged by until at last the day was over. Mrs. Lobb stood in front of the class with our cards. She called up each student in alphabetical order. Brown, Cannard, Hanson, Hinkler, Ingram. . . Jimmy grinned at me before he sat back down. He must have done all right. Jackson, Jenson, Keller, Mathews, Nichols. I stumbled getting out of my desk. When I reached for my card, it seemed almost as if Mrs. Lobb wanted to hang on to it a while. I kept my hand out until she gave it to me.
I didn’t look at my report until I was back in my seat.
Reading—F, Spelling—F, Social Studies—F, Arithmetic—B, Health—D, P.E.—S, Art—S, Music—S, Citizenship—U. Comments: Helen is working below the sixth-grade level in the majority of her academic subjects. If she continues at her present rate of progress, she will not be promoted to junior high.
I slapped the card face-down on my desk. (p. 100-101)
Eventually, Helen is assigned to Mr. Marshall’s room, where her friend, Louise Martin, is, and then learns of her getting help for her reading problem.
If you want to find out what happens next, I suggest you read the book to find out.
Finally, I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes stories about school, and I give it five stars (although ten stars would be even better). 😎🏫📚
April 21, 2019
Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You, by Barthe DeClements has been challenged due to the use of the word ‘retarded’ in the story. The word is used in a negative way towards students who use the resources offered by the Special Education room. The main character, Helen has a multitude of other skills, however the one she lacks is reading. I believe the author purposefully included this language that is hurtful in order to shed light on the dangers of letting these little words slide by in our own classrooms and life.
Representation is very important in literature, and that, in my opinion should include things like differing abilities. This book is written, most likely to students of a similar age to the main character in the story. Sixth grade and early Middle School is a time of change for many students, with grades beginning to matter a little more, content becoming more difficult and puberty hitting. With all of this going on behind the scenes, if students only read about books that have ‘perfect’ main characters, they won’t recognize that it is okay to struggle, and that they will be able to succeed. This book offers hope in that, as well as addresses other issues.
I would use this book in an upper grade level, perhaps fifth or sixth grade to teach students about the damage their words can cause. By having hurtful words in this book, students can see the ramifications these words would have if they chose to use them, and through a careful conversation as a class, we would be able to decide why we would not use these words, creating a more inclusive and safe environment for all students, no matter their learning abilities.
Representation is very important in literature, and that, in my opinion should include things like differing abilities. This book is written, most likely to students of a similar age to the main character in the story. Sixth grade and early Middle School is a time of change for many students, with grades beginning to matter a little more, content becoming more difficult and puberty hitting. With all of this going on behind the scenes, if students only read about books that have ‘perfect’ main characters, they won’t recognize that it is okay to struggle, and that they will be able to succeed. This book offers hope in that, as well as addresses other issues.
I would use this book in an upper grade level, perhaps fifth or sixth grade to teach students about the damage their words can cause. By having hurtful words in this book, students can see the ramifications these words would have if they chose to use them, and through a careful conversation as a class, we would be able to decide why we would not use these words, creating a more inclusive and safe environment for all students, no matter their learning abilities.
September 7, 2017
The main character in this book is different from most of the books I've read in the children and young adult categories. Unlike most book protagonists, Helen has a reading disability. She's had it all her life, and her mother tries her best to help, with little success for either. Add to that Helen's propensity for trouble-making, and we have a sixth grader who really doesn't get along well at school.
The story follows Helen through her sixth grade year as her feelings about school worsen along with her grades. Along with a new teacher who has no idea how to teach in a way that includes someone in Helen's situation (an all too common problem even in today's public schools), this causes Helen to withdraw and act out more and more.
I feel like this is an important book for children, both those dealing with a particular learning disability and those without, as it helps them relate to those who might. I dislike the use of the word "retard" so much, but as it comes from the students who don't know any better, I suppose it's understandable. I just wish the author had the forethought to have one teacher put a stop to it by correcting the students. Still, adding this one to my Little Free Library in the hopes that it will help some child in the neighborhood either gain empathy for a fellow student or realize that things are not so bad and any problem can be overcome.
The story follows Helen through her sixth grade year as her feelings about school worsen along with her grades. Along with a new teacher who has no idea how to teach in a way that includes someone in Helen's situation (an all too common problem even in today's public schools), this causes Helen to withdraw and act out more and more.
I feel like this is an important book for children, both those dealing with a particular learning disability and those without, as it helps them relate to those who might. I dislike the use of the word "retard" so much, but as it comes from the students who don't know any better, I suppose it's understandable. I just wish the author had the forethought to have one teacher put a stop to it by correcting the students. Still, adding this one to my Little Free Library in the hopes that it will help some child in the neighborhood either gain empathy for a fellow student or realize that things are not so bad and any problem can be overcome.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews