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Classroom 13 #1
The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13
As heard by kids everywhere on the Echo Dot Kids Edition, the Classroom 13 books are a hilarious new chapter book series-perfect for reluctant readers and fans of Roald Dahl, Captain Underpants, and Sideways Stories from Wayside School.
The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 is the first title in a series about the students of a very unlucky classroom. The easy-to-read chapters are full of humor, action, secret codes, and fun-and will prompt hours of conversation among friends, families, and classmates. The final chapter encourages young readers to write their own chapter and send it in to the author, Honest Lee.
When unlucky teacher Ms. Linda LaCrosse wins the lottery, she shares her winnings with her class-giving each student over a BILLION DOLLARS!
You might think this was nice, but it was not. It was a nasty idea. With great money comes awful allergies, terrible taxes, violent volcanoes, and other pesky problems. As the students of Classroom 13 are about to learn, winning the lottery is not always lucky.
The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 is the first title in a series about the students of a very unlucky classroom. The easy-to-read chapters are full of humor, action, secret codes, and fun-and will prompt hours of conversation among friends, families, and classmates. The final chapter encourages young readers to write their own chapter and send it in to the author, Honest Lee.
When unlucky teacher Ms. Linda LaCrosse wins the lottery, she shares her winnings with her class-giving each student over a BILLION DOLLARS!
You might think this was nice, but it was not. It was a nasty idea. With great money comes awful allergies, terrible taxes, violent volcanoes, and other pesky problems. As the students of Classroom 13 are about to learn, winning the lottery is not always lucky.
128 pages, Paperback
Published June 6, 2017
81 people are currently reading
278 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 155 reviews
February 12, 2018
I finished this book a few days ago and I have been hesitating to write a review. I didn't like this book, and it might be because I am getting too old. I felt this book portrayed teachers and students in a very negative light. Instead of finding it humorous I found it insulting and irresponsible. I am actually surprised that it is on the Bluebonnet list.
The premise is that a teacher wins the lottery and splits her winnings equally among her class. The "hilarity" ensues.... I did not find it humorous and I did not find it meaningful.
The only thing that might save this book is that I could see some good conversation taking place about the book.
Sadly, I am afraid kids will love it... More irresponsibility and negative influence. I would prefer more positive influence.
The premise is that a teacher wins the lottery and splits her winnings equally among her class. The "hilarity" ensues.... I did not find it humorous and I did not find it meaningful.
The only thing that might save this book is that I could see some good conversation taking place about the book.
Sadly, I am afraid kids will love it... More irresponsibility and negative influence. I would prefer more positive influence.
October 31, 2017
I love me a good early chapter book, but this just didn't do it for me. It is fairly mean-spirited, and not particularity funny. I think it was trying to parallel Sachar's Wayside School books, but missed on charming wackiness of those. I'd recommend Bonny Becker's MAGICAL MS. PLUM as a kinder, more hopeful classroom comedy.
October 27, 2017
This felt like My Weird School meets Sideways Stories... but less enjoyable for me. None of these chapters (characters) were redeeming for me, and I found myself incredibly annoyed at all of the characters instead of laughing like I thought I would.
June 6, 2017
When you were a kid, did you and your friends ever ask each other stuff like, "WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH A BILLION DOLLARS?"
Well, this book has 28 diverse students who answer that question with their own ideas... Of course, everything goes terribly (wonderfully), horribly (hilariously) wrong. Some stories are heartfelt, others have potty humor, one is spoken entirely in French, and one is in code. But all of them are fantastic fun for readers of all ages.
This books reminds me of Roald Dahl meets Captain Underpants meets Sideways Stories from Wayside School. The chapters are short, simple to read, and perfect for reluctant readers, both boys and girls. There's even a final chapter that encourages the reader to write their own chapter.
Everything about this book will leave young readers rolling with laughter, and excited to read more in the series. A new book is due out in 3 months, with more on the way for the foreseeable future--each answering a new kid-friendly question. Book 2 features a genie who grants wishes, and Book 3 an agent who makes the kids famous! Can't wait to buy future installments for my nieces and nephews--and even myself.
Well, this book has 28 diverse students who answer that question with their own ideas... Of course, everything goes terribly (wonderfully), horribly (hilariously) wrong. Some stories are heartfelt, others have potty humor, one is spoken entirely in French, and one is in code. But all of them are fantastic fun for readers of all ages.
