Books

Learn more about assigned books students read for school and how teachers use books in their curriculum
The shadow of the hand of a Sotheby's employee is cast over a 17th-century calf bound 1623 copy of the First Folio edition of William Shakespeare's plays at the auction house's offices in central London, on March 30, 2006.
The shadow of the hand of a Sotheby's employee is cast over a 17th-century calf bound 1623 copy of the First Folio edition of William Shakespeare's plays at the auction house's offices in central London, on March 30, 2006.
Matt Dunham/AP
Curriculum Schools in Florida Cut Back on Shakespeare, Citing New State Rules
English teachers in Hillsborough County are preparing lessons with only excerpts from Shakespeare’s works to avoid anything racy or sexual.
Marlene Sokol, Tampa Bay Times, August 8, 2023
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3 min read
3D illustration of a crumpled paper person's speech bubble being burned by a match in front of a multi-colored collaged printed background. Silencing opinion.
DigitalVision Vectors + iStock/Getty + Vanessa Solis/Education Week
Teaching Opinion I Put an LGBTQ+ Book on My Classroom Reading List. Then Someone Filed a Police Report
A teacher shares three important lessons from the backlash that drove her out of her classroom.
Sarah Bonner, July 31, 2023
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5 min read
Illustration of student reading being erased.
F. Sheehan for EdWeek / Getty
Reading & Literacy Opinion Whose Life Experiences Are Being Disappeared by Book Banning?
For schools to prepare students for our pluralistic democracy, we need inclusive books, writes AERA president Tyrone Howard.
Tyrone C. Howard, July 24, 2023
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4 min read
Photo of a caucasian, elementary or middle school aged boy browsing and reading a book in the library.
iStock/Getty
Reading & Literacy Want Kids to Read in the Summer? School Librarians Can Help
A literacy expert breaks down factors that impact students' summer reading—-and they all involve school librarians.
Elizabeth Heubeck, July 21, 2023
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5 min read
Edha Gupta at a protest at Central York School District, where students, teachers and community members gathered to fight against a ban on 300 books and educational resources.
Edha Gupta at a protest at Central York School District, where students, teachers and community members gathered to fight against a ban on 300 books and educational resources.
Courtesy of Ben Hodge
Reading & Literacy What Happened When Students Led Fights to Reverse Book Bans
The stories of two student groups that found success in organizing to fight district book bans.
Eesha Pendharkar, July 18, 2023
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7 min read
Blue comic book strip with the word WOW! in red in the center.
iStock/Getty
Teaching 4 Ways to Use Comics and Graphic Novels to Engage Students
A social studies teacher uses comics to make history feel relevant to his high school students.
Alyson Klein, July 5, 2023
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4 min read
Eliza Walton of Boise and Josie Backus of Nampa participate in a demonstration to read book titles that the Nampa School District is working to remove as dozens of people read those books sitting in the lawn in front of the school administration office during a school board meeting on June 16, 2022, in Nampa, Idaho.
Eliza Walton of Boise, Idaho, and Josie Backus of Nampa, Idaho, participate in a demonstration to read book titles that the Nampa school district is working to remove. The demonstration took place during a school board meeting on June 16, 2022, in Nampa, Idaho.
Sarah A. Miller/Idaho Statesman via AP
Reading & Literacy From Our Research Center How Students Are Reacting to Book Bans in Their Schools
When students know about bans, their interest in the titles increases, one-third of library staff said in a survey.
Eesha Pendharkar, June 28, 2023
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4 min read
Students read books in the Presidio Middle School library in San Francisco, Calif., on Sept. 10, 2019.
Students read books in the Presidio Middle School library in San Francisco, Calif., on Sept. 10, 2019. Most library staffers oppose banning books on any topic, according to an EdWeek Research Center Survey.
Paul Chinn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP
Reading & Literacy From Our Research Center Most Library Staffers Think No Book Should Be Banned From Schools
Almost two-thirds of library personnel think no topic should be off limits when it comes to library books, according to an EdWeek Research Center survey.
Eesha Pendharkar, June 23, 2023
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5 min read
A copy of the book "And Tango Makes Three" is seen on a bookstore shelf on Nov. 16, 2006 in Chicago. The illustrated children's book is based on a true story of two male penguins in New York City's Central Park Zoo who adopted a fertilized egg and raised the chick as their own.
The book "And Tango Makes Three" is seen on a bookstore shelf on Nov. 16, 2006, in Chicago. The illustrated children's book is based on a true story of two male penguins in New York City's Central Park Zoo who adopted a fertilized egg and raised the chick as their own. The authors of the book and some students are suing a Florida district and the state board over the book's removal.
Nam Y. Huh/AP
Law & Courts Authors and Students Sue Florida Education Officials to Restore Access to Banned Book
The plaintiffs are suing to get access to the book restored.
Eesha Pendharkar, June 21, 2023
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4 min read
Blue toned photograph of a school library with the -chairs placed upside down on tables and bare shelves in the background.
iStock/Getty Images
Curriculum School Districts Struggle to Implement New Laws on Sexually Explicit Books
Some districts are using that law to remove certain books from schools altogether.
Madyson Fitzgerald, Stateline.org, June 19, 2023
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6 min read
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a news conference in Austin, Texas, on June 8, 2021.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a news conference in Austin, Texas, on June 8, 2021.
Eric Gay/AP
States Texas Bans ‘Sexually Explicit’ Books in Schools. Law ‘Gets That Trash Out,’ Gov. Greg Abbott Says
The bill was among four “parental empowerment” bills that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed.
Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, June 13, 2023
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2 min read
photograph of a magnifying glass on an open book
Valiantsin Suprunovich/iStock
Reading & Literacy A School District's Book Removals May Have Violated Students' Civil Rights
A Georgia district’s removal of books about LGBTQ+ and racial minorities may have violated students’ civil rights, OCR determined.
Eesha Pendharkar, May 26, 2023
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7 min read
Protesters read in the middle of the Texas Capitol rotunda as The Texas Freedom Network holds a "read-in" to protest HB 900 Wednesday, April 19, 2023. The bill would ban sexually explicit materials from library books in schools.
Protesters read in the middle of the Texas Capitol rotunda as The Texas Freedom Network holds a "read-in" to protest HB 900 Wednesday, April 19, 2023. The bill would ban sexually explicit materials from library books in schools. Mass book bans in a handful of districts are influenced by state legislation, PEN America found.
Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman via AP
Reading & Literacy State Laws Are Behind Many Book Bans, Even Indirectly, Report Finds
School districts are reacting to state laws that dictate the kinds of books school libraries can have, leading to book bans, report finds.
Eesha Pendharkar, May 19, 2023
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7 min read
Jennifer Wilson, a Largo High School English teacher, wears a shirt against banning books at the Pinellas County School Board meeting in Largo, Fla., on Feb. 14, 2023. In Florida, some schools have covered or removed books under a new law that requires an evaluation of reading materials and for districts to publish a searchable list of books where individuals can then challenge specific titles.
Jennifer Wilson, a Largo High School English teacher, wears a shirt against banning books at the Pinellas County School Board meeting in Largo, Fla., on Feb. 14, 2023. In Florida, some schools have covered or removed books under a new law that requires an evaluation of reading materials and for districts to publish a searchable list of books where individuals can then challenge specific titles.
Dirk Shadd/Tampa Bay Times via AP
Law & Courts District That Restricted Access to Over 100 Books Sued by Publisher, Free Speech Group
Penguin Random House, PEN America, and several banned book authors are suing a Florida school district over removing and restricting books.
Eesha Pendharkar, May 17, 2023
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6 min read
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