This books reminds me of Roald Dahl meets Captain Underpants meets Sideways Stories from Wayside School. The chapters are short, simple to read, and perfect for reluctant readers, both boys and girls. There's even a final chapter that encourages the reader to write their own chapter.
Everything about this book will leave young readers rolling with laughter, and excited to read more in the series. A new book is due out in 3 months, with more on the way for the foreseeable future--each answering a new kid-friendly question. Book 2 features a genie who grants wishes, and Book 3 an agent who makes the kids famous! Can't wait to buy future installments for my nieces and nephews--and even myself.
January 17, 2018
The Radical Readers gave this book an average of 4.5 stars! They thought it was very funny and they liked how the chapters were written from the different student's perspectives. The students they liked best were Ava, Emma, and Liam. Some thought that buying unlimited sweets would be a great thing to do with lottery money while others liked the idea of buying Hawaii or making cat island. Most of the readers want to read the next books in the series! For our craft we made wallets :D
September 18, 2017
Cute story about how students waste their lottery winnings. I think my students will it's very funny. It will be great in my beginner chapter book section.
February 2, 2018
A super-funny chapter book for 1st-4th graders. I highly enjoyed it myself.
February 23, 2018
Very funny story, with short, easy-to-read chapters. Each chapter tells what the teacher and each student did with their winnings. Very few of them made wise decisions.
November 15, 2018
Silly fun!
If you are looking for a funny book for upper elementary grades, then you have found the perfect one in this book! I would highly recommend it for a good laugh.
If you are looking for a funny book for upper elementary grades, then you have found the perfect one in this book! I would highly recommend it for a good laugh.
January 24, 2025
A good series for readers . 5 books in the series. My 11 year old read aloud this short chapter funny book this month.
A funny book about kids winning aloud lottery and what they each do with their winnings.
Leeland is going to continue this story by himself.
A funny book about kids winning aloud lottery and what they each do with their winnings.
Leeland is going to continue this story by himself.
January 11, 2021
An update of the Wayside School is Falling Down model, where each chapter follows the foibles of a different student. Light, fun, and codes the students as more diverse than Sachar's predecessor. I think I would have really enjoyed its sarcastic goofiness as a kid.
February 18, 2018
This was a cute story. I hope my kid book club chooses to read it! This is a good story to read with reluctant readers. Short, simple chapters provides a variety of experiences that will be fun to read with kids!
October 31, 2016
Super funny!
December 29, 2018
Ridiculous and cute read aloud. Lily plans on reading more of the series on her own.
May 18, 2019
Mildly funny, leaning towards the Edward Gorey style of unlikable, slightly dark humor.
February 24, 2020
The unlucky teacher turns lucky.. and she gives the kids some of the money as well!
After loving the 2 books I read in Dutch I decided I wanted to continue this series in its original language. I decided to buy 3 books I hadn't yet read and that included this one. Then it was waiting for Amazon to deliver them, and then it was finally time to read them. I started with this one as I want to read them in order. So expect 2 more to pop up and be read/get a review!
In this one a very unlucky teacher has to buy a lottery ticket... and wins 28 billion dollars. Yep. 28 billion dollars. That is a lot of money and most people would keep it, but she decides to share it with the kids in the class, well those who are in the class, which means poor Santiago is out once again (which had me laughing but also feeling sorry for the little guy). I loved that she shared it with her kids and spread it evenly over them.
Just like with the other two books this one shows us what each kid (and the hamster) in the class does with the money. I loved reading from each POV and seeing what they spend it on. Some were quite egotistical with their money while others spend it on family and friends. And one even cloned himself, which I found a wonderful idea given how tired he was, though I had kind of hoped that people would have seen that maybe they are asking too much of the boy. You can't expect him to always be around. We learn how the cow was bought, which had me puzzled in the Dutch edition (as that one was book 2, no clue why they only added 2 and 4 to their collection :P). I did feel very sorry for William, that poor chap. And like with the other two books, I didn't give a hogswart about that one girl who always spoke in code. Either do it normally, or just stay away.
The ending, oh my, given the previous books I knew what to expect, but it still had me very sad.
I also loved that the narrator popped up at times.
The illustrations were once again delightful and I love love their style!
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
After loving the 2 books I read in Dutch I decided I wanted to continue this series in its original language. I decided to buy 3 books I hadn't yet read and that included this one. Then it was waiting for Amazon to deliver them, and then it was finally time to read them. I started with this one as I want to read them in order. So expect 2 more to pop up and be read/get a review!
In this one a very unlucky teacher has to buy a lottery ticket... and wins 28 billion dollars. Yep. 28 billion dollars. That is a lot of money and most people would keep it, but she decides to share it with the kids in the class, well those who are in the class, which means poor Santiago is out once again (which had me laughing but also feeling sorry for the little guy). I loved that she shared it with her kids and spread it evenly over them.
Just like with the other two books this one shows us what each kid (and the hamster) in the class does with the money. I loved reading from each POV and seeing what they spend it on. Some were quite egotistical with their money while others spend it on family and friends. And one even cloned himself, which I found a wonderful idea given how tired he was, though I had kind of hoped that people would have seen that maybe they are asking too much of the boy. You can't expect him to always be around. We learn how the cow was bought, which had me puzzled in the Dutch edition (as that one was book 2, no clue why they only added 2 and 4 to their collection :P). I did feel very sorry for William, that poor chap. And like with the other two books, I didn't give a hogswart about that one girl who always spoke in code. Either do it normally, or just stay away.
The ending, oh my, given the previous books I knew what to expect, but it still had me very sad.
I also loved that the narrator popped up at times.
The illustrations were once again delightful and I love love their style!
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
February 25, 2025
4.5- What a fun, funny and so relatable topic to every elementary age kid out there… what would you do if you won over 1 billion dollars. Well the for classroom 13 their teacher just happened to win over 28 billion dollars and she split it with her class. Each chapter focuses on what everyone does with the money…. Some are only one sentence, some are in code some are in a different language… but they are all so funny. They are exactly what kids would say as well. Peter read it to me and we laughed a lot. It has strong vibes of Wayside stories. Looking forward to reading the next one with him.
May 1, 2021
My students loved this read aloud. I teach in room 13!
March 29, 2023
Read to the kiddo- this was a fun book. Fun ideas and outrageous ways a kid would choose to spend their winnings and crazy ways it could back fire. I'll be on the lookout for more from the series. For reading on their own I'd guess third grade and up
January 19, 2023
Dit boek is zon cool en mega grappig. de grootste aanrader van dit jaar.
ik ga dit boek voor de 5 keer lezen.Het beste en grappigste boek ooit
Dit boek wil mij meer boeken laten lezen
ik ga dit boek voor de 5 keer lezen.Het beste en grappigste boek ooit
Dit boek wil mij meer boeken laten lezen
May 4, 2017
If you play the lottery, you probably dream of what you would do if you happen to win the jackpot. From investing, to going on dream vacations, to buying an amazing new home – the possibilities are practically endless for a lucky winner. If the winner chooses wisely, they will be set for life. If the wrong choices are made, well you can only imagine. Thus the premise of this delightful chapter book.
Ms. Linda, a schoolteacher, is generally very unlucky - life never seems to be in her favor. One unlucky morning she had a flat tire while going to work. Forced to spend money to use the phone to call for help, she purchases a lottery ticket for one of the biggest lotteries of all time. Because she is so unlucky, she just sticks the ticket in her pocket, knowing there isn’t any chance that she would win. When she finally arrives to her class, the discussion starts on current events – one being the lottery. Remembering her ticket, Ms. Linda decides to use this as a learning tool. Because we all dream big, and Ms. Linda knows there is no possible way she will ever win (because she is so unlucky), she promises her students that if she wins, she will share the winnings with each of the children in her class. They sign a contract and pinky swear, and the day goes on as normal. But, Ms. Linda’s luck changes! She wins the lottery in the amount of $28,000,000,000!!!!! She gives each child their winnings, and this is where the story really begins. Each chapter is about one of the children and what they decided to do with their new fortune. Some choose wisely, while some, well….not so much. In the end, they all learned a valuable lesson that no amount of money could ever buy.
The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 is a delightful book that will appeal to young children and in the process, open up meaningful discussions between parent and child. As a bonus, the illustrations throughout are absolutely charming and really add to the story. The writing is simplistic enough that young readers should not have a problem reading to themselves. The very last chapter ask the reader to write down what they would do if they won one billion dollars which the author states he would love to read if mailed to him. This is a great start to the Classroom 13 Series and I can’t wait to read what the children of Classroom 13 get to discover next. Whatever it is, I think it’s going to be a fun adventure!
*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Ms. Linda, a schoolteacher, is generally very unlucky - life never seems to be in her favor. One unlucky morning she had a flat tire while going to work. Forced to spend money to use the phone to call for help, she purchases a lottery ticket for one of the biggest lotteries of all time. Because she is so unlucky, she just sticks the ticket in her pocket, knowing there isn’t any chance that she would win. When she finally arrives to her class, the discussion starts on current events – one being the lottery. Remembering her ticket, Ms. Linda decides to use this as a learning tool. Because we all dream big, and Ms. Linda knows there is no possible way she will ever win (because she is so unlucky), she promises her students that if she wins, she will share the winnings with each of the children in her class. They sign a contract and pinky swear, and the day goes on as normal. But, Ms. Linda’s luck changes! She wins the lottery in the amount of $28,000,000,000!!!!! She gives each child their winnings, and this is where the story really begins. Each chapter is about one of the children and what they decided to do with their new fortune. Some choose wisely, while some, well….not so much. In the end, they all learned a valuable lesson that no amount of money could ever buy.
The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 is a delightful book that will appeal to young children and in the process, open up meaningful discussions between parent and child. As a bonus, the illustrations throughout are absolutely charming and really add to the story. The writing is simplistic enough that young readers should not have a problem reading to themselves. The very last chapter ask the reader to write down what they would do if they won one billion dollars which the author states he would love to read if mailed to him. This is a great start to the Classroom 13 Series and I can’t wait to read what the children of Classroom 13 get to discover next. Whatever it is, I think it’s going to be a fun adventure!
*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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January 3, 2018Originally posted here at In the Senter of it All
Ms. LaCrosse is VERY unlucky, until one day when she wins the lottery. She had offhandedly promised the class in a lesson that if this ticket won she’d split the winnings with them. But what are the chances? For unlucky Ms. LaCrosse, impossible. Except it happens! Each child gets equal winnings and use the money for the CRAZIEST things! They all end up being quite unlucky and they find that money doesn’t buy happiness. But it does lead to a hilarious story with just the right amount of potty humor!
CONTENT:
Language: none
Sexuality: none
Violence: none
Drugs/Alcohol: none
THEMES: money doesn’t buy happiness
THE BOTTOM LINE:
One of the funniest books I’ve read this year. I kept laughing out loud and reading parts to whoever was standing near me. (Makes me very popular.)
STATUS IN MY LIBRARY:
We’ve got it! And as it is a Bluebonnet book this year we will buy more copies! It is also going on our Quest for the Crown list.
READALIKES:
The Terrible Two
Sideways Stories from Wayside School
The 13-Story Treehouse
Ms. LaCrosse is VERY unlucky, until one day when she wins the lottery. She had offhandedly promised the class in a lesson that if this ticket won she’d split the winnings with them. But what are the chances? For unlucky Ms. LaCrosse, impossible. Except it happens! Each child gets equal winnings and use the money for the CRAZIEST things! They all end up being quite unlucky and they find that money doesn’t buy happiness. But it does lead to a hilarious story with just the right amount of potty humor!
CONTENT:
Language: none
Sexuality: none
Violence: none
Drugs/Alcohol: none
THEMES: money doesn’t buy happiness
THE BOTTOM LINE:
One of the funniest books I’ve read this year. I kept laughing out loud and reading parts to whoever was standing near me. (Makes me very popular.)
STATUS IN MY LIBRARY:
We’ve got it! And as it is a Bluebonnet book this year we will buy more copies! It is also going on our Quest for the Crown list.
READALIKES:
The Terrible Two
Sideways Stories from Wayside School
The 13-Story Treehouse
October 16, 2019
No plot and I didn’t care about the characters. I liked the last chapter. The discussion on contracts was absurd and on audiobook it almost sounded racist.
October 13, 2017
Summary
Classroom 13 has a unlucky teacher named Ms. Linda. Despite her usually being unlucky she wins the lottery and she is willing to split her winnings with her class, giving each of them over one BILLION dollars! With money, does everything magically become better? The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 soon find that sometimes having money does not fix our problems.
Activity
At the End of the book, there is an opportunity for the reader to make his or her own chapter. The topic being, "What would YOU spend your $1,000,000,000 on?" This gives students an opportunity to think creatively. After they have completed their own chapter, split them into small groups to share their ideas and answer the following questions:
1. Why do you think most people spend their money right away?
2. Would having over oneBillion dollars make you happier? Make life easier?
3. Do you think that William being paranoid about someone stealing his check caused any problems of his own?
4. Did chloe make the right decision by donating to a charity? Why or why not?
5. If you were in Ms. Linda's shoes, would you have split 28 billion dollars between a bunch of students? Why or why not?
Citation
Lee, H., & Gilbert, M. J. (2017). The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13. Little, Brown and Company.
Classroom 13 has a unlucky teacher named Ms. Linda. Despite her usually being unlucky she wins the lottery and she is willing to split her winnings with her class, giving each of them over one BILLION dollars! With money, does everything magically become better? The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 soon find that sometimes having money does not fix our problems.
Activity
At the End of the book, there is an opportunity for the reader to make his or her own chapter. The topic being, "What would YOU spend your $1,000,000,000 on?" This gives students an opportunity to think creatively. After they have completed their own chapter, split them into small groups to share their ideas and answer the following questions:
1. Why do you think most people spend their money right away?
2. Would having over oneBillion dollars make you happier? Make life easier?
3. Do you think that William being paranoid about someone stealing his check caused any problems of his own?
4. Did chloe make the right decision by donating to a charity? Why or why not?
5. If you were in Ms. Linda's shoes, would you have split 28 billion dollars between a bunch of students? Why or why not?
Citation
Lee, H., & Gilbert, M. J. (2017). The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13. Little, Brown and Company.
September 30, 2017
Summary:
Ms. Linda LaCrosse is one unlucky gal! Until one day, she buys a winning lottery ticket and wins a billion dollars that she promises to split evenly with all 26 of her students... well 25 of them anyway. Now that each student has more money than they know what to do with, they all ponder what they will get. Each student uses their money to buy a variety of things. From cows to cats and even an island these kids sure do know how to spend their cash!
Questions:
1. What would you do if your teacher split their million dollar winnings with you? How would you feel?
2. How would you feel if you were Santiago and you didn't get your share of the money?
3. If you were in Ms. Linda LaCrosse's class and she gave you a share of her money, how would you spend it/What would you buy? Why?
4. Do you think it is fair that Santiago didn't get a share of the money that was won by Ms. Linda LaCrosse? Why or why not?
5. How do you think your parents would react to you bringing home this amount of money?
Citation:
Lee, H. & Gilbert, M. (2017). The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group
Ms. Linda LaCrosse is one unlucky gal! Until one day, she buys a winning lottery ticket and wins a billion dollars that she promises to split evenly with all 26 of her students... well 25 of them anyway. Now that each student has more money than they know what to do with, they all ponder what they will get. Each student uses their money to buy a variety of things. From cows to cats and even an island these kids sure do know how to spend their cash!
Questions:
1. What would you do if your teacher split their million dollar winnings with you? How would you feel?
2. How would you feel if you were Santiago and you didn't get your share of the money?
3. If you were in Ms. Linda LaCrosse's class and she gave you a share of her money, how would you spend it/What would you buy? Why?
4. Do you think it is fair that Santiago didn't get a share of the money that was won by Ms. Linda LaCrosse? Why or why not?
5. How do you think your parents would react to you bringing home this amount of money?
Citation:
Lee, H. & Gilbert, M. (2017). The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group
June 25, 2018
I will be providing this book to my library patrons as I support the Texas Bluebonnet Award program and believe in its encouragement of kids reading a variety of genres, different book lengths and levels, and its representation of main characters from diverse backgrounds. The book’s premise of a typically unlucky teacher winning a $28 billion dollar lottery and sharing it with her classroom of students is full of potential. Each students’ decision on how to spend their winnings is described in his/her own chapter. I knew that the book was intended to be funny so I wasn’t looking for heartfelt, soul-searching depth, but I did hope to laugh. The kids’ choices were ludicrous. I am hopeful that my students find them entertaining and that it is my more mature outlook that did not allow me to see the humor.
Note: After the original posting of my review, a parent of one of my 5th graders emailed me to say how much she and her son laughed as they read this book together! They are moving on to the other two currently published Classroom 13 books.
Note: After the original posting of my review, a parent of one of my 5th graders emailed me to say how much she and her son laughed as they read this book together! They are moving on to the other two currently published Classroom 13 books.
April 8, 2019
Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction
Award: Texas Bluebonnet Award
Audience: 2nd-5th grade
A. This is an episodic story about a classroom of children and their teacher who wins the lottery. They all split the winnings and each chapter focuses on how each student spends their money. It is very relatable to students, because the students are spending their money on outlandish things.
B. This story is a mixture of two different topics: difficult life decisions, and peer friendships. The first chapter or two focuses on the relationships the students have with each other and their teacher. In the following chapters, the students each have to decide what do with their billion dollars.
C. Compare and contrast two different student's ways of spending their lottery winnings. Mason spent all of his money right away. He used it to buy a cow named Touchdown that he became best friends with. Emma also bought animals with her money, but she did not spend it all at once. Emma spent her money on a cat sanctuary.
Award: Texas Bluebonnet Award
Audience: 2nd-5th grade
A. This is an episodic story about a classroom of children and their teacher who wins the lottery. They all split the winnings and each chapter focuses on how each student spends their money. It is very relatable to students, because the students are spending their money on outlandish things.
B. This story is a mixture of two different topics: difficult life decisions, and peer friendships. The first chapter or two focuses on the relationships the students have with each other and their teacher. In the following chapters, the students each have to decide what do with their billion dollars.
C. Compare and contrast two different student's ways of spending their lottery winnings. Mason spent all of his money right away. He used it to buy a cow named Touchdown that he became best friends with. Emma also bought animals with her money, but she did not spend it all at once. Emma spent her money on a cat sanctuary.
May 6, 2018
This is a Texas Bluebonnet Award nominee for 2018-19 and for me, it gets 3 stars.
This is a book that my mother would have called "fluff" - there's no deep meaning or anything substantial to dwell on, it's just light, silly entertainment. I didn't really like it much, but I'm not eight years old, and that's why it gets 3 stars instead of 2. The story has an fun premise: a teacher wins the lottery and splits the winnings with her students, who each subsequently spend their share in different ways. The various escapades the students have with their billion-or-so dollars, as well as the fast pace and short chapters, will delight and entertain most kids in grades 2 - 4, especially all the potty humor. A book like Sideways Stories from Wayside School would be a great follow up for comparison...I'd love to ask kids which book they think they would remember longer, and why. I love early chapter books, but this one just didn't do it for me.
This is a book that my mother would have called "fluff" - there's no deep meaning or anything substantial to dwell on, it's just light, silly entertainment. I didn't really like it much, but I'm not eight years old, and that's why it gets 3 stars instead of 2. The story has an fun premise: a teacher wins the lottery and splits the winnings with her students, who each subsequently spend their share in different ways. The various escapades the students have with their billion-or-so dollars, as well as the fast pace and short chapters, will delight and entertain most kids in grades 2 - 4, especially all the potty humor. A book like Sideways Stories from Wayside School would be a great follow up for comparison...I'd love to ask kids which book they think they would remember longer, and why. I love early chapter books, but this one just didn't do it for me.
July 7, 2018
I got the kindle version of this book because it was one sale. I thought it was so hilarious, and loved the different kinds of students represented in the class (though I was taken aback by the fact that the one Latinx child was the only on who lived 'on the other side of town' and whose character was explicitly described as poor with parents working multiple jobs). I finished it myself within 2 days. I brought it to my class as our fun, read aloud when we have some down time. They did not like it at all. I think it is because of their age (rising 3rd grade, just finished 2nd grade last week); they didn't get the jokes as much. I made them promise that we would try the second chapter, and if they really don't like it, we will put it down. I'm going to save this book for the future though, because I think it will be really great for the middle grades that it is targeted for, perfect for 4th or 5th grade.
June 7, 2019
Childrens early chapter books. Wow. I thought the other reviewers were exaggerating about this book being mean-spirited, but it was terrible. I loved the premise of this book-- a teacher winning the lottery and sharing the proceeds with her students. There are chapters about each student and how they spent their winnings. I enjoyed solving the code of the girl who only spoke in numbers, and reading the chapter in French. But this book was full of stereotypes-- the jock who's so dumb, the kid who's always sick, the Hispanic girl from the wrong side of the tracks (it literally says "on the other side of the tracks, in the poor side of town") the ESL student that nobody understands, and the scientists that will throw all ethics out the window when presented with enough money. This could have been a really fun story, but instead it is one I am embarrassed to have on the summer reading list.
